TRAINING REQUIREMENTS

(a) A person who is appointed to and qualifies for office as a member of the board may not vote, deliberate, or be counted as a member in attendance at a meeting of the board until the person completes a training program that complies with this section. (b) The training program must provide the person with information regarding: (1) the law governing board operations; (2) the programs, functions, rules, and budget of the board; (3) the scope of and limitations on the rulemaking authority of the board; (4) the types of board rules, interpretations, and enforcement actions that may implicate federal antitrust law by limiting competition or impacting prices charged by persons engaged in a profession or business the board regulates, including any rule, interpretation, or enforcement action that: (A) regulates the scope of practice of persons in a profession or business the board regulates; (B) restricts advertising by persons in a profession or business the board regulates; (C) affects the price of goods or services provided by persons in a profession or business the board regulates; or (D) restricts participation in a profession or business the board regulates; (5) the results of the most recent formal audit of the board; (6) the requirements of: (A) laws relating to open meetings, public information, administrative procedure, and disclosure of conflicts of interest; and (B) other laws applicable to members of the board in performing their duties; and (7) any applicable ethics policies adopted by the board or the Texas Ethics Commission. (c) A person appointed to the board is entitled to reimbursement, as provided by the General Appropriations Act, for the travel expenses incurred in attending the training program regardless of whether the attendance at the program occurs before or after the person qualifies for office. (d) The executive director of the executive council shall create a training manual that includes the information required by Subsection (b). The executive director shall distribute a copy of the training manual annually to each board member. Each member of the board shall sign and submit to the executive director a statement acknowledging that the member received and has reviewed the training manual.