By Maxey H.B. No. 2717
77R8607 KLA-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to permanency planning procedures for children in state
1-3 institutions.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Subchapter D, Chapter 531, Government Code, as
1-6 added by Chapter 241, Acts of the 75th Legislature, Regular
1-7 Session, 1997, is amended to read as follows:
1-8 SUBCHAPTER D. PERMANENCY PLANNING
1-9 Sec. 531.151. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
1-10 (1) "Child" means a person younger than 22 years of
1-11 age.
1-12 (2) "Community resource coordination group" means a
1-13 coordination group established under the memorandum of
1-14 understanding adopted under Section 264.003, Family Code.
1-15 (3) "Institution" means:
1-16 (A) an ICF-MR, as defined by Section 531.002,
1-17 Health and Safety Code;
1-18 (B) a group home operated under the authority of
1-19 the Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation;
1-20 (C) a nursing facility;
1-21 (D) [(C)] a residential facility licensed by the
1-22 Department of Protective and Regulatory Services, including an
1-23 institution for the mentally retarded; or
1-24 (E) [(D)] another residential arrangement that
2-1 provides care to four or more children who are unrelated to each
2-2 other.
2-3 (4) [(2)] "Permanency planning" means a philosophy and
2-4 planning process that focuses on the outcome of family support by
2-5 facilitating a permanent living arrangement with the primary
2-6 feature of an enduring and nurturing parental relationship.
2-7 Sec. 531.152. POLICY STATEMENT. It is the policy of the
2-8 state to strive to ensure that the basic needs for safety,
2-9 security, and stability are met for each child in Texas. A
2-10 successful family is the most efficient and effective way to meet
2-11 those needs. The state and local communities must work together to
2-12 provide encouragement and support for well-functioning families and
2-13 ensure that each child receives the benefits of being a part of a
2-14 successful permanent family as soon as possible.
2-15 Sec. 531.153. DEVELOPMENT OF PERMANENCY PLAN. (a) To
2-16 further the policy stated in Section 531.152, the commission and
2-17 each appropriate health and human services agency shall develop
2-18 procedures to ensure that a permanency plan is developed for each
2-19 child residing in an institution in this state on a temporary or
2-20 long-term basis or for whom institutional care is sought.
2-21 (b) In developing procedures under Subsection (a), the
2-22 commission and other appropriate health and human services agencies
2-23 shall develop to the extent possible uniform procedures applicable
2-24 to each of the agencies and each child who is the subject of a
2-25 permanency plan that promote efficiency for the agencies and
2-26 stability for each child.
2-27 (c) In developing procedures under Subsection (a), the Texas
3-1 Department of Human Services, the Texas Department of Mental Health
3-2 and Mental Retardation, and the Department of Protective and
3-3 Regulatory Services may:
3-4 (1) delegate each department's duty to develop a
3-5 permanency plan to a local mental retardation authority, as defined
3-6 by Section 531.002, Health and Safety Code, or enter into a
3-7 memorandum of understanding with the local mental retardation
3-8 authority to develop the permanency plan for each child who resides
3-9 in an institution in this state or for whom institutional care is
3-10 sought; or
3-11 (2) contract with a private entity, other than an
3-12 entity that provides mental retardation services to a child
3-13 residing in an institution in this state or for whom institutional
3-14 care is sought, to develop a permanency plan for that child.
3-15 (d) The Texas Department of Human Services, the Texas
3-16 Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation, and the
3-17 Department of Protective and Regulatory Services may solicit and
3-18 accept gifts, grants, and donations to support the development of
3-19 permanency plans for children residing in institutions by
3-20 individuals or organizations not employed by or affiliated with
3-21 those institutions.
3-22 (e) A health and human services agency that contracts with a
3-23 private entity under Subsection (c) to develop a permanency plan
3-24 shall ensure that the entity is provided training regarding the
3-25 permanency planning philosophy under Section 531.151 and available
3-26 resources that will assist a child residing in an institution in
3-27 making a successful transition to a community-based residence.
4-1 Sec. 531.154. NOTIFICATION REQUIRED. (a) Not later than the
4-2 third day after the date a child with a developmental disability is
4-3 initially placed in an institution, the institution shall notify:
4-4 (1) the Texas Department of Human Services, if the
4-5 child is placed in a nursing home;
4-6 (2) the local mental retardation authority, as defined
4-7 by Section 531.002, Health and Safety Code, where the institution
4-8 is located, if the child:
4-9 (A) is placed in an ICF-MR, as defined by
4-10 Section 531.002, Health and Safety Code; or
4-11 (B) is placed by a state or local child
4-12 protective services agency in an institution for the mentally
4-13 retarded licensed by the Department of Protective and Regulatory
4-14 Services;
4-15 (3) the community resource coordination group in the
4-16 county of residence of a parent or guardian of the child;
4-17 (4) if the child is at least three years of age, the
4-18 school district for the area in which the institution is located;
4-19 and
4-20 (5) if the child is less than three years of age, the
4-21 local early intervention program for the area in which the
4-22 institution is located.
