Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3635 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R5885 AMF-F
2	2	By: Noble H.B. No. 3635
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7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to definition of abuse of a child, the reporting of child
10	10	abuse and neglect, and certain required notifications about reports
11	11	of child abuse and neglect.
12	12	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	13	SECTION 1. Section 261.001, Family Code, is amended by
14	14	amending Subdivision (1) and adding Subdivision (3-a) to read as
15	15	follows:
16	16	(1) "Abuse" includes the following acts or omissions
17	17	by a person:
18	18	(A) mental or emotional injury to a child that
19	19	results in an observable and material impairment in the child's
20	20	growth, development, or psychological functioning;
21	21	(B) causing or permitting the child to be in a
22	22	situation in which the child sustains a mental or emotional injury
23	23	that results in an observable and material impairment in the
24	24	child's growth, development, or psychological functioning;
25	25	(C) physical injury that results in substantial
26	26	harm to the child, or the genuine threat of substantial harm from
27	27	physical injury to the child, including an injury that is at
28	28	variance with the history or explanation given and excluding an
29	29	accident or reasonable discipline by a parent, guardian, or
30	30	managing or possessory conservator that does not expose the child
31	31	to a substantial risk of harm;
32	32	(D) failure to make a reasonable effort to
33	33	prevent an action by another person that results in physical injury
34	34	that results in substantial harm to the child;
35	35	(E) sexual conduct harmful to a child's mental,
36	36	emotional, or physical welfare, including conduct that constitutes
37	37	the offense of continuous sexual abuse of young child or disabled
38	38	individual under Section 21.02, Penal Code, indecency with a child
39	39	under Section 21.11, Penal Code, improper relationship between
40	40	educator and student under Section 21.12, Penal Code, sexual
41	41	assault under Section 22.011, Penal Code, or aggravated sexual
42	42	assault under Section 22.021, Penal Code;
43	43	(F) failure to make a reasonable effort to
44	44	prevent sexual conduct harmful to a child;
45	45	(G) compelling or encouraging the child to engage
46	46	in sexual conduct as defined by Section 43.01, Penal Code,
47	47	including compelling or encouraging the child in a manner that
48	48	constitutes an offense of trafficking of persons under Section
49	49	20A.02(a)(7) or (8), Penal Code, solicitation of prostitution under
50	50	Section 43.021, Penal Code, or compelling prostitution under
51	51	Section 43.05(a)(2), Penal Code;
52	52	(H) causing, permitting, encouraging, engaging
53	53	in, or allowing the photographing, filming, or depicting of the
54	54	child if the person knew or should have known that the resulting
55	55	photograph, film, or depiction of the child is obscene as defined by
56	56	Section 43.21, Penal Code, or pornographic;
57	57	(I) the current use by a person of a controlled
58	58	substance as defined by Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code, in a
59	59	manner or to the extent that the use results in physical, mental, or
60	60	emotional injury to a child;
61	61	(J) causing, expressly permitting, or
62	62	encouraging a child to use a controlled substance as defined by
63	63	Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code;
64	64	(K) causing, permitting, encouraging, engaging
65	65	in, or allowing a sexual performance by a child as defined by
66	66	Section 43.25, Penal Code;
67	67	(L) knowingly causing, permitting, encouraging,
68	68	engaging in, or allowing a child to be trafficked in a manner
69	69	punishable as an offense under Section 20A.02(a)(5), (6), (7), or
70	70	(8), Penal Code, or the failure to make a reasonable effort to
71	71	prevent a child from being trafficked in a manner punishable as an
72	72	offense under any of those sections; or
73	73	(M) forcing or coercing a child to enter into a
74	74	marriage.
75	75	(3-a) "Law enforcement agency" means:
76	76	(A) the Department of Public Safety;
77	77	(B) the police department of a municipality;
78	78	(C) the sheriff's office of a county; or
79	79	(D) a constable's office of a county.
80	80	SECTION 2. Section 261.103(a), Family Code, is amended to
81	81	read as follows:
82	82	(a) Except as provided by Subsections (b) and (c) and
83	83	Section 261.405, a report shall be made to:
84	84	(1) a [any local or state] law enforcement agency;
85	85	(2) the department; or
86	86	(3) the state agency that operates, licenses,
87	87	certifies, or registers the facility in which the alleged abuse or
88	88	neglect occurred.
