By: Schwertner, et al. S.B. No. 11
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the administration of services provided by the
Department of Family and Protective Services, including foster
care, child protective, relative and kinship caregiver support, and
prevention and early intervention services.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 71.004, Family Code, is amended to read
as follows:
Sec. 71.004. FAMILY VIOLENCE. "Family violence" means:
(1) an act by a member of a family or household against
another member of the family or household that is intended to result
in physical harm, bodily injury, assault, or sexual assault or that
is a threat that reasonably places the member in fear of imminent
physical harm, bodily injury, assault, or sexual assault, but does
not include defensive measures to protect oneself;
(2) abuse, as that term is defined by Sections
261.001(1)(C), (E), (G), (H), (I), (J), [and] (K), and (M), by a
member of a family or household toward a child of the family or
household; or
(3) dating violence, as that term is defined by
Section 71.0021.
SECTION 2. Section 162.005, Family Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
(c) The department shall ensure that each licensed
child-placing agency, single source continuum contractor, or other
person placing a child for adoption receives a copy of any portion
of the report prepared by the department.
SECTION 3. Section 162.0062, Family Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:
(a-1) If a child is placed with a prospective adoptive
parent prior to adoption, the prospective adoptive parent is
entitled to examine any record or other information relating to the
child's health history, including the portion of the report
prepared under Section 162.005 for the child that relates to the
child's health. The department, licensed child-placing agency,
single source continuum contractor, or other person placing a child
for adoption shall inform the prospective adoptive parent of the
prospective adoptive parent's right to examine the records and
other information relating to the child's health history. The
department, licensed child-placing agency, single source continuum
contractor, or other person placing the child for adoption shall
edit the records and information to protect the identity of the
biological parents and any other person whose identity is
confidential.
SECTION 4. Section 162.007, Family Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (g) to read as
follows:
(a) The health history of the child must include information
about:
(1) the child's health status at the time of placement;
(2) the child's birth, neonatal, and other medical,
psychological, psychiatric, and dental history information,
including to the extent known by the department:
(A) whether the child's birth mother consumed
alcohol during pregnancy; and
(B) whether the child has been diagnosed with
fetal alcohol spectrum disorder;
(3) a record of immunizations for the child; and
(4) the available results of medical, psychological,
psychiatric, and dental examinations of the child.
(g) In this section, "fetal alcohol spectrum disorder"
means any of a group of conditions that can occur in a person whose
mother consumed alcohol during pregnancy.
SECTION 5. Section 261.001(1), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(1) "Abuse" includes the following acts or omissions
by a person:
(A) mental or emotional injury to a child that
results in an observable and material impairment in the child's
growth, development, or psychological functioning;
(B) causing or permitting the child to be in a
situation in which the child sustains a mental or emotional injury
that results in an observable and material impairment in the
child's growth, development, or psychological functioning;
(C) physical injury that results in substantial
harm to the child, or the genuine threat of substantial harm from
physical injury to the child, including an injury that is at
variance with the history or explanation given and excluding an
accident or reasonable discipline by a parent, guardian, or
managing or possessory conservator that does not expose the child
to a substantial risk of harm;
(D) failure to make a reasonable effort to
prevent an action by another person that results in physical injury
that results in substantial harm to the child;
(E) sexual conduct harmful to a child's mental,
emotional, or physical welfare, including conduct that constitutes
the offense of continuous sexual abuse of young child or children
under Section 21.02, Penal Code, indecency with a child under
Section 21.11, Penal Code, sexual assault under Section 22.011,
Penal Code, or aggravated sexual assault under Section 22.021,
Penal Code;
(F) failure to make a reasonable effort to
prevent sexual conduct harmful to a child;
(G) compelling or encouraging the child to engage
in sexual conduct as defined by Section 43.01, Penal Code,
including compelling or encouraging the child in a manner that
constitutes an offense of trafficking of persons under Section
20A.02(a)(7) or (8), Penal Code, prostitution under Section
43.02(b), Penal Code, or compelling prostitution under Section
43.05(a)(2), Penal Code;
(H) causing, permitting, encouraging, engaging
in, or allowing the photographing, filming, or depicting of the
child if the person knew or should have known that the resulting
photograph, film, or depiction of the child is obscene as defined by
Section 43.21, Penal Code, or pornographic;
(I) the current use by a person of a controlled
substance as defined by Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code, in a
manner or to the extent that the use results in physical, mental, or
emotional injury to a child;
(J) causing, expressly permitting, or
encouraging a child to use a controlled substance as defined by
Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code;
(K) causing, permitting, encouraging, engaging
in, or allowing a sexual performance by a child as defined by
Section 43.25, Penal Code; [or]
(L) knowingly causing, permitting, encouraging,
engaging in, or allowing a child to be trafficked in a manner
punishable as an offense under Section 20A.02(a)(5), (6), (7), or
(8), Penal Code, or the failure to make a reasonable effort to
prevent a child from being trafficked in a manner punishable as an
offense under any of those sections; or
(M) forcing or coercing a child to enter into a
marriage.
SECTION 6. Section 261.001(5), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(5) "Person responsible for a child's care, custody,
or welfare" means a person who traditionally is responsible for a
child's care, custody, or welfare, including:
(A) a parent, guardian, managing or possessory
conservator, or foster parent of the child;
(B) a member of the child's family or household
as defined by Chapter 71;
(C) a person with whom the child's parent
cohabits;
(D) school personnel or a volunteer at the
child's school; [or]
(E) personnel or a volunteer at a public or
private child-care facility that provides services for the child or
at a public or private residential institution or facility where
the child resides; or
(F) an employee, volunteer, or other person
working under the supervision of a licensed or unlicensed
child-care facility, including a family home, residential
child-care facility, employer-based day-care facility, or shelter
day-care facility, as those terms are defined in Chapter 42, Human
Resources Code.
