By Coleman                                            H.B. No. 2683
         76R5265 DLF-D                           
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to the development and implementation of Texas Integrated
 1-3     Enrollment Services.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1.  Section 9.12, Chapter 655, Acts of the 74th
 1-6     Legislature, Regular Session, 1995, as amended by Section 1,
 1-7     Chapter 1116, Acts of the 75th Legislature, Regular Session, 1997,
 1-8     is redesignated as Subchapter G, Chapter 531, Government Code, and
 1-9     amended to read as follows:
1-10             SUBCHAPTER G.  TEXAS INTEGRATED ENROLLMENT SERVICES
1-11           Sec. 531.301 [9.12].  INTEGRATED ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION.
1-12     (a)  The commission [In consultation and coordination with the
1-13     Texas Integrated Enrollment Services Legislative Oversight
1-14     Committee established under Section 531.202, Government Code, the
1-15     Health and Human Services Commission], subject to the approval of
1-16     the governor and the Legislative Budget Board, shall develop and
1-17     implement a plan for the integration of services and functions
1-18     relating to eligibility determination and service delivery by
1-19     health and human services agencies, the Texas Workforce Commission,
1-20     and other agencies.  The plan must include a reengineering of
1-21     eligibility determination business processes, streamlined service
1-22     delivery, a unified and integrated process for the transition from
1-23     welfare to work, and improved access to benefits and services for
1-24     clients. In developing and implementing the plan, the  commission
 2-1     [Health and Human Services Commission]:
 2-2                 (1)  shall give priority to the design and development
 2-3     of computer hardware and software for and provide technical support
 2-4     relating to the integrated eligibility determination system;
 2-5                 (2)  shall consult with agencies whose programs are
 2-6     included in the plan, including the Texas Department of Human
 2-7     Services, the Texas Department of Health, and the Texas Workforce
 2-8     Commission;
 2-9                 (3)  may contract for appropriate professional and
2-10     technical assistance; and
2-11                 (4)  may use the staff and resources of agencies whose
2-12     programs are included in the plan.
2-13           (b)  The integrated eligibility determination and service
2-14     delivery system shall be developed and implemented to achieve
2-15     increased quality of and client access to services and savings in
2-16     the cost of providing administrative and other services and staff
2-17     resulting from streamlining and eliminating duplication of
2-18     services. The commission, subject to any spending limitation
2-19     prescribed in the General Appropriations Act, may use the resulting
2-20     savings to further develop the integrated system and to provide
2-21     other health and human services.
2-22           (c)  The commission shall examine cost-effective methods to
2-23     address:
2-24                 (1)  fraud in the assistance programs; and
2-25                 (2)  the error rate in eligibility determination.
2-26           (d)  On receipt by the state of any necessary federal
2-27     approval and subject to the approval of the governor and the
 3-1     Legislative Budget Board, the commission may contract for
 3-2     implementation of all or part of the plan required by Subsection
 3-3     (a) [of this section] if the commission determines that contracting
 3-4     may advance the objectives of Subsections (a) and (b) [of this
 3-5     section] and meets the criteria set out in the cost-benefit
 3-6     analysis described in this subsection.  Before the awarding of a
 3-7     contract, the commission shall provide a detailed cost-benefit
 3-8     analysis to the governor and[,] the Legislative Budget Board[, and
 3-9     the Texas Integrated Enrollment Services Legislative Oversight
3-10     Committee established under Section 531.202, Government Code]. The
3-11     analysis must demonstrate the cost-effectiveness of the plan,
3-12     mechanisms for monitoring performance under the plan, and specific
3-13     improvements to the service delivery system and client access made
3-14     by the plan. The commission shall make the analysis available to
3-15     the public. Within 10 days after the release of a request for bids,
3-16     proposals, offers, or other applicable expressions of interest
3-17     relating to the development or implementation of the plan required
3-18     by Subsection (a) [of this section], the commission shall hold a
3-19     public hearing and receive public comment on the request. [The
3-20     commission may coordinate with a legislative committee to hold the
3-21     hearings.]
3-22           (e)  [Not later than October 1, 1996, the commission shall
3-23     develop a plan to consolidate administrative and service delivery
3-24     functions in addition to the integrated eligibility determination
3-25     and service delivery system in order to minimize duplication. The
3-26     commission shall prepare a report of the plan for submission to the
3-27     governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of
 4-1     representatives, the comptroller, and the 75th Legislature when it
 4-2     convenes.]
