Complaints and Enforcement

Massage Therapy Schools and Instructors Penalties and Sanctions

Massage Therapy Schools and Instructors (MAS)
Texas Occupations Code, Chapter 51
Texas Occupations Code, Chapter 455
16 Texas Administrative Code, Chapter 60
16 Texas Administrative Code, Chapter 117

Class A:

$500 up to $1,500

Administrative Violations

Failed to provide student a copy of signed acknowledgement form - 117.62(c)
Failed to provide student a copy of executed enrollment agreement - 117.62(e)

Posting a Public Information Violations

Failed to display school license in appropriate and public manner - 117.50(f)

Advertising Violations

Made false, misleading, or deceptive statements about another school - 117.93(d)

Class B:

$1,000 up to $2,500 and/or up to 1-year full suspension

Administrative Violations

Failed to surrender license upon demand of the Department - 455.154(b)
Provided instruction at an additional location before the location was licensed - 117.51(a)
Provided course work at a new instructional location before the location was approved or continued to provide course work at the initial instructional location after the Department approved a change of instructional location - 117.51(f)
Failed to notify the Department of the name of the person designated as the educational program’s director - 117.58(a)
Failed to notify the Department the name of the individual designated as educational program director when the director is unavailable or absent - 117.58(b)
Failed to provide the Department with required information in response to an audit - 117.66(e)

Enrollment Violations

Failed to provide a prospective student with all required information before enrollment - 117.62(a)
Failed to give a prospective student a reasonable time to review all required information before the student signed an enrollment contract - 117.62(b)
Failed to offer a prospective student an opportunity to tour the school and/or inspect the school’s equipment before signing an enrollment contract - 117.62(b)
Failed to use a Department-approved form to verify a prospective student received all required information - 117.62(c)
Failed to include all required information in enrollment agreement - 117.62(d)
Failed to include all required information in school’s payment policy - 117.63(a)
Offered a scholarship not published and/or disclosed in the written payment policy - 117.63(c)
Failed to establish a written grievance policy and procedure, or failed to disclose it to all students at time of enrollment - 117.65(b)
Failed to include all required information in written grievance policy and procedure - 117.65(c)

Cancellation and Refund Policy Violations

Failed to include all required information in the cancellation and refund policy - 117.66(a)-(b)
Failed to make a good faith effort to consummate a refund by certified mail - 117.66(d)

Records Violations

Failed to maintain evidence in a student’s file proving the student met admissions requirements - 117.61(b)
Failed to maintain all required information in student’s written record of all previous education and training required for licensure - 117.61(c)
Failed to maintain official transcripts and documentation of a student’s course work obtained at other institutions, or maintain a copy of the department's written evaluation - 117.61(d)
Failed to maintain in a student’s file copies of both the executed enrollment agreement and the acknowledgement form - 117.62(e); 117.62(c)
Failed to keep record of all funds received by the school from or for a student in a format that is current and readily accessible to Department representative - 117.63(d)
Failed to provide a student with a receipt of payment after receiving funds from or on behalf of that student - 117.63(d)
Failed to include all required information in a student’s transcript - 117.64(b)
Failed to maintain all required student records for at least three years - 117.64(c); 117.60(c)
Failed to include all required information relating to a student’s probation on their permanent record - 117.67(d)
Failed to include all required information relating to a student’s leave(s) of absence in Student Progress and Absence
Failed to terminate a student after their failure to return from a leave of absence - 117.68(i)(3)
Failed to implement a progress evaluation system, or the implemented system cannot ascertain whether a student’s progress is satisfactory - 117.67(a)
Failed to base progress evaluation system on grading periods, or used a grading period covering more than 25% of the required program hours - 117.67(b)
Failed to place a student making unsatisfactory progress at the end of a grading period onto probation for the next grading period - 117.67(c)
Failed to counsel a student on probation before that student returns to class - 117.67(d)
Failed to terminate a student’s enrollment for failing to achieve overall satisfactory progress for two successive probationary grading periods - 117.67(f)
Failed to place a returning student on probation after their termination for unsatisfactory progress - 117.67(i)
Failed to develop a written student attendance policy, or written policy failed to include requirements and fees for make-up work - 117.68(a); 117.68(b)
Failed to appropriately charge a full or partial day absence - 117.68(c)
Classified school a holiday as a day of absence - 117.68(d)
Written attendance policy failed to require termination of students, as required - 117.68(e)
Allowed a student terminated for attendance policy violation(s) to reenter before the start of the following grading period - 117.68(f)
Allowed a student(s) to start program after 10% of the program was taught, without department approval - 117.68(g)
Allowed the removal of an absence requiring termination with makeup work - 117.68(e); 117.68(h)
Allowed a leave of absence in excess of thirty (30) school days or sixty (60) calendar days - 117.68(i)
Granted a student more than one leave of absence in a twelve (12) month period - 117.68(i)(1)

Operations-Related Violations

Failed to ensure enrollment didn’t exceed the design characteristics of student workstations - 117.53(c)
Failed to ensure the director or designee is available during a scheduled inspection - 117.58(c)
Offered advanced course work in a subject other than that allowed by the Department - 117.60(a)
Offered advanced course work that includes an act authorized by other medical licenses - 117.60(b)
Represented that advanced course work was approved by the Department - 117.60(d)
Failed to provide official transcripts to an authorized requestor within ten (10) calendar days from the date the student satisfied the enrollment agreement’s terms - 117.64(b)

