(a) The commissioner shall develop and implement a policy to encourage the use of:
(1) negotiated rulemaking procedures under Chapter 2008, Government Code, for the adoption of department rules; and
(2) appropriate alternative dispute resolution procedures under Chapter 2009, Government Code, to assist in the resolution of internal and external disputes under the department’s jurisdiction.
(b) The department’s procedures relating to alternative dispute resolution must conform, to the extent possible, to any model guidelines issued by the State Office of Administrative Hearings for the use of alternative dispute resolution by state agencies.

Terms Used In Texas Agriculture Code 12.0203

  • Department: means the Department of Agriculture. See Texas Agriculture Code 1.003
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Person: includes corporation, organization, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, and any other legal entity. See Texas Government Code 311.005

(c) The commissioner shall designate a trained person to:
(1) coordinate the implementation of the policy adopted under Subsection (a);
(2) serve as a resource for any training needed to implement the procedures for negotiated rulemaking or alternative dispute resolution; and
(3) collect data concerning the effectiveness of those procedures, as implemented by the department.