The Attorney General of Texas
January 5, 1978
Ms. Betty J. Anderson, Executive Opinion No. B- 1110
Secretary
Texas State Board of Examiners in Re: Whether applicants
the Basic Sciences for licensing as.chiro-
319 Sam Houston Building practors must hold .basic
Austin, Texas sciences certificate.
Dear Ms. Anderson:
you inquire whether~the 1977 amendment to section 10
of article,4512b, V.T.C.S. (Acts 1977, 65th Deg., ch. 75 at
151), exempts certain chiropractors from the requirements
of article 459Oc, V.T.C.S., the Basic Sciences Law. Sec-
tion 1 of article 459Oc provides as follows:
No person shall be permitted to
take an examination for a license
to practice the healing art or any
branch thereof, or be granted any
such license, unless he has presented
to the Board or officer empowered
.to issue such a license as the appli-
cant seeks, a certificate of profi-
ciency in anatomy, physiology,
chemistry, bacteriology, pathology,
and hygiene and public health, here&
inafter referred to as the basic
sciences, issued by the State Board
of Examiners in the Basic Sciences.
It is-well established that chiropractors practice a healing
art within this provision. See V.T.C.S. art. 459Oc, § 16;
Attorney General Opinions V-1081, V-988 (1950). See generally
Attorney General Opinion Ii-913 (1976). The certificate of
proficiency can be earned by passing .an examination given by
the Basic Sciences Board or by completion of college courses
in the basic sciences. V.T.C.S. art. 459Oc, 9.9 6., 16-a.
Article 451213,V.T.C.S., governs the licensing of chiro-
practors by the Texas Board,of Chiropractic Examiners. Sec-
tion 10 of the statute requires applicants for a license to
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MS. Betty J. Anderson - Page ' (H-1110)
pass a written examination given by the Board. Prior to the
recent amendment, this section permitted the Board to license
applicants on the basis of a standardized national exam:
The Board may grant a license without
a written examination to an applicant
that holds a National Board of Chiropractic
Examiners certificate who meets the re-
quirements of this chapter and who has
satisfactorily passed a personal inter-
view and a practical examination and
has paid an additional fee of Fifty
Dollars ($50).
Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., ch. 94, at 211. In granting licenses
under this provision, the Board required applicants to present
the certificate of proficiency in the basic sciences provided
for in article 459Oc, section 1.
The 1977 Act amends the quoted provision to read in part:
The Board shall grant a license without
a written emtion to an applicant that
holds a National Board of Chiropractic
Examiners certificate. . . .
Acts 1977, 65th Leg., ch. 75, at 152 (emphasis added). Other
amendments provide for Board review of the adequacy of the
national exam, and prohibit the Board from~requiring examina-
tions in addition to those set out in the statute. The Board
has construed the word "shall" in Senate Bill 446 to give it
a mandatory duty to grant licenses to applicants who hold the
National Board of Chiropractic Examiners certificate, even
though those persons have not demonstrated proficiency in the
basic sciences as required by article 459Oc, section 1.
Although the word "shall" generally connotes a mandatory
duty, Chisholm v. Bewley Mills, 287 S.W.Zd 943 (Tex. 19561, we
believe the duty imposed by the 1977 Act relates to the Board's
acceptance of the national exam results in lieu of its own exam.
Our careful examination of the legislative history reveals no
indication that the Legislature intended to exempt chiroprac-
tors from the requirements of the Basic Sciences Law. The
testimony in the House and Senate Committees did not refer to
the Basic Sciences Certificate at all. Instead, legislators
and witnesses emphasized that the Act was a house-keeping
measure and that it would facilitate the licensing of applicants
who attended chiropractic colleges outside of Texas. If such a
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MS. Betty J. Anderson - Rage 3 (H-1110)
change as is now suggested were intended by the Legislature,
we believe a clear expression of such intention would have
and should have emerged from a review of the legislative
history.
Repeals by implication are not favored. Cordon v. Lake,
356 S.W.Zd 138 (Tex. 1962). A finding that the 1977 Act affects
only the Board's examination requirements harmonizes the bill
with the Basic Sciences Law and accords with the explanations
of the bill expressed while it was before the Legislature. The
Board itself interpreted prior law , which authorized it to grant
licenses on the basis of the national exam, to affect only its
own examination requirement. We feel, therefore, that absent
clear' legislative action to the contrary, we should conclude
that the recent amendment only removes the Board's discretion
to withhold a license from someone who has passed the national
exam and completed other requirements.
The provision for licensing by reciprocity also provides
that the Board
shall . . . grant license to practice
chiropractic to licentiates of other
states or territories having require-
ments and practices equal to those
established by the laws of this State.
V.T.C.S. art 4512b, 9 9. A prior opinion of this office.has
determined that applicants may not be licensed by reciprocity
unless they also satisfy the requirements of the Texas Basic
Sciences Law. Attorney General Opinion V-1081 (1950). Like
applicants for licensing under the reciprocity provision, appli-
cants who have passed the national exam must still present
certificates of proficiency in the Basic Sciences in order to
be licensed by the Board of Chiropractic Examiners.
SUMMARY
Absent a change by the Legislature to the
contrary, applicants for licensing by the
Texas Board of Chiropractic Examiners
must earn a certificate of proficiency in
the basic sciences in accordance with
article 459Oc. V.T.C.S. A 1977 amendment
to article 4512b, V.T.C.S., affects only
the Board's own examination requirement,
not the basic sciences requirement.
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Ms. Betty J. Anderson - Page 4 (H-1110)
Very .truly yours,
Attorney General of Texas
APPROVED:
DAVID M. KENDALL, First Assistant.
Opinion Committee
jst
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