Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2066 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	88R8917 CJD-D
2	2	By: Cook, Garcia, et al. H.B. No. 2066
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the diversion of certain foster youth from the juvenile
8	8	justice system, including through emergency behavior intervention
9	9	by certain persons providing foster care services.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Section 53.01(b-1), Family Code, is amended to
12	12	read as follows:
13	13	(b-1) The person who is conducting the preliminary
14	14	investigation shall, as appropriate, refer the child's case to a
15	15	community resource coordination group, a local-level interagency
16	16	staffing group, or other community juvenile service provider for
17	17	services under Section 53.011, if the person determines that:
18	18	(1) [the child is younger than 12 years of age;
19	19	[(2)] there is probable cause to believe the child
20	20	engaged in delinquent conduct or conduct indicating a need for
21	21	supervision;
22	22	(2) [(3)] the child's case does not require referral
23	23	to the prosecuting attorney under Subsection (d) or (f);
24	24	(3) [(4)] the child is eligible for deferred
25	25	prosecution under Section 53.03; and
26	26	(4) [(5)] the child:
27	27	(A) is younger than 12 years of age, and the child
28	28	and the child's family are not currently receiving services under
29	29	Section 53.011 and would benefit from receiving the services; or
30	30	(B) resides in a general residential operation,
31	31	as that term is defined by Section 42.002, Human Resources Code.
32	32	SECTION 2. Section 42.0426, Human Resources Code, is
33	33	amended by amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to
34	34	read as follows:
35	35	(b) A residential child-care facility shall implement a
36	36	behavior intervention program approved by the department for the
37	37	benefit of a child served by the facility who needs assistance in
38	38	managing the child's conduct. The program must include:
39	39	(1) behavior intervention instruction for staff
40	40	members who work directly with children served by the facility,
41	41	including crisis response training for emergency behavior
42	42	intervention with a goal of limiting law enforcement involvement;
43	43	and
44	44	(2) training for all employees regarding the risks
45	45	associated with the use of prone restraints.
46	46	(b-1) The crisis response training required by Subsection
47	47	(b)(1) may be conducted jointly with local law enforcement to
48	48	maximize the effectiveness of the training.
49	49	SECTION 3. Section 152.00145, Human Resources Code, is
50	50	amended to read as follows:
51	51	Sec. 152.00145. DIVERSION AND DETENTION POLICY FOR CERTAIN
52	52	JUVENILES. (a) In this section, "general residential operation"
53	53	has the meaning assigned by Section 42.002.
54	54	(b) A juvenile board shall establish policies that
55	55	prioritize:
56	56	(1) the diversion from referral to a prosecuting
57	57	attorney under Chapter 53, Family Code, of children who are:
58	58	(A) younger than 12 years of age [from referral
59	59	to a prosecuting attorney under Chapter 53, Family Code]; or
60	60	(B) residing in a general residential operation,
61	61	particularly children alleged to have engaged in conduct
62	62	constituting a misdemeanor involving violence to a person; and
63	63	(2) the limitation of detention, to circumstances of
64	64	last resort, of children who are:
65	65	(A) younger than 12 years of age;
66	66	(B) residing in an unregulated setting and being
67	67	supervised by a caseworker employed by the Department of Family and
68	68	Protective Services due to a lack of a safe and appropriate licensed
69	69	foster care placement or relative placement; or
70	70	(C) residing in a general residential operation
71	71	[to circumstances of last resort].
72	72	(c) To monitor the success of policies implemented under
73	73	Subsection (b) for children who reside in general residential
74	74	operations, a juvenile board shall track:
75	75	(1) the number of children referred to the board who
76	76	reside in a general residential operation;
77	77	(2) the number of children described by Subdivision
78	78	(1) who receive deferred prosecution or are referred to the
79	79	juvenile probation department; and
80	80	(3) the general residential operation where a child
81	81	described by Subdivision (1) resides.
82	82	SECTION 4. Section 53.01(b-1), Family Code, as amended by
83	83	this Act, applies only to conduct that occurs on or after the
84	84	effective date of this Act. Conduct that occurs before the
85	85	effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
86	86	date the conduct occurred, and the former law is continued in effect
87	87	for that purpose. For the purposes of this section, conduct
88	88	occurred before the effective date of this Act if any element of the
89	89	conduct occurred before that date.
90	90	SECTION 5. The change in law made by this Act to Section
91	91	42.0426(b), Human Resources Code, is intended to permit a
92	92	residential child-care facility to supplement existing training
93	93	requirements in effect before the effective date of this Act and to
94	94	conduct the training outside of the existing training curricula.
95	95	Section 42.0426, Human Resources Code, as amended by this Act, may
96	96	not be construed as requiring the purchase of a new training program
97	97	or as requiring additional training hours.
98	98	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.