BILL ANALYSIS |
C.S.H.B. 2038 |
By: Dukes |
Human Services |
Committee Report (Substituted) |
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
The Center for Elimination of Disproportionality and Disparities and the Interagency Council for Addressing Disproportionality were created to address disparities in health and health access among certain Texas populations and disparities in the use of juvenile justice, child welfare, education, and mental health systems by children in Texas, respectively. Interested parties assert that both the center and council provide critical services to the state and that certain revisions to the laws regulating these entities are necessary to ensure the programs are meeting intended goals and producing desired effects. C.S.H.B. 2038 seeks to continue the operation of the council and amend provisions relating to the council and to the center.
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RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.
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ANALYSIS
C.S.H.B. 2038 amends the Health and Safety Code to require the Center for Elimination of Disproportionality and Disparities to identify the social determinants and health conditions in most need of high-impact response to address disproportionality and disparities across health and human services agencies and to monitor the implementation of plans to address health disparities across health and human services agencies. The bill requires the center, not later than July 1 of each year, to submit a report to the executive commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) detailing the center's findings and activities regarding such activities and specifies that the center is not required to submit the initial report before July 1, 2014. The bill requires the center to assist HHSC and any other relevant health and human services, education, juvenile justice, child welfare, and mental health agencies in developing cross-systems performance measures aligned with the components of the Texas model for addressing disproportionality and disparities in the education, juvenile justice, child welfare, health, and mental health systems required to be adopted by the Interagency Council for Addressing Disproportionality under the bill's provisions and to implement that Texas model. The bill requires the center to advise each health and human services, education, juvenile justice, child welfare, and mental health agency on the implementation and delivery of cultural competency training to all service delivery staff, including persons providing service delivery under a single source continuum contract, and to develop collaborative partnerships with community groups, agencies, faith-based organizations, and other community organizations to support the delivery of culturally competent services to children and families of every race and ethnicity.
C.S.H.B. 2038 amends the Human Resources Code to include in the composition of the Interagency Council for Addressing Disproportionality the following representatives appointed by the executive commissioner of HHSC: two persons who are current or former recipients of services provided by the child welfare, juvenile justice, education, or children's mental health systems, one person who is a director of special education for a public school district, and one representative of the business community. The bill prohibits a member of the council appointed by the executive commissioner from serving on the council for more than two years. The bill removes from the duties of the council the preparation of a report consisting of the council's findings and recommendations and the presentation of an implementation plan to address disproportionate representation of children who are members of a racial or ethnic minority group in the use of children's services.
C.S.H.B. 2038 requires the council, based on its research and findings, to develop and adopt a Texas model for addressing disproportionality and disparities in the education, juvenile justice, child welfare, health, and mental health systems to be implemented across the relevant state agencies. The bill requires the report required to be submitted by the council to the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, and the legislature to contain the status of the implementation of the Texas model for addressing disproportionality and disparities in the education, juvenile justice, child welfare, health, and mental health systems and updates the deadline for submission of the report to December 1, 2014. The bill specifies that statutory provisions relating to the council expire December 1, 2015, rather than December 1, 2013.
C.S.H.B. 2038 repeals Section 2.004(c) of the Human Resources Code, requiring the council, if the council develops information in the course of performing its duties, to attach that information to the council's report.
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EFFECTIVE DATE
On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2013.
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COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE
While C.S.H.B. 2038 may differ from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following comparison is organized and highlighted in a manner that indicates the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.
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