HBA-LCA C.S.H.B. 3272 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 3272 By: Goodman Juvenile Justice & Family Issues 4/12/1999 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Currently, the Office of Court Administration (OCA) administers a system in which 36 court masters, through a contract with the Office of the Attorney General (Title IV-D agency), hear child support cases in approximately 40 areas of the state. Most of these cases are not monitored after the court hearing to prevent further child support delinquencies. C.S.H.B. 3272: _authorizes the creation of child support monitors for each of the 36 court masters hearing child support cases; _requires a plan for the monitoring and tracking of child support payments, intake sessions, mediation sessions, job training and referral, and meetings to be established; and _requires the Texas Workforce Commission (commission) to conduct job training and referral programs for persons delinquent in court-ordered child support payments. Additionally, this bill requires the Title IV-D agency, OCA and the commission to evaluate the effectiveness of the programs. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends the heading to Subchapter B, Chapter 201, Family Code, as follows: SUBCHAPTER B. New title: CHILD SUPPORT MASTER AND COURT MONITOR SECTION 2. Amends Section 201.106, Family Code, as follows: Sec. 201.106. New title: CHILD SUPPORT COURT MONITOR AND OTHER PERSONNEL. (a) Includes a child support court monitor (monitor) for each master appointed under this subchapter among a list of individuals the presiding judge of an administrative region or presiding judges of the administrative regions may appoint by majority vote, as needed to implement and administer the provisions of this subchapter. Provides that the Office of Court Administration (OCA) may use contracted personnel. (b) Provides that the salary of a monitor shall be paid from a county fund available for payment of officers' salaries or from funds available from the state and federal government as provided by Section 201.107, Family Code (State and Federal Funds). SECTION 3. Amends Subchapter B, Chapter 201, Family Code, by adding Section 201.1065, as follows: Sec. 201.1065. DUTIES OF CHILD SUPPORT COURT MONITOR. Requires a court monitor appointed under Section 201.106, Family Code (Personnel), to monitor child support cases to ensure compliance with a child support order. (b) Sets forth the requirements of a child support monitor in monitoring a child support case. SECTION 4. Amends Sections 201.107(a) and (b), Family Code, as follows: (a) Provides that a court monitor is a state employee for all purposes. Makes a conforming change. (b) Makes a conforming change. SECTION 5. Amends Section 231.115, Family Code, as added by Chapter 165, Acts of the 75th Legislature, Regular Session, 1997, as follows: Sec. 231.115. New title: UNEMPLOYED AND UNDEREMPLOYED OBLIGORS. Deletes "noncustodial parents" from title. Deletes text qualifying a child as one receiving certain financial assistance or who is otherwise eligible for assistance under this section. Makes conforming and nonsubstantive changes. SECTION 6. Amends Subchapter A, Chapter 302, Labor Code, by adding Section 302.0035, as follows: Sec. 302.0035. EMPLOYMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM FOR CERTAIN PARENTS. Requires the Texas Workforce Commission (commission) to provide employment assistance services, including skills training, job placement, and employment-related services, to a person referred to the commission by the Title IV-D agency (Office of the Attorney General) under Chapter 231 (Title IV-D Services), Family Code. SECTION 7. Requires the Title IV-D agency, in cooperation with the commission and OCA, to conduct a study to determine the effectiveness of the employment assistance program described under Section 302.0035, Labor Code, as added by this Act, in increasing child support collections from referred obligors. Requires the Title !V-D agency, the commission, and OCA to report the results of the study no later than January 31, 2001, to the 77th Texas Legislature. SECTION 8. Requires the Title IV-D agency to contract with the office of court administration to provide state and federal funds under Part D, Title IV, of the federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Section 631 et seq.) to establish 36 monitor positions under Section 201.106, Family Code, as amended by this Act, during the fiscal year beginning September 1, 1999. Authorizes the court of administration to provide monitors, to contract with counties to provide employees to serve as monitors, or to hire additional personnel to serve as monitors. SECTION 9. Requires OCA, in collaboration with the Title IV-D agency, to develop and implement guidelines for the duties of a monitor under Section 201.1065, Family Code, as added by this Act and a procedure to evaluate the rate of success of monitors in increasing obligors' compliance with child support obligations in monitored cases. SECTION 10. Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 11. Emergency clause COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE The substitute modifies the original in SECTION 2 of this bill to authorize the office of court administration (OCA) to use contract employees as court monitors to effect the requirements of this section. The substitute modifies the original in SECTION 3 by adding language to require that the position of court monitor require a court monitor to ensure an obligor's compliance with a child support order. The substitute modifies the original in SECTION 4 to provide that a court monitor is a state employee. In SECTION 7 of the substitute, Subsections (a) and (b) are modified to include OCA, with the Title IV-D agency and the Texas Workforce Commission, as entities required to conduct a study on the effectiveness of referring child support obligors to the employee assistance program added by this Act, and to require OCA, with the Title IV-D agency and the commission, to deliver a joint report with the study results to the 77th Legislature.