SECTION 7. Subchapter A, Chapter 261, Family Code, is
amended by adding Section 261.004 to read as follows:
Sec. 261.004. TRACKING OF RECURRENCE OF CHILD ABUSE OR
NEGLECT REPORTS. (a) The department shall:
(1) collect and monitor data regarding repeated
reports of abuse or neglect:
(A) involving the same child, including reports
of abuse or neglect of the child made while the child resided in
other households and reports of abuse or neglect of the child by
different alleged perpetrators made while the child resided in the
same household; or
(B) by the same alleged perpetrator.
(a-1) In monitoring reports of abuse or neglect under
Subsection (a), the department shall group together separate
reports involving differing children residing in the same
household.
(b) The department shall consider any report collected
under Subsection (a) involving any child or adult who is a part of a
child's household when making case priority determinations or when
conducting service or safety planning for the child or the child's
family.
SECTION 8. Section 263.401, Family Code, is amended to read
as follows:
Sec. 263.401. DISMISSAL AFTER ONE YEAR; NEW TRIALS;
EXTENSION. (a) Unless the court has commenced the trial on the
merits or granted an extension under Subsection (b) or (b-1), on the
first Monday after the first anniversary of the date the court
rendered a temporary order appointing the department as temporary
managing conservator, the court's jurisdiction over [court shall
dismiss] the suit affecting the parent-child relationship filed by
the department that requests termination of the parent-child
relationship or requests that the department be named conservator
of the child is terminated and the suit is automatically dismissed
without a court order.
(b) Unless the court has commenced the trial on the merits,
the court may not retain the suit on the court's docket after the
time described by Subsection (a) unless the court finds that
extraordinary circumstances necessitate the child remaining in the
temporary managing conservatorship of the department and that
continuing the appointment of the department as temporary managing
conservator is in the best interest of the child. If the court
makes those findings, the court may retain the suit on the court's
docket for a period not to exceed 180 days after the time described
by Subsection (a). If the court retains the suit on the court's
docket, the court shall render an order in which the court:
(1) schedules the new date on which the suit will be
automatically dismissed if the trial on the merits has not
commenced, which date must be not later than the 180th day after the
time described by Subsection (a);
(2) makes further temporary orders for the safety and
welfare of the child as necessary to avoid further delay in
resolving the suit; and
(3) sets the trial on the merits on a date not later
than the date specified under Subdivision (1).
(b-1) If, after commencement of the initial trial on the
merits within the time required by Subsection (a) or (b), the court
grants a motion for a new trial or mistrial, or the case is remanded
to the court by an appellate court following an appeal of the
court's final order, the court shall retain the suit on the court's
docket and render an order in which the court:
(1) schedules a new date on which the suit will be
automatically dismissed if the new trial has not commenced, which
must be a date not later than the 180th day after the date on which:
(A) the motion for a new trial or mistrial is
granted; or
(B) the appellate court remanded the case;
(2) makes further temporary orders for the safety and
welfare of the child as necessary to avoid further delay in
resolving the suit; and
(3) sets the new trial on the merits for a date not
later than the date specified under Subdivision (1).
(c) If the court grants an extension under Subsection (b) or
(b-1) but does not commence the trial on the merits before the
dismissal date, the court's jurisdiction over [court shall dismiss]
the suit is terminated and the suit is automatically dismissed
without a court order. The court may not grant an additional
extension that extends the suit beyond the required date for
dismissal under Subsection (b) or (b-1), as applicable.
SECTION 9. Section 264.018, Family Code, is amended by
adding Subsections (d-1) and (d-2) to read as follows:
(d-1) Except as provided by Subsection (d-2), as soon as
possible but not later than 24 hours after a change in placement of
a child in the conservatorship of the department, the department
shall give notice of the placement change to the managed care
organization that contracts with the commission to provide health
care services to the child under the STAR Health program. The
managed care organization shall give notice of the placement change
to the primary care physician listed in the child's health passport
before the end of the second business day after the day the
organization receives the notification from the department.
(d-2) In this subsection, "catchment area" has the meaning
assigned by Section 264.151. In a catchment area in which
community-based care has been implemented, the single source
continuum contractor that has contracted with the commission to
provide foster care services in that catchment area shall, as soon
as possible but not later than 24 hours after a change in placement
of a child in the conservatorship of the department, give notice of
the placement change to the managed care organization that
contracts with the commission to provide health care services to
the child under the STAR Health program. The managed care
organization shall give notice of the placement change to the
child's primary care physician in accordance with Subsection (d-1).
SECTION 10. (a) Subchapter B, Chapter 264, Family Code, is
amended by adding Section 264.1076 to read as follows:
Sec. 264.1076. MEDICAL EXAMINATION REQUIRED. (a) This
section applies only to a child who has been taken into the
conservatorship of the department and remains in the
conservatorship of the department for more than three business
days.
(b) The department shall ensure that each child described by
Subsection (a) is examined by a physician or other health care
provider authorized under state law to conduct medical examinations
not later than the end of the third business day after the date the
child enters the conservatorship of the department.
(c) The department shall collaborate with the commission
and relevant medical practitioners to develop guidelines for the
medical examination conducted under this section, including
guidelines on the components to be included in the examination.
(d) Not later than December 31, 2019, the department shall
submit a report to the standing committees of the house of
representatives and the senate with primary jurisdiction over child
protective services and foster care evaluating the statewide
implementation of the medical examination required by this section.
The report must include the level of compliance with the
requirements of this section in each region of the state.
