By Goodman H.B. No. 1917
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the powers and duties of the Texas Juvenile Probation
1-3 Commission and of juvenile boards.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Section 141.001, Human Resources Code, is amended
1-6 to read as follows:
1-7 Sec. 141.001. PURPOSES. The purposes of this chapter are
1-8 to:
1-9 (1) make probation services available to juveniles
1-10 throughout the state;
1-11 (2) improve the effectiveness of juvenile probation
1-12 services;
1-13 (3) provide alternatives to the commitment of
1-14 juveniles by providing financial aid to juvenile boards to
1-15 establish and improve probation services;
1-16 (4) establish uniform [probation administration]
1-17 standards for the community-based juvenile justice system; [and]
1-18 (5) improve communications among state and local
1-19 entities within the juvenile justice system; and
1-20 (6) promote delinquency prevention and early
1-21 intervention programs and activities for juveniles.
1-22 SECTION 2. Section 141.011, Human Resources Code, is amended
1-23 by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (d) to read as
1-24 follows:
2-1 (a) The commission consists of:
2-2 (1) two district court judges;
2-3 (2) one county judge or commissioner; and
2-4 (3) six members of the public who are not employees in
2-5 the criminal or juvenile justice system as follows:
2-6 (A) two members appointed from counties with a
2-7 population equal to or more than 500,000;
2-8 (B) two members appointed from counties with a
2-9 population equal to or more than 100,000 but less than 500,000; and
2-10 (C) two members appointed from counties with a
2-11 population less than 100,000.
2-12 (d) For purposes of Subsection (a), population is determined
2-13 by the most recent population projection figures available from the
2-14 comptroller.
2-15 SECTION 3. Section 141.042(a), Human Resources Code, is
2-16 amended to read as follows:
2-17 (a) The commission shall adopt reasonable rules that
2-18 provide:
2-19 (1) minimum standards for personnel, staffing, case
2-20 loads, programs, facilities, record keeping, equipment, and other
2-21 aspects of the operation of a juvenile board that are necessary to
2-22 provide adequate and effective probation services;
2-23 (2) a code of ethics for probation officers and for
2-24 the enforcement of that code;
2-25 (3) appropriate educational, preservice and in-service
2-26 training, and certification standards for probation officers or
2-27 court-supervised community-based program personnel; [and]
3-1 (4) minimum standards for juvenile detention
3-2 facilities, public post-adjudication juvenile secure correctional
3-3 facilities that are operated under the authority of a juvenile
3-4 board, and private post-adjudication juvenile secure correctional
3-5 facilities, except those facilities exempt from certification by
3-6 Section 42.052(e);
3-7 (5) procedures for implementation of the progressive
3-8 sanctions guidelines in Chapter 59, Family Code; and
3-9 (6) minimum standards for juvenile justice alternative
3-10 education programs created under Section 37.011, Education Code, in
3-11 collaboration and conjunction with the Texas Education Agency, or
3-12 its designee.
3-13 SECTION 4. Section 141.044, Human Resources Code, is amended
3-14 to read as follows:
3-15 Sec. 141.044. RECORDS AND REPORTS. Each juvenile board in
3-16 the state shall:
3-17 (1) keep the financial, programmatic, and statistical
3-18 records the commission considers necessary; and
3-19 (2) submit periodic financial, programmatic, and
3-20 statistical reports to the commission as required by the commission
3-21 and in the format specified by the commission, including
3-22 electronic submission.
3-23 SECTION 5. Section 141.046, Human Resources Code, is amended
3-24 to read as follows:
3-25 Sec. 141.046. INSPECTIONS AND AUDITS. (a) The commission
3-26 may inspect and evaluate a juvenile board and probation department
3-27 and audit its financial, programmatic, and statistical records at
4-1 reasonable times to determine compliance with the commission's
4-2 rules.
4-3 (b) The commission may inspect any program or facility
4-4 operated on behalf of and under the authority of the juvenile board
4-5 by the probation department, a governmental entity, or private
4-6 vendor.
4-7 SECTION 6. Section 141.082(a), Human Resources Code, is
4-8 amended to read as follows:
4-9 (a) To receive the full amount of state aid funds for which
4-10 a juvenile board may be eligible [for state aid], a juvenile board
4-11 must demonstrate to the commission's satisfaction that the amount
4-12 of local or county funds budgeted for juvenile services is at least
4-13 equal to [or greater than] the amount spent for those services in
4-14 the 1994 [1980] county fiscal year. The commission may waive this
4-15 requirement only if the juvenile board demonstrates to the
4-16 commission that unusual, catastrophic, or exceptional circumstances
4-17 existed during the relevant year to affect adversely the level of
4-18 county funding. If the required amount of local funding is not
4-19 budgeted and the commission does not grant a waiver, the commission
4-20 shall reduce the allocation of state aid funds to the juvenile
4-21 board by the amount equal to the amount that the county funding is
4-22 below the required funding.
4-23 SECTION 7. Section 141.085(a), Human Resources Code, is
4-24 amended to read as follows:
4-25 (a) The commission may [shall] refuse, reduce, or suspend
4-26 payment of state aid to:
4-27 (1) a juvenile board that fails to comply with the
5-1 commission's rules or fails to maintain local financial support;
5-2 or
5-3 (2) a county that fails to comply with the minimum
5-4 standards provided under Section 141.042(a)(4).
5-5 SECTION 8. Section 142.001, Human Resources Code, is amended
5-6 to read as follows:
5-7 Sec. 142.001. DEFINITION. In this chapter, "juvenile
5-8 probation services" means:
5-9 (1) services provided by or under the direction of a
5-10 juvenile probation officer in response to an order issued by a
5-11 juvenile court and under the court's direction, including:
5-12 (A) protective services;
5-13 (B) prevention of delinquent conduct and conduct
5-14 indicating a need for supervision;
5-15 (C) diversion;
5-16 (D) deferred prosecution [informal adjustment];
5-17 (E) foster care;
5-18 (F) counseling;
5-19 (G) supervision; and
5-20 (H) diagnostic, correctional, and educational
5-21 services; and
5-22 (2) services provided by a juvenile probation
5-23 department that are [is] related to the operation of a
5-24 preadjudication or post-adjudication juvenile [detention] facility.
5-25 SECTION 9. Section 142.003, Human Resources Code, is amended
5-26 by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
5-27 (c) A juvenile board may contract with another political
6-1 subdivision of the state or a private vendor for juvenile probation
6-2 services.
6-3 SECTION 10. Section 103, Chapter 262, Acts of the 74th
6-4 Legislature, Regular Session, 1995, is repealed.
6-5 SECTION 11. (a) This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.
6-6 (b) The change in law made by this Act to Section
6-7 141.011(a)(3), Human Resources Code, does not affect the
6-8 entitlement of a member of the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission
6-9 to continue to serve the full term of the member's appointment. As
6-10 the terms of the members of the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission
6-11 expire or as vacancies are created, the governor shall make
6-12 appointments of members of the commission to achieve as soon as
6-13 possible the membership of the commission as provided under Section
6-14 141.011(a)(3), Human Resources Code, as amended by this Act.
6-15 SECTION 12. The importance of this legislation and the
6-16 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
6-17 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
6-18 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
6-19 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.