By Carona S.B. No. 1289
77R9334 JRD-F
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to regional injury prevention centers.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Subtitle B, Title 9, Health and Safety Code, is
1-5 amended by adding Chapter 780 to read as follows:
1-6 CHAPTER 780. REGIONAL INJURY PREVENTION CENTERS
1-7 Sec. 780.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
1-8 (1) "Board" means the Texas Board of Health.
1-9 (2) "Department" means the Texas Department of Health.
1-10 Sec. 780.002. REGIONAL INJURY PREVENTION CENTERS. (a) The
1-11 department shall designate seven regional centers for injury
1-12 prevention for the state in the following localities:
1-13 (1) Dallas;
1-14 (2) Harris and Galveston counties;
1-15 (3) Bexar County;
1-16 (4) Lubbock;
1-17 (5) El Paso;
1-18 (6) Corpus Christi; and
1-19 (7) Austin and Travis County.
1-20 (b) The regional injury prevention centers shall coordinate
1-21 injury prevention control activities within the public health
1-22 regions for the state designated by the department by rule. The
1-23 department may adopt rules permitting regional injury prevention
1-24 centers to provide services for regions served by other injury
2-1 prevention centers in this state as necessary to maximize efficient
2-2 use of resources and provide appropriate services in each region.
2-3 (c) Each regional injury prevention center shall affiliate
2-4 with a level one, two, or three trauma center as defined by the
2-5 American College of Surgeons.
2-6 Sec. 780.003. COMMUNITY PROGRAMS AND ASSISTANCE. A regional
2-7 injury prevention center shall:
2-8 (1) work with communities and neighborhoods to help
2-9 establish their injury prevention priorities;
2-10 (2) help communities define and implement
2-11 interventions;
2-12 (3) develop links between electronic databases to
2-13 provide data to community entities;
2-14 (4) provide leadership by bringing community entities
2-15 together to address injury issues; and
2-16 (5) undertake a continuing epidemiologic evaluation of
2-17 the effectiveness of community-based interventions in reducing the
2-18 number and extent of injuries and in reducing costs.
2-19 Sec. 780.004. RESOURCE CENTER. (a) The department shall
2-20 designate one of the regional injury prevention centers as the
2-21 statewide resource center to provide to the other regional injury
2-22 prevention centers:
2-23 (1) assistance on how to develop and implement an
2-24 injury prevention program;
2-25 (2) assistance on how to develop effective coalitions;
2-26 (3) public awareness campaigns on injury reductions;
2-27 and
3-1 (4) technical assistance on how to develop and
3-2 implement an evaluation process to determine the effectiveness of
3-3 injury prevention interventions.
3-4 (b) The department's designation of an injury prevention
3-5 center as the statewide resource center is for a five-year period.
3-6 Sec. 780.005. RESEARCH PROGRAMS. (a) A regional injury
3-7 prevention center may conduct a research program to improve
3-8 treatments for trauma victims and to reduce the severity of
3-9 injuries from trauma.
3-10 (b) A regional injury prevention center may accept gifts or
3-11 grants from public or private sources to be used for research.
3-12 Sec. 780.006. PROVIDING INFORMATION AT BIRTH. Because
3-13 injury is a leading cause of death among children and adolescents,
3-14 the department shall assist the regional injury prevention centers
3-15 in providing informational packets on injury prevention to parents
3-16 shortly after a birth.
3-17 Sec. 780.007. STATE LIABILITY. A regional injury prevention
3-18 center is considered a state agency only for purposes of Chapter
3-19 104, Civil Practice and Remedies Code. An employee or former
3-20 employee of a regional injury prevention center is considered a
3-21 state employee or a former state employee only for purposes of
3-22 Chapter 104, Civil Practice and Remedies Code.
3-23 Sec. 780.008. COORDINATING COMMITTEE. (a) The Coordinating
3-24 Committee on Injury Prevention shall advise the board and the
3-25 Commission on State Emergency Communications.
3-26 (b) The committee shall make recommendations to the board
3-27 regarding which entity shall operate each regional injury
4-1 prevention center.
4-2 (c) The committee is composed of three members appointed by
4-3 the governor, three members appointed by the lieutenant governor,
4-4 and one member appointed by the board from each of the following
4-5 entities:
4-6 (1) a representative from each injury prevention
4-7 center or public health region;
4-8 (2) a representative from the Texas Council on Family
4-9 Violence;
4-10 (3) a representative from the Texas Transportation
4-11 Institute; and
4-12 (4) a representative from law enforcement.
4-13 (d) Chapter 2110, Government Code, does not apply to the
4-14 size, composition, or duration of the advisory committee.
4-15 Sec. 780.009. FUNDING; GIFTS AND GRANTS. (a) The
4-16 sponsoring entity of each regional injury prevention center shall
4-17 contribute 40 percent of the regional injury prevention center's
4-18 budget. The state shall provide 60 percent of each regional injury
4-19 prevention center's budget. It is the intent of the legislature
4-20 that to the extent possible, the money provided by the state
4-21 shall come from tobacco litigation money the state receives under
4-22 the Comprehensive Settlement Agreement and Release filed in the
4-23 case of The State of Texas v. The American Tobacco Co., et al., No.
4-24 5-96CV-91, in the United States District Court, Eastern District of
4-25 Texas.
4-26 (b) The state shall provide all funding for statewide
4-27 activities of the resource center.
5-1 (c) The department shall establish a program to award grants
5-2 to fund the regional injury prevention centers.
5-3 (d) The board shall adopt rules to establish criteria for
5-4 awarding the grants. The rules must require the department to
5-5 consider:
5-6 (1) the need of a region, based on population served
5-7 for injury prevention services and the extent to which the grant
5-8 would meet the identified need;
5-9 (2) assurances that the grant will be used to provide
5-10 quality services; and
5-11 (3) the availability of other funding sources.
5-12 (e) The department may approve grants according to adopted
5-13 rules. A grant awarded under this section is governed by Chapter
5-14 783, Government Code, and the rules adopted under that chapter.
5-15 (f) The department may accept gifts or grants from any
5-16 source for purposes related to this chapter.
5-17 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
5-18 a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
5-19 provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
5-20 Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
5-21 Act takes effect September 1, 2001.