| 1 | 1 | | 88R30492 MLH-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: West, et al. S.B. No. 2591 |
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| 3 | 3 | | (Shaheen) |
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| 4 | 4 | | Substitute the following for S.B. No. 2591: No. |
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| 5 | 5 | | |
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| 6 | 6 | | |
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| 7 | 7 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 8 | 8 | | AN ACT |
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| 9 | 9 | | relating to the appointment of the Department of Family and |
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| 10 | 10 | | Protective Services and a child's parent or legal guardian as joint |
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| 11 | 11 | | managing conservators for the child. |
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| 12 | 12 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 13 | 13 | | SECTION 1. Section 262.352, Family Code, is amended by |
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| 14 | 14 | | adding Subsection (b) to read as follows: |
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| 15 | 15 | | (b) A court shall enter an order appointing the department |
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| 16 | 16 | | and the child's parent or legal guardian as joint managing |
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| 17 | 17 | | conservators of the child if the court finds sufficient evidence to |
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| 18 | 18 | | satisfy a person of ordinary prudence and caution that the child's |
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| 19 | 19 | | parent or legal guardian has: |
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| 20 | 20 | | (1) exhausted all reasonable means available to the |
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| 21 | 21 | | parent or legal guardian to obtain mental health services to meet |
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| 22 | 22 | | the child's needs; and |
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| 23 | 23 | | (2) agreed to actively participate in the child's |
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| 24 | 24 | | service plan in preparation for the child's return to the parent or |
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| 25 | 25 | | legal guardian. |
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| 26 | 26 | | SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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| 27 | 27 | | to a suit affecting the parent-child relationship filed on or after |
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| 28 | 28 | | the effective date of this Act. A suit affecting the parent-child |
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| 29 | 29 | | relationship filed before the effective date of this Act is |
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| 30 | 30 | | governed by the law in effect on the date the suit was filed, and the |
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| 31 | 31 | | former law is continued in effect for that purpose. |
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| 32 | 32 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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