HBA-EDN H.B. 2368 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2368 By: George Juvenile Justice & Family Issues 3/12/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Under current law, district court judges are authorized to assess fees for court ordered social studies in juvenile and family matters. Dallas County has had a $200 limit on such fees since 1984 and the fees have not been raised since 1994. Although the number of court ordered social studies in this county has significantly increased, there has been no increase in fees to help offset rising expenses necessitated by the additional workload. In other counties, district judges may assess reasonable fees, which are not subject to statutory limitations, for court ordered social studies. House Bill 2368 grants district court judges in Dallas County this same authority. 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. ANALYSIS House Bill 2368 amends the Human Resources Code to authorize a district court judge in Dallas County to assess a reasonable fee for adoption, family, or home study investigations ordered by the court. The bill removes the provision that such fees may not exceed $200 per case. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.