Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB593 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	S.B. No. 593
2	2
3	3
4	4	AN ACT
5	5	relating to an independent assessment of the Health and Human
6	6	Services Commission's and the Department of Family and Protective
7	7	Services' rules, minimum standards, and contract requirements that
8	8	apply to certain residential child-care providers.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 42, Human Resources Code,
11	11	is amended by adding Section 42.027 to read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 42.027. INDEPENDENT ASSESSMENT. (a) Not later than
13	13	March 31, 2024, the commission shall contract with an independent
14	14	entity that has demonstrated expertise in evaluating state child
15	15	welfare systems and conducting statistical and operational
16	16	analysis to conduct an assessment of:
17	17	(1) the commission's and the department's rules,
18	18	minimum standards, and contract requirements that apply to
19	19	child-placing agencies, residential child-care facilities
20	20	including foster homes, relative caregivers, and adoptive homes;
21	21	and
22	22	(2) the standards or oversight requirements
23	23	prescribed by law to determine:
24	24	(A) the relevance of the standard or oversight
25	25	requirement;
26	26	(B) whether the standard or oversight
27	27	requirement complies with federal laws, rules, or guidelines; and
28	28	(C) whether the standard or oversight
29	29	requirement is the best practice.
30	30	(b) Not later than September 30, 2024, or the date of the
31	31	next comprehensive review required under Section 42.042(b),
32	32	whichever occurs first, the independent entity shall complete the
33	33	assessment and submit to the commission and the department a report
34	34	that includes the findings of the assessment and recommendations
35	35	for:
36	36	(1) simplifying the commission's minimum standards for
37	37	the purposes of:
38	38	(A) prioritizing the health, safety, and
39	39	well-being of children residing in a residential child-care
40	40	facility including a foster home or the home of a relative caregiver
41	41	or an adoptive parent; and
42	42	(B) reducing any barriers to opening a
43	43	child-placing agency or a residential child-care facility or
44	44	becoming a relative caregiver, a foster parent, or an adoptive
45	45	parent;
46	46	(2) adjusting the commission's system for assigning
47	47	weights to minimum standards to ensure that the system is
48	48	methodical, consistent, and reflective of a strategic model for
49	49	increasing the focus on the health, safety, and well-being of
50	50	children residing in a residential child-care facility including a
51	51	foster home or the home of a relative caregiver or an adoptive
52	52	parent, including an explanation of the recommended adjustments;
53	53	(3) taking into consideration the model licensing
54	54	standards recommended by the Administration for Children and
55	55	Families of the United States Department of Health and Human
56	56	Services, eliminating any minimum standards that are weighted as
57	57	low, medium-low, or medium by the commission and are not directly
58	58	related to child safety;
59	59	(4) addressing any licensing, training, or oversight
60	60	requirements that are barriers to retaining high-quality
61	61	residential child-care facilities including foster homes, relative
62	62	caregivers, or adoptive parents;
63	63	(5) updating licensing standards for the purposes of:
64	64	(A) prioritizing the health, safety, and
65	65	well-being of children residing in a residential child-care
66	66	facility including a foster home or the home of a relative caregiver
67	67	or an adoptive parent; and
68	68	(B) reducing any barriers to the hiring and
69	69	retention of high-quality leadership, administrators, and staff at
70	70	child-placing agencies and residential child-care facilities;
71	71	(6) providing maximum flexibility in applying
72	72	standards to ensure that services are provided in response to the
73	73	needs of each individual child residing in a residential child-care
74	74	facility including a foster home or the home of a relative caregiver
75	75	or an adoptive parent;
76	76	(7) defining the commission's and the department's
77	77	role in licensing, investigating, contract oversight, and any other
78	78	regulatory activity to eliminate duplicate functions among the
79	79	commission and the department or divisions within the commission or
80	80	department; and
81	81	(8) promoting transparency and clarity of the
82	82	commission's and the department's expectations for child-placing
83	83	agencies, residential child-care facilities including foster
84	84	homes, relative caregivers, and adoptive parents.
85	85	(c) The independent entity conducting the assessment under
86	86	this section shall make any recommendations for legislative action,
87	87	including recommendations for retaining, repealing, or modifying
88	88	existing state laws or rules or adopting new state laws or rules,
89	89	necessary to implement the entity's recommendations described by
90	90	Subsection (b).
91	91	(d) In conducting the assessment, the independent entity
92	92	shall solicit and consider the input of relevant stakeholders,
93	93	including those affected by the commission's or the department's
94	94	rules, minimum standards, and contract requirements that apply to
95	95	child-placing agencies, residential child-care facilities
96	96	including foster homes, relative caregivers, or adoptive parents.
97	97	(e) The commission shall publish the independent entity's
98	98	report on the commission's Internet website and submit a copy of the
99	99	report to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the
100	100	house of representatives, and the standing committee of each house
101	101	of the legislature with primary jurisdiction over the commission.
102	102	(f) Not later than the 90th day after the date the
103	103	commission receives the independent entity's report, the
104	104	commission, in collaboration with the department, shall submit to
105	105	the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of
106	106	representatives, and the standing committee of each house of the
107	107	legislature with primary jurisdiction over the commission a report
108	108	that includes a description of:
109	109	(1) the commission's and department's plan to
110	110	implement the independent entity's assessment recommendations; and
111	111	(2) any recommendation the commission or department
112	112	decides not to implement and a written justification for not
113	113	implementing the recommendation.
114	114	(g) This section expires September 1, 2025.
115	115	SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
116	116	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
117	117	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
118	118	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
119	119	Act takes effect September 1, 2023.
120	120	______________________________ ______________________________
121	121	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
122	122	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 593 passed the Senate on
123	123	April 18, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
124	124	______________________________
125	125	Secretary of the Senate
126	126	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 593 passed the House on
127	127	May 4, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 144, Nays 0, one present
128	128	not voting.
129	129	______________________________
130	130	Chief Clerk of the House
131	131	Approved:
132	132	______________________________
133	133	Date
134	134	______________________________
135	135	Governor