Texas Administrative Code › Title 37 - PUBLIC SAFETY AND CORRECTIONS › Part 5 - TEXAS BOARD OF PARDONS AND PAROLES › Chapter 141 - GENERAL PROVISIONS › Subchapter A - BOARD OF PARDONS AND PAROLES › Section 141.3 - Board Administration

Current through Reg. 49, No. 28; July 12, 2024
(a) The
				  transaction of business before the Board requires a quorum of the Board and
				  decisions require a majority of the quorum. Four members of the Board
				  constitute a quorum.
(b) The Board
				  shall:
(1) adopt rules which govern the
				  decision-making processes of the Board and parole panels;
(2) prepare information of public interest
				  describing the functions of the Board and make the information available to the
				  public and appropriate state agencies;
(3) comply with federal and state laws
				  related to program and facility accessibility;
(4) prepare annually a complete and detailed
				  written report that meets the reporting requirements applicable to financial
				  reporting provided in the General Appropriations Act and accounts for all funds
				  received and disbursed by the Board during the preceding fiscal year;
(5) develop for Board Members and Parole
				  Commissioners a comprehensive training and education program on the criminal
				  justice system, with special emphasis on the parole process;
(6) develop and implement a training program
				  that each newly hired employee of the Board designated to conduct hearings
				  under Section
				  508.281, Government Code,
				  must complete before conducting a hearing without the assistance of a Board
				  Member or experienced Parole Commissioner or designee;
(7) develop and implement a training program
				  to provide an annual update to designees of the Board on issues and procedures
				  relating to the revocation process;
(8) prepare and biennially update a
				  procedural manual to be used by designees of the Board. The Board shall include
				  in the manual:
(A) descriptions of decisions
				  in previous hearings determined by the Board to have value as precedents for
				  decisions in subsequent hearings;
(B) laws and court decisions relevant to
				  decision making in hearings; and
(C) case studies useful in decision making in
				  hearings;
(9) prepare and
				  update as necessary a handbook to be made available to participants in hearings
				  under Texas Government Code, Section
				  508.281, such as defense
				  attorneys, persons released on parole or mandatory supervision, and witnesses.
				  The handbook must describe in plain language the procedures used in a hearing
				  under Texas Government Code, Section
				  508.281;
(10) develop and implement a policy that
				  clearly defines circumstances under which a Board Member or Parole Commissioner
				  should disqualify himself or herself from voting on:
(A) a parole decision; or
(B) a decision to revoke parole or mandatory
				  supervision;
(11) after
				  consultation with the Governor and the Texas Board of Criminal Justice, adopt a
				  mission statement that reflects the responsibilities for the operation of the
				  parole process that are assigned to the Board, the Division, the Department, or
				  the Texas Board of Criminal Justice;
(12) include in the mission statement a
				  description of specific locations at which the Board intends to conduct
				  business related to the operation of the parole process;
(13) adopt rules relating to:
(A) the submission and presentation of
				  information and arguments to the Board, a parole panel, and the Department for
				  and in behalf of an inmate; and
(B)
				  the time, place, and manner of contact between a person representing an inmate
				  and:
(i) a member of the Board or a Parole
				  Commissioner;
(ii) an employee of
				  the Board; or
(iii) an employee of
				  the Department;
(14) develop according to an acceptable
				  research method the parole guidelines that are the basic criteria on which a
				  parole decision is made; and
(15)
				  adopt a policy establishing the date on which the Board may reconsider for
				  release an inmate who has previously been denied release.