By: Zaffirini, Rosson S.B. No. 1485
Moncrief
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
1-1 relating to the child fatality review team committee and child
1-2 fatality review teams.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Chapter 264, Family Code, as added by H.B. No.
1-5 655, Acts of the 74th Legislature, Regular Session, 1995, is
1-6 amended by adding Subchapter F to read as follows:
1-7 SUBCHAPTER F. CHILD FATALITY REVIEW
1-8 Sec. 264.501. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
1-9 (1) "Bureau of vital statistics" means the bureau of
1-10 vital statistics of the Texas Department of Health.
1-11 (2) "Child" means a person younger than 18 years of
1-12 age.
1-13 (3) "Committee" means the child fatality review team
1-14 committee.
1-15 (4) "Council" means the Children's Trust Fund of Texas
1-16 Council.
1-17 (5) "Department" means the Department of Protective
1-18 and Regulatory Services.
1-19 (6) "Health care provider" means any health care
1-20 practitioner or facility that provides medical evaluation or
1-21 treatment, including dental and mental health evaluation or
1-22 treatment.
1-23 (7) "Meeting" means an in-person meeting or a meeting
1-24 held by telephone or other electronic medium.
2-1 (8) "Preventable death" means a death that may have
2-2 been prevented by reasonable medical, social, legal, psychological,
2-3 or educational intervention. The term includes the death of a
2-4 child from:
2-5 (A) intentional or unintentional injuries;
2-6 (B) medical neglect;
2-7 (C) lack of access to medical care;
2-8 (D) neglect and reckless conduct, including
2-9 failure to supervise and failure to seek medical care; and
2-10 (E) premature birth associated with any factor
2-11 described by Paragraphs (A) through (D).
2-12 (9) "Review" means a reexamination of information
2-13 regarding a deceased child from relevant agencies, professionals,
2-14 and health care providers.
2-15 (10) "Review team" means a child fatality review team
2-16 established under this subchapter.
2-17 (11) "Unexpected death" includes a death of a child
2-18 that, before investigation:
2-19 (A) appears to have occurred without
2-20 anticipation or forewarning; and
2-21 (B) was caused by trauma, suspicious or obscure
2-22 circumstances, sudden infant death syndrome, abuse or neglect, or
2-23 an unknown cause.
2-24 Sec. 264.502. COMMITTEE. (a) The child fatality review
2-25 team committee is composed of:
2-26 (1) a person appointed by and representing the state
2-27 registrar for the bureau of vital statistics;
3-1 (2) a person appointed by and representing the
3-2 director of protective services for families and children of the
3-3 department;
3-4 (3) a person appointed by and representing the
3-5 director of the bureau of epidemiology of the Texas Department of
3-6 Health;
3-7 (4) a person appointed by and representing the
3-8 executive director of the council; and
3-9 (5) individuals selected under Subsection (b).
3-10 (b) The members of the committee who serve under Subsections
3-11 (a)(1) through (4) shall select the following additional committee
3-12 members:
3-13 (1) a criminal prosecutor involved in prosecuting
3-14 crimes against children;
3-15 (2) a sheriff;
3-16 (3) a justice of the peace;
3-17 (4) a medical examiner;
3-18 (5) a police chief;
3-19 (6) a pediatrician experienced in diagnosing and
3-20 treating child abuse and neglect;
3-21 (7) a child educator;
3-22 (8) a child mental health provider;
3-23 (9) a public health professional;
3-24 (10) a child protective services specialist;
3-25 (11) a sudden infant death syndrome family service
3-26 provider;
3-27 (12) a neonatologist;
4-1 (13) a child advocate; and
4-2 (14) a chief juvenile probation officer.
4-3 (c) Members of the committee selected under Subsection (b)
4-4 serve two-year terms that expire on February 1 of each
4-5 even-numbered year.
4-6 (d) Members selected under Subsection (b) must reflect the
4-7 geographical, cultural, racial, and ethnic diversity of the state.
4-8 (e) An appointment to a vacancy on the committee shall be
4-9 made in the same manner as the original appointment.
4-10 (f) Members of the committee shall select a presiding
4-11 officer from the members of the committee.
4-12 (g) The presiding officer of the committee shall call the
4-13 meetings of the committee, which shall be held at least quarterly.
