79R7552 CLG-D

By:  Uresti                                                       H.B. No. 2850


A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to establishing a pilot program to provide nutritional supplements and products to certain elderly persons. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: SECTION 1. Subchapter D, Chapter 161, Human Resources Code, is amended by adding Section 161.074 to read as follows: Sec. 161.074. SENIOR NUTRITION ASSISTANCE PILOT PROGRAM. (a) The executive commissioner by rule shall develop and the department shall implement a pilot program, to be known as the Senior Nutrition Assistance Pilot Program (SNAPP), to provide nutritional supplements and products to elderly persons to improve and maintain their health. (b) The executive commissioner shall establish eligibility criteria for participation in the program. (c) In developing the pilot program, the executive commissioner shall consult with the department, the Department of State Health Services, and local community health centers. (d) The department shall operate the pilot program in at least two counties, one of which must be in a primarily rural area and one of which must have a population of less than 1.4 million and in which a municipality with a population of more than one million is located. (e) The department may seek and accept gifts, grants, and donations of funds or property from public or private sources to develop and implement the pilot program. (f) Not later than January 1 of each odd-numbered year, the department shall submit a report concerning the effectiveness of the pilot program to the governor, lieutenant governor, speaker of the house of representatives, and the presiding officer of each house and senate standing committee having jurisdiction over health and human services issues. SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2005.