(a) The Office shall provide a Solicitation of an open application period for a California Welcome Center to all interested persons and shall post it on the Office website. The Solicitation shall be for a designated area(s), based on the necessity for a new or replacement Center. The Solicitation shall include a description of the Application process and the Application deadline. The Application deadline shall be no earlier than thirty (30) calendar days following the mailing of the Solicitation.

(b) Not later than the deadline described in the subsection (a), each Applicant shall submit an original and four (4) copies of a completed Application to the Office.

(c) Not later than sixty (60) calendar days following the deadline described in subsection (a), the Agency shall mail to each Applicant that submitted an Application either a notice disapproving the request or a letter of conditional designation. The letter of conditional designation shall indicate that the final designation is conditioned upon execution of an agreement between the Applicant and the Agency.