87R6167 MCF-D
By: Dominguez H.B. No. 1453
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the composition and duties of the Public Health Funding
and Policy Committee.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 117.052, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 117.052. APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS. (a) The commissioner
shall appoint 10 [nine] members to the committee as follows:
(1) two regional health directors, each of whom is
serving as a health authority in a municipality or county;
(2) one local health entity representative of a
municipality or county with a population of 50,000 or less;
(3) one local health entity representative from a
municipality or county with a population greater than 50,000 but
less than 250,000;
(4) one local health entity representative from a
municipality or county with a population of at least 250,000;
(5) two local health entity representatives, each of
whom serves in a municipality or county as the health authority;
[and]
(6) two representatives of schools or programs of
public health at institutions of higher education in this state;
and
(7) one representative from the Task Force of Border
Health Officials established under Chapter 120.
(a-1) The committee members appointed under Subsection
(a)(1) are ex officio nonvoting members.
(b) In making appointments under Subsections (a)(2), (3),
(4), [and] (5), (6), and (7), the commissioner shall select the
members from nominations submitted by the entity, institution, or
task force of which the nominated member is an employee or member
[associations representing local health departments, county
governments, and municipal governments].
SECTION 2. Section 117.053(a), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) Committee members serve staggered six-year terms, with
the terms of three or four members expiring on February 1 of each
odd-numbered year.
SECTION 3. Section 117.055, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 117.055. PRESIDING OFFICER. The presiding officer is
elected by a majority vote of all the committee members and serves
for a term of two years.
SECTION 4. Section 117.056, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
(c) The committee shall meet with the Task Force of Border
Health Officials established under Chapter 120 at least annually
and at the call of the presiding officers of the committee and the
task force.
SECTION 5. Section 117.101, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 117.101. GENERAL DUTIES OF COMMITTEE. (a) The
committee shall:
(1) summarize the scope and type of [define the core]
public health services provided by [a] local health entities, with
a focus on differences in the availability of services in urban,
rural, and border areas of this state [entity should provide in a
county or municipality];
(2) monitor the availability of [evaluate] public
health services in this state, [and] identify the disparity between
services and funding for those services, and develop
recommendations to address the disparity [initiatives for areas
that need improvement];
(3) recommend [identify all funding sources available
for use by local health entities to perform core public health
functions;
[(4) establish public] health issue [policy]
priorities for this state and coordinate efforts to address the
priorities with the department; and
(4) [(5)] at least biennially [annually], make formal
recommendations to the department regarding:
(A) the use and allocation of funds available
exclusively to local health entities to perform core public health
functions;
(B) ways to improve the overall public health of
citizens in this state;
(C) methods for transitioning from a contractual
relationship between the department and the local health entities
to a cooperative-agreement relationship between the department and
the local health entities; and
(D) methods for fostering a continuous
collaborative relationship between the department and the local
health entities.
(b) Recommendations made under Subsection (a)(4)(A)
[(a)(5)(A)] must be in accordance with:
(1) prevailing epidemiological evidence, variations
in geographic and population needs, best practices, and
evidence-based interventions related to the populations to be
served;
(2) state and federal law; and
(3) federal funding requirements.
SECTION 6. The heading to Section 117.151, Health and
Safety Code, is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 117.151. BIENNIAL [ANNUAL] REPORT.
SECTION 7. Section 117.151(a), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) Not [Beginning in 2012, not] later than November 30 of
each even-numbered year the department shall file a biennial [an
annual] report with the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the
speaker of the house of representatives detailing:
(1) the implementation of the committee's
recommendations described in Section 117.101(a)(4)
[117.101(a)(5)]; and
(2) an explanation of the department's reasons for not
implementing a recommendation.
SECTION 8. Section 120.054, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
(c) The task force shall meet with the Public Health Funding
and Policy Committee established under Chapter 117 at least
annually and at the call of the presiding officers of the task force
and the committee.
SECTION 9. As soon as practicable after the effective date
of this Act, the commissioner of public health of the Department of
State Health Services shall make the appointment required by
Section 117.052(a)(7), Health and Safety Code, as added by this
Act.
SECTION 10. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.