BILL ANALYSIS

 

 

 

C.S.S.B. 69

By: Nelson

Human Services

Committee Report (Substituted)

 

 

 

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

 

C.S.S.B. 69 builds on S.B. 6, 79th Legislature, Regular Session, 2005, and S.B. 758, 80th Legislature, Regular Session, 2007, to strengthen the foster care system by providing better care for abused, neglected, and abandoned children.

 

C.S.S.B. 69 clarifies foster care processes at the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS), emphasizes community resources for foster youth aging out of the system, and allows foster parents to provide feedback.  The bill requires DFPS to study the feasibility of implementing a financial incentive program to encourage foster children to achieve and maintain the progress goals set under each child's individualized treatment or service plan.  The bill also modifies provisions relating to changes in a child's placement, including the frequency and process for such changes.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

 

It is the committee's opinion that rulemaking authority is expressly granted to the executive commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission in SECTION 7 of this bill.

ANALYSIS

 

C.S.S.B. 69 amends the Family Code to authorize the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS), to the extent feasible, to contract with child-placing agencies throughout the state for the child-placing agencies to provide office space for DFPS employees who provide conservatorship services and employees who perform licensing functions.  The bill defines "conservatorship services."

 

C.S.S.B. 69 includes a temporary provision set to expire January 1, 2011, requiring DFPS to study the feasibility of implementing a financial incentive program to encourage foster children to achieve and maintain the progress goals set under each child's individualized treatment or service plan.  The bill requires the study, at a minimum, to include an analysis of the cost, benefits, and types of incentives that would be of value to foster children.  The bill requires the DFPS, not later than December 1, 2010, to report its findings and recommendations to the speaker of the house of representatives, the lieutenant governor, the House Human Services Committee or its successor, and the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services or its successor.

 

C.S.S.B. 69 includes a temporary provision set to expire January 1, 2011, requiring the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) to coordinate with DFPS to study the feasibility of making changes to foster care assessment, placement, and reimbursement methodologies to improve outcomes for children in foster care.  The bill requires the study to include an analysis of those children who are classified as needing the highest level of care, an analysis of the ways in which children can be effectively assessed and placed in substitute care with the least impact to the child and substitute care provider during any change of placement, an analysis of the service level of care system and how related placement moves impact children, and an estimate of the amount of money necessary to implement the proposed changes.  The bill requires HHSC, not later than September 1, 2010, to report its findings and recommendations to the speaker of the house of representatives, the lieutenant governor, the House Human Services Committee or its successor, and the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services or its successor.  The bill requires DFPS to consider recommendations from the report required under this subsection when developing the department's request for legislative appropriations to be considered by the 82nd Legislature.

 

C.S.S.B. 69 requires DFPS, in performing a service level review of a child, to consider as part of the review whether, during the 90 days preceding the date of the review, the child engaged in behavior that caused life-threatening injury to the child or another individual or has undergone a psychiatric hospitalization.

 

C.S.S.B. 69 requires DFPS, except in the case of an emergency or as otherwise provided by a court order, to provide written notice to a child's substitute care provider and any child-placing agency involved with a child before DFPS may change the child's substitute care provider and requires DFPS to provide the notice of a change not later than the fifth day before the date the child's substitute care provider is changed. The bill requires DFPS to adopt a policy that provides for an exit survey of each foster parent who decides to leave the foster care system.  The bill requires DFPS to encourage the foster parent to state in the foster parent's own words the reasons why the foster parent decided to leave the foster care system.  The bill requires DFPS, not later than December 1 of each odd-numbered year, to submit a report summarizing the results of the exit surveys to the speaker of the house of representatives, the lieutenant governor, the House Human Services Committee or its successor, and the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services or its successor.

 

C.S.S.B. 69 requires DFPS to ensure that each individual enrolled in the Preparation for Adult Living Program receives information about the community resources that are available in the county in which the individual intends to reside to assist the individual in obtaining employment, job training, educational services, housing, food, and health care.  The bill requires DFPS, if there are no community resources available in the county in which the individual intends to reside, to ensure that the individual receives information about any community resources that are available in the surrounding counties. 

 

C.S.S.B. 69 requires DFPS to establish a pilot program under which the foster parents of a child may provide mentoring services to the child's parents to assist the child's parents in complying with the terms of the service plan.

