Bill Text: TX HB2081 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Relating to the registration of vision support organizations; imposing a fee; requiring an occupational registration; providing a civil penalty.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-05-10 - Laid on the table subject to call [HB2081 Detail]
Download: Texas-2023-HB2081-Comm_Sub.html
| 88R22676 SHH-F | |||
| By: Klick, et al. | H.B. No. 2081 | ||
| Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2081: | |||
| By: Vasut | C.S.H.B. No. 2081 | ||
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| relating to the registration of vision support organizations; | ||
| imposing a fee; requiring an occupational registration; providing a | ||
| civil penalty. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Subtitle A, Title 5, Business & Commerce Code, is | ||
| amended by adding Chapter 74 to read as follows: | ||
| CHAPTER 74. REGISTRATION OF VISION SUPPORT ORGANIZATIONS | ||
| Sec. 74.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: | ||
| (1) "Business support services" means business, | ||
| management, consulting, or administrative services, facilities, or | ||
| staff provided for an optometrist or an entity that employs or | ||
| contracts with an optometrist to provide services or products, | ||
| including: | ||
| (A) office space, furnishings, equipment, | ||
| supplies, or inventory; | ||
| (B) staff employed by a vision support | ||
| organization; | ||
| (C) regulatory compliance; | ||
| (D) eye care equipment, supplies, or products; | ||
| (E) information systems; | ||
| (F) marketing or advertising; | ||
| (G) financial services; | ||
| (H) accounting, bookkeeping, or monitoring of | ||
| accounts receivable; | ||
| (I) payroll or benefits administration; | ||
| (J) billing and collection for services and | ||
| products; | ||
| (K) reporting and payment of federal or state | ||
| taxes; | ||
| (L) administration of interest expense or | ||
| indebtedness incurred to finance the operation of a business; | ||
| (M) insurance services; or | ||
| (N) group purchasing services. | ||
| (2) "Optometrist" means an individual optometrist or | ||
| therapeutic optometrist licensed to practice optometry in this | ||
| state. | ||
| (3) "Vision support organization" means an entity | ||
| that, under one or more agreements, provides two or more business | ||
| support services to an optometrist. | ||
| Sec. 74.002. REGISTRATION REQUIRED. (a) A vision support | ||
| organization shall annually register with the secretary of state. | ||
| (b) A vision support organization's registration under this | ||
| section is considered registration of any subsidiary, contractor, | ||
| or affiliate of the vision support organization through or with | ||
| which the vision support organization provides business support | ||
| services if the registration includes all required information from | ||
| each subsidiary, contractor, or affiliate of the vision support | ||
| organization as if that entity had filed individually. | ||
| Sec. 74.003. EXEMPTIONS. This chapter does not require | ||
| registration by: | ||
| (1) an accountant providing only accounting services; | ||
| (2) an attorney providing only legal counsel; | ||
| (3) an insurance company or insurance agent providing | ||
| only insurance policies to a business; | ||
| (4) entities providing only investment and financial | ||
| advisory services; | ||
| (5) an accredited college of optometry or college of | ||
| medicine in this state; | ||
| (6) an optometrist who has an ownership interest in | ||
| three or fewer locations; | ||
| (7) a community health center, as defined by Section | ||
| 351.367(a), Occupations Code; and | ||
| (8) a nonprofit corporation governed by Chapter 22, | ||
| Business Organizations Code, and exempt from taxation under Section | ||
| 501(a), Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as an organization described | ||
| by Section 501(c)(3) of that code, that performs eye care services | ||
| primarily for homeless, migrant, indigent, or medically | ||
| underserved populations. | ||
| Sec. 74.004. CONTENTS OF REGISTRATION; FEE. (a) The | ||
| registration required by Section 74.002 must include: | ||
| (1) the name and business address of the vision | ||
| support organization; | ||
| (2) the name and business address of each optometrist | ||
| and each entity that employs or contracts with an optometrist to | ||
| provide eye care services in this state with which the vision | ||
| support organization has entered into an agreement to provide two | ||
| or more business support services; | ||
| (3) the name of each optometrist who owns any portion | ||
| of the vision support organization; | ||
| (4) the name of each person who is not an optometrist | ||
| and owns five percent or more of the vision support organization; | ||
| and | ||
| (5) a list of all business support services provided | ||
| to each optometrist or each entity that employs or contracts with an | ||
| optometrist to provide eye care services. | ||
| (b) A registration and each corrected registration must be | ||
| accompanied by a fee set by the secretary of state in an amount | ||
| necessary to recover the costs of administering this chapter. | ||
| (c) A registration or corrected registration is not | ||
| effective until the vision support organization pays the fee | ||
| required by this section. | ||
| Sec. 74.005. TIMING OF REGISTRATION; CORRECTION REQUIRED. | ||
| (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), the registration required | ||
| by Section 74.002 must be filed with the secretary of state not | ||
| later than January 31 of each year for which the registration is | ||
| effective. | ||
| (b) A vision support organization that initially meets the | ||
| requirement for registration under Section 74.002 after January 31 | ||
| shall file the registration required by that section not later than | ||
| the 90th day after the date an agreement to provide business support | ||
| services is executed. | ||
| (c) A vision support organization shall file a corrected | ||
| registration semiannually as necessary. | ||
| Sec. 74.006. FAILURE TO FILE REGISTRATION OR CORRECTION. | ||
| (a) A person who fails to file a registration or a corrected | ||
| registration as required by this chapter is liable to the state for | ||
| a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed $1,000. | ||
| (b) Each day a violation continues or occurs is a separate | ||
| violation for the purpose of imposing the civil penalty. | ||
| (c) The attorney general shall file suit to collect the | ||
| civil penalty provided by this section. The suit may be filed in | ||
| Travis County or any county where the vision support organization | ||
| provides business support services. | ||
| Sec. 74.007. INTERAGENCY MEMORANDUM. The secretary of | ||
| state shall enter into an interagency memorandum to share the | ||
| information collected by the secretary of state under this chapter | ||
| with any relevant state agency. | ||
| Sec. 74.008. APPLICABILITY. This chapter does not limit | ||
| business support services that may be provided to an optometrist by | ||
| a vision support organization, to the extent permitted under | ||
| Section 351.408, Occupations Code. | ||
| Sec. 74.009. LIMITATION ON OPTOMETRY BOARD RULEMAKING. The | ||
| Texas Optometry Board may not adopt any rule limiting the right of | ||
| an optometrist to contract with a vision support organization for | ||
| business support services that are otherwise legally permissible. | ||
| SECTION 2. Notwithstanding Section 74.002, Business & | ||
| Commerce Code, as added by this Act, a vision support organization | ||
| is not required to register under that section before February 1, | ||
| 2024. | ||
| SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. | ||
