By: Goodman, Wise, Gattis (Senate Sponsor - Ellis) H.B. No. 263
(In the Senate - Received from the House April 14, 2003;
April 15, 2003, read first time and referred to Committee on Health
and Human Services; May 2, 2003, reported favorably by the
following vote: Yeas 7, Nays 0; May 2, 2003, sent to printer.)
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the establishment and operation of children's advocacy
centers.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Sections 264.402, 264.404, and 264.406, Family
Code, are amended to read as follows:
Sec. 264.402. ESTABLISHMENT OF CHILDREN'S ADVOCACY CENTER.
[(a)] On the execution of a memorandum of understanding under
Section 264.403, a children's advocacy center may be established by
community members and the participating entities described by
Section 264.403(a) [.
[(b) A center may be established] to serve a county or two or
more contiguous counties.
Sec. 264.404. BOARD REPRESENTATION[; ADMINISTRATION OF
CENTER]. (a) In addition to any other persons appointed or elected
to serve on the governing board of a children's advocacy center, the
governing board must include an executive officer of, or an
employee selected by an executive officer of:
(1) a law enforcement agency that investigates child
abuse in the area served by the center;
(2) the child protective services division of the
department; and
(3) the county or district attorney's office involved
in the prosecution of child abuse cases in the area served by [The
executive officer or board of each participating entity executing a
memorandum of understanding that establishes a center under this
subchapter shall appoint a member to serve on the governing board
of] the center.
(b) [A governing board member serves at the pleasure of the
appointing executive officer or board.
[(c)] Service on a center's board by an executive [a public]
officer or employee under Subsection (a) is an additional duty of
the person's office or employment.
Sec. 264.406. MULTIDISCIPLINARY TEAM. (a) A center's
[board shall appoint a] multidisciplinary team must include
employees of the participating agencies who are professionals
involved in the investigation or prosecution of child abuse cases
[to work within the center to review new and pending child abuse
cases for the purpose of coordinating the activities of entities
involved in investigation, prosecution, and victim services].
(b) A center's multidisciplinary team may also include
professionals involved in the delivery of services, including
medical and mental health services, to child abuse victims and the
victims' families.
(c) A multidisciplinary team shall meet at regularly
scheduled intervals to:
(1) review child abuse cases determined to be
appropriate for review by the multidisciplinary team; and
(2) coordinate the actions of the entities involved in
the investigation and prosecution of the cases and the delivery of
services to the child abuse victims and the victims' families.
(d) A multidisciplinary team may review a child abuse case
in which the alleged perpetrator does not have custodial control or
supervision of the child or is not responsible for the child's
welfare or care.
(e) [(c) A multidisciplinary team shall consist of persons
who are involved in the investigation or prosecution of child abuse
cases or the delivery of services to child abuse victims and their
families.
[(d) A multidisciplinary team shall meet at the call of the
board. The board shall call a meeting of the multidisciplinary team
if:
[(1) a new child abuse case is received; or
[(2) a pending child abuse case requires attention.
[(e) At each meeting, the multidisciplinary team shall
discuss each active case and the actions of the entities involved in
investigation, prosecution, and victim services.
[(f)] When acting in the member's official capacity, a
multidisciplinary team member is authorized to receive information
made confidential by Section 40.005, Human Resources Code, or
Section 261.201 or 264.408.
SECTION 2. Section 264.411(a), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) A public entity that operated as a center under this
subchapter before November 1, 1995, or a nonprofit entity is
eligible for a contract under Section 264.410 if the entity:
(1) has a signed memorandum of understanding as
provided by Section 264.403;
(2) operates under the authority of a governing board
as provided by Section 264.404;
(3) has a multidisciplinary team of persons involved
in the investigation or prosecution of child abuse cases or the
delivery of services as provided by Section 264.406;
(4) holds regularly scheduled case reviews as provided
by Section 264.406;
(5) operates in a neutral and physically separate
space from the day-to-day operations of any public agency partner;
(6) has developed a method of statistical information
gathering on children receiving services through the center and
shares such statistical information with the statewide
organization, the department, and the office of the attorney
general when requested;
(7) has an in-house volunteer program;
(8) employs an executive director who is answerable to
the board of directors of the entity and who is not the exclusive
salaried employee of any public agency partner; and
(9) operates under a working protocol that includes a
statement of:
(A) the center's mission;
(B) each agency's role and commitment to the
center;
(C) the type of cases to be handled by the center;
[and]
(D) the center's procedures [procedure] for
conducting case reviews and forensic interviews and for ensuring
access to specialized medical and mental health services; and
(E) the center's policies regarding
confidentiality and conflict resolution.
SECTION 3. Section 411.114(a)(3), Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(3) The Department of Protective and Regulatory
Services is entitled to obtain from the department criminal history
record information maintained by the department that relates to a
person who is:
(A) a volunteer or applicant volunteer with a
local affiliate in this state of Big Brothers/Big Sisters of
America;
(B) a volunteer or applicant volunteer with the
"I Have a Dream/Houston" program;
(C) a volunteer or applicant volunteer with an
organization that provides court-appointed special advocates for
abused or neglected children;
(D) a person providing, at the request of the
child's parent, in-home care for a child who is the subject of a
report alleging the child has been abused or neglected;
(E) a volunteer or applicant volunteer with a
Texas chapter of the Make-a-Wish Foundation of America;
(F) a person providing, at the request of the
child's parent, in-home care for a child only if the person gives
written consent to the release and disclosure of the information;
(G) a child who is related to the caretaker, as
determined under Section 42.002, Human Resources Code, and who
resides in or is present in a child-care facility, family home, or
maternity home, other than a child described by Subdivision (2)(C),
or any other person who has unsupervised access to a child in the
care of a child-care facility, family home, or maternity home;
(H) an applicant for a position with the
Department of Protective and Regulatory Services, other than a
position described by Subdivision (2)(D), regardless of the duties
of the position;
(I) a volunteer or applicant volunteer with the
Department of Protective and Regulatory Services, other than a
registered volunteer, regardless of the duties to be performed;
(J) a person providing or applying to provide
in-home, adoptive, or foster care for children to the extent
necessary to comply with Subchapter B, Chapter 162, Family Code;
(K) a Department of Protective and Regulatory
Services employee, other than an employee described by Subdivision
(2)(H), regardless of the duties of the employee's position;
(L) a relative of a child in the care of the
Department of Protective and Regulatory Services, to the extent
necessary to comply with Section 162.007, Family Code;
(M) a person, other than the subject of a report
described in Subdivision (2)(I), living in the residence in which
the alleged victim of the report resides;
(N) a contractor or an employee of a contractor
who delivers services to a ward of the Department of Protective and
Regulatory Services under a contract with the estate of the ward;
[or]
(O) a person who seeks unsupervised visits with a
ward of the Department of Protective and Regulatory Services,
including a relative of the ward; or
(P) an employee, volunteer, or applicant
volunteer of a children's advocacy center under Subchapter E,
Chapter 264, Family Code, including a member of the governing board
of a center.
SECTION 4. (a) This Act takes effect September 1, 2003.
(b) The change in law made by this Act to Section
264.411(a), Family Code, applies only to a contract entered into
under Section 264.410, Family Code, on or after the effective date
of this Act. A contract entered into before the effective date of
this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the contract
was entered into, and the former law is continued in effect for that
purpose.
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