1. (a) The Board shall appoint not fewer than five (5) persons who are residents of colonias to serve on the CRAC. The members of the CRAC shall be selected from lists of candidates submitted to the Department by local nonprofit organizations and the commissioner's court of a county in which a Colonia Self-Help Center is located.
2. (b) The CRAC members' terms will expire every four (4) years. CRAC members may be reappointed by the Board; however, the Board shall review and approve all members at least every four (4) years.

3. (c) The Board shall appoint one committee member to represent each of the counties in which a Colonia Self-Help Center is located. Each committee member:

   1. (1) must be a resident of a colonia in the county the member represents; and
   2. (2) may not be a board member, contractor, or employee of or have any ownership interest in an entity that is awarded a Contract under this chapter and cannot be in default on any Department obligation.
   3. (3) The Department will conduct a compliance check on all members.
4. (d) The Department may also select to have an alternate member from the list for each county in the event that the primary member is unable to attend meetings.

5. (e) The Colonia Resident Advisory Committee shall advise the Board regarding:

   1. (1) the housing needs of colonia residents;
   2. (2) appropriate and effective programs that are proposed or are operated through the Colonia Self-Help Centers; and
   3. (3) activities that might be undertaken through the Colonia Self-Help Centers to serve the needs of colonia residents.
6. (f) The CRAC shall advise the colonia initiatives coordinator as provided by Texas Government Code, §775.005.

7. (g) Award of Contracts.

   1. (1) Upon reaching an agreement with the Contract Administrator, the Department will set the date for the CRAC meeting. The CRAC shall meet before the 30th calendar day proceeding the date on which a contract is scheduled to be awarded by the Board for the operation of a Colonia Self-Help Center and may meet at other times.
   2. (2) The Contract Administrator shall be present at the CRAC if its Application is being considered to answer questions that CRAC may have.
   3. (3) After the CRAC makes a recommendation on an Application, the recommendation will undergo the Department's award process.
8. (h) Reimbursement of CRAC members for their reasonable travel expenses in the manner provided by §25.8(1) of this chapter (relating to Administrative Thresholds) is allowable and shall be paid by the Contract Administrator.

Source Note:The provisions of this §25.6 adopted to be effective November 1, 2012, 37 TexReg 8500.