4-14 (h) A member of the committee is not entitled to
4-15 compensation for serving on the committee but is entitled to
4-16 reimbursement for the member's travel expenses as provided in the
4-17 General Appropriations Act. Reimbursement under this subsection
4-18 for a person serving on the committee under Subsection (a)(1) or
4-19 (3) shall be paid from funds appropriated to the Texas Department
4-20 of Health. Reimbursement for other persons serving on the
4-21 committee shall be paid equally from funds appropriated to the
4-22 department and funds appropriated to the council.
4-23 Sec. 264.503. PURPOSE AND DUTIES OF COMMITTEE AND
4-24 SPECIFIED STATE AGENCIES. (a) The purpose of the committee is to:
4-25 (1) develop an understanding of the causes and
4-26 incidence of child deaths in this state;
4-27 (2) identify procedures within the agencies
5-1 represented on the committee to reduce the number of preventable
5-2 child deaths; and
5-3 (3) promote public awareness and make recommendations
5-4 to the governor and the legislature for changes in law, policy, and
5-5 practice to reduce the number of preventable child deaths.
5-6 (b) To ensure that the committee achieves its purpose, the
5-7 department, the council, and the Texas Department of Health shall
5-8 perform the duties specified by this section.
5-9 (c) The department shall:
5-10 (1) recognize the creation and participation of review
5-11 teams;
5-12 (2) promote and coordinate training to assist the
5-13 review teams in carrying out their duties;
5-14 (3) assist the committee in developing model protocols
5-15 for:
5-16 (A) the reporting and investigating of child
5-17 fatalities for law enforcement agencies, child protective services,
5-18 justices of the peace and medical examiners, and other
5-19 professionals involved in the investigations of child deaths;
5-20 (B) the collection of data regarding child
5-21 deaths; and
5-22 (C) the operation of the review teams; and
5-23 (4) develop and implement procedures necessary for the
5-24 operation of the committee.
5-25 (d) The council shall promote education of the public
5-26 regarding the incidence and causes of child deaths, the public role
5-27 in preventing child deaths, and specific steps the public can
6-1 undertake to prevent child deaths. The committee shall enlist the
6-2 support and assistance of civic, philanthropic, and public service
6-3 organizations in the performance of the duties imposed under this
6-4 subsection.
6-5 (e) The Texas Department of Health shall:
6-6 (1) collect data under this subchapter and coordinate
6-7 the collection of data under this subchapter with other data
6-8 collection activities; and
6-9 (2) perform annual statistical studies of the
6-10 incidence and causes of child fatalities using the data collected
6-11 under this subchapter.
6-12 (f) The committee shall issue annual reports on the
6-13 committee's activities, including findings and recommendations
6-14 relating to each purpose and duty of the committee described by
6-15 this section. Not later than December 1 of each even-numbered
6-16 year, the committee shall publish the report and submit a copy of
6-17 the report to the governor, lieutenant governor, and speaker of the
6-18 house of representatives.
6-19 Sec. 264.504. MEETINGS OF COMMITTEE. (a) Except as
6-20 provided by Subsections (b), (c), and (d), meetings of the
6-21 committee are subject to the open meetings law, Chapter 551,
6-22 Government Code, as if the committee were a governmental body under
6-23 that chapter.
6-24 (b) Any portion of a meeting of the committee during which
6-25 the committee discusses an individual child's death is closed to
6-26 the public and is not subject to the open meetings law, Chapter
6-27 551, Government Code.
7-1 (c) Information identifying a deceased child, a member of
7-2 the child's family, a guardian or caretaker of the child, or an
7-3 alleged or suspected perpetrator of abuse or neglect of the child
7-4 may not be disclosed during a public meeting.
7-5 (d) Information regarding the involvement of a state or
7-6 local agency with the deceased child or another person described by
7-7 Subsection (c) may not be disclosed during a public meeting.
7-8 (e) The committee may conduct an open or closed meeting by
7-9 telephone conference call or other electronic medium. A meeting
7-10 held under this subsection is subject to the notice requirements
7-11 applicable to other meetings. The notice of the meeting must
7-12 specify as the location of the meeting the location where meetings
7-13 of the committee are usually held. Each part of the meeting by
7-14 telephone conference call that is required to be open to the public
7-15 shall be audible to the public at the location specified in the
7-16 notice of the meeting as the location of the meeting and shall be
7-17 tape-recorded. The tape recording shall be made available to the
7-18 public.