4-23 (b) The Texas Department of Human Services shall notify the
4-24 local mental retardation authority, as defined by Section 531.002,
4-25 Health and Safety Code, of a child's placement in a nursing home if
4-26 the child is known or suspected to suffer from mental retardation
4-27 or another disability for which the child may receive services
5-1 through the Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental
5-2 Retardation.
5-3 Sec. 531.155. OFFER OF SERVICES. Each entity receiving
5-4 notice of the initial placement of a child in an institution under
5-5 Section 531.154 may contact the person making the placement to
5-6 ensure that family members of the child are aware of:
5-7 (1) services and support that could provide
5-8 alternatives to placement of the child in the institution;
5-9 (2) available placement options; and
5-10 (3) opportunities for permanency planning.
5-11 Sec. 531.156. DESIGNATION OF ADVOCATE. (a) Except as
5-12 provided by Subsection (b), the Texas Department of Human Services
5-13 shall designate a person, including a member of a community-based
5-14 organization, to serve as a volunteer advocate for a child residing
5-15 in an institution to assist in developing a permanency plan for the
5-16 child if:
5-17 (1) the child's parent or guardian requests the
5-18 assistance of an advocate; or
5-19 (2) the institution in which the child is placed
5-20 cannot locate the child's parent or guardian.
5-21 (b) The Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental
5-22 Retardation shall designate the person to serve as a volunteer
5-23 advocate for a child in accordance with Subsection (a) if the child
5-24 resides in an institution operated by the department.
5-25 (c) The person designated by the Texas Department of Human
5-26 Services or the Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental
5-27 Retardation to serve as the child's volunteer advocate under this
6-1 section may be:
6-2 (1) a person selected by the child's parent or
6-3 guardian, except that the person may not be employed by or under a
6-4 contract with the institution in which the child resides;
6-5 (2) an adult relative of the child; or
6-6 (3) a representative of a child advocacy group.
6-7 (d) The Texas Department of Human Services or the Texas
6-8 Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation, as appropriate,
6-9 shall provide to each person designated to serve as a child's
6-10 volunteer advocate information regarding permanency planning under
6-11 this subchapter.
6-12 Sec. 531.157. COMMUNITY-BASED SERVICES. (a) A state agency
6-13 that receives notice of a child's placement in an institution shall
6-14 ensure that, not later than 24 hours after the child is initially
6-15 placed in the institution, the child is also placed on a waiting
6-16 list for waiver program services under Section 1915(c) of the
6-17 federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Section 1396n), as amended,
6-18 appropriate to the child's needs.
6-19 (b) The parent or guardian of a child placed on a waiting
6-20 list under Subsection (a) shall determine whether to accept waiver
6-21 program services under Section 1915(c) of the federal Social
6-22 Security Act (42 U.S.C. Section 1396n), as amended, for the child
6-23 when those services are available.
6-24 Sec. 531.158. LOCAL PERMANENCY PLANNING SITES. The
6-25 commission shall develop an implementation system that consists
6-26 initially of four or more local sites and that is designed to
6-27 coordinate planning for a permanent living arrangement and
7-1 relationship for a child with a family. In developing the system,
7-2 the commission shall:
7-3 (1) include criteria to identify children who need
7-4 permanency plans;
7-5 (2) require the establishment of a permanency plan for
7-6 each child who lives outside the child's family or for whom care or
7-7 protection is sought in an institution;
7-8 (3) include a process to determine the agency or
7-9 entity responsible for developing and overseeing implementation of
7-10 a child's permanency plan;
7-11 (4) identify, blend, and use funds from all available
7-12 sources to provide customized services and programs to implement a
7-13 child's permanency plan;
7-14 (5) clarify and expand the role of a local community
7-15 resource coordination group in ensuring accountability for a child
7-16 who resides in an institution or who is at risk of being placed in
7-17 an institution;
7-18 (6) require reporting of each placement or potential
7-19 placement of a child in an institution or other living arrangement
7-20 outside of the child's home; and
7-21 (7) assign in each local permanency planning site area
7-22 a single gatekeeper for all children in the area for whom placement
7-23 in an institution through a program funded by the state is sought
7-24 with authority to ensure that:
7-25 (A) family members of each child are aware of:
7-26 (i) intensive services that could prevent
7-27 placement of the child in an institution; and
8-1 (ii) available placement options; and
8-2 (B) permanency planning is initiated for each
8-3 child.
8-4 Sec. 531.159. MONITORING OF PERMANENCY PLANNING EFFORTS. (a)
8-5 The commission and each appropriate health and human services
8-6 agency shall require a person who develops a permanency plan for a
8-7 child residing in an institution to identify and document in the
8-8 child's permanency plan all ongoing permanency planning efforts at
8-9 least once during each calendar quarter to ensure that, as soon as
8-10 possible, the child will benefit from a permanent living
8-11 arrangement with an enduring and nurturing parental relationship.
