| 1 | 1 | | By: Huffman S.B. No. 1706 |
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| 2 | 2 | | (In the Senate - Filed March 13, 2015; March 23, 2015, read |
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| 3 | 3 | | first time and referred to Committee on State Affairs; |
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| 4 | 4 | | April 14, 2015, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 9, |
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| 5 | 5 | | Nays 0; April 14, 2015, sent to printer.) |
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| 6 | 6 | | Click here to see the committee vote |
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| 7 | 7 | | |
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| 8 | 8 | | |
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| 9 | 9 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 10 | 10 | | AN ACT |
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| 11 | 11 | | relating to a grant program to fund domestic violence high risk |
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| 12 | 12 | | teams. |
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| 13 | 13 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 14 | 14 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 402, Government Code, is |
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| 15 | 15 | | amended by adding Section 402.038 to read as follows: |
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| 16 | 16 | | Sec. 402.038. DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HIGH RISK TEAMS GRANT |
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| 17 | 17 | | PROGRAM. (a) A domestic violence high risk team is a |
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| 18 | 18 | | multidisciplinary team that coordinates efforts to increase the |
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| 19 | 19 | | safety of victims of family violence, as that term is defined by |
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| 20 | 20 | | Section 71.004, Family Code, by monitoring and containing |
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| 21 | 21 | | perpetrators while providing victim services. The team may be |
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| 22 | 22 | | composed of law enforcement officers, prosecutors, community |
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| 23 | 23 | | supervision and corrections departments, victim advocates, |
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| 24 | 24 | | nonprofit organizations that provide services or shelter to victims |
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| 25 | 25 | | of family violence, and medical personnel. The team members work |
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| 26 | 26 | | together to share information and communicate to provide the best |
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| 27 | 27 | | possible responses to victims at high risk. |
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| 28 | 28 | | (b) Using money appropriated for the purpose, the attorney |
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| 29 | 29 | | general may award grants to domestic violence high risk teams in |
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| 30 | 30 | | communities in this state. |
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| 31 | 31 | | (c) The attorney general shall request proposals for the |
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| 32 | 32 | | award of grants under this section. The attorney general shall |
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| 33 | 33 | | evaluate the proposals and award grants based on the need for |
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| 34 | 34 | | domestic violence services in the community in which the team is |
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| 35 | 35 | | located and the effectiveness or potential effectiveness of the |
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| 36 | 36 | | team. |
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| 37 | 37 | | (c-1) In awarding grants under this section, the attorney |
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| 38 | 38 | | general shall prioritize a municipality with a population of more |
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| 39 | 39 | | than 1.18 million and located predominantly in a county that has a |
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| 40 | 40 | | total area of less than 1,000 square miles. This subsection expires |
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| 41 | 41 | | September 1, 2017. |
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| 42 | 42 | | (d) A grant recipient may use grant money received under |
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| 43 | 43 | | this section only to fund the activities of a domestic violence high |
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| 44 | 44 | | risk team in reducing or preventing incidents of domestic violence |
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| 45 | 45 | | and providing domestic violence services to victims. |
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| 46 | 46 | | (e) The attorney general shall establish procedures to |
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| 47 | 47 | | administer the grant program, including a procedure for the |
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| 48 | 48 | | submission of a proposal and a procedure to be used by the attorney |
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| 49 | 49 | | general in evaluating a proposal. |
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| 50 | 50 | | (f) To supplement any appropriations for the grant program, |
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| 51 | 51 | | the attorney general shall apply for any available federal grant |
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| 52 | 52 | | funds for the prevention of domestic violence. |
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| 53 | 53 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |
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| 54 | 54 | | * * * * * |
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