Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB823 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R2153 EES-F
2	2	By: Rodríguez S.B. No. 823
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to a suit for possession of or access to a child by a
8	8	grandparent.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 153.432, Family Code, is amended by
11	11	adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:
12	12	(d) An affidavit submitted under Subsection (c) is not
13	13	required to contain expert opinion.
14	14	SECTION 2. Section 153.433, Family Code, is amended to read
15	15	as follows:
16	16	Sec. 153.433. POSSESSION OF OR ACCESS TO GRANDCHILD. (a)
17	17	The court may order reasonable possession of or access to a
18	18	grandchild by a grandparent if:
19	19	(1) at the time the relief is requested, at least one
20	20	biological or adoptive parent of the child has not had that parent's
21	21	parental rights terminated; and
22	22	(2) the grandparent requesting possession of or access
23	23	to the child overcomes the presumption that a parent acts in the
24	24	best interest of the parent's child by proving by a preponderance of
25	25	the evidence that denial of possession of or access to the child
26	26	would significantly impair the child's physical health or emotional
27	27	well-being[; and
28	28	[(3) the grandparent requesting possession of or
29	29	access to the child is a parent of a parent of the child and that
30	30	parent of the child:
31	31	[(A) has been incarcerated in jail or prison
32	32	during the three-month period preceding the filing of the petition;
33	33	[(B) has been found by a court to be incompetent;
34	34	[(C) is dead; or
35	35	[(D) does not have actual or court-ordered
36	36	possession of or access to the child].
37	37	(a-1) To meet the burden of proof under Subsection (a)(2), a
38	38	grandparent requesting possession of or access to a grandchild is
39	39	not required to offer expert testimony.
40	40	(b) An order granting possession of or access to a child by a
41	41	grandparent that is rendered over a parent's objections must state,
42	42	with specificity, that:
43	43	(1) at the time the relief was requested, at least one
44	44	biological or adoptive parent of the child had not had that parent's
45	45	parental rights terminated; and
46	46	(2) the grandparent requesting possession of or access
47	47	to the child has overcome the presumption that a parent acts in the
48	48	best interest of the parent's child by proving by a preponderance of
49	49	the evidence that the denial of possession of or access to the child
50	50	would significantly impair the child's physical health or emotional
51	51	well-being[; and
52	52	[(3) the grandparent requesting possession of or
53	53	access to the child is a parent of a parent of the child and that
54	54	parent of the child:
55	55	[(A) has been incarcerated in jail or prison
56	56	during the three-month period preceding the filing of the petition;
57	57	[(B) has been found by a court to be incompetent;
58	58	[(C) is dead; or
59	59	[(D) does not have actual or court-ordered
60	60	possession of or access to the child].
61	61	SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies only
62	62	to a suit affecting the parent-child relationship filed on or after
63	63	the effective date of this Act. A suit filed before that date is
64	64	governed by the law in effect on the date the suit was filed, and the
65	65	former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
66	66	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.