84R10118 YDB-D

By: Dukes H.B. No. 600

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to child protective services and employees of the Department of Family and Protective Services.

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

SECTION 1. Chapter 61, Education Code, is amended by adding Subchapter N to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER N. REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE FOR CERTAIN DEPARTMENT OF

FAMILY AND PROTECTIVE SERVICES EMPLOYEES

Sec. 61.731. REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE AUTHORIZED. The board shall establish a program to provide, using funds appropriated for that purpose and in accordance with this subchapter and rules of the board, assistance in the repayment