89	89	SECTION 3. Sections 261.104(b) and (d), Family Code, are
90	90	amended to read as follows:
91	91	(b) If the individual making a report of child abuse or
92	92	neglect uses the toll-free telephone number the department operates
93	93	for reporting child abuse or neglect and the individual is
94	94	unwilling to provide the information described by Subsection
95	95	(a)(4), the department representative receiving the report shall
96	96	notify the individual that:
97	97	(1) the department is not authorized to accept an
98	98	anonymous report of abuse or neglect;
99	99	(2) the individual may report the abuse or neglect by
100	100	making a report to a [any local or state] law enforcement agency;
101	101	and
102	102	(3) the identity of an individual making a report
103	103	under this subchapter is confidential and may be disclosed only:
104	104	(A) as provided by Section 261.201; or
105	105	(B) to a law enforcement officer for the purposes
106	106	of conducting a criminal investigation of the report.
107	107	(d) If a report of abuse or neglect is made orally, the
108	108	department or [local or state] law enforcement agency receiving the
109	109	report shall:
110	110	(1) notify the individual making the report that:
111	111	(A) the report is being recorded; and
112	112	(B) making a false report is a criminal offense
113	113	under Section 261.107 punishable as a state jail felony or a third
114	114	degree felony; and
115	115	(2) make an audio recording of the report.
116	116	SECTION 4. Sections 261.105(a), (b), and (d), Family Code,
117	117	are amended to read as follows:
118	118	(a) All reports received by a [local or state] law
119	119	enforcement agency that allege abuse or neglect by a person
120	120	responsible for a child's care, custody, or welfare shall be
121	121	referred immediately to the department.
122	122	(b) The department shall immediately notify the appropriate
123	123	[state or local] law enforcement agency of any report it receives,
124	124	other than a report from a law enforcement agency, that concerns the
125	125	suspected abuse or neglect of a child or death of a child from abuse
126	126	or neglect.
127	127	(d) If the department initiates an investigation and
128	128	determines that the abuse or neglect does not involve a person
129	129	responsible for the child's care, custody, or welfare, the
130	130	department shall refer the report to the appropriate [a] law
131	131	enforcement agency for further investigation. If the department
132	132	determines that the abuse or neglect involves an employee of a
133	133	public or private elementary or secondary school, [and that the
134	134	child is a student at the school,] the department shall [orally]
135	135	notify, in writing, the superintendent of the school district, the
136	136	director of the open-enrollment charter school, or the chief
137	137	executive officer of the private school in which the employee is
138	138	employed about the investigation. The written notice required by
139	139	this subsection may be provided by e-mail to the official e-mail
140	140	address of the appropriate official, if that e-mail address is
141	141	publicly available.
142	142	SECTION 5. Sections 261.301(a) and (c), Family Code, are
143	143	amended to read as follows:
144	144	(a) With assistance from the appropriate [state or local]
145	145	law enforcement agency as provided by this section, the department
146	146	shall make a prompt and thorough investigation of a report of child
147	147	abuse or neglect allegedly committed by a person responsible for a
148	148	child's care, custody, or welfare. The investigation shall be
149	149	conducted without regard to any pending suit affecting the
150	150	parent-child relationship.
151	151	(c) The department is not required to investigate a report
152	152	that alleges child abuse, neglect, or exploitation by a person
153	153	other than a person responsible for a child's care, custody, or
154	154	welfare. The appropriate [state or local] law enforcement agency
155	155	shall investigate that report if the agency determines an
156	156	investigation should be conducted.
157	157	SECTION 6. Section 261.304(a), Family Code, is amended to
158	158	read as follows:
159	159	(a) If an individual makes an anonymous report of child
160	160	abuse or neglect by a person responsible for a child's care,
161	161	custody, or welfare to a [local or state] law enforcement agency and
162	162	the agency refers the report to the department, the department
163	163	shall conduct a preliminary investigation to determine whether
164	164	there is any evidence to corroborate the report.
165	165	SECTION 7. Section 261.402(b), Family Code, is amended to
166	166	read as follows:
167	167	(b) A state agency shall immediately notify the appropriate
168	168	[state or local] law enforcement agency of any report the agency
169	169	receives, other than a report from a law enforcement agency, that
170	170	concerns the suspected abuse, neglect, or exploitation of a child
171	171	or the death of a child from abuse or neglect. If the state agency
172	172	finds evidence indicating that a child may have been abused,
173	173	neglected, or exploited, the agency shall report the evidence to
174	174	the appropriate law enforcement agency.
175	175	SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.