7-19 (f) This section does not prohibit the committee from
7-20 requesting the attendance at a closed meeting of a person who is
7-21 not a member of the committee and who has information regarding a
7-22 deceased child.
7-23 Sec. 264.505. ESTABLISHMENT OF REVIEW TEAM. (a) A
7-24 multidisciplinary and multiagency child fatality review team may be
7-25 established for a county to review child deaths in that county. A
7-26 review team for a county with a population of less than 50,000 may
7-27 join with an adjacent county or counties to establish a combined
8-1 review team.
8-2 (b) Any person who may be a member of a review team under
8-3 Subsection (c) may initiate the establishment of a review team and
8-4 call the first organizational meeting of the team.
8-5 (c) A review team may include:
8-6 (1) a criminal prosecutor involved in prosecuting
8-7 crimes against children;
8-8 (2) a sheriff;
8-9 (3) a justice of the peace or medical examiner;
8-10 (4) a police chief;
8-11 (5) a pediatrician experienced in diagnosing and
8-12 treating child abuse and neglect;
8-13 (6) a child educator;
8-14 (7) a child mental health provider;
8-15 (8) a public health professional;
8-16 (9) a child protective services specialist;
8-17 (10) a sudden infant death syndrome family service
8-18 provider;
8-19 (11) a neonatologist;
8-20 (12) a child advocate; and
8-21 (13) a chief juvenile probation officer.
8-22 (d) Members of a review team may select additional team
8-23 members according to community resources and needs.
8-24 (e) A review team shall select a presiding officer from its
8-25 members.
8-26 Sec. 264.506. PURPOSE AND DUTIES OF REVIEW TEAM. (a) The
8-27 purpose of a review team is to decrease the incidence of
9-1 preventable child deaths by:
9-2 (1) providing assistance, direction, and coordination
9-3 to investigations of child deaths;
9-4 (2) promoting cooperation, communication, and
9-5 coordination among agencies involved in responding to child
9-6 fatalities;
9-7 (3) developing an understanding of the causes and
9-8 incidence of child deaths in the county or counties in which the
9-9 review team is located;
9-10 (4) recommending changes to agencies, through the
9-11 agency's representative member, that will reduce the number of
9-12 preventable child deaths; and
9-13 (5) advising the committee on changes to law, policy,
9-14 or practice that will assist the team and the agencies represented
9-15 on the team in fulfilling their duties.
9-16 (b) To achieve its purpose, a review team shall:
9-17 (1) adapt and implement, according to local needs and
9-18 resources, the model protocols developed by the department and the
9-19 committee;
9-20 (2) meet on a regular basis to review child fatality
9-21 cases and recommend methods to improve coordination of services and
9-22 investigations between agencies that are represented on the team;
9-23 (3) collect and maintain data as required by the
9-24 committee; and
9-25 (4) submit to the bureau of vital statistics data
9-26 reports on deaths reviewed as specified by the committee.
9-27 (c) A review team shall initiate prevention measures as
10-1 indicated by the review team's findings.
10-2 Sec. 264.507. DUTIES OF PRESIDING OFFICER. The presiding
10-3 officer of a review team shall:
10-4 (1) send notices to the review team members of a
10-5 meeting to review a child fatality;
10-6 (2) provide a list to the review team members of each
10-7 child fatality to be reviewed at the meeting;
10-8 (3) submit data reports to the bureau of vital
10-9 statistics not later than the 30th day after the date on which the
10-10 review took place; and
10-11 (4) ensure that the review team operates according to
10-12 the protocols developed by the department and the committee, as
10-13 adapted by the review team.
10-14 Sec. 264.508. REVIEW PROCEDURE. (a) The review team of the
10-15 county in which the injury, illness, or event that was the cause of
10-16 the death of the child occurred, as stated on the child's death
10-17 certificate, shall review the death.
10-18 (b) On receipt of the list of child fatalities under Section
10-19 264.507, each review team member shall review the member's records
10-20 and the records of the member's agency for information regarding
10-21 each listed child.
