Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Licensing And Enforcement topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board reviews licensing, enforcement and inspection reports; plans digital inspection rollout
Summary
Staff reported quarterly licensing and enforcement statistics, described a recent audit of inspection procedures, and said a Salesforce-based digital inspection tool will launch Sept. 1 to streamline risk-based inspections.
Agency staff presented licensing, enforcement, compliance and finance reports at the board’s April meeting and described changes to inspection procedures following external audits and internal reviews.
Licensing. Wendy Bohmack reported licensing activity for the agency’s second quarter of FY24 (December–February). Staff issued 66 new DVM licenses and three DVM reinstatements, two new equine dental provider licenses, and 56 new LVT licenses for 127 new licenses in the quarter. Renewals for the quarter totaled 3,115 (2,511 DVM renewals, 13 equine dental provider renewals, and 591 LVT renewals). Total active license counts listed were 13,001 DVMs, 2,897 LVTs and 67 EDPs, for a combined 15,965 active agency licenses as of Feb. 28, 2025.
Enforcement and inspections. Enforcement reporter Mike Tacker told the board the agency received 137 complaints in the reported quarter; 21 were nonjurisdictional and staff completed 154 complaint investigations in the period. At the end of the quarter the agency had roughly 315 open investigations; staff reported completing 1,114 inspections to date and doing 405 inspections in the quarter, with 11 resulting in penalties or discipline (mostly controlled-drug related). Tacker said the most frequent complaint category was standard-of-care allegations (72 in the quarter).
Inspection policy and audit. The board heard an extended briefing on recent state-auditor and TDLR reviews of the agency’s inspection process. Staff described work to document procedures, add training, and shift from largely paper-based inspection records to a digital workflow. The agency plans a September 1 rollout of a Salesforce-based inspection application that will allow investigators to access licensee records on a tablet, apply risk indicators automatically (e.g., lack of recent inspections, prior agreed orders, PMP alerts), and remove paper filing steps.
Compliance and finance. Jared Hanraff reported 38 licensees currently monitored under board orders and ongoing fingerprint validation work; compliance has handled about 307 phone calls so far in FY25. Finance director Candice Van Blaero reported the agency was about 58% through the fiscal year and had spent roughly 45% of its budget at the March update.
Board members asked about the recent increase in complaints. Staff said last fiscal year complaints exceeded 600 and the agency expects growth as the state and pet population grow. Staff noted the agency is planning modest, staged increases to investigators and support staffing as part of strategic planning for the next legislative appropriation cycle.
Staff noted several new online features: a revamped agency website (launched mid-March) with online complaint submission, license lookup and renewals, and a new cease-and-desist lookup. Staff cautioned the online complaint form is new and the agency is monitoring for incomplete or anonymous submissions because statute does not permit anonymous complaints.
