Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1796 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	88R15793 AMF-F
2	2	By: Howard, Hull, Rose H.B. No. 1796
3	3	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 1796:
4	4	By: Ramos C.S.H.B. No. 1796
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to family violence center services for victims of family
10	10	violence.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Section 51.002, Human Resources Code, is amended
13	13	by amending Subdivisions (1), (2), and (9) and adding Subdivisions
14	14	(1-a), (1-b), and (8-a) to read as follows:
15	15	(1) "Dating relationship" has the meaning assigned by
16	16	Section 71.0021(b), Family Code.
17	17	(1-a) "Dating violence" means an act, other than a
18	18	defensive measure to protect oneself, by an individual against
19	19	another individual with whom the actor has or has had a dating
20	20	relationship and that is:
21	21	(A) intended to result in physical harm, bodily
22	22	injury, assault, or sexual assault;
23	23	(B) a threat that reasonably places an individual
24	24	in fear of imminent physical harm, bodily injury, assault, or
25	25	sexual assault; or
26	26	(C) intended to inflict emotional harm,
27	27	including an act of emotional abuse.
28	28	(1-b) "Family" has the meaning assigned by Section
29	29	71.003, Family Code.
30	30	(2) "Family violence" means:
31	31	(A) an act by a member of a family or household
32	32	against another member of the family or household that:
33	33	(i) [(A)] is intended to result in physical
34	34	harm, bodily injury, assault, or sexual assault or that is a threat
35	35	that reasonably places the member in fear of imminent physical
36	36	harm, bodily injury, assault, or sexual assault, but does not
37	37	include defensive measures to protect oneself; or
38	38	(ii) [(B)] is intended to inflict emotional
39	39	harm, including an act of emotional abuse; or
40	40	(B) dating violence.
41	41	(8-a) "Trauma-informed" in regard to a service or
42	42	service model means that the service or service model is provided in
43	43	a manner that recognizes and responds to the signs and symptoms of
44	44	trauma in, and the risks of trauma to, a victim of family violence
45	45	to better support the victim and promote the victim's choice,
46	46	trust, dignity, connection, and healing.
47	47	(9) "Victim of family violence" means:
48	48	(A) an adult member of a family or household who
49	49	is subjected to an act of family violence; [or]
50	50	(B) a member of the household of the adult
51	51	described by Paragraph (A), other than the member of the household
52	52	who commits the act of family violence, including an act of
53	53	emotional abuse; or
54	54	(C) an individual who is subjected to an act of
55	55	dating violence.
56	56	SECTION 2. Sections 51.004(a) and (b), Human Resources
57	57	Code, are amended to read as follows:
58	58	(a) To be eligible for a contract under Section 51.003(a), a
59	59	family violence shelter center must:
60	60	(1) provide temporary lodging and direct delivery of
61	61	services for adults and their dependents;
62	62	(2) have been in actual operation offering shelter
63	63	services 24 hours a day with a capacity for not less than five
64	64	persons for at least one year before the date on which the contract
65	65	is awarded;
66	66	(3) demonstrate that the center, through the services
67	67	it provides, is addressing a need in the community consistent with
68	68	the plan for family violence services under Section 51.0021; [and]
69	69	(4) demonstrate that the center is using a voluntary
70	70	and trauma-informed advocacy service model; and
71	71	(5) submit a contract application on forms prescribed
72	72	by the commission.
73	73	(b) To be eligible for a contract under Section 51.003(a), a
74	74	family violence nonresidential center must:
75	75	(1) provide, as its primary purpose, direct delivery
76	76	of services to adult victims of family violence;
77	77	(2) demonstrate a system of referring victims of
78	78	family violence to at least one family violence shelter center or
79	79	other safe temporary lodging;
80	80	(3) have been operating and providing comprehensive
81	81	services, including the services described by Section
82	82	51.005(b)(3), to victims of family violence for at least one year
83	83	before the date on which the contract is awarded;
84	84	(4) demonstrate that the center, through the services
85	85	it provides, is addressing a need in the community consistent with
86	86	the plan for family violence services under Section 51.0021; [and]
87	87	(5) demonstrate that the center is using a voluntary
88	88	and trauma-informed advocacy service model; and
89	89	(6) submit a contract application on forms prescribed
90	90	by the commission.
91	91	SECTION 3. Section 51.005, Human Resources Code, is amended
92	92	by amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to read as
93	93	follows:
94	94	(b) The contracts shall require the persons operating a
95	95	family violence center to:
96	96	(1) make a quarterly and an annual financial report on
97	97	a form prescribed by the commission;
98	98	(2) cooperate with inspections the commission makes to
99	99	ensure services standards and fiscal responsibility; and
100	100	(3) provide, as its primary purpose, voluntary and
101	101	trauma-informed services to victims of family violence that
102	102	include:
103	103	(A) 24-hour-a-day shelter, except that a family
104	104	violence nonresidential center may provide access to a
105	105	24-hour-a-day shelter;
106	106	(B) a 24-hour-a-day crisis hotline, except that a
107	107	family violence nonresidential center may provide access to a
108	108	24-hour-a-day crisis hotline operated by another organization
109	109	located in the nonresidential center's service area;
110	110	(C) access to emergency medical care;
111	111	(D) crisis and intervention services, including
112	112	[safety planning,] understanding and support, information,
113	113	education, referrals, and other resource assistance;
114	114	(E) access to emergency transportation;
115	115	(F) advocacy focused on:
116	116	(i) economic and housing stability;
117	117	(ii) physical, behavioral, and mental
118	118	health;
119	119	(iii) the needs of children who are victims
120	120	and the children of victims; and
121	121	(iv) [legal assistance in] the civil and
122	122	criminal legal [justice] systems, including:
123	123	(a) [(i)] identifying individual
124	124	needs, legal rights, and legal options; and
125	125	(b) [(ii)] providing support and
126	126	accompaniment in pursuing those options;
127	127	(G) ongoing safety planning services in
128	128	collaboration with the self-stated priorities and needs of the
129	129	victim of family violence [information about educational
130	130	arrangements for children];
131	131	(H) community education regarding family
132	132	violence and family violence prevention efforts [information about
133	133	training for and seeking employment];
134	134	(I) counseling services [cooperation with
135	135	criminal justice officials]; and
136	136	(J) peer support services led by victims of
137	137	family violence, including activities and other efforts that
138	138	facilitate connections and the creation of community among victims
139	139	of family violence [community education;
140	140	[(K) a referral system to existing community
141	141	services; and
142	142	[(L) a volunteer recruitment and training
143	143	program].
144	144	(b-1) The contracts shall:
145	145	(1) specify that participation in services by a victim
146	146	of family violence is voluntary; and
147	147	(2) prohibit the persons operating a family violence
148	148	center from requiring a victim of family violence to participate in
149	149	other services as a condition of receiving shelter.
150	150	SECTION 4. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
151	151	a contract entered into or amended on or after the effective date of
152	152	this Act. A contract entered into or amended before the effective
153	153	date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the
154	154	contract was entered into or amended, and the former law is
155	155	continued in effect for that purpose.
156	156	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2024.