PROHIBITED REPRESENTATION

(a) A person who served as the commissioner, the general counsel to the commissioner, or the public insurance counsel, or as an employee of the State Office of Administrative Hearings who was involved in hearing cases under this code, another insurance law of this state, or Title 5, Labor Code, commits an offense if the person represents another person in a matter before the department or receives compensation for services performed on behalf of another person regarding a matter pending before the department during the one-year period after the date the person ceased to be the commissioner, the general counsel to the commissioner, the public insurance counsel, or an employee of the State Office of Administrative Hearings. (b) A person who served as a member of the State Board of Insurance or as a staff employee of a member of the State Board of Insurance, or who served as the commissioner, the general counsel to the commissioner, or the public insurance counsel or as an employee of the department or the State Office of Administrative Hearings, commits an offense if, after the person ceased to serve, the person represents another person or receives compensation for services performed on behalf of another person regarding a matter with which the person was directly concerned during the person's service. For purposes of this subsection, a person was directly concerned with a matter if the person had personal involvement with the matter or if the matter was within the scope of the person's official responsibility. (c) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor. (d) This section does not apply to a department employee whose position is eliminated as a direct result of a reduction in the department's workforce.