By: Nelson S.B. No. 218

(In the Senate - Filed November 18, 2010; January 31, 2011, read first time and referred to Committee on Jurisprudence; April 11, 2011, reported adversely, with favorable Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 6, Nays 0; April 11, 2011, sent to printer.)

COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 218 By: Rodriguez

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to procedures in certain suits affecting the parent-child relationship and the operation of the child protective services and foster care systems.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Subchapter D, Chapter 261, Family Code, is amended by adding Section 261.3013 to read as follows:

Sec. 261.3013. CASE CLOSURE AGREEMENTS PROHIBITED. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), on closing a case, the department may not enter into a written agreement with a child's parent or another adult with whom the child resides that requires the parent or other adult to take certain actions after the case is closed to ensure the child's safety.

(b) This section does not apply to an agreement that is entered into by a parent or other adult:

(1) following the removal of a child and that is subject to the approval of a court with continuing jurisdiction over the child;

(2) as a result of the person's participation in family group conferencing; or

(3) as part of a formal case closure plan agreed to by the person who will continue to care for a child as a result of a parental child safety placement.

(c) The department shall develop policies to guide caseworkers in the development of case closure agreements authorized under Subsections (b)(2) and (3).

SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 262, Family Code, is amended by adding Section 262.010 to read as follows:

Sec. 262.010. CHILD WITH SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED DISEASE. (a) If during an investigation by the Department of Family and Protective Services the department discovers that a child younger than 11 years of age has a sexually transmitted disease, the department shall:

(1) appoint a special investigator to assist in the investigation of the case; and

(2) file an original suit requesting an emergency order under this chapter for possession of the child unless the department determines, after taking the following actions, that removing the child from the child's home is not necessary for the protection of the child:

(A) reviewing the medical evidence to determine whether the medical evidence supports a finding that abuse likely occurred;

(B) interviewing the child and other persons residing in the child's home;

(C) conferring with law enforcement;

(D) determining whether any other child in the home has a sexually transmitted disease and, if so, referring the child for a sexual abuse examination;

(E) ensuring that each child alleged to have been abused undergoes a forensic interview by a children's advocacy center established under Section 264.402 or another professional with specialized training in conducting forensic interviews if a children's advocacy center is not available in the county in which the child resides;

(F) consulting with a department staff nurse or other medical expert to obtain additional information regarding the nature of the sexually transmitted disease and the ways the disease is transmitted and an opinion as to whether abuse occurred based on the facts of the case;

(G) contacting any additional witness who may have information relevant to the investigation, including other individuals who had access to the child; and

(H) if the department determines after taking the actions described by Paragraphs (A)-(G) that a finding of sexual abuse is not supported, obtaining an opinion from the Forensic Assessment Center Network as to whether the evidence in the case supports a finding that abuse likely occurred.

(b) If the department determines that abuse likely occurred, the department shall work with law enforcement to obtain a search warrant to require an individual the department reasonably believes may have sexually abused the child to undergo medically appropriate diagnostic testing for sexually transmitted diseases.

SECTION 3. Section 262.1015, Family Code, is amended by adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:

(a-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), if the Department of Family and Protective Services determines that a protective order issued under Title 4 provides a reasonable alternative to obtaining an order under that subsection, the department may:

(1) file an application for a protective order on behalf of the child instead of or in addition to obtaining a temporary restraining order under this section; or

(2) assist a parent or other adult with whom a child resides in obtaining a protective order.

SECTION 4. Subsection (a), Section 264.118, Family Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) The department shall collect and report service and outcome information for certain current and former foster care youth for use in the National Youth in Transition Database as required by 42 U.S.C. Section 677(f) and 45 C.F.R. Section 1356.80 et seq [conduct an annual random survey of a sample of children from each region of the state who are at least 14 years of age and who receive substitute care services. The survey must include questions regarding:

[(1) the quality of the substitute care services provided to the child;

[(2) any improvements that could be made to better support the child; and

[(3) any other factor that the department considers relevant to enable the department to identify potential program enhancements].

SECTION 5. Subdivision (3), Subsection (a), Section 411.114, Government Code, is amended to read as follows:

(3) The Department of Family and 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 Family and 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 Family and 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 Family and 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 Family and 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 Family and Protective [and Regulatory] Services under a contract with the estate of the ward;

(O) a person who seeks unsupervised visits with a ward of the Department of Family and 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;

(Q) an employee of or volunteer at, or an applicant for employment with or to be a volunteer at, an entity that provides supervised independent living services to a young adult receiving extended foster care services from the Department of Family and Protective Services; or

(R) a person 14 years of age or older who will be regularly or frequently working or staying in a host home that is providing supervised independent living services to a young adult receiving extended foster care services from the Department of Family and Protective Services.

SECTION 6. Section 40.036, Human Resources Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 40.036. ENHANCED TRAINING OF CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES CASEWORKERS. To improve the quality and consistency of training provided to child protective services caseworkers, the department shall:

(1) augment classroom-based training with a blended learning environment using computer-based modules, structured field experience, and simulation for skills development;

(2) use a core curriculum for all new department caseworkers and specialized training for specific jobs;

(3) require that department caseworkers transferring from one specialty to another must complete the core curriculum and advanced training for the new specialty before assuming their new responsibilities; [and]

(4) centralize accountability and oversight of all department training in order to ensure statewide consistency; and

(5) require department caseworkers to receive training relating to the benefits of using a protective order under Title 4, Family Code, to protect a child as an alternative to removing the child from the child's home.

SECTION 7. Subchapter I, Chapter 521, Transportation Code, is amended by adding Section 521.1811 to read as follows:

Sec. 521.1811. WAIVER OF FEES FOR FOSTER CARE YOUTH. A person is exempt from the payment of any fee for the issuance of a driver's license, as provided under this chapter, if that person is:

(1) younger than 18 years of age and in the managing conservatorship of the Department of Family and Protective Services; or

(2) at least 18 years of age, but younger than 21 years of age, and resides in a foster care placement, the cost of which is paid by the Department of Family and Protective Services.

SECTION 8. (a) The Department of Family and Protective Services shall implement a redesign of the foster care system in accordance with the recommendations contained in the department's December 2010 Foster Care Redesign report submitted to the legislature.

(b) The redesign of the foster care system shall be implemented with the understanding that the individual needs of a child are paramount and that not all indicators are appropriate for every child and shall include as goals for the redesign a system that ensures:

(1) children are safe in their placements;

(2) children are placed in their home communities;

(3) children are appropriately served in the least restrictive environment that supports minimal moves for the child;

(4) connections to family and other persons important to the child are maintained;

(5) children are placed with siblings;

(6) services respect the child's culture;

(7) children and youth are fully prepared for successful adulthood through being provided opportunities, experiences, and activities similar to those experienced by children and youth who are not in foster care; and

(8) children and youth are provided opportunities to participate in decisions that impact their lives.

(c) The Health and Human Services Commission may use payment rates for foster care under the redesigned system that are different from those used on the effective date of this Act for 24-hour residential child care. Payment rates for foster care under the redesigned system may include incentive payments for superior performance, as well as funding for additional services provided to families historically included in 24-hour residential child-care rates. Final implementation of the foster care redesign must include a payment system based on performance targets. Payment rates under foster care redesign may not result in total expenditures for any fiscal year during the 2012-2013 fiscal biennium that exceed the amounts appropriated by the 82nd Legislature for foster care and other purchased services, except to the extent that any increase in total foster care expenditures is the direct result of caseload growth.

SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.

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