BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 2572

By: Lujan

Human Services

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Currently, the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) maintains the child abuse and neglect central registry to identify offenders for abuse or neglect of a child and to ensure such individuals are unable to qualify to work in certain facilities where children are present. One function of this registry is to conduct background checks to determine if a person has been found to have abused or neglected a child or is alleged to have done so in an ongoing DFPS investigation. However, not all substantiated allegations of abuse and neglect are reflected in the registry. For example, if a perpetrator is criminally prosecuted, a background check will pick that up and the individual will be disqualified from working in in certain facilities with children, but a background check will not identify any findings of abuse or neglect stemming from an investigation by the Texas Juvenile Justice Department or the Health and Human Services Commission. H.B. 2572 seeks to close this loophole by including the names of individuals found by those agencies to have abused or neglected a child in the central registry.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

H.B. 2572 amends the Family Code to require the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) to include in its central registry regarding child abuse and neglect the names of individuals found by the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) and the Texas Juvenile Justice Department (TJJD) to have abused or neglected a child. The bill clarifies that the individual charged with adopting rules regarding the registry is the commissioner of DFPS and requires the rules to specify that the registry includes names of individuals found to have abused or neglected a child by HHSC, TJJD, and the relevant divisions of DFPS. The bill requires HHSC and TJJD to notify DFPS of its findings with respect to an HHSC or TJJD investigation and finding of child abuse or neglect and to provide DFPS with the information required to add the person's name to the central registry.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2023.