10-22 Sec. 264.509. ACCESS TO INFORMATION. (a) A review team may
10-23 request information and records regarding a deceased child as
10-24 necessary to carry out the review team's purpose and duties.
10-25 Records and information that may be requested under this section
10-26 include:
10-27 (1) medical, dental, and mental health care
11-1 information; and
11-2 (2) information and records maintained by any state or
11-3 local government agency, including:
11-4 (A) a birth certificate;
11-5 (B) law enforcement investigative data;
11-6 (C) medical examiner investigative data;
11-7 (D) juvenile court records;
11-8 (E) parole and probation information and
11-9 records; and
11-10 (F) child protective services information and
11-11 records.
11-12 (b) On request of the presiding officer of a review team,
11-13 the custodian of the relevant information and records relating to a
11-14 deceased child shall provide those records to the review team.
11-15 Sec. 264.510. MEETING OF REVIEW TEAM. (a) A meeting of a
11-16 review team is closed to the public and not subject to the open
11-17 meetings law, Chapter 551, Government Code.
11-18 (b) This section does not prohibit a review team from
11-19 requesting the attendance at a closed meeting of a person who is
11-20 not a member of the review team and who has information regarding a
11-21 deceased child.
11-22 (c) Except as necessary to carry out a review team's purpose
11-23 and duties, members of a review team and persons attending a review
11-24 team meeting may not disclose what occurred at the meeting.
11-25 (d) A member of a review team participating in the review of
11-26 a child death is immune from civil or criminal liability arising
11-27 from information presented in or opinions formed as a result of a
12-1 meeting.
12-2 Sec. 264.511. USE OF INFORMATION AND RECORDS;
12-3 CONFIDENTIALITY. (a) Information and records acquired by the
12-4 committee or by a review team in the exercise of its purpose and
12-5 duties under this subchapter are confidential and exempt from
12-6 disclosure under the open records law, Chapter 552, Government
12-7 Code, and may only be disclosed as necessary to carry out the
12-8 committee's or review team's purpose and duties.
12-9 (b) A report of the committee or of a review team or a
12-10 statistical compilation of data reports is a public record subject
12-11 to the open records law, Chapter 552, Government Code, as if the
12-12 committee or review team were a governmental body under that
12-13 chapter, if the report or statistical compilation does not contain
12-14 any information that would permit the identification of an
12-15 individual.
12-16 (c) A member of a review team may not disclose any
12-17 information that is confidential under this section.
12-18 (d) Information, documents, and records of the committee or
12-19 of a review team that are confidential under this section are not
12-20 subject to subpoena or discovery and may not be introduced into
12-21 evidence in any civil or criminal proceeding, except that
12-22 information, documents, and records otherwise available from other
12-23 sources are not immune from subpoena, discovery, or introduction
12-24 into evidence solely because they were presented during proceedings
12-25 of the committee or a review team or are maintained by the
12-26 committee or a review team.
12-27 Sec. 264.512. GOVERNMENTAL UNITS. The committee and a
13-1 review team are governmental units for purposes of Chapter 101,
13-2 Civil Practice and Remedies Code. A review team is a unit of local
13-3 government under that chapter.
13-4 SECTION 2. (a) The executive directors of the Children's
13-5 Trust Fund of Texas Council and the Department of Protective and
13-6 Regulatory Services shall jointly call a meeting of the individuals
13-7 to serve on the child fatality review team committee under
13-8 Subdivisions (1) through (4), Subsection (a), Section 264.502,
13-9 Family Code, as added by this Act, to be held not later than
13-10 October 1, 1995. Those members of the committee shall select the
13-11 members to serve under Subsection (b), Section 264.502, Family
13-12 Code, as added by this Act, not later than December 1, 1995.
13-13 (b) The initial members of the committee are appointed to
13-14 serve terms expiring February 1, 1996.
13-15 (c) The first meeting of the child fatality review team
13-16 committee that includes members selected under Subsection (b),
13-17 Section 264.502, Family Code, shall be held not later than
13-18 January 1, 1996.
13-19 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect only if the 74th
13-20 Legislature, at its regular session, enacts H.B. No. 655 and that
13-21 bill becomes law. If that legislation does not become law, this
13-22 Act has no effect.
13-23 SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
13-24 SECTION 5. The importance of this legislation and the
13-25 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
13-26 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
13-27 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
14-1 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.