Texas 2019 86th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1279 Engrossed / Bill

Filed 04/25/2019

                    By: West, Powell, Zaffirini S.B. No. 1279


 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 AN ACT
 relating to prevention and early intervention programs and
 practices.
 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 SECTION 1.  Section 264.201(d), Family Code, is amended to
 read as follows:
 (d)  The services may include in-home programs, parenting
 skills training, youth coping skills, and individual and family
 counseling.  If the department requires or a court orders parenting
 skills training services through a parenting education program or
 practice, the program or practice must be an evidence-based program
 or practice, promising [practice parenting education] program or
 practice, or evidence-informed program or practice described by
 Section 265.151 that is provided in the community in which the
 family resides, if available.
 SECTION 2.  Section 265.004(a-1), Family Code, is amended to
 read as follows:
 (a-1)  The department shall ensure that not less than 75
 percent of the money appropriated for home visiting programs and
 parenting education programs under Subsection (a) funds
 evidence-based programs or practices described by Section
 265.151(b) and that the remainder of that money funds promising
 [practice] programs or practices described by Section 265.151(c)
 and evidence-informed programs or practices described by Section
 265.151(d).
 SECTION 3.  The heading to Subchapter D, Chapter 265, Family
 Code, is amended to read as follows:
 SUBCHAPTER D. EVIDENCE-BASED PROGRAMS AND PRACTICES [PARENTING
 EDUCATION]
 SECTION 4.  The heading to Section 265.151, Family Code, is
 amended to read as follows:
 Sec. 265.151.  REQUIREMENTS FOR [PARENTING EDUCATION]
 PROGRAMS AND PRACTICES ON EVIDENCE-BASED SPECTRUM.
 SECTION 5.  Section 265.151, Family Code, is amended by
 amending Subsections (b) and (c) and adding Subsection (d) to read
 as follows:
 (b)  An evidence-based program or practice is a [parenting
 education] program or practice that:
 (1)  is research-based and grounded in relevant,
 empirical knowledge and program-determined outcomes;
 (2)  has comprehensive standards ensuring the highest
 quality service delivery with continuous improvement in the quality
 of service delivery;
 (3)  has demonstrated significant positive [short-term
 and long-term] outcomes;
 (4)  is listed as an evidence-based program or practice
 by a nationally recognized clearinghouse associated with a state or
 federal agency or an institution of higher education or, during the
 preceding 10 years, has been subject to an external evaluation that
 showed positive results and was published in peer-reviewed
 literature [has been evaluated by at least one rigorous, random,
 controlled research trial across heterogeneous populations or
 communities with research results that have been published in a
 peer-reviewed journal];
 (5)  substantially complies with a program manual or
 design that specifies the purpose, outcomes, duration, and
 frequency of the program services; [and]
 (6)  employs well-trained and competent staff and
 provides continual relevant professional development opportunities
 to the staff;
 (7)  is associated with a national organization,
 institution of higher education, or national or state public health
 institute; and
 (8)  demonstrates substantial connections to other
 community-based services.
 (c)  A promising [practice] program or practice is a
 [parenting education] program or practice that:
 (1)  has an active impact evaluation program or
 demonstrates a schedule for implementing an active impact
 evaluation program;
 (2)  is listed as a promising program or practice by a
 nationally recognized clearinghouse associated with a state or
 federal agency or an institution of higher education or, during the
 preceding 10 years, has been subject to an external evaluation that
 showed positive results and was published in peer-reviewed
 literature [has been evaluated by at least one outcome-based study
 demonstrating effectiveness or random, controlled trial in a
 homogeneous sample];
 (3)  substantially complies with a program manual or
 design that specifies the purpose, outcomes, duration, and
 frequency of the program services;
 (4)  employs well-trained and competent staff and
 provides continual relevant professional development opportunities
 to the staff; [and]
 (5)  is research-based and grounded in relevant,
 empirical knowledge and program-determined outcomes; and