 4-3           [(f)]  If requested by the commission [Health and Human
 4-4     Services Commission], the agencies whose programs are included in
 4-5     the plan required by Subsection (a) [of this section] shall
 4-6     cooperate with the commission to provide available staff and
 4-7     resources that will be subject to the direction of the commission.
 4-8           (f) [(g)]  The design, development, and operation of an
 4-9     automated data processing system to support the plan required by
4-10     Subsection (a) [of this section] may be financed through the
4-11     issuance of bonds or other obligations under the Texas Public
4-12     Finance Authority Act (Article 601d, Vernon's Texas Civil
4-13     Statutes).
4-14           Sec. 531.302.  SERVICE CONTINUATION IN REGIONS.  In
4-15     implementing the plan for integration of services and functions
4-16     required by Section 531.301, the commission may not terminate in
4-17     any region of the state a service or function to be replaced by the
4-18     integrated system until:
4-19                 (1)  the integrated system is fully operational in that
4-20     region, has been certified as fully operational by a quality
4-21     assurance expert who is independent of the commission, and has been
4-22     proven to operate satisfactorily in that region; and
4-23                 (2)  the commission provides an opportunity for public
4-24     review and comment on the implementation of the integrated system
4-25     in the region.
4-26           Sec. 531.303.  ACCESSIBILITY FOR PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS.  (a)
4-27     In developing the plan for integration of services and functions
 5-1     required by Section 531.301, the commission shall ensure that,
 5-2     after implementation of the plan, access to facilities used for
 5-3     eligibility determination or service delivery is not significantly
 5-4     diminished for any resident.  The commission may not close,
 5-5     consolidate, or relocate a facility used for eligibility
 5-6     determination or service delivery if the closure, consolidation, or
 5-7     relocation would result in a violation of this subsection.
 5-8           (b)  Each facility used for eligibility determination or
 5-9     service delivery must satisfy the most stringent accessibility
5-10     requirements that may be applied to any facility under the
5-11     Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. Section 12101 et seq.)
5-12     or more stringent requirements established by the commission.
5-13           Sec. 531.304.  EVALUATION OF IMPLEMENTATION.  (a)  The
5-14     commission shall prepare quarterly reports on the development and
5-15     implementation of the plan required by Section 531.301 that reflect
5-16     the quality and efficiency of the integrated system, including
5-17     measures of satisfaction of service recipients, error rates,
5-18     staffing levels, and any other performance measure identified by
5-19     the Legislative Budget Board.
5-20           (b)  The commission shall submit each quarterly report to the
5-21     governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of
5-22     representatives, the Legislative Budget Board, and the members of
5-23     each standing committee of the legislature that has oversight over
5-24     any agency that is operating or obtaining eligibility determination
5-25     through the system developed under the plan.
5-26           Sec. 531.305.  COORDINATION WITH LEGISLATIVE OVERSIGHT
5-27     COMMITTEE.  (a)  The commission shall develop and implement the
 6-1     plan required by Section 531.301 in consultation and coordination
 6-2     with the Texas Integrated Enrollment Services Legislative Oversight
 6-3     Committee established under Section 531.202.
 6-4           (b)  Before awarding a contract under Section 531.301(d), the
 6-5     commission shall provide the detailed cost-benefit analysis
 6-6     described by that subsection to the legislative oversight
 6-7     committee.  The commission may coordinate with the legislative
 6-8     oversight committee to hold any hearing required under Section
 6-9     531.301(d).
6-10           (c)  Before terminating in any region of the state a service
6-11     or function to be replaced by the integrated system as described by
6-12     Section 531.302, the commission shall certify to the legislative
6-13     oversight committee that the requirements of Section 531.302 have
6-14     been satisfied.  The committee shall review the certification and
6-15     shall hold a public hearing in each affected region of this state
6-16     to ensure that the requirements of Section 531.302 have been
6-17     satisfied.
6-18           (d)  The commission shall submit each quarterly report
6-19     prepared under Section 531.304 to the legislative oversight
6-20     committee.  The committee shall review the quarterly report and
6-21     shall periodically hold public hearings to obtain testimony on the
6-22     subject matter of the reports.
6-23           (e)  This section expires September 1, 2002.
6-24           SECTION 2.  A facility that is owned or operated by a state
6-25     agency on the effective date of this Act and that is used for
6-26     eligibility determination or service delivery under the plan
6-27     developed under Section 531.301, Government Code, as added by this
 7-1     Act, must comply with Section 531.303(b), Government Code, as added
 7-2     by this Act, not later than August 31, 2001.
 7-3           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the
 7-4     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
 7-5     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
 7-6     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
 7-7     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
 7-8     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
 7-9     passage, and it is so enacted.