83R7714 JSC-F
By: Turner of Harris H.B. No. 2400
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to children who engage in certain conduct indicating a
need for supervision and the provision of services to those
children and their families.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 54, Family Code, is amended by adding
Section 54.0328 to read as follows:
Sec. 54.0328. FAMILIES IN NEED OF SERVICES; DEFERRAL OF
ADJUDICATION. (a) On motion by a child, by the child's parent,
guardian, or custodian, or by the Department of Family and
Protective Services, or on the court's own motion, the court may
make a determination whether the child's family is a family in need
of services.
(b) A court may designate the child's family as a family in
need of services if the court finds that:
(1) the juvenile engaged in conduct indicating a need
for supervision;
(2) conditions at the child's home, including any
actions or omissions by a parent, guardian, or custodian,
contributed to the conduct described by Subdivision (1); and
(3) the child or other family members may benefit if
the family is provided certain services.
(c) In making the determination under this section, the
court may consider:
(1) any previous adjudications or pending
adjudications of the child;
(2) the criminal history record information or
juvenile records of persons with whom the child resides, including
a parent, a sibling, another family member, a guardian, or a
custodian; and
(3) any other information the court determines
relevant.
(d) A court designating a family as a family in need of
services shall identify the services that the family requires and
create a family plan of service, which may include referrals to
specific state agencies or participation in educational or other
programs.
(e) The court may defer adjudication proceedings under
Section 54.03 for not more than 180 days if the court designates a
family as a family in need of services and creates a family plan of
service under this section.
(f) The court shall dismiss the case with prejudice if, not
later than the last day of the deferral period, the child presents
satisfactory evidence that:
(1) the persons covered by the family plan of service
have complied with the plan; or
(2) if the other persons covered by the family plan of
service did not comply with the plan, the child made the child's
best efforts to comply.
(g) This section does not limit or restrict the orders a
court is authorized to enter relating to parents or other persons
under this chapter, Chapter 61, or any other law.
SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to conduct in which a juvenile is alleged to have engaged on or
after the effective date of this Act. Conduct in which a juvenile is
alleged to have engaged before the effective date of this Act is
governed by the law in effect on the date the juvenile is alleged to
have engaged in the conduct, and the former law is continued in
effect for that purpose. For purposes of this section, conduct is
engaged in before the effective date of this Act if any element of
the conduct occurs before the effective date of this Act.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.