8-12 (b) The chief executive officer of each appropriate health
8-13 and human services agency or the officer's designee must approve
8-14 the placement of a child in an institution. The initial placement
8-15 of the child in the institution is temporary and may not exceed a
8-16 calendar quarter unless the appropriate chief executive officer or
8-17 the officer's designee approves an extension of an additional
8-18 calendar quarter after conducting a review of documented permanency
8-19 planning efforts to unite the child with a family in a permanent
8-20 living arrangement. The chief executive officer or the officer's
8-21 designee shall review the child's placement at least every calendar
8-22 quarter and must approve an extension of the placement for the
8-23 child to continue residing in the institution.
8-24 (c) The commissioner shall review the placement of each
8-25 child who resides in an institution in this state not later than
8-26 each six-month anniversary of the date of the child's initial
8-27 placement. The child may continue to reside in the institution
9-1 only if the placement is approved by the commissioner on or before
9-2 each six-month anniversary.
9-3 Sec. 531.160. INSPECTIONS. As part of each inspection,
9-4 survey, or investigation of an institution, including a nursing
9-5 home, institution for the mentally retarded licensed by the
9-6 Department of Protective and Regulatory Services, or ICF-MR, as
9-7 defined by Section 531.002, Health and Safety Code, in which a
9-8 child with a developmental disability resides, the agency or the
9-9 agency's designee shall determine the extent to which the nursing
9-10 home, institution, or ICF-MR is complying with the permanency
9-11 planning requirements under this subchapter.
9-12 Sec. 531.161 [531.155]. PERMANENCY REPORTING. (a) For each
9-13 of the local permanency planning sites, the commission shall
9-14 develop a reporting system under which each appropriate health and
9-15 human services agency responsible for permanency planning under
9-16 this subchapter is required to provide to the commission
9-17 semiannually:
9-18 (1) the number of permanency plans developed by the
9-19 agency for children residing in institutions or children at risk of
9-20 being placed in institutions;
9-21 (2) progress achieved in implementing permanency
9-22 plans;
9-23 (3) the number of children served by the agency
9-24 residing in institutions;
9-25 (4) the number of children served by the agency at
9-26 risk of being placed in an institution served by the local
9-27 permanency planning sites;
10-1 (5) the number of children served by the agency
10-2 reunited with their families or placed with alternate permanent
10-3 families; and
10-4 (6) cost data related to the development and
10-5 implementation of permanency plans.
10-6 (b) The commissioner shall submit a semiannual report to the
10-7 governor and the committees of each house of the legislature that
10-8 have primary oversight jurisdiction over health and human services
10-9 agencies regarding:
10-10 (1) the number of children residing in institutions in
10-11 this state and, of those children, the number for whom a
10-12 recommendation has been made for a transition to a community-based
10-13 residence but who have not yet made that transition;
10-14 (2) the circumstances of each child described by
10-15 Subdivision (1), including the name and type of institution in
10-16 which the child resides, the child's age, the residence of the
10-17 child's parents or guardians, and the length of time in which the
10-18 child has resided in the institution;
10-19 (3) the number of permanency plans developed for
10-20 children residing or at risk of placement in institutions in this
10-21 state, the progress achieved in implementing those plans, and
10-22 barriers to implementing those plans;
10-23 (4) the number of children who previously resided in
10-24 an institution in this state and have been reunited with their
10-25 families or placed with alternate permanent families; and
10-26 (5) the number of children who previously resided in
10-27 an institution in this state and have made the transition to a
11-1 community-based residence.
11-2 Sec. 531.162. EFFECT ON OTHER LAW. This subchapter does not
11-3 affect responsibilities imposed by federal or other state law on a
11-4 physician or other professional.
11-5 SECTION 2. (a) The Health and Human Services Commission
11-6 shall conduct a study regarding:
11-7 (1) the feasibility of bifurcating the reimbursement
11-8 provided for permanency planning activities under Chapter 531,
11-9 Government Code, from the reimbursement provided to an institution
11-10 in which a child resides for the care of that child; and
11-11 (2) alternate mechanisms for providing reimbursement
11-12 for permanency planning activities that will enhance those
11-13 activities.
11-14 (b) Based on the results of the study conducted under this
11-15 section, the commission by rule shall modify the method of
11-16 reimbursement provided for permanency planning activities to
11-17 incorporate modifications determined to be effective in enhancing
11-18 those activities.
11-19 SECTION 3. Subchapter O, Chapter 242, Health and Safety Code,
11-20 as added by Chapter 913, Acts of the 75th Legislature, Regular
11-21 Session, 1997, is repealed.
11-22 SECTION 4. If before implementing any provision of this Act a
11-23 state agency determines that a waiver or authorization from a
11-24 federal agency is necessary for implementation of that provision,
11-25 the agency affected by the provision shall request the waiver or
11-26 authorization and may delay implementing that provision until the
11-27 waiver or authorization is granted.
12-1 SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.