1-1     By:  Greenberg, et al. (Senate Sponsor - Shapiro)     H.B. No. 1555

 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House April 21, 1997;

 1-3     April 22, 1997, read first time and referred to Committee on Health

 1-4     and Human Services; May 1, 1997, reported favorably by the

 1-5     following vote:  Yeas 11, Nays 0; May 1, 1997, sent to printer.)

 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-7                                   AN ACT

 1-8     relating to inspection of certain child-care facilities.

 1-9           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-10           SECTION 1.  Subchapter C, Chapter 42, Human Resources Code,

1-11     is amended by adding Sections 42.0441-42.0443 to read as follows:

1-12           Sec. 42.0441.  INSPECTION RESULTS.  Immediately after

1-13     completing a monitoring inspection of a licensed day-care center,

1-14     licensed group day-care home, or registered family home under

1-15     Section 42.044, the authorized representative of the department

1-16     shall review the results of the monitoring inspection with a

1-17     representative of the facility and give the facility an opportunity

1-18     to respond to the inspection results.

1-19           Sec. 42.0442.  COORDINATION OF INSPECTIONS; ELIMINATION OF

1-20     DUPLICATIVE INSPECTIONS.  (a)  The department shall coordinate

1-21     monitoring inspections of licensed day-care centers, licensed group

1-22     day-care homes, and registered family homes performed by another

1-23     state  agency to eliminate redundant inspections.

1-24           (b)  The department shall form an interagency task force with

1-25     the Texas Department of Health, the Texas Department of Human

1-26     Services, and the Texas Workforce Commission to develop an

1-27     inspection protocol that will coordinate inspections by those

1-28     agencies.  The protocol must assign the required items for

1-29     inspection by each agency and facilitate the sharing of inspection

1-30     data and compliance history.

1-31           Sec. 42.0443.  INSPECTION INFORMATION DATABASE.  (a)  If

1-32     feasible using available information systems, the department shall

1-33     establish a computerized database containing relevant inspection

1-34     information on licensed day-care centers, licensed group day-care

1-35     homes, and registered family homes from other state agencies and

1-36     political subdivisions of the state.

1-37           (b)  The department shall make the data collected by the

1-38     department available to another state agency or political

1-39     subdivision of the state for the purpose of administering programs

1-40     or enforcing laws within the jurisdiction of that agency or

1-41     subdivision.  If feasible using available information systems, the

1-42     department shall make the data directly available to the Texas

1-43     Department of Health, the Texas Department of Human Services, and

1-44     the Texas Workforce Commission through electronic information

1-45     systems.  The department, the Texas Department of Health, the Texas

1-46     Department of Human Services, and the Texas Workforce Commission

1-47     shall jointly plan the development of child-care inspection

1-48     databases that, to the extent feasible, are similar in their design

1-49     and architecture to promote the sharing of data.

1-50           (c)  The department may provide inspection data on licensed

1-51     day-care centers, licensed group day-care homes, or registered

1-52     family homes to the public if the department determines that

1-53     providing inspection data enhances consumer choice with respect to

1-54     those facilities.

1-55           SECTION 2.  (a)  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

1-56           (b)  Not later than February 1, 1998, the Department of

1-57     Protective and Regulatory Services, the Texas Department of Human

1-58     Services, the Texas Department of Health, and the Texas Workforce

1-59     Commission shall report the recommendations for the protocol for

1-60     coordinated inspections provided by Section 42.0442, Human

1-61     Resources Code, as added by this Act, to their respective governing

1-62     boards or commissions.  The implementation of the protocol shall

1-63     begin not later than June 1, 1998.

1-64           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

 2-1     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

 2-2     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

 2-3     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

 2-4     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.

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