History

The Chief Administrative Law Judge at the State Office of Administrative Hearings, Kristofer Monson has served as Chief Administrative Law Judge for the State Office of Administrative Hearings since April 2019, and has been reappointed by Governor Greg Abbott for a term set to expire on May 15, 2022.
The State Office of Administrative Hearings employs approximately 120 staff at the Austin headquarters and seven regional office locations throughout Texas.
On average, the State Office of Administrative Hearings hears cases for over 50 state agencies and conducts approximately 30,000 hearings per year.
The Central Hearings Panel of the State Office of Administrative Hearings is organized into the following teams and panels: Administrative License Revocation and Regional Enforcement; Alternative Dispute Resolution; Tax; Utilities; IDEA/special education due process; the Central Panel (ALJs generally assigned to SOAH’s Austin Headquarters); and the Master Panel (Master ALJs primarily assigned to complex and multi-day hearings).
The State Office of Administrative Hearings continues to serve as an independent, neutral forum for the State of Texas, providing a fair and efficient hearings process and the opportunity for alternative dispute resolution.

The Chief Administrative Law Judge at the State Office of Administrative Hearings, Lesli Ginn, was appointed by Governor Greg Abbott on May 1, 2016.
Under Ginn’s leadership, the State Office of Administrative Hearings implemented recommendations from the 2015 Sunset Advisory Commission report that stabilize the agency’s budget, improve organizational flexibility, and increase independence from referring agencies.
The State Office of Administrative Hearings adopted revisions to its Rules of Procedure in Title 1, Chapters 155 and 159 of the Texas Administrative Code in January 2017.
The State Office of Administrative Hearings’ Houston office was inundated by floodwaters from Hurricane Harvey in August 2017, causing over $113,000 in damage. Employees from around the state volunteered to take on additional work, while Houston administrative law judges conducted telephonic and remote hearings during the office closure. A renovated Houston office was re-opened within four months.
The State Office of Administrative Hearings’ San Antonio office was re-located to larger new offices on San Pedro Avenue.
The State Office of Administrative Hearings upgraded much of the agency’s information resources environment, with improvements focused on cybersecurity, improved performance, and preparation for future modernization projects. The agency also received approval to move forward with the procurement of a new Administrative Case Tracking System.

Cathleen Parsley was appointed as the third Chief Administrative Law Judge at the State Office of Administrative Hearings by Governor Rick Perry in 2008.
In 2009 H.B. 3612 created a three-year pilot program that allowed taxpayers in six counties to appeal certain appraisal review board determinations to the State Office of Administrative Hearings.
In November 2010 the electronic filing system became operational.
In 2011 the Waco regional office location was closed for efficiency reasons.
In 2013 the State Office of Administrative Hearings underwent review by the Sunset Advisory Commission.
In 2013 the Office began hearing cases for the Texas Education Agency in Individuals with Disabilities Education Act hearings.
These hearings were originally organized as part of the Licensing and Enforcement team; however, they were later segregated into their own team with administrative law judges specially trained to adjudicate these types of cases.

Sheila Bailey Taylor was appointed the second Chief Administrative Law Judge at the State Office of Administrative Hearings by Governor George W. Bush in May 1996.
Regional offices in Midland, Beaumont, McAllen, Abilene, Bryan, and Tyler were closed for efficiency reasons.
Pursuant to S.B. 694, the State Office of Administrative Hearings was authorized to conduct alternative dispute resolution procedures.
The State Office of Administrative Hearings began providing alternative dispute resolution services in 1997.
Work at the Office was organized into seven teams: Administrative License Revocation and Regional Enforcement; Alternative Dispute Resolution; Economic; Licensing and Enforcement; Medical; Natural Resources; and Utilities.
In 2003 the State Office of Administrative Hearings underwent review by the Sunset Advisory Commission.
In 2003 S.B. 1147 (Sunset Bill) most notably changed the process for referring agencies that paid for hearings and dispute resolutions through interagency contracts; transferred the hearing work of the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation to State Office of Administrative Hearings; established an exception to the Public Information Act for Administrative Law Judges’ working papers, draft proposals for decision, and draft orders; and required the State Office of Administrative Hearings to provide interpreters at its hearings.
The State Office of Administrative Hearings and the Office of Attorney General Child Support Division entered into an interagency contract under which the Office would conduct child support enforcement hearings for the Office of the Attorney General.
In January 2007, the Comptroller of Public Accounts transferred contested cases involving the collection, receipt, administration, and enforcement of state tax and fees to the State Office of Administrative Hearings by interagency contract.
In 2007 S.B. 242 transferred Comptroller of Public Accounts hearings to the State Office of Administrative Hearings and created a tax division within the office.

State Office of Administrative Hearings was created by the 72nd Legislature in 1991 and began operations in January 1992.
The first Chief Administrative Law Judge was Steven L. Martin, appointed by Governor Ann Richards in December 1991.
The State Office of Administrative Hearings was established to act as an independent administrative hearing tribunal to hear cases under the Administrative Procedure Act (then the Administrative Procedure and Texas Register Act, Tex. Rev. Civ. Stat. art. 6252-13a).
Cases referred to the State Office of Administrative Hearings were before agencies that did not employ persons whose only duty was to preside as hearings officers over contested case hearings.
The first agencies for which the State Office of Administrative Hearings began conducting hearings were the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission and the Texas Department of Insurance.
In 1993 the Texas Legislature established and placed under the State Office of Administrative Hearings’ jurisdiction the statewide administrative drivers’ license revocation program that was codified at Tex. Rev. Civ. Stat. arts. 6687b-1 and 6701l-5 (currently codified at Texas Transportation Code chapters 522, 524, and 724).
Under the program, persons who receive notices of suspension of their drivers’ licenses following an arrest for driving while intoxicated may request an administrative hearing before the State Office of Administrative Hearings.
In addition, the program established venue for the administrative drivers’ license revocation hearing in the county of arrest or within 75 miles of the county seat of the county of arrest.
Implementation of the administrative drivers’ license revocation program and compliance with the venue provisions required the State Office of Administrative Hearings to open regional offices and remote hearing sites.
The regional offices were located in Abilene, Beaumont, Bryan, Corpus Christi, Dallas, El Paso, Fort Worth, Houston, Lubbock, McAllen, Midland, San Antonio, Tyler, and Waco.
In January 1995 the State Office of Administrative Hearings began conducting administrative drivers’ license revocation hearings.

History

History of SOAH