| 1 | 1 | | 81R211 KLA-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Alonzo H.B. No. 187 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to a subsidy under an adoption assistance agreement for |
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| 8 | 8 | | certain adoptive parents of children in foster care. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Section 162.304, Family Code, is amended by |
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| 11 | 11 | | adding Subsection (a-1) and amending Subsections (b), (c), and (h) |
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| 12 | 12 | | to read as follows: |
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| 13 | 13 | | (a-1) The department shall subsidize under an adoption |
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| 14 | 14 | | assistance agreement the adoption of a child in foster care by an |
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| 15 | 15 | | adoptive parent whose family income is less than 300 percent of the |
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| 16 | 16 | | federal poverty level if, based on factors specified in rules of the |
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| 17 | 17 | | department, the department determines the child would otherwise |
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| 18 | 18 | | have been expected to remain in foster care until the child's 18th |
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| 19 | 19 | | birthday and this state would have made foster care payments for |
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| 20 | 20 | | that care. The amount of the subsidy to be paid is equal to the |
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| 21 | 21 | | amount that would have been paid to the child's foster parent based |
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| 22 | 22 | | on the child's foster care service level on the date the department |
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| 23 | 23 | | and the adoptive parent enter into the adoption assistance |
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| 24 | 24 | | agreement. |
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| 25 | 25 | | (b) The adoption of a child to which Subsection (a-1) does |
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| 26 | 26 | | not apply may be subsidized by the department. The need for and |
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| 27 | 27 | | amount of the subsidy available under this subsection shall be |
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| 28 | 28 | | determined by the department under its rules. |
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| 29 | 29 | | (c) In addition to a [the] subsidy under Subsection (a-1) or |
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| 30 | 30 | | (b), the department may subsidize the cost of medical care for a |
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| 31 | 31 | | child. The department shall determine the amount of and need for |
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| 32 | 32 | | the subsidy. |
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| 33 | 33 | | (h) In determining the amount that would have been paid to a |
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| 34 | 34 | | foster parent for purposes of Subsection (a-1) or (g), the |
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| 35 | 35 | | department: |
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| 36 | 36 | | (1) shall use the minimum amount required to be paid to |
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| 37 | 37 | | a foster parent for a child assigned the same service level as the |
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| 38 | 38 | | child who is the subject of the adoption assistance agreement; and |
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| 39 | 39 | | (2) may not include any amount that a child-placing |
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| 40 | 40 | | agency is entitled to retain under the foster care rate structure in |
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| 41 | 41 | | effect on the date the department and the adoptive parent enter into |
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| 42 | 42 | | the agreement. |
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| 43 | 43 | | SECTION 2. The changes in law made by this Act to Section |
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| 44 | 44 | | 162.304, Family Code, apply only to an adoption assistance |
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| 45 | 45 | | agreement that is entered into on or after the effective date of |
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| 46 | 46 | | this Act. An adoption assistance agreement that was entered into |
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| 47 | 47 | | before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in |
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| 48 | 48 | | effect on the date the agreement was entered into, and the former |
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| 49 | 49 | | law is continued in effect for that purpose. |
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| 50 | 50 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009. |
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