88R5809 MLH-F
By: Hall S.B. No. 388
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to court orders to aid an investigation by the Department
of Family and Protective Services.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 261.303, Family Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (b) and (c) and adding Subsection (f) to read
as follows:
(b) If admission to the home, school, or any place where the
child may be cannot be obtained, and if [then for good cause shown]
the court having family law jurisdiction has probable cause to
believe that an order is necessary to protect the child from abuse
or neglect, then the court shall order the parent, the person
responsible for the care of the children, or the person in charge of
any place where the child may be to allow entrance for the
interview, examination, and investigation.
(c) If a parent or person responsible for the child's care
does not consent to release of the child's prior medical,
psychological, or psychiatric records or to a medical,
psychological, or psychiatric examination of the child that is
requested by the department, and if the court having family law
jurisdiction has probable cause to believe that releasing the
records or conducting an examination of the child is necessary to
protect the child from abuse or neglect, then the court shall[, for
good cause shown,] order the records to be released or the
examination to be made at the times and places designated by the
court.
(f) A hearing for an order under Subsection (b) or (c) may
not be ex parte unless the court has probable cause to believe that
an immediate risk to the physical health or safety of the child
makes it impracticable to hold a full hearing.
SECTION 2. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
an order rendered on or after the effective date of this Act. An
order rendered before the effective date of this Act is governed by
the law in effect on the date of the order, and the former law is
continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2023.