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.