The Secretary of State does not interpret or enforce the Texas Administrative Code. If you need interpretation of a current rule, please contact the agency that promulgated the rule.
The Texas Administrative Code (TAC) is a compilation of all state agency rules in Texas. There are 17 titles in the TAC. Each title represents a subject category and related agencies are assigned to the appropriate title.
In 1977, the TAC was created by the Texas Legislature under the Administrative Code Act (Government Code, §§2002.051-2002.056). In the Administrative Code Act, the Legislature directed the Office of the Secretary of State to compile, index, and cause to be published the Texas Administrative Code.
State agency rule writers, in cooperation with the Office of the Secretary of State, had begun the task of organization and systematic dissemination of state agency rules in 1975 with the passage of the Administrative Procedure and Texas Register Act (Government Code, §2001 and §2002).
With the passage of the Administrative Code Act, the Legislature intended for the Secretary of State to contract with public entities to publish the TAC. However, as more innovative technology became available, demand for the TAC in electronic format increased. In response to this increased demand, HB 2304 was passed by the Texas Legislature in 1995. HB 2304 allows the Secretary of State to make the TAC available through our web site and to charge for value-added services available through the web site.
In addition, HB 2304 mandated that the TAC be made available in an electronic format at no charge. This complimentary service is available using the TAC Viewer.
Administrative law is the body of law that regulates government decision making. Access to review of government decisions is a key component of access to justice.
The Australian Government works to improve the quality of access to justice for individuals by adopting:
- best practice in administrative decision making
- effective review and accountability mechanisms.
The federal administrative law system
Administrative law offers accountability mechanisms that apply to government decision making about individual matters.
Accountability mechanisms include:
The Australian Government Administrative Law Policy Guide helps policy makers understand and identify administrative law issues in draft legislation or proposals.
- Australian Administrative Law Policy Guide
The Attorney-General's role
The Attorney-General has policy responsibility for administrative law. This includes oversight of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal and legislative instruments.
The Attorney-General's approval must be sought for amendments to Acts for which they have responsibility, particularly the following:
The Legislation Act 2003 provides for the making, registration, publication, parliamentary scrutiny and sunsetting of Commonwealth delegated legislation.
Administrative Review Council
The Administrative Review Council (ARC) was an independent policy advisory body established under the Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975. The ARC issued reports and best practice guides on administrative law issues. In 2015, the ARC was discontinued and its functions were consolidated into the Attorney General's Department. The Minister for Finance announced this as part of the May 2015 Smaller Government reforms.
The ARC was not a merits review body. It did not examine individual claims or hear appeals.
For copies of the ARC's 50 published reports and other publications, including its best practice guides, visit the Administrative Review Council – Publications page.
More information
Government agencies can seek specific advice on decision-making structures, review of decisions, regulatory powers provisions and legislative frameworks by emailing . Advice on matters relating to sunsetting under the Legislation Act can be sought by emailing .