40 Tex. Admin. Code § 732.115 - Negotiation Timetable

(a) Following receipt of a Contractor's notice of claim, the Commissioner or another Department officer designated in the contract will review the Contractor's claim and the Department's counterclaim, if any, and initiate negotiations with the Contractor in an attempt to resolve the claim and counterclaim.

(b) The parties will begin negotiations within a reasonable period of time, not to exceed 120 Days following the date the Department receives the Contractor's notice of claim.

(c) The parties may conduct negotiations according to an agreed upon schedule as long as they complete the negotiations no later than the 270th Day after the Department receives the Contractor's notice of claim, subject to one or more extensions agreed upon by the parties.

(d) The parties may agree in writing on or before the 270th Day after the Department receives the Contractor's notice of claim to extend the time for negotiations. The agreement must be signed by representatives of the parties with authority to bind each respective party and must provide for the extension of the statutory negotiation period. The parties may enter into a series of written extension agreements that comply with the requirements of this section.

(e) The Contractor may request a contested case hearing before the State Office of Administrative Hearings on or before the 270th Day after the Department receives the Contractor's notice of claim, or the expiration of any extension agreed to by the parties.

(f) The parties may agree to mediate the dispute at any time before the 270th Day after the Department receives the Contractor's notice of claim or before the expiration of any extension agreed to by the parties.

Notes

40 Tex. Admin. Code § 732.115

Repealed 3/1/2014; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 46, Number 05, January 29, 2021, TexReg 0842, eff. 2/2/2021