 

C.S.S.B. 69 establishes a foster children's bill of rights and provides that it is the policy of the state that each child in foster care be informed of certain rights of the child under state or federal law or policy.  The bill requires DFPS to provide a written copy of the foster children's bill of rights to each child placed in foster care in the child's primary language, if possible, and requires DFPS to inform the child of the rights provided by the foster children's bill of rights orally in the child's primary language, if possible, and in simple, nontechnical terms, or, for a child who has a disability, including an impairment of vision or hearing, through any means that can reasonably be expected to result in successful communication with the child.  The bill authorizes a child placed in foster care, at the child's option, to sign a document acknowledging the child's understanding of the foster children's bill of rights after DFPS provides a written copy of the foster children's bill of rights to the child and informs the child of the rights provided by that bill of rights.  The bill requires such a document to be placed in the child's case file. The bill requires an agency foster group home, agency foster home, foster group home, foster home, or other facility in which a child is placed in foster care to provide a copy of the foster children's bill of rights to a child on the child's request.  The bill requires the foster children's bill of rights to be printed in English and in a second language.  The bill requires DFPS to promote the participation of foster children and former foster children in educating other foster children about the foster children's bill of rights.

 

C.S.S.B. 69 requires the executive commissioner of the HHSC and DFPS, as appropriate, to ensure that the rules and policies governing foster care are consistent with state policy regarding the foster children's bill of rights.  The bill authorizes the executive commissioner or DFPS, as appropriate, to adopt rules or policies that provide greater protections for the rights of children in foster care.  The bill requires DFPS to develop and implement a policy for receiving and handling reports that a foster child's rights are not being met.  The bill requires DFPS to inform a child and, as appropriate, the child's managing conservator or guardian of the method for reporting to DFPS that the child's rights are not being met.  The bill clarifies that provisions relating to the foster children's bill of rights do not create a cause of action.

 

C.S.S.B. 69 defines "agency foster group home," "agency foster home," "facility," "foster group home," "foster home," "foster care," and "foster children's bill of rights."

 

C.S.S.B. 69 amends the Human Resources Code to increase from twice a year to three times a year the number of times the committee on licensing standards for certain facilities, homes, and agencies that provide child-care services is required to meet.  The bill requires at least one meeting each year to provide an opportunity for public testimony.  The bill adds to the elements required to be included in the committee's review and analysis of information provided by DFPS, for policy and statutory changes relating to licensing standards and facility inspections, an analysis of DFPS policies, standards, and procedures relating to the licensing of foster care providers and consideration of modifications to the policies, standards, and procedures to increase the capacity of a foster care provider while continuing to ensure the health and safety of children placed in the care of the foster care provider.  The bill changes the date on which the committee is required to report its findings and recommendations to DFPS from not later than December 1 of each year to not later than September 1 of each year.

 

C.S.S.B. 69 amends the Government Code to require DFPS, from funds appropriated in the General Appropriations Act for the fiscal biennium 2010-2011 and subject to the appropriation of money for the specific purpose, to spend up to $12 million for that biennium with the goal of ensuring that 95 percent of children in the conservatorship of DFPS or whose parent, managing conservator, possessory conservator, guardian, caretaker, or custodian is receiving family-based safety services from DFPS are visited by the child's caseworker at least one time each month.

 

EFFECTIVE DATE

 

September 1, 2009.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE

C.S.S.B. 69 adds a provision not included in the original requiring the study to be conducted by the Health and Human Services Commission in coordination with the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) on the feasibility of making changes to the foster care assessment, placement, and reimbursement methodologies to include an analysis of the service level of care system and how related placement moves impact children. The bill adds a provision not included in the original requiring DFPS, in performing a service level review of a child, to consider as part of the review whether, during the 90 days preceding the date of the review, the child engaged in behavior that caused life-threatening injury to the child or another individual or has undergone a psychiatric hospitalization.

 

C.S.S.B. 69 differs from the original by making the foster parent mentor program a pilot program. The substitute differs from the original by adding children whose parent, managing conservator, possessory conservator, guardian, caretaker, or custodian is receiving family-based services from DFPS among the children for whom DFPS is required to spend a specific amount of funds with the goal of ensuring that 95 percent of those children are visited by the child's caseworker at least one time each month. The substitute differs from the original by specifying that the required expenditure of funds is subject to the appropriation of money for that specific purpose.