By:  Danburg                                          H.B. No. 1774
       73R5665 GWK-F
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to the creation of the offense of sexual exploitation by a
    1-3  psychotherapist.
    1-4        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-5        SECTION 1.  Chapter 21, Penal Code, is amended by adding
    1-6  Section 21.14 to read as follows:
    1-7        Sec. 21.14.  SEXUAL EXPLOITATION BY PSYCHOTHERAPIST.  (a)  In
    1-8  this section:
    1-9              (1)  "Patient" means an individual who seeks or obtains
   1-10  psychotherapy.
   1-11              (2)  "Psychotherapist" means an individual, licensed or
   1-12  unlicensed, who performs or purports to perform psychotherapy,
   1-13  including a:
   1-14                    (A)  "certified social worker" as defined by
   1-15  Section 50.001, Human Resources Code;
   1-16                    (B)  "chemical dependency counselor" as defined
   1-17  by Section 1, Chapter 635, Acts of the 72nd Legislature, Regular
   1-18  Session, 1991 (Article 4512o, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes);
   1-19                    (C)  "licensed professional counselor" as defined
   1-20  by Section 2, Licensed Professional Counselor Act (Article 4512g,
   1-21  Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes);
   1-22                    (D)  "licensed marriage and family therapist" as
   1-23  defined by Section 2, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Act
   1-24  (Article 4512c-1, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes);
    2-1                    (E)  member of the clergy;
    2-2                    (F)  "physician" who is "practicing medicine" as
    2-3  defined by Section 1.03, Medical Practice Act (Article 4495b,
    2-4  Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes); and
    2-5                    (G)  "psychologist" offering "psychological
    2-6  services" as defined by Section 2, Psychologists' Certification and
    2-7  Licensing Act (Article 4512c, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes).
    2-8              (3)  "Psychotherapy" means treatment of a patient by
    2-9  verbal means for a problem of an emotional nature in which a person
   2-10  engages in a therapeutic relationship with the patient, either
   2-11  individually or as part of a group, for the purpose of eliminating
   2-12  the patient's suffering by changing the patient's emotional state,
   2-13  attitude, or behavior.
   2-14              (4)  "Sexually exploitive behavior" means the use of
   2-15  influence by a psychotherapist to cause a patient to engage in
   2-16  sexual contact with the psychotherapist.
   2-17        (b)  A person commits an offense if the person is a
   2-18  psychotherapist who, before the first anniversary of the date on
   2-19  which the professional relationship between the psychotherapist and
   2-20  a patient is terminated, intentionally:
   2-21              (1)  engages in sexual contact with the patient; or
   2-22              (2)  engages in sexually exploitive behavior with the
   2-23  patient.
   2-24        (c)  It is not a defense to prosecution under this section
   2-25  that the sexual contact or sexually exploitive behavior with the
   2-26  patient occurred:
   2-27              (1)  with the consent of the patient;
    3-1              (2)  outside the therapy or treatment sessions of the
    3-2  patient; or
    3-3              (3)  off the premises regularly used by the
    3-4  psychotherapist for the therapy or treatment sessions of the
    3-5  patient.
    3-6        (d)  An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor.
    3-7        (e)  It is a defense to prosecution under this section that
    3-8  the psychotherapist is a licensed physician and the sexual contact
    3-9  is a part of a professionally recognized medical treatment of a
   3-10  patient.
   3-11        SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1993.
   3-12        SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the
   3-13  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
   3-14  emergency   and   an   imperative   public   necessity   that   the
   3-15  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
   3-16  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.