89R10136 AMF-D
By: Middleton S.B. No. 1971
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to admissibility and disclosure of certain evidence in a
suit concerning a child alleged to have been abused or neglected or
to be at risk of abuse or neglect filed by a governmental entity.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 104, Family Code, is amended by
designating Sections 104.001 through 104.008 as Subchapter A and
adding a subchapter heading to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
SECTION 2. Chapter 104, Family Code, is amended by adding
Subchapter B to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER B. CERTAIN SUITS FILED BY A GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY
Sec. 104.101. STATEMENT BY INDIVIDUAL UNDERGOING SUBSTANCE
USE DISORDER TREATMENT OR EVALUATION. In a suit filed by a
governmental entity concerning a child who is alleged in the suit to
have been abused or neglected or to be at risk of abuse or neglect, a
statement made by an individual undergoing voluntary or
court-ordered treatment for a substance use disorder, or undergoing
an evaluation for admission to treatment for a substance use
disorder, is not admissible in any judicial proceeding for use
against the individual if the statement was made to any person
involved in the individual's treatment or evaluation.
Sec. 104.102. STATEMENT BY INDIVIDUAL UNDERGOING MENTAL
HEALTH TREATMENT OR EVALUATION. In a suit filed by a governmental
entity concerning a child who is alleged in the suit to have been
abused or neglected or to be at risk of abuse or neglect, a
statement made by an individual undergoing voluntary or
court-ordered therapeutic treatment for a mental illness, or
undergoing a psychological, psychosocial, or psychiatric
evaluation for that treatment, is not admissible for use against
the individual in any judicial proceeding if the statement was made
to any person involved in the individual's treatment or evaluation.
Sec. 104.103. STATEMENT BY PERSON REQUIRED TO REPORT ABUSE
OR NEGLECT OF CHILD. In a suit filed by a governmental entity
concerning a child who is alleged in the suit to have been abused or
neglected or to be at risk of abuse or neglect, an out-of-court
statement regarding any alleged abuse or neglect made to an entity
described by Section 261.103 under Subchapter B, Chapter 261, is
not admissible into evidence at any judicial proceeding unless the
statement can be independently corroborated by other evidence.
Sec. 104.104. STATEMENT OR TESTIMONY OF ALLEGED PERPETRATOR
OF ABUSE OR NEGLECT. In a suit filed by a governmental entity
concerning a child who is alleged in the suit to have been abused or
neglected or to be at risk of abuse or neglect, the alleged
perpetrator of any abuse or neglect may not be compelled to make a
statement during an investigation under Chapter 261 or to testify
at any judicial proceeding. Neither the court nor the counsel may
comment on the alleged perpetrator's refusal to make a statement or
to testify, and the trier of fact may not draw any adverse inference
from the alleged perpetrator's refusal to make a statement or to
testify.
SECTION 3. Chapter 301, Family Code, is amended by adding
Subchapter D, and a heading is added to that subchapter to read as
follows:
SUBCHAPTER D. DISCLOSURES IN SUIT FILED BY A GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY
SECTION 4. Section 262.014, Family Code, is transferred to
Subchapter D, Chapter 301, Family Code, as added by this Act,
redesignated as Section 301.151, Family Code, and amended to read
as follows:
Sec. 301.151 [262.014]. DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN EVIDENCE IN
CERTAIN SUITS. (a) In [On the request of the attorney for a parent
who is a party in] a suit concerning a child who is alleged to have
been abused or neglected or to be at risk of abuse or neglect
[affecting the parent-child relationship] filed by a governmental
entity [under this chapter, or the attorney ad litem for the
parent's child], the governmental entity [Department of Family and
Protective Services] shall[, before the full adversary hearing,]
provide to each party:
(1) the name of any person, excluding an [a
department] employee of the governmental entity, whom the
governmental entity [department] will call as a witness to any of
the allegations contained in the petition filed by the governmental
entity and any witness statement provided by the person
[department];
(2) a copy of any offense report relating to the
allegations contained in the petition filed by the governmental
entity [department] that will be used in court to refresh a
witness's memory; [and]
(3) a copy of any photograph, video, or recording
relating to the allegations contained in the petition filed by the
governmental entity;
(4) a copy of any medical record or report submitted to
the governmental entity by a medical provider, including a provider
with the forensic assessment center network regarding a child who
is the subject of the suit;
(5) all exculpatory, impeachment, or mitigating
evidence in the possession, custody, or control of the governmental
entity or its agent that:
(A) is relevant to a parent who is a party in the
suit; and
(B) tends to negate any claim of abuse or neglect
of a child by the parent; and
(6) a true and correct copy of any investigative file
under Chapter 261, including any intake report, with only the
identifying information of a reporting party redacted [that will be
presented as evidence].
(b) In a suit filed by a governmental entity concerning a
child who is alleged to have been abused or neglected or to be at
risk of abuse or neglect, the governmental entity shall provide the
information under Subsection (a) not later than the seventh day
before the date of:
(1) the full adversary hearing in a suit filed under
Section 262.101 or 262.105; or
(2) the initial hearing in a suit filed under Section
262.404 or 264.203.
(c) If at any time before, during, or after a hearing or
before the end of a trial, the governmental entity or its agents
discover any additional document, item, or information required to
be disclosed under Subsection (a), the governmental entity shall
immediately provide the document, item, or information to each
party.
(d) If after a trial the governmental entity or its agents
discover any additional document, item, or information described by
Subsection (a)(5), the governmental entity shall immediately
provide the document, item, or information to each party.
(e) In a suit filed by a governmental entity concerning a
child who is alleged to have been abused or neglected or to be at
risk of abuse or neglect, any document, item, or information not
timely disclosed in accordance with this section is not admissible
in any judicial proceeding if submitted by the governmental entity.
(f) To the extent of any conflict, this section prevails
over Chapter 552, Government Code.
(g) This section does not prohibit the parties in a suit
concerning a child who is alleged to have been abused or neglected
or to be at risk of abuse or neglect filed by a governmental entity
from agreeing to discovery and documentation requirements equal to
or greater than those required under this section.
SECTION 5. The change in law made by this Act applies to a
suit filed by a governmental entity on or after the effective date
of this Act. A suit filed by a governmental entity before the
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
date the suit was filed, and the former law is continued in effect
for that purpose.
SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.