1. (a) The assistant commissioner for Marketing and Promotion, Texas Department of Agriculture, within 30 days of receipt of an application for registration or license to use the TAP, Taste of Texas, Vintage Texas, Texas Grown, Naturally Texas, or GO TEXAN and Design mark, shall make an initial determination of whether such registration permission shall be granted or denied, and forthwith notify the applicant in writing of his decision setting forth in detail the reasons for such grant or denial.
2. (b) If the applicant wishes to contest such initial determination, notice of protest shall be filed by the applicant with the commissioner within 15 days of receipt by the applicant of notice of such initial determination. The date of notification is the date the notice was mailed by first class mail. Should notice of protest be timely filed, the applicant's request shall be administered as a contested case as provided for the Administrative Procedure Act, Texas Government Code, Chapter 2001, and Chapter 1 of this title (relating to General Practice and Procedure).
3. (c) If notice of protest has not been filed with the commissioner within 15 days of receipt by the applicant of notice of such initial determination, such initial determination shall become final.

Source Note:The provisions of this §17.53 adopted to be effective January 1, 1981, 5 TexReg 4988; amended to be effective April 16, 1984, 9 TexReg 1881; amended to be effective December 11, 1989, 14 TexReg 6251; amended to be effective May 6, 1993, 18 TexReg 2623; amended to be effective September 2, 1996, 21 TexReg 7966; amended to be effective May 23, 1999, 24 TexReg 3844; amended to be effective November 18, 1999, 24 TexReg 10046.