By Naishtat H.B. No. 3341
76R6383 JJT-F
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to housing, rehabilitation, and support needs of
1-3 individuals with mental illnesses who reside in certain personal
1-4 care facilities.
1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-6 SECTION 1. (a) The Texas Department of Mental Health and
1-7 Mental Retardation and the Texas Department of Housing and
1-8 Community Affairs shall implement a program to demonstrate the
1-9 effectiveness of interagency cooperation for providing supported
1-10 housing services to individuals with mental illness who reside in
1-11 personal care facilities.
1-12 (b) The Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental
1-13 Retardation and the Texas Department of Housing and Community
1-14 Affairs shall design the supported housing services to give
1-15 individualized assistance to persons to acquire and retain living
1-16 arrangements that are:
1-17 (1) typical of the general population in the area in
1-18 which the services are provided; and
1-19 (2) located among residences of individuals who are
1-20 not receiving the services.
1-21 (c) The supported housing services under the program must
1-22 be provided in accordance with rules of the Texas Department of
1-23 Mental Health and Mental Retardation and may include:
1-24 (1) rental assistance for an individual who:
2-1 (A) meets income guidelines of the Texas
2-2 Department of Housing and Community Affairs; and
2-3 (B) is not receiving housing assistance from the
2-4 federal government;
2-5 (2) consumer rehabilitation services; and
2-6 (3) support services.
2-7 (d) The Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental
2-8 Retardation and the Texas Department of Housing and Community
2-9 Affairs shall allocate resources for the demonstration program so
2-10 that priority is given to communities that:
2-11 (1) have the greatest number of individuals with
2-12 mental illnesses who reside in personal care facilities;
2-13 (2) have supported housing plans that the Texas
2-14 Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation and the Texas
2-15 Department of Housing and Community Affairs have found to be
2-16 consistent with the purposes of the demonstration program; and
2-17 (3) serve primarily individuals with mental illnesses
2-18 who reside in a facility the Texas Department of Human Services has
2-19 identified as a facility that does not comply with licensing rules
2-20 for personal care facilities.
2-21 (e) The Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental
2-22 Retardation and the Texas Department of Housing and Community
2-23 Affairs by rule shall establish an application process for an
2-24 organization to provide services under the demonstration project.
2-25 (f) The Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental
2-26 Retardation and the Texas Department of Housing and Community
2-27 Affairs shall establish a committee to supervise the design and
3-1 implementation of the demonstration project. The committee must
3-2 include representatives of:
3-3 (1) the Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental
3-4 Retardation;
3-5 (2) the Texas Department of Housing and Community
3-6 Affairs;
3-7 (3) the Texas Department of Human Services;
3-8 (4) consumers of mental health services; and
3-9 (5) advocates of persons with mental illness.
3-10 (g) An organization may not be selected to provide services
3-11 under the demonstration project unless the organization
3-12 demonstrates collaboration between the organization and a public
3-13 housing authority, community housing development organization,
3-14 community development corporation, or other housing organization.
3-15 Organizations eligible to provide services under the demonstration
3-16 project include:
3-17 (1) a local mental health authority;
3-18 (2) an organization of consumers, or family members of
3-19 consumers, or both; or
3-20 (3) a nonprofit organization.
3-21 (h) An individual is not eligible for assistance under the
3-22 demonstration project if the individual:
3-23 (1) does not have a mental illness;
3-24 (2) does not reside in a licensed or unlicensed
3-25 personal care facility at the time the individual is first offered
3-26 services under the demonstration project; or
3-27 (3) was placed in a licensed or unlicensed personal
4-1 care facility for the sole purpose of becoming eligible for the
4-2 demonstration project.
4-3 SECTION 2. (a) The Texas Department of Mental Health and
4-4 Mental Retardation and the Texas Department of Housing and
4-5 Community Affairs shall implement the demonstration project
4-6 required by Section 1 of this Act as soon as possible after the
4-7 effective date of this Act and not later than January 1, 2000.
4-8 (b) On or before January 15, 2001, the Texas Department of
4-9 Mental Health and Mental Retardation and the Texas Department of
4-10 Housing and Community Affairs shall make a joint report to the
4-11 governor, the lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of
4-12 representatives. The report must include an evaluation of the
4-13 demonstration project's benefits for individuals who received
4-14 services and recommendations on the continuation or termination of
4-15 the project or commencement of a similar project.
4-16 SECTION 3. This Act expires August 31, 2001.
4-17 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the
4-18 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
4-19 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
4-20 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
4-21 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
4-22 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
4-23 passage, and it is so enacted.