81R9466 KCR-F
By: England H.B. No. 3439
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the development and use of an inmate skills development
assessment instrument by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 493, Government Code, is amended by
adding Section 493.032 to read as follows:
Sec. 493.032. SKILLS DEVELOPMENT ASSESSMENT. (a) The
department shall develop an inmate skills development assessment
instrument to evaluate the functional capacity of an inmate in the
following areas:
(1) academic ability, including intellectual
functioning, literacy, and language skills;
(2) vocational and career development, including
employment history, career development, institutional work
history, and prospects for post-incarceration employment;
(3) establishing and maintaining interpersonal
relationships, including the existence of any ongoing contact with
family members or other support systems, the ability to fulfill
parental responsibilities and duties, and communication skills;
(4) wellness maintenance, including health promotion
and disease prevention, disease and illness management, and
knowledge concerning eligibility for and procedures for obtaining
governmental assistance;
(5) mental health maintenance, including substance
abuse management, mental illness management, and the ability to
identify and manage inappropriate sexual behavior;
(6) general behavior, including cognitive behavior,
criminal behavior and history, and history of domestic violence or
other abuse;
(7) character, including personal characteristics and
personal responsibilities;
(8) leisure activities, including the appropriate use
of leisure time; and
(9) skills needed in daily life, including financial
management, the ability to secure and maintain housing, and skills
needed to care for one's family.
(b) The department shall consult with the Texas
Correctional Office on Offenders with Medical and Mental
Impairments, the Department of State Health Services, the
Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services, and the Texas
Workforce Commission in developing the inmate skills development
assessment instrument under Subsection (a).
(c) The department shall:
(1) not later than the 90th day after the date an
inmate is placed in the custody of the department, evaluate the
inmate using the inmate skills development assessment instrument
developed under Subsection (a);
(2) use the inmate skills development assessment
instrument under Subsection (a) as a guide in deciding the
rehabilitative services and programs in which to place an inmate;
(3) maintain a record for each inmate of the results of
any inmate skills development assessment administered under this
section;
(4) not later than the 90th day before any release or
discharge date applicable to an inmate, reevaluate the inmate using
the inmate skills development assessment instrument to prepare a
post-incarceration transition plan for the inmate; and
(5) as soon as practicable after the reevaluation of
an inmate under Subdivision (4) and not later than the 30th day
before any release or discharge date applicable to an inmate,
provide the results of the reevaluation and the post-incarceration
transition plan to any reentry or reintegration office operated by
the county or municipality into which the inmate will be released or
discharged.
(d) The department may periodically reevaluate an inmate
using the inmate skills development assessment instrument to
determine the inmate's progress in skill development and, if
necessary, to place the inmate in different rehabilitative services
and programs.
SECTION 2. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice shall
develop the inmate skills development assessment instrument as
required by Section 493.032, Government Code, as added by this Act,
not later than April 1, 2010.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.