Sanitation and Facility Related Violations

Failed to maintain location in accordance with applicable state and local sanitary or health codes and regulations - 117.54(a)
Failed to clean and maintain instructional location and/or fixed equipment as required and keep in good repair - 117.54(b); 117.54(g)
Toilet facility unsanitary, non-functional, and/or used as storage room - 117.54(c)
Failed to provide adequate hand washing facilities - 117.54(d)
Failed to keep trash container clean, or failed to empty the container daily - 117.54(e)
Failed to immediately dispose of any disposable sheets, towels, or protectors which cannot be disinfected - 117.54(f)
Failed to keep electrical equipment safe and sanitary at all times - 117.54(g)
Failed to use clean sheets on each client - 117.54(h)
Failed to properly discard soiled sheets - 117.54(i)
Failed to wash used towels in chlorinated hot water - 117.54(j)
Failed to keep oil in closed container - 117.54(k)
Failed to ensure instructional site had adequate ventilation - 117.54(l)

Advertising Violations

Used false, misleading, or deceptive advertising, or used advertising not readily subject to verification - 117.93(b)
Advertisement seeking prospective students didn’t include school’s full and correct name and license number - 117.93(f)

Unlicensed Activity

Operated a massage school with an expired license - 117.57(e)

Curriculum Violations

Failure to properly allocate break times into classroom hours - 117.59(c)
Internship program not conducted at student’s enrollment location - 117.59(e)
Failed to provide the entire course at the site of enrollment, unless otherwise agreed - 117.59(h)

Class C:

$2,000 up to $5,000 and/or up to revocation

Administrative Violations

Failed to provide any of the required notices to a prospective student - 117.62(c)
Failed to develop an enrollment agreement - 117.62(d)
Held student liable for tuition, fees, or other charges not disclosed in the written payment policy - 117.63(b)
Failed to develop and/or implement a written student conduct policy and/or written policy failed to include all required information - 117.65(a); 117.65(a)
Failed to give Department written notice within ten (10) days of suspending enrollment or school closure, or failed to provide the names and address of students now prevented from completion - 117.66(h)

Cancellation and Refund Policy Violations

Failed to develop and implement a cancellation and refund policy - 117.66(a)
Failed to provide a full refund of all monies paid, when required - 117.66(a); 117.66(b)(7)
Failed to properly calculate and provide a refund of unused portion of tuition, fees, and other charges, when required - 117.66(b); 117.66(c)

Records Related Violations

Failed to keep a record of all funds received by the school from or for a student - 117.63(d)
Failed to permanently maintain transcripts of student academic records - 117.64(b); 117.60(c)
Failed to terminate a student for accumulated absences, as required - 117.68(e)
Failed to maintain a master record of attendance, or the master record failed to include all required information - 117.68(j)

Operations Related Violations

Failed to maintain minimum standards of operation - 455.203(a); 117.50(b)
Failed to secure Department approval of an instructional location prior to operating a massage school, providing instruction to students, or enrolling and/or soliciting to enroll students - 117.50(d)
Failed to maintain instructional location in accordance with state and local building safety requirements - 117.50(e); 117.51(d); 117.53(d)
Failed to provide adequate equipment for program objectives - 117.53(a)
Failed to provide sufficient equipment and classroom space for the number of students - 117.53(b)
Required student take subject(s) that a student already completed - 117.61(e)
Failed to make all required records and data available for inspection by the Department - 117.64(a)
Failed to provide official transcripts to an authorized requestor after student fulfilled financial obligation - 117.64(b)

Ethics Violations

Provided false information on material submitted to the Department - 117.90(m)
Made false, misleading, deceptive, fraudulent, or exaggerated claim or statement about services - 117.90(t)

Advertising Violations

School continued to advertise, solicit, or advise prospective students after it has suspended enrollment or closed - 117.66(g)
Advertisement seeking prospective students implied school seeks prospective employees - 117.93(e)

Unlicensed Activity

Acted as a massage school without the appropriate license - 455.151(a); 117.50(a)
Represented business as a massage school without the appropriate license - 455.151(b)
Allowed unlicensed student to receive compensation for massage therapy services - 117.59(k); 117.59(l)
Unlicensed school used the word “massage” in any form of advertising - 117.93(a)

Instructor Related Violations

Acted, attempted to act, or held self out as a massage therapy instructor without the appropriate license - 455.151(a); 455.151(b)
Failed to present license upon the request of authorized representative - 455.204(c)
Required students to successfully complete more course hours than is necessary to apply for a massage therapist license - 455.205(b)

Curriculum Violations

Failed to follow the department’s prescribed curriculum outline - 117.59(a)
Failed to ensure an instructor was physically present with a student(s) during classroom hours and make-up hours - 117.59(d)
Internship program provides less than forty (40) hours of hands-on massage therapy experience - 117.59(e)
Failed to ensure an instructor was immediately available to students during the hands-on massage therapy portion of internships - 117.59(f)
Internship program exceeded allowable hours - 117.59(j)
Allowed a student to complete more than one internship program - 117.59(j)
Required a student to advertise for or obtain clients as part of internship program - 117.59(g)
Failed to schedule classes and internship clients for a student in accordance with the pre-enrollment information - 117.59(i)
Offered a massage therapy educational program exceeding five-hundred (500) hours without Departmental approval - 117.59(m)

Class D:

$5,000 and/or revocation

Interfered with or attempted to interfere with an investigation by misrepresenting facts, making threats, or harassing anyone - 117.90(n)
Engaged in sexual contact during a session with a client - 117.92(a)
Allowed any individual to engage in sexual contact on the premises of the massage school - 117.92(b)
Allowed any individual to provide massage therapy services while nude, partially nude, or in clothing designed to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any individual on the premises of the massage school - 117.92(c)
Failed to comply with previous order of Commission/Executive Director - 51.353(a); 117.90(o)
Obtained or attempted to obtain a license by fraud or false representation - 60.23(a)(1)
Used or provided unauthorized assistance in connection with an examination - 60.52(a)
Failed to pay the Department for a dishonored payment - 60.82