BILL ANALYSIS |
C.S.H.B. 2574 |
By: Johnson |
Transportation |
Committee Report (Substituted) |
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
The death of a child due to prolonged heat exposure while left unattended in a motor vehicle is as unacceptable as it is avoidable. Concerned parties assert that such a tragedy is largely due to a caregiver's lack of awareness of the dangers of leaving children in cars, even during moderately hot weather. C.S.H.B. 2574 seeks to address this issue by furthering awareness of the dangers of leaving a child unattended in a vehicle in warm weather conditions.
|
||||||||||
CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.
|
||||||||||
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.
|
||||||||||
ANALYSIS
C.S.H.B. 2574 amends the Health and Safety Code to include information about the danger of a heatstroke for a child left unattended in a motor vehicle among the information in the resource pamphlet that a hospital, birthing center, physician, nurse midwife, or midwife who provides prenatal care to a pregnant woman during gestation or at delivery of an infant is required to provide to the woman and the father of the infant, if possible, or another adult caregiver for the infant. The bill establishes that a facility is not required to comply with this provision until January 1, 2016. The bill requires the Department of State Health Services, not later than December 1, 2015, to make the informational materials in the pamphlet available on its website.
|
||||||||||
EFFECTIVE DATE
September 1, 2015.
|
||||||||||
COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE
While C.S.H.B. 2574 may differ from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following comparison is organized and formatted in a manner that indicates the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.
|
||||||||||
|