Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1826 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Bowers H.B. No. 1826
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6	6	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
7	7	AN ACT
8	8	relating to depression screenings for certain women in county jail
9	9	or in the custody of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 501, Government Code, is
12	12	amended by adding Section 501.0655 to read as follows:
13	13	Sec. 501.0655. DEPRESSION SCREENING FOR PREGNANT INMATE.
14	14	The department shall ensure that each inmate who is pregnant or has
15	15	given birth in the preceding year is screened for depression:
16	16	(1) once each trimester during the pregnancy;
17	17	(2) once during the six-week period after giving
18	18	birth; and
19	19	(3) at 6 and 12 months after giving birth.
20	20	SECTION 2. Section 511.009(a), Government Code, is amended
21	21	to read as follows:
22	22	(a) The commission shall:
23	23	(1) adopt reasonable rules and procedures
24	24	establishing minimum standards for the construction, equipment,
25	25	maintenance, and operation of county jails;
26	26	(2) adopt reasonable rules and procedures
27	27	establishing minimum standards for the custody, care, and treatment
28	28	of prisoners;
29	29	(3) adopt reasonable rules establishing minimum
30	30	standards for the number of jail supervisory personnel and for
31	31	programs and services to meet the needs of prisoners;
32	32	(4) adopt reasonable rules and procedures
33	33	establishing minimum requirements for programs of rehabilitation,
34	34	education, and recreation in county jails;
35	35	(5) regularly review the commission's rules and
36	36	procedures and revise, amend, or change the rules and procedures if
37	37	necessary;
38	38	(6) provide to local government officials
39	39	consultation on and technical assistance for county jails;
40	40	(7) review and comment on plans for the construction
41	41	and major modification or renovation of county jails;
42	42	(8) require that the sheriff and commissioners of each
43	43	county submit to the commission, on a form prescribed by the
44	44	commission, an annual report on the conditions in each county jail
45	45	within their jurisdiction, including all information necessary to
46	46	determine compliance with state law, commission orders, and the
47	47	rules adopted under this chapter;
48	48	(9) review the reports submitted under Subdivision (8)
49	49	and require commission employees to inspect county jails regularly
50	50	to ensure compliance with state law, commission orders, and rules
51	51	and procedures adopted under this chapter;
52	52	(10) adopt a classification system to assist sheriffs
53	53	and judges in determining which defendants are low-risk and
54	54	consequently suitable participants in a county jail work release
55	55	program under Article 42.034, Code of Criminal Procedure;
56	56	(11) adopt rules relating to requirements for
57	57	segregation of classes of inmates and to capacities for county
58	58	jails;
59	59	(12) adopt a policy for gathering and distributing to
60	60	jails under the commission's jurisdiction information regarding:
61	61	(A) common issues concerning jail
62	62	administration;
63	63	(B) examples of successful strategies for
64	64	maintaining compliance with state law and the rules, standards, and
65	65	procedures of the commission; and
66	66	(C) solutions to operational challenges for
67	67	jails;
68	68	(13) report to the Texas Correctional Office on
69	69	Offenders with Medical or Mental Impairments on a jail's compliance
70	70	with Article 16.22, Code of Criminal Procedure;
71	71	(14) adopt reasonable rules and procedures
72	72	establishing minimum requirements for a county jail to:
73	73	(A) determine if a prisoner is pregnant;
74	74	(B) ensure that the jail's health services plan
75	75	addresses:
76	76	(i) medical care, including obstetrical and
77	77	gynecological care;
78	78	(ii) [,] mental health care, including a
79	79	requirement that each prisoner who is pregnant or has given birth in
80	80	the preceding year be screened for depression:
81	81	(a) once each trimester during the
82	82	pregnancy;
83	83	(b) once during the six-week period
84	84	after giving birth; and
85	85	(c) at 6 and 12 months after giving
86	86	birth;
87	87	(iii) nutritional requirements;[,] and
88	88	(iv) any special housing or work assignment
89	89	needs for prisoners who are known or determined to be pregnant; and
90	90	(C) identify when a pregnant prisoner is in labor
91	91	and provide appropriate care to the prisoner, including promptly
92	92	transporting the prisoner to a local hospital;
93	93	(15) provide guidelines to sheriffs regarding
94	94	contracts between a sheriff and another entity for the provision of
95	95	food services to or the operation of a commissary in a jail under
96	96	the commission's jurisdiction, including specific provisions
97	97	regarding conflicts of interest and avoiding the appearance of
98	98	impropriety;
99	99	(16) adopt reasonable rules and procedures
100	100	establishing minimum standards for prisoner visitation that
101	101	provide each prisoner at a county jail with a minimum of two
102	102	in-person, noncontact visitation periods per week of at least 20
103	103	minutes duration each;
104	104	(17) require the sheriff of each county to:
105	105	(A) investigate and verify the veteran status of
106	106	each prisoner by using data made available from the Veterans
107	107	Reentry Search Service (VRSS) operated by the United States
108	108	Department of Veterans Affairs or a similar service; and
109	109	(B) use the data described by Paragraph (A) to
110	110	assist prisoners who are veterans in applying for federal benefits
111	111	or compensation for which the prisoners may be eligible under a
112	112	program administered by the United States Department of Veterans
113	113	Affairs;
114	114	(18) adopt reasonable rules and procedures regarding
115	115	visitation of a prisoner at a county jail by a guardian, as defined
116	116	by Section 1002.012, Estates Code, that:
117	117	(A) allow visitation by a guardian to the same
118	118	extent as the prisoner's next of kin, including placing the
119	119	guardian on the prisoner's approved visitors list on the guardian's
120	120	request and providing the guardian access to the prisoner during a
121	121	facility's standard visitation hours if the prisoner is otherwise
122	122	eligible to receive visitors; and
123	123	(B) require the guardian to provide the sheriff
124	124	with letters of guardianship issued as provided by Section
125	125	1106.001, Estates Code, before being allowed to visit the prisoner;
126	126	(19) adopt reasonable rules and procedures to ensure
127	127	the safety of prisoners, including rules and procedures that
128	128	require a county jail to:
129	129	(A) give prisoners the ability to access a mental
130	130	health professional at the jail or through a telemental health
131	131	service 24 hours a day or, if a mental health professional is not at
132	132	the county jail at the time, then require the jail to use all
133	133	reasonable efforts to arrange for the inmate to have access to a
134	134	mental health professional within a reasonable time;
135	135	(B) give prisoners the ability to access a health
136	136	professional at the jail or through a telehealth service 24 hours a
137	137	day or, if a health professional is unavailable at the jail or
138	138	through a telehealth service, provide for a prisoner to be
139	139	transported to access a health professional; and
140	140	(C) if funding is available under Section
141	141	511.019, install automated electronic sensors or cameras to ensure
142	142	accurate and timely in-person checks of cells or groups of cells
143	143	confining at-risk individuals; and
144	144	(20) adopt reasonable rules and procedures
145	145	establishing minimum standards for the quantity and quality of
146	146	feminine hygiene products, including tampons in regular and large
147	147	sizes and menstrual pads with wings in regular and large sizes,
148	148	provided to a female prisoner.
149	149	SECTION 3. Not later than December 1, 2023, the Commission
150	150	on Jail Standards shall adopt the rules and procedures required by
151	151	Section 511.009(a), Government Code, as amended by this Act.
152	152	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.