1. (a) Interior designers shall affix their seal to all original contract documents, including index sheets identifying all drawings covered; specification cover and index pages identifying all specification pages covered; change orders and supplemental instructions which are developed and issued under the direct supervision or authorship of the interior designer as contract documents. Adjacent to the seal, approximately as shown, the interior designer shall place his or her actual signature, date of signature execution, and expiration date of his or her certificate of registration. Presentation documents (renderings, drawings used to communicate conceptual information only) are not required to be sealed, signed, or dated.
2. (b) Contract documents considered incomplete by the interior designer may be released for interim review without the interior designer's seal or signature affixed, but shall be dated, bear the interior designer's name and registration number, and be conspicuously marked to clearly indicate the documents are for interim review and not intended for bidding, permit, or construction purposes.
3. (c) Those sheets or pages prepared by consultants (architectural, structural, mechanical, electrical, etc.) retained by the interior designer shall also bear the seal and registration number of the consultant responsible therefor. The interior designer's seal on the work of his or her consultants shall be applied only after the seal of the consultant has been applied and shall attest only to the interior designer's coordination of the consultant's work with that of the interior designer's and does not imply the interior designer's practice of other consultant's specialty.
4. (d) Once documents bearing the interior designer's seal are issued from the interior designer's office, the seal shall not be removed. However, if the client requests electronic drawing files that would be used as reference documents, the following statement shall be substituted for the seal: The record copy of this drawing is on file at the offices of (name of firm), (address of firm). This electronic document is released for the purposes of reference, coordination, and/or facility management under the authority of (name), (registration number) on (date). Any modification(s) to this drawing shall be in compliance with the Texas Board of Architectural Examiners' rules.

5. (e) The interior designer shall submit to a client only that work (plans, specifications, reports, etc.) done by the interior designer or under his or her responsible supervision; however, an interior designer, as a third party, may complete, correct, revise, or add to the work of others when engaged to do so by a client, provided:

   1. (1) the client furnishes the documentation of such work submitted to him by the first party;
   2. (2) the first party is notified in writing by the third party interior designer of the engagement referred to in paragraph (1) of this subsection immediately upon acceptance of the engagement; and
   3. (3) the completed, corrected, or revised work shall have a seal affixed by and become the responsibility of the third party interior designer.
6. (f) Subject to subsection (e) of this section, no interior designer shall affix the seal and signature to contract documents developed by others not under the direct and continuing supervision and not subject to the authority of that interior designer in critical professional judgments.
7. (g) No person, other than the interior designer represented, shall use or attempt to use the prescribed seal or modify documents bearing such seal without first obtaining the written authority of the interior designer represented, and clearly indicating on the documents the extent of the modifications made.
8. (h) The use of signature reproductions such as rubber stamps or computer generated or other facsimiles shall not be permitted in lieu of actual signatures.

9. (i) If, in the course of his or her work on a project, an interior designer becomes aware of a course of action taken against the interior designer's advice, which may violate applicable state or local building laws and regulations and which will, in the interior designer's judgment, materially affect adversely the safety to the public of the finished project, the interior designer shall:

   1. (1) report the course of action in writing to the owner, to the local building officials, and to other responsible parties; and
   2. (2) refuse to consent to the course of action.
10. (j) Authorized use of the prescribed seal is an individual act whereby the interior designer must personally inscribe the seal. The interior designer is responsible for its security when not in use.

Source Note:The provisions of this §5.113 adopted to be effective May 4, 1992, 17 TexReg 2862; amended to be effective September 19, 1996, 21 TexReg 8678.