88R14245 MLH-D
By: Gervin-Hawkins H.B. No. 3694
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to a deadline for completing services under a family
service plan.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 263.102, Family Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (e-1) to read as
follows:
(a) The service plan must:
(1) be specific;
(2) be in writing in a language that the parents
understand, or made otherwise available;
(3) be prepared by the department in conference with
the child's parents;
(4) state appropriate deadlines;
(5) specify the primary permanency goal and at least
one alternative permanency goal;
(6) state steps that are necessary to:
(A) return the child to the child's home if the
placement is in foster care;
(B) enable the child to remain in the child's
home with the assistance of a service plan if the placement is in
the home under the department's supervision; or
(C) otherwise provide a permanent safe placement
for the child;
(7) state the actions and responsibilities that are
necessary for the child's parents to take to achieve the plan goal
during the period of the service plan and the assistance to be
provided to the parents by the department or other agency toward
meeting that goal;
(8) state any specific skills or knowledge that the
child's parents must acquire or learn, as well as any behavioral
changes the parents must exhibit, to achieve the plan goal;
(9) state the actions and responsibilities that are
necessary for the child's parents to take to ensure that the child
attends school and maintains or improves the child's academic
compliance;
(10) state the name of the person with the department
whom the child's parents may contact for information relating to
the child if other than the person preparing the plan; [and]
(11) prescribe any other term or condition that the
department determines to be necessary to the service plan's
success; and
(12) describe any services the department will provide
under Subsection (e).
(e-1) Services provided by the department under Subsection
(e) must be concluded not later than the 15th business day before
the dismissal date for the suit as provided by Subchapter E.
SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to a service plan that is created on or after the effective date of
this Act. A service plan that is created before the effective date
of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the service
plan was created, and the former law is continued in effect for that
purpose.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.