| 1 | 1 | | By: Raymond (Senate Sponsor - Zaffirini) H.B. No. 149 |
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| 2 | 2 | | (In the Senate - Received from the House March 31, 2011; |
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| 3 | 3 | | April 13, 2011, read first time and referred to Committee on |
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| 4 | 4 | | Jurisprudence; May 21, 2011, reported favorably by the following |
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| 5 | 5 | | vote: Yeas 5, Nays 0; May 21, 2011, sent to printer.) |
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| 6 | 6 | | |
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| 7 | 7 | | |
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| 8 | 8 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 9 | 9 | | AN ACT |
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| 10 | 10 | | relating to the appointment of a parenting coordinator or parenting |
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| 11 | 11 | | facilitator in a suit affecting the parent-child relationship. |
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| 12 | 12 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 13 | 13 | | SECTION 1. Section 153.609(d), Family Code, is amended to |
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| 14 | 14 | | read as follows: |
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| 15 | 15 | | (d) If due to hardship the parties are unable to pay the fees |
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| 16 | 16 | | of a parenting coordinator, and a domestic relations office or a |
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| 17 | 17 | | comparable county agency [public employee] is not available under |
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| 18 | 18 | | Subsection (c), the court, if feasible, may appoint a person who |
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| 19 | 19 | | meets the minimum qualifications prescribed by Section 153.610, |
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| 20 | 20 | | including an employee of the court, to act as a parenting |
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| 21 | 21 | | coordinator on a volunteer basis and without compensation. |
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| 22 | 22 | | SECTION 2. Section 153.6091, Family Code, is amended to |
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| 23 | 23 | | read as follows: |
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| 24 | 24 | | Sec. 153.6091. COMPENSATION OF PARENTING FACILITATOR. |
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| 25 | 25 | | Section 153.609 applies to [the compensation of] a parenting |
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| 26 | 26 | | facilitator in the same manner as provided for [the compensation |
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| 27 | 27 | | of] a parenting coordinator, except that a person appointed in |
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| 28 | 28 | | accordance with Section 153.609(d) to act as a parenting |
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| 29 | 29 | | facilitator must meet the minimum qualifications prescribed by |
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| 30 | 30 | | Section 153.6101. |
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| 31 | 31 | | SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies to a |
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| 32 | 32 | | suit affecting the parent-child relationship that is pending in a |
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| 33 | 33 | | trial court on the effective date of this Act or that is filed on or |
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| 34 | 34 | | after the effective date of this Act. |
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| 35 | 35 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 36 | 36 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 37 | 37 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 38 | 38 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 39 | 39 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2011. |
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| 40 | 40 | | * * * * * |
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