87R6642 MCF-D
By: J. Johnson of Harris H.B. No. 4102
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to certain substance abuse treatment programs operated by
the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Article 42A.303, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended by amending Subsection (e) and adding Subsections (e-1),
(e-2), and (e-3) to read as follows:
(e) The Department of State Health Services shall develop:
(1) the continuum of care treatment plan described by
Subsection (d)(1); and
(2) an instrument to be used by the Texas Department of
Criminal Justice to assess the residential aftercare needs of a
defendant required as a condition of community supervision to serve
a term of confinement and treatment in a substance abuse felony
punishment facility under this article.
(e-1) The continuum of care treatment plan described by
Subsection (d)(1) must:
(1) use nationally recognized professional,
empirical, and evidence-based practices;
(2) be trauma-informed; and
(3) promote the general health of defendants and
include topics on exercise, diet, dental hygiene, and feminine
hygiene, as applicable.
(e-2) The Department of State Health Services shall review
and update the continuum of care treatment plan under Subsection
(d)(1) at least once every five years.
(e-3) The residential aftercare assessment instrument
developed under Subsection (e)(2) must be based on a medical and
social risk assessment of the defendant and take into consideration
the defendant's age, health, family status, disability, gender, and
sexual identity to determine the most effective residential
aftercare placement for the defendant.
SECTION 2. Section 493.009, Government Code, is amended by
adding Subsections (e-1), (o), and (r) to read as follows:
(e-1) A qualified professional implementing the program
under Subsection (e) may not modify the continuum of care treatment
plan developed under Article 42A.303(d)(1), Code of Criminal
Procedure, without the approval of the Department of State Health
Services.
(o) Notwithstanding any other law, the department may
provide up to three months of aftercare housing in an appropriate
facility operated by or under contract with the department, other
than a transitional treatment center, for a defendant as
recommended by an assessment conducted using the instrument
developed by the Department of State Health Services under Article
42A.303(e)(2), Code of Criminal Procedure.
(r) The Department of State Health Services shall develop a
survey that substance abuse felony punishment program participants
may anonymously complete and submit to the Department of State
Health Services and the department to assist the department in
improving the program. The survey must be available on the
Department of State Health Services' Internet website for mail or
online submission. On request, the Department of State Health
Services shall provide members of the public with anonymous survey
responses.
SECTION 3. Chapter 493, Government Code, is amended by
adding Sections 493.0091, 493.0092, and 493.0093 to read as
follows:
Sec. 493.0091. SUBSTANCE ABUSE FELONY PUNISHMENT PROGRAM
PARTICIPANT BILL OF RIGHTS. (a) The department shall develop a
bill of rights for participants in a substance abuse felony
punishment program operated under Section 493.009. The bill of
rights must include a description of any federal or state laws
applicable to the participants.
(b) The department shall provide to each participant:
(1) an oral explanation of the information contained
in the bill of rights; and
(2) a physical copy of the bill of rights or
information regarding how to access an electronic version of the
document.
(c) The department shall provide training on the bill of
rights developed under this section to all department employees
assigned to a substance abuse felony punishment facility. The
department shall maintain documentation of the employee trainings.
Sec. 493.0092. EVALUATION OF CERTAIN SUBSTANCE ABUSE
TREATMENT FACILITIES. (a) The department shall develop outcome
measures and performance targets for evaluating the effectiveness
of any facility operated under contract with the department for the
primary purpose of providing substance abuse treatment or
aftercare. The outcome measures must include:
(1) treatment program completion rates;
(2) employment rates of individuals who have completed
the treatment program; and
(3) an evaluation of the facility's ability to:
(A) provide individuals with housing after
completing treatment; and
(B) assist individuals in:
(i) obtaining social services; and
(ii) creating civic reintegration plans,
including identifying and making arrangements to pay any
outstanding court costs, fines, and fees and child support payments
owed by the individual.
(b) The department may not renew the contract of a facility
that consistently fails to achieve the performance targets
established under this section.
Sec. 493.0093. SUBSTANCE ABUSE FELONY PUNISHMENT PROGRAM
REPORT. (a) Not later than February 1 of each year, the
department, using appropriated funds, shall prepare and submit a
report to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the
house of representatives, and each standing committee of the
legislature with primary jurisdiction over the department that
includes the following information for the preceding calendar year:
(1) the total number of participants in the substance
abuse felony punishment program operated under Section 493.009 and
information on the county of residence of participants before
entering the program;
(2) the number of participants who completed the
program categorized according to the facility in which the
participant was confined, including the number of participants who
completed any aftercare required as a condition of community
supervision;
(3) the number of participants who failed to complete
the program and the reasons for the failures;
(4) the recidivism rate of participants, including:
(A) the number of participants by county who
completed the program and were subsequently arrested or convicted
of an offense; and
(B) a list of the most common offenses for which
participants were arrested or convicted;
(5) the revocation rate of program participants who
are on community supervision or parole and the reasons for the
revocations;
(6) information on the program's budget; and
(7) the turnover rate of department employees assigned
to the program and of employees of any entity implementing the
program under contract with the department.
(b) The department shall make the report available on the
department's Internet website.
(c) The department shall make the data used to produce the
report available on request to any college or university for
purposes of evaluating the program.
SECTION 4. Section 493.032, Government Code, as added by
Chapter 1163 (H.B. 3227), Acts of the 86th Legislature, Regular
Session, 2019, is amended by adding Subsection (d) to read as
follows:
(d) The department shall apply for grants from any public or
private source for the purpose of employing individuals to provide
peer support services to persons participating in a substance abuse
felony punishment program under Section 493.009.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.