(b) Section 264.1076, Family Code, as added by this section,
applies only to a child who enters the conservatorship of the
Department of Family and Protective Services on or after the
effective date of this Act. A child who enters the conservatorship
of the Department of Family and Protective Services before the
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
date the child entered the conservatorship of the department, and
the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
(c) The Department of Family and Protective Services shall
implement Section 264.1076, Family Code, as added by this section,
not later than December 31, 2018.
SECTION 11. (a) Subchapter B, Chapter 264, Family Code, is
amended by adding Sections 264.1261 and 264.128 to read as follows:
Sec. 264.1261. FOSTER CARE CAPACITY NEEDS PLAN. (a) In
this section, "community-based care" has the meaning assigned by
Section 264.151.
(b) Appropriate department management personnel from a
child protective services region in which community-based care has
not been implemented, in collaboration with foster care providers,
faith-based entities, and child advocates in that region, shall use
data collected by the department on foster care capacity needs and
availability of each type of foster care and kinship placement in
the region to create a plan to address the substitute care capacity
needs in the region. The plan must identify both short-term and
long-term goals and strategies for addressing those capacity needs.
(c) A foster care capacity needs plan developed under
Subsection (b) must be:
(1) submitted to and approved by the commissioner; and
(2) updated annually.
(d) The department shall publish each initial foster care
capacity needs plan and each annual update to a plan on the
department's Internet website.
Sec. 264.128. SINGLE CHILD PLAN OF SERVICE INITIATIVE.
(a) In this section, "community-based care" has the meaning
assigned by Section 264.151.
(b) In regions of the state where community-based care has
not been implemented, the department shall:
(1) collaborate with child-placing agencies to
implement the single child plan of service model developed under
the single child plan of service initiative; and
(2) ensure that a single child plan of service is
developed for each child in foster care in those regions.
(b) Notwithstanding Section 264.128(b), Family Code, as
added by this section, the Department of Family and Protective
Services shall develop and implement a single child plan of service
for each child in foster care in a region of the state described by
that section not later than September 1, 2017.
SECTION 12. (a) Chapter 264, Family Code, is amended by
adding Subchapter B-1 to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER B-1. COMMUNITY-BASED CARE
Sec. 264.151. DEFINITIONS. Except as otherwise provided in
this subchapter:
(1) "Case management" means the provision of case
management services to a child for whom the department has been
appointed temporary or permanent managing conservator or to the
child's family, a young adult in extended foster care, a relative or
kinship caregiver, or a child who has been placed in the catchment
area through the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children,
and includes:
(A) caseworker visits with the child;
(B) family and caregiver visits;
(C) convening and conducting permanency planning
meetings;
(D) the development and revision of child and
family plans of service, including a permanency plan and goals for a
child or young adult in care;
(E) the coordination and monitoring of services
required by the child and the child's family;
(F) the assumption of court-related duties
regarding the child, including:
(i) providing any required notifications or
consultations;
(ii) preparing court reports;
(iii) attending judicial and permanency
hearings, trials, and mediations;
(iv) complying with applicable court
orders; and
(v) ensuring the child is progressing
toward the goal of permanency within state and federally mandated
guidelines; and
(G) any other function or service that the
department determines necessary to allow a single source continuum
contractor to assume responsibility for case management.
(2) "Catchment area" means a geographic service area
for providing child protective services that is identified as part
of community-based care.
(3) "Community-based care" means the foster care
redesign required by Chapter 598 (S.B. 218), Acts of the 82nd
Legislature, Regular Session, 2011, as designed and implemented in
accordance with the plan required by Section 264.152.
Sec. 264.153. QUALIFICATIONS OF SINGLE SOURCE CONTINUUM
CONTRACTOR; SELECTION. (a) To be eligible to enter into a
contract with the commission to serve as a single source continuum
contractor to provide foster care service delivery, an entity must
be a nonprofit entity that has an organizational mission focused on
child welfare or a governmental entity.
(b) In selecting a single source continuum contractor, the
department shall consider whether a prospective contractor for a
catchment area has demonstrated experience in providing services to
children and families in the catchment area.
Sec. 264.154. REQUIRED CONTRACT PROVISIONS. A contract
with a single source continuum contractor to provide
community-based care services in a catchment area must include
provisions that:
(1) establish a timeline for the implementation of
community-based care in the catchment area, including a timeline
for:
(A) case management services for children,
families, and relative and kinship caregivers receiving services in
the catchment area; and
(B) family reunification support services to be
provided for six months after a child receiving services from the
contractor is returned to the child's family;
(2) allow the department to conduct a performance
review of the contractor beginning 18 months after the contractor
has begun providing case management and family reunification
support services to all children and families in the catchment area
and determine if the contractor has achieved any performance
outcomes specified in the contract;
(3) following the review under Subdivision (2), allow
the department to:
(A) impose financial penalties on the contractor
for failing to meet any specified performance outcomes; or
(B) award financial incentives to the contractor
for exceeding any specified performance outcomes;
(4) require the contractor to give preference for
employment to employees of the department:
(A) whose position at the department is impacted
by the implementation of community-based care; and
(B) who are considered by the department to be
employees in good standing;
(5) require the contractor to provide preliminary and
ongoing community engagement plans to ensure communication and
collaboration with local stakeholders in the catchment area,
including any of the following:
(A) community faith-based entities;
(B) the judiciary;
(C) court-appointed special advocates;
(D) child advocacy centers;
(E) service providers;
(F) foster families;
(G) biological parents;
(H) foster youth and former foster youth;
(I) relative or kinship caregivers;
(J) child welfare boards, if applicable;
(K) attorneys ad litem;
(L) attorneys that represent parents involved in
suits filed by the department; and
(M) any other stakeholders, as determined by the
contractor; and
(6) require that the contractor comply with any
applicable court order issued by a court of competent jurisdiction
in the case of a child for whom the contractor has assumed case
management responsibilities or an order imposing a requirement on
the department that relates to functions assumed by the contractor.
Sec. 264.155. READINESS REVIEW PROCESS FOR COMMUNITY-BASED
CARE CONTRACTOR. (a) The department shall develop a formal review
process to assess the ability of a single source continuum
contractor to satisfy the responsibilities and administrative
requirements of delivering foster care services and services for
relative and kinship caregivers, including the contractor's
ability to provide:
(1) case management services for children and
families;
(2) evidence-based, promising practice, or
evidence-informed supports for children and families; and
(3) sufficient available capacity for inpatient and
outpatient services and supports for children at all service levels
who have previously been placed in the catchment area.
(b) As part of the readiness review process, the single
source continuum contractor must prepare a plan detailing the
methods by which the contractor will avoid or eliminate conflicts
of interest. The department may not transfer services to the
contractor until the department has determined the plan is
adequate.
(c) The department and commission must develop the review
process under Subsection (a) before the department may expand
community-based care outside of the initial catchment areas where
community-based care has been implemented.
(d) If after conducting the review process developed under
Subsection (a) the department determines that a single source
continuum contractor is able to adequately deliver foster care
services and services for relative and kinship caregivers in
advance of the projected dates stated in the timeline included in
the contract with the contractor, the department may adjust the
timeline to allow for an earlier transition of service delivery to
the contractor.
Sec. 264.156. TRANSFER OF CASE MANAGEMENT SERVICES TO
SINGLE SOURCE CONTINUUM CONTRACTOR. (a) In each initial catchment
area where community-based care has been implemented or a contract
with a single source continuum contractor has been executed before
September 1, 2017, the department shall transfer to the single
source continuum contractor providing foster care services in that
area:
(1) the case management of children, relative and
kinship caregivers, and families receiving services from that
contractor; and
(2) family reunification support services to be
provided after a child receiving services from the contractor is
returned to the child's family for the period of time ordered by the
court.
(b) The commission shall include a provision in a contract
with a single source continuum contractor to provide foster care
services and services for relative and kinship caregivers in a
catchment area to which community-based care is expanded after
September 1, 2017, that requires the transfer to the contractor of
the provision of:
(1) the case management services for children,
relative and kinship caregivers, and families in the catchment area
where the contractor will be operating; and
(2) family reunification support services to be
provided for six months after a child receiving services from the
contractor is returned to the child's family.
(c) The department shall collaborate with a single source
continuum contractor to establish an initial case transfer planning
team to:
(1) address any necessary data transfer;
(2) establish file transfer procedures; and
(3) notify relevant persons regarding the transfer of
services to the contractor.
Sec. 264.157. LIABILITY INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS. A single
source continuum contractor and any subcontractor of the single
source continuum contractor providing community-based care
services shall maintain minimum insurance coverage, as required in
the contract with the department, to minimize the risk of
insolvency and protect against damages. The executive commissioner
may adopt rules to implement this section.
Sec. 264.158. STATUTORY DUTIES ASSUMED BY CONTRACTOR.
Except as provided by Section 264.159, a single source continuum
contractor providing foster care services and services for relative
and kinship caregivers in a catchment area must, either directly or
through subcontractors, assume the statutory duties of the
department in connection with the delivery of foster care services
and services for relative and kinship caregivers in that catchment
area.
Sec. 264.159. CONTINUING DUTIES OF DEPARTMENT. In a
catchment area in which a single source continuum contractor is
providing family- or community-based care services, legal
representation of the department in an action under this code shall
be provided in accordance with Section 264.009.
Sec. 264.160. CONFIDENTIALITY. (a) The records of a
single source continuum contractor relating to the provision of
community-based care services in a catchment area are subject to
Chapter 552, Government Code, in the same manner as the records of
the department are subject to that chapter.
(b) Subchapter C, Chapter 261, regarding the
confidentiality of certain case information, applies to the records
of a single source continuum contractor in relation to the
provision of services by the contractor.
Sec. 264.161. NOTICE REQUIRED FOR EARLY TERMINATION OF
CONTRACT. (a) A single source continuum contractor may terminate
a contract entered into under this subchapter by providing written
notice to the commission of the contractor's intent to terminate
the contract not later than the 90th day before the date of the
termination.
(b) In each catchment area in which community-based care is
implemented, the department shall create a contingency plan to
ensure the continuity of services for children and families in the
catchment area in the event of an early termination of the contract
with the single source continuum contractor providing foster care
services in that catchment area.
(c) To support each contingency plan, the single source
continuum contractor providing foster care services in that
catchment area, subject to approval by the department, shall
develop a transfer plan to ensure the continuity of services for
children and families in the catchment area in the event of an early
termination of the contract with the department. The contractor
shall submit an updated transfer plan each year and six months
before the end of the contract period, including any extension. The
department is not limited or restricted in requiring additional
information from the contractor or requiring the contractor to
modify the transfer plan as necessary.
Sec. 264.162. ATTORNEY-CLIENT PRIVILEGE. An employee,
agent, or representative of a single source continuum contractor is
considered to be a client's representative of the department for
purposes of the privilege under Rule 503, Texas Rules of Evidence,
as that privilege applies to communications with a prosecuting
attorney or other attorney representing the department, or the
attorney's representatives, in a proceeding under this subtitle.
Sec. 264.163. REVIEW OF CONTRACTOR DECISIONS BY DEPARTMENT.
(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this subchapter
governing the transfer of case management authority to a single
source continuum contractor, the department may review, approve, or
disapprove a contractor's decision with respect to a child's
permanency goal.
(b) Subsection (a) may not be construed to limit or restrict
the authority of the department to include necessary oversight
measures and review processes to maintain compliance with federal
and state requirements in a contract with a single source continuum
contractor.
(c) The department shall develop an internal dispute
resolution process to decide disagreements between a single source
continuum contractor and the department.
Sec. 264.164. PILOT PROGRAM FOR FAMILY-BASED SAFETY
SERVICES. (a) In this section, "case management services" means
the direct delivery and coordination of a network of formal and
informal activities and services in a catchment area where the
department has entered into, or is in the process of entering into,
a contract with a single source continuum contractor to provide
family-based safety services and case management and includes:
(1) caseworker visits with the child and all
caregivers;
(2) family visits;
(3) family group conferencing or family group
decision-making;
(4) development of the family plan of service;
(5) monitoring, developing, securing, and
coordinating services;
(6) evaluating the progress of children, caregivers,
and families receiving services;
(7) assuring that the rights of children, caregivers,
and families receiving services are protected;
(8) duties relating to family-based safety services
ordered by a court, including:
(A) providing any required notifications or
consultations;
(B) preparing court reports;
(C) attending judicial hearings, trials, and
mediations;
(D) complying with applicable court orders; and
(E) ensuring the child is progressing toward the
goal of permanency within state and federally mandated guidelines;
and
(9) any other function or service that the department
determines is necessary to allow a single source continuum
contractor to assume responsibility for case management.
(b) The department shall develop and implement in two child
protective services regions of the state a pilot program under
which the commission contracts with a single nonprofit entity that
has an organizational mission focused on child welfare or a
governmental entity in each region to provide family-based safety
services and case management for children and families receiving
family-based safety services. The contract must include a
transition plan for the provision of services that ensures the
continuity of services for children and families in the selected
regions.
(c) The contract with an entity must include
performance-based provisions that require the entity to achieve the
following outcomes for families receiving services from the entity:
(1) a decrease in recidivism;
(2) an increase in protective factors; and
(3) any other performance-based outcome specified by
the department.
(d) The commission may only contract for implementation of
the pilot program with entities that the department considers to
have the capacity to provide, either directly or through
subcontractors, an array of evidence-based, promising practice, or
evidence-informed services and support programs to children and
families in the selected child protective services regions.
(e) The contracted entity must perform all statutory duties
of the department in connection with the delivery of the services
specified in Subsection (b).
(f) Not later than December 31, 2018, the department shall
report to the appropriate standing committees of the legislature
having jurisdiction over child protective services and foster care
matters on the progress of the pilot program. The report must
include:
(1) an evaluation of each contracted entity's success
in achieving the outcomes described by Subsection (c); and
(2) a recommendation as to whether the pilot program
should be continued, expanded, or terminated.
(b) Section 264.126, Family Code, is transferred to
Subchapter B-1, Chapter 264, Family Code, as added by this section,
redesignated as Section 264.152, Family Code, and amended to read
as follows:
Sec. 264.152 [264.126]. COMMUNITY-BASED CARE [REDESIGN]
IMPLEMENTATION PLAN. (a) The department shall develop and
maintain a plan for implementing community-based [the foster] care
[redesign required by Chapter 598 (S.B. 218), Acts of the 82nd
Legislature, Regular Session, 2011]. The plan must:
(1) describe the department's expectations, goals, and
approach to implementing community-based [foster] care [redesign];
(2) include a timeline for implementing
community-based [the foster] care [redesign] throughout this
state, any limitations related to the implementation, and a
progressive intervention plan and a contingency plan to provide
continuity of the delivery of foster care services and services for
relative and kinship caregivers [service delivery] if a contract
with a single source continuum contractor ends prematurely;
(3) delineate and define the case management roles and
responsibilities of the department and the department's
contractors and the duties, employees, and related funding that
will be transferred to the contractor by the department;
(4) identify any training needs and include long-range
and continuous plans for training and cross-training staff,
including plans to train caseworkers using the standardized
curriculum created by the human trafficking prevention task force
under Section 402.035(d)(6), Government Code, as that section
existed on August 31, 2017;
(5) include a plan for evaluating the costs and tasks
associated with each contract procurement, including the initial
and ongoing contract costs for the department and contractor;
(6) include the department's contract monitoring
approach and a plan for evaluating the performance of each
contractor and the community-based [foster] care [redesign] system
as a whole that includes an independent evaluation of processes and
outcomes; and
(7) include a report on transition issues resulting
from implementation of community-based [the foster] care
[redesign].
(b) The department shall annually:
(1) update the implementation plan developed under
this section and post the updated plan on the department's Internet
website; and
(2) post on the department's Internet website the
progress the department has made toward its goals for implementing
community-based [the foster] care [redesign].
(c) Section 264.153, Family Code, as added by this section,
applies only to a contract entered into with a single source
continuum contractor on or after the effective date of this
section.
SECTION 13. Subchapter A, Chapter 265, Family Code, is
amended by adding Sections 265.0041, 265.0042, 265.0043, and
265.0044 to read as follows:
Sec. 265.0041. GEOGRAPHIC RISK MAPPING FOR PREVENTION AND
EARLY INTERVENTION SERVICES. (a) The department shall use risk
terrain modeling systems, predictive analytic systems, or
geographic risk assessments or shall develop a system or assessment
under Subsection (c) to:
(1) identify geographic areas that have high risk
indicators of child maltreatment and child fatalities resulting
from abuse or neglect; and
(2) target the implementation and use of prevention
and early intervention services to those geographic areas.
(b) The department may not use data gathered under this
section to identify a specific family or individual.
(c) The Health and Human Services Commission, on behalf of
the department, may enter into agreements with institutions of
higher education to develop or adapt, in coordination with the
department, a risk terrain modeling system, a predictive analytic
system, or a geographic risk assessment to be used for purposes of
this section.
Sec. 265.0042. COLLABORATION WITH INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER
EDUCATION. (a) Subject to the availability of funds, the Health
and Human Services Commission, on behalf of the department, shall
enter into agreements with institutions of higher education to
conduct efficacy reviews of any prevention and early intervention
programs that have not previously been evaluated for effectiveness
through a scientific research evaluation process.
(b) Subject to the availability of funds, the department
shall collaborate with an institution of higher education to create
and track indicators of child well-being to determine the
effectiveness of prevention and early intervention services.
Sec. 265.0043. INTERAGENCY SHARING OF DATA FOR RISK TERRAIN
MODELING. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, state
agencies, including the Texas Education Agency, the Texas Juvenile
Justice Department, and the Department of Public Safety, shall
disclose information related to child abuse or neglect only to the
prevention and early intervention services division of the
department for the purpose of implementing Section 265.0041.
(b) The prevention and early intervention services division
may not disclose information received under this section to any
other state agency or division of the department.
Sec. 265.0044. ETHICAL GUIDELINES. The executive
commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission shall
develop guidelines regarding:
(1) the type of risk terrain modeling data to be
collected by the department and the acceptable uses of the data; and
(2) the methods for sharing final geographic risk maps
with external prevention services providers.
SECTION 14. Section 265.005(b), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) A strategic plan required under this section must:
(1) identify methods to leverage other sources of
funding or provide support for existing community-based prevention
efforts;
(2) include a needs assessment that identifies
programs to best target the needs of the highest risk populations
and geographic areas;
(3) identify the goals and priorities for the
department's overall prevention efforts;
(4) report the results of previous prevention efforts
using available information in the plan;
(5) identify additional methods of measuring program
effectiveness and results or outcomes;
(6) identify methods to collaborate with other state
agencies on prevention efforts; [and]
(7) identify specific strategies to implement the plan
and to develop measures for reporting on the overall progress
toward the plan's goals; and
(8) identify specific strategies to increase local
capacity for the delivery of prevention and early intervention
services through collaboration with communities and stakeholders.
SECTION 15. Section 266.012, Family Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
(c) A single source continuum contractor under Subchapter
B-1, Chapter 264, providing therapeutic foster care services to a
child shall ensure that the child receives a comprehensive
assessment under this section at least once every 90 days.
SECTION 16. (a) Section 531.02013, Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 531.02013. FUNCTIONS REMAINING WITH CERTAIN AGENCIES.
The following functions are not subject to transfer under Sections
531.0201 and 531.02011:
(1) the functions of the Department of Family and
Protective Services, including the statewide intake of reports and
other information, related to the following:
(A) child protective services, including
services that are required by federal law to be provided by this
state's child welfare agency;
(B) adult protective services, other than
investigations of the alleged abuse, neglect, or exploitation of an
elderly person or person with a disability:
(i) in a facility operated, or in a facility
or by a person licensed, certified, or registered, by a state
agency; or
(ii) by a provider that has contracted to
provide home and community-based services; [and]
(C) prevention and early intervention services;
and
(D) investigations of alleged abuse, neglect, or
exploitation occurring at a child-care facility, as that term is
defined in Section 40.042, Human Resources Code; and
(2) the public health functions of the Department of
State Health Services, including health care data collection and
maintenance of the Texas Health Care Information Collection
program.
(b) Notwithstanding any provision of Subchapter A-1,
Chapter 531, Government Code, or any other law, the responsibility
for conducting investigations of reports of abuse, neglect, or
exploitation occurring at a child-care facility, as that term is
defined in Section 40.042, Human Resources Code, as added by this
Act, may not be transferred to the Health and Human Services
Commission and remains the responsibility of the Department of
Family and Protective Services.
(c) As soon as possible after the effective date of this
section, the commissioner of the Department of Family and
Protective Services shall transfer the responsibility for
conducting investigations of reports of abuse, neglect, or
exploitation occurring at a child-care facility, as that term is
defined in Section 40.042, Human Resources Code, as added by this
Act, to the child protective services division of the department.
The commissioner shall transfer appropriate investigators and
staff as necessary to implement this section.
(d) This section takes effect immediately if this Act
receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members of each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for this section to take
immediate effect, this section takes effect on the 91st day after
the last day of the legislative session.
SECTION 17. (a) Subchapter A, Chapter 533, Government
Code, is amended by adding Section 533.0054 to read as follows:
Sec. 533.0054. HEALTH SCREENING REQUIREMENTS FOR ENROLLEE
UNDER STAR HEALTH PROGRAM. (a) A managed care organization that
contracts with the commission to provide health care services to
recipients under the STAR Health program must ensure that enrollees
receive a complete early and periodic screening, diagnosis, and
treatment checkup in accordance with the requirements specified in
the contract between the managed care organization and the
commission.
(b) The commission shall include a provision in a contract
with a managed care organization to provide health care services to
recipients under the STAR Health program specifying progressive
monetary penalties for the organization's failure to comply with
Subsection (a).
(b) The Health and Human Services Commission shall, in a
contract for the provision of health care services under the STAR
Health program between the commission and a managed care
organization under Chapter 533, Government Code, that is entered
into, renewed, or extended on or after the effective date of this
section, require that the managed care organization comply with
Section 533.0054, Government Code, as added by this section.
(c) The Health and Human Services Commission may not impose
a monetary penalty for noncompliance with a contract provision
described by Section 533.0054(b), Government Code, as added by this
section, until September 1, 2018.
(d) If before implementing Section 533.0054, Government
Code, as added by this section, the Health and Human Services
Commission determines that a waiver or authorization from a federal
agency is necessary for implementation of that provision, the
agency affected by the provision shall request the waiver or
authorization and may delay implementing that provision until the
waiver or authorization is granted.
SECTION 18. (a) Subchapter A, Chapter 533, Government
Code, is amended by adding Section 533.0056 to read as follows:
Sec. 533.0056. STAR HEALTH PROGRAM: NOTIFICATION OF
PLACEMENT CHANGE. A contract between a managed care organization
and the commission for the organization to provide health care
services to recipients under the STAR Health program must require
the organization to ensure continuity of care for a child whose
placement has changed by:
(1) notifying each specialist treating the child of
the placement change; and
(2) coordinating the transition of care from the
child's previous treating primary care physician and treating
specialists to the child's new treating primary care physician and
treating specialists, if any.
(b) The changes in law made by this section apply only to a
contract for the provision of health care services under the STAR
Health program between the Health and Human Services Commission and
a managed care organization under Chapter 533, Government Code,
that is entered into, renewed, or extended on or after the effective
date of this section.
(c) If before implementing Section 533.0056, Government
Code, as added by this section, the Health and Human Services
Commission determines that a waiver or authorization from a federal
agency is necessary for implementation of that provision, the
health and human services agency affected by the provision shall
request the waiver or authorization and may delay implementing that
provision until the waiver or authorization is granted.
SECTION 19. (a) Subchapter B, Chapter 40, Human Resources
Code, is amended by adding Sections 40.039, 40.040, 40.041, and
40.042 to read as follows:
Sec. 40.039. REVIEW OF RECORDS RETENTION POLICY. The
department shall periodically review the department's records
retention policy with respect to case and intake records relating
to department functions. The department shall make changes to the
policy consistent with the records retention schedule submitted
under Section 441.185, Government Code, that are necessary to
improve case prioritization and the routing of cases to the
appropriate division of the department. The department may adopt
rules necessary to implement this section.
Sec. 40.040. CASE MANAGEMENT VENDOR QUALITY OVERSIGHT AND
ASSURANCE DIVISION; MONITORING OF CONTRACT ADHERENCE. (a) In this
section, "case management," "catchment area," and "community-based
care" have the meanings assigned by Section 264.151, Family Code.
(b) The department shall create within the department the
case management services vendor quality oversight and assurance
division. The division shall:
(1) oversee quality and ensure accountability of any
vendor that provides community-based care and full case management
services for the department under community-based care; and
(2) monitor the transfer from the department to a
vendor of full case management services for children and families
receiving services from the vendor, including any transfer
occurring under a pilot program.
(c) The commission shall contract with an outside vendor
with expertise in quality assurance to develop, in coordination
with the department, a contract monitoring system and standards for
the continuous monitoring of the adherence of a vendor providing
foster care services under community-based care to the terms of the
contract entered into by the vendor and the commission. The
standards must include performance benchmarks relating to the
provision of case management services in the catchment area where
the vendor operates.
(d) The division shall collect and analyze data comparing
outcomes on performance measures between catchment areas where
community-based care has been implemented and regions where
community-based care has not been implemented.
Sec. 40.041. OFFICE OF DATA ANALYTICS. The department
shall create an office of data analytics. The office shall report
to the deputy commissioner and may perform any of the following
functions, as determined by the department:
(1) monitor management trends;
(2) analyze employee exit surveys and interviews;
(3) evaluate the effectiveness of employee retention
efforts, including merit pay;
(4) create and manage a system for handling employee
complaints submitted by the employee outside of an employee's
direct chain of command, including anonymous complaints;
(5) monitor and provide reports to department
management personnel on:
(A) employee complaint data and trends in
employee complaints;
(B) compliance with annual department
performance evaluation requirements; and
(C) the department's use of positive performance
levels for employees;
(6) track employee tenure and internal employee
transfers within both the child protective services division and
the department;
(7) use data analytics to predict workforce shortages
and identify areas of the department with high rates of employee
turnover, and develop a process to inform the deputy commissioner
and other appropriate staff regarding the office's findings;
(8) create and monitor reports on key metrics of
agency performance;
(9) analyze available data, including data on employee
training, for historical and predictive department trends; and
(10) conduct any other data analysis the department
determines to be appropriate for improving performance, meeting the
department's current business needs, or fulfilling the powers and
duties of the department.
Sec. 40.042. INVESTIGATIONS OF CHILD ABUSE, NEGLECT, AND
EXPLOITATION. (a) In this section, "child-care facility"
includes a facility, licensed or unlicensed child-care facility,
family home, residential child-care facility, employer-based
day-care facility, or shelter day-care facility, as those terms are
defined in Chapter 42, Human Resources Code.
(b) For all investigations of child abuse or neglect
conducted by the child protective services division of the
department, the department shall adopt the definitions of abuse and
neglect provided in Section 261.001, Family Code.
(c) For all investigations of child exploitation conducted
by the child protective services division of the department, the
department shall adopt the definition of exploitation provided in
Section 261.401, Family Code.
(d) The department shall establish standardized policies to
be used during investigations.
(e) The commissioner shall establish units within the child
protective services division of the department to specialize in
investigating allegations of child abuse and neglect occurring at a
child-care facility.
(f) The department may require that investigators who
specialize in allegations of child abuse and neglect occurring at
child-care facilities receive ongoing training on the minimum
licensing standards for any facilities that are applicable to the
investigator's specialization.
(g) After an investigation of abuse, neglect, or
exploitation occurring at a child-care facility, the department
shall provide the state agency responsible for regulating the
facility with access to any information relating to the
department's investigation. Providing access to confidential
information under this subsection does not constitute a waiver of
confidentiality.
(h) The department may adopt rules to implement this
section.
(b) As soon as possible after the effective date of this
Act, the commissioner of the Department of Family and Protective
Services shall establish the office of data analytics required by
Section 40.041, Human Resources Code, as added by this section. The
commissioner and the executive commissioner of the Health and Human
Services Commission shall transfer appropriate staff as necessary
to conduct the duties of the office.
(c) The Department of Family and Protective Services must
implement the standardized definitions and policies required under
Sections 40.042(b), (c), and (d), Human Resources Code, as added by
this Act, not later than December 1, 2017.
SECTION 20. Section 40.051, Human Resources Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 40.051. STRATEGIC PLAN FOR DEPARTMENT. The department
shall develop a departmental strategic plan based on the goals and
priorities stated in the commission's coordinated strategic plan
for health and human services. The department shall also develop
its plan based on:
(1) furthering the policy of family preservation;
(2) the goal of ending the abuse and neglect of
children in the conservatorship of the department; and
(3) the goal of increasing the capacity and
availability of foster, relative, and kinship placements in this
state.
SECTION 21. (a) Section 40.058(f), Human Resources Code,
is amended to read as follows:
(f) A contract for residential child-care services provided
by a general residential operation or by a child-placing agency
must include provisions that:
(1) enable the department and commission to monitor
the effectiveness of the services;
(2) specify performance outcomes, financial penalties
for failing to meet any specified performance outcomes, and
financial incentives for exceeding any specified performance
outcomes;
(3) authorize the department or commission to
terminate the contract or impose monetary sanctions for a violation
of a provision of the contract that specifies performance criteria
or for underperformance in meeting any specified performance
outcomes;
(4) authorize the department or commission, an agent
of the department or commission, and the state auditor to inspect
all books, records, and files maintained by a contractor relating
to the contract; and
(5) are necessary, as determined by the department or
commission, to ensure accountability for the delivery of services
and for the expenditure of public funds.
(b) The Health and Human Services Commission shall, in a
contract for residential child-care services between the
commission and a general residential operation or child-placing
agency that is entered into on or after the effective date of this
section, including a renewal contract, include the provisions
required by Section 40.058(f), Human Resources Code, as amended by
this section.
(c) The Health and Human Services Commission shall seek to
amend contracts for residential child-care services entered into
with general residential operations or child-placing agencies
before the effective date of this section to include the provisions
required by Section 40.058(f), Human Resources Code, as amended by
this section.
(d) The Department of Family and Protective Services and the
Health and Human Services Commission may not impose a financial
penalty against a general residential operation or child-placing
agency under a contract provision described by Section 40.058(f)(2)
or (3), Human Resources Code, as amended by this section, until
September 1, 2018.
SECTION 22. (a) Subchapter C, Chapter 40, Human Resources
Code, is amended by adding Section 40.0581 to read as follows:
Sec. 40.0581. PERFORMANCE MEASURES FOR CERTAIN SERVICE
PROVIDER CONTRACTS. (a) The commission, in collaboration with the
department, shall contract with a vendor or enter into an agreement
with an institution of higher education to develop, in coordination
with the department, performance quality metrics for family-based
safety services and post-adoption support services providers. The
quality metrics must be included in each contract with those
providers.
(b) Each provider whose contract with the commission to
provide department services includes the quality metrics developed
under Subsection (a) must prepare and submit to the department a
report each calendar quarter regarding the provider's performance
based on the quality metrics.
(c) The commissioner shall compile a summary of all reports
prepared and submitted to the department by family-based safety
services providers as required by Subsection (b) and distribute the
summary to appropriate family-based safety services caseworkers
and child protective services region management once each calendar
quarter.
(d) The commissioner shall compile a summary of all reports
prepared and submitted to the department by post-adoption support
services providers as required by Subsection (b) and distribute the
summary to appropriate conservatorship and adoption caseworkers
and child protective services region management.
(e) The department shall make the summaries prepared under
Subsections (c) and (d) available to families that are receiving
family-based safety services and to adoptive families.
(f) This section does not apply to a provider that has
entered into a contract with the commission to provide family-based
safety services under Section 264.164, Family Code.
(b) The quality metrics required by Section 40.0581, Human
Resources Code, as added by this section, must be developed not
later than September 1, 2018, and included in any contract,
including a renewal contract, entered into by the Health and Human
Services Commission with a family-based safety services provider or
a post-adoption support services provider on or after January 1,
2019, except as provided by Section 40.0581(f), Human Resources
Code, as added by this section.
SECTION 23. (a) Subchapter C, Chapter 42, Human Resources
Code, is amended by adding Section 42.0432 to read as follows:
Sec. 42.0432. HEALTH SCREENING REQUIREMENTS FOR CHILD
PLACED WITH CHILD-PLACING AGENCY. (a) A child-placing agency or
general residential operation that contracts with the department to
provide services must ensure that the children that are in the
managing conservatorship of the department and are placed with the
child-placing agency or general residential operation receive a
complete early and periodic screening, diagnosis, and treatment
checkup in accordance with the requirements specified in the
contract between the child-placing agency or general residential
operation and the department.
(b) The commission shall include a provision in a contract
with a child-placing agency or general residential operation
specifying progressive monetary penalties for the child-placing
agency's or general residential operation's failure to comply with
Subsection (a).
(b) A child-placing agency or general residential operation
that contracts to provide services for the Department of Family and
Protective Services must comply with the requirements of Section
42.0432, Human Resources Code, as added by this section, not later
than August 31, 2018. The department and the Health and Human
Services Commission may not impose a monetary penalty for
noncompliance with a contract provision described by that section
until September 1, 2018.
SECTION 24. The changes in law made by this Act to Section
263.401, Family Code, apply only to a suit affecting the
parent-child relationship filed on or after the effective date of
this Act. A suit affecting the parent-child relationship filed
before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in
effect on the date the suit was filed, and the former law is
continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 25. Except as otherwise provided by this Act, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2017.