 (6)  demonstrates substantial connections to other
 community-based services.
 (d)  An evidence-informed program or practice is a program or
 practice that:
 (1)  combines well-researched interventions with
 clinical experience and ethics, and client preferences and culture,
 to guide and inform the delivery of treatments and services;
 (2)  has an active impact evaluation program or
 demonstrates a schedule for implementing an active impact
 evaluation program;
 (3)  substantially complies with a program manual or
 design that specifies the purpose, outcome, duration, and frequency
 of the program services; and
 (4)  employs well-trained and competent staff and
 provides continual relevant professional development opportunities
 to the staff.
 SECTION 6.  Section 265.152, Family Code, is amended to read
 as follows:
 Sec. 265.152.  OUTCOMES OF EVIDENCE-BASED PREVENTION AND
 EARLY INTERVENTION PROGRAMS AND PRACTICES [PARENTING EDUCATION].
 The department shall ensure that a prevention and early
 intervention [parenting education] program or practice provided
 under this subchapter [chapter] achieves favorable behavioral
 outcomes in at least two of the following areas:
 (1)  improved cognitive development of children;
 (2)  increased [school] readiness for and
 participation and performance in school [of children];
 (3)  reduced child abuse, neglect, and injury;
 (4)  improved child safety;
 (5)  improved social-emotional development of children
 and youth;
 (6)  increased protective factors [improved parenting
 skills], including nurturing, [and] bonding, and other parenting
 skills;
 (7)  improved family economic self-sufficiency;
 (8)  reduced parental or youth involvement with the
 criminal justice system; [and]
 (9)  increased paternal involvement and support;
 (10)  improved maternal and child health; and
 (11)  increased protective factors for youth.
 SECTION 7.  Section 265.153, Family Code, is amended to read
 as follows:
 Sec. 265.153.  EVALUATION OF PREVENTION AND EARLY
 INTERVENTION PROGRAMS AND PRACTICES [EVIDENCE-BASED PARENTING
 EDUCATION]. (a)  The department shall adopt outcome indicators to
 measure the effectiveness of prevention and early intervention
 [parenting education] programs and practices provided under this
 subchapter [chapter] in achieving desired outcomes.
 (b)  The department may work directly with the model
 developer of a prevention and early intervention [parenting
 education] program or practice to identify appropriate outcome
 indicators for the program or practice and to ensure that the
 program or practice substantially complies with the model.
 (c)  The department shall develop internal processes to
 share information with prevention and early intervention service
 providers [parenting education programs] to assist the department
 in analyzing the performance of the programs or practices.
 (d)  The department shall use information obtained under
 this section to:
 (1)  monitor prevention and early intervention
 [parenting education] programs and practices;
 (2)  continually improve the quality of the programs
 and practices; and
 (3)  evaluate the effectiveness of the programs and
 practices.
 SECTION 8.  Section 265.154, Family Code, is amended to read
 as follows:
 Sec. 265.154.  REPORTS TO LEGISLATURE. (a)  Not later than
 December 1 of each even-numbered year, the department shall prepare
 and submit a report on state-funded prevention and early
 intervention [parenting education] programs and practices to the
 standing committees of the senate and house of representatives with
 jurisdiction over child protective services.
 (b)  A report submitted under this section must include:
 (1)  a description of the prevention and early
 intervention [parenting education] programs and practices
 implemented and of the models associated with the programs and
 practices;
 (2)  information on the families served by the programs
 and practices, including the number of families served and their
 demographic information;
 (3)  the goals and achieved outcomes of the implemented
 programs and practices;
 (4)  information on the cost for each family served,
 including any available third-party return-on-investment analysis;
 and
 (5)  information explaining the percentage of money
 spent on evidence-based programs and practices, on promising
 [practice] programs and practices, and on evidence-informed
 programs and practices.
 SECTION 9.  Section 265.151(a), Family Code, is repealed.
 SECTION 10.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.