H.B. No. 123
AN ACT
relating to personal identification documents for foster children
or youth or homeless children or youth.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 264.121, Family Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (e-3) to read as follows:
(e-3) When obtaining a copy of a birth certificate to
provide to a foster youth or assisting a foster youth in obtaining a
copy of a birth certificate, the department shall obtain the birth
certificate from the state registrar. If the department is unable
to obtain the birth certificate from the state registrar, the
department may obtain the birth certificate from a local registrar
or county clerk.
SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 191, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Section 191.0049 to read as follows:
Sec. 191.0049. BIRTH RECORD ISSUED TO FOSTER CHILD OR YOUTH
OR HOMELESS CHILD OR YOUTH. On request of a child or youth
described by this section, the state registrar, a local registrar,
or a county clerk shall issue, without fee or parental consent, a
certified copy of the child's or youth's birth record to:
(1) a homeless child or youth as defined by 42 U.S.C.
Section 11434a;
(2) a child in the managing conservatorship of the
Department of Family and Protective Services; and
(3) a young adult who:
(A) is at least 18 years of age, but younger than
21 years of age; and
(B) resides in a foster care placement, the cost
of which is paid by the Department of Family and Protective
Services.
SECTION 3. Subchapter E, Chapter 521, Transportation Code,
is amended by adding Section 521.1015 to read as follows:
Sec. 521.1015. PERSONAL IDENTIFICATION CERTIFICATE ISSUED
TO FOSTER CHILD OR YOUTH OR HOMELESS CHILD OR YOUTH. (a) In this
section:
(1) "Foster child or youth" means:
(A) a child in the managing conservatorship of
the Department of Family and Protective Services; or
(B) a young adult who:
(i) is at least 18 years of age, but younger
than 21 years of age; and
(ii) resides in a foster care placement,
the cost of which is paid by the Department of Family and Protective
Services.
(2) "Homeless child or youth" has the meaning assigned
by 42 U.S.C. Section 11434a.
(b) This section applies to the application for a personal
identification certificate only for a foster child or youth or a
homeless child or youth.
(c) Notwithstanding Section 521.101, Section 521.1426, or
any other provision of this chapter, a child or youth described by
Subsection (b) may, in applying for a personal identification
certificate:
(1) provide a copy of the child's or youth's birth
certificate as proof of the child's or youth's identity and United
States citizenship, as applicable; and
(2) if the child or youth does not have a residence or
domicile:
(A) provide a letter certifying the child or
youth is a homeless child or youth issued by:
(i) the school district in which the child
or youth is enrolled;
(ii) the director of an emergency shelter
or transitional housing program funded by the United States
Department of Housing and Urban Development; or
(iii) the director of:
(a) a basic center for runaway and
homeless youth; or
(b) a transitional living program; or
(B) use the address of the regional office where
the Department of Family and Protective Services caseworker for the
child or youth is based.
(d) A child or youth described by Subsection (b) may apply
for and the department may issue a personal identification
certificate without the signature or presence of or permission from
a parent or guardian of the child or youth.
(e) The department shall exempt a child or youth described
by Subsection (b) from the payment of any fee for the issuance of a
personal identification certificate under this chapter, subject to
Section 521.4265.
SECTION 4. Section 521.1811, Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 521.1811. WAIVER OF FEES FOR FOSTER CHILD OR YOUTH OR
HOMELESS CHILD OR [CARE] YOUTH. A person is exempt from the payment
of any fee for the issuance of a driver's license, as provided under
this chapter, if that person is:
(1) younger than 18 years of age and in the managing
conservatorship of the Department of Family and Protective
Services; [or]
(2) at least 18 years of age, but younger than 21 years
of age, and resides in a foster care placement, the cost of which is
paid by the Department of Family and Protective Services; or
(3) a homeless child or youth as defined by 42 U.S.C.
Section 11434a.
SECTION 5. Section 521.421, Transportation Code, is amended
by adding Subsection (k) to read as follows:
(k) A person applying for the issuance or renewal of a
license, including a duplicate license or a license issued or
renewed over the Internet or by other electronic means, may elect to
contribute $1 or more to the identification fee exemption account
established under Section 521.4265.
SECTION 6. Section 521.422, Transportation Code, is amended
by adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:
(d) A person applying for the issuance or renewal of a
personal identification card, including a duplicate personal
identification card or a personal identification card issued or
renewed over the Internet or by other electronic means, may elect to
contribute $1 or more to the identification fee exemption account
established under Section 521.4265.
SECTION 7. Subchapter R, Chapter 521, Transportation Code,
is amended by adding Section 521.4265 to read as follows:
Sec. 521.4265. IDENTIFICATION FEE EXEMPTION ACCOUNT. (a)
The identification fee exemption account is created as an account
in the general revenue fund of the state treasury. The fund consists
of grants and donations made to the department for the purposes of
this section, including donations received under Sections
521.421(k) and 521.422(d). The department shall administer the
account. Money in the account may be appropriated for the purposes
of Subsection (b).
(b) For each exemption granted under Section 521.1015 or
521.1811, the department shall deposit to the credit of the Texas
mobility fund an amount from the identification fee exemption
account under Subsection (a) that is equal to the amount of the
waived fee that would otherwise be deposited to the mobility fund.
(c) The department may not grant an exemption under Section
521.1015 or 521.1811 if money is not available in the
identification fee exemption account to meet the requirements of
Subsection (b).
SECTION 8. The changes in law made by this Act apply to an
application for a driver's license, personal identification
certificate, or birth record submitted on or after the effective
date of this Act. An application for a driver's license, personal
identification certificate, or birth record submitted before the
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
date the application was submitted, and the former law is continued
in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 123 was passed by the House on March
26, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 147, Nays 0, 1 present, not
voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B.
No. 123 on May 23, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 142, Nays 0, 1
present, not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 123 was passed by the Senate, with
amendments, on May 20, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays
0.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: __________________
Date
__________________
Governor