(a) The board by rule shall establish fees in amounts reasonable and necessary to cover the costs of administering this chapter. The board may not set a fee that existed on September 1, 1993, in an amount less than the amount of that fee on that date.
(b) The board may adopt a fee in an amount necessary for a periodic newsletter to produce and disseminate to license holders the information required under Section 301.158.
(c) The board shall assess a surcharge of not less than $3 or more than $5 for a registered nurse and a surcharge of not less than $2 or more than $3 for a vocational nurse to the fee established by the board under Subsection (a) for a license holder to renew a license under this chapter. The board may use nine cents of the registered nurse surcharge and six cents of the vocational nurse surcharge to cover the administrative costs of collecting and depositing the surcharge. The board quarterly shall transmit the remainder of each surcharge to the Department of State Health Services to be used only to implement the nursing resource section under Section 105.002, Health and Safety Code. The board is not required to collect the surcharge if the board determines the funds collected are not appropriated for the purpose of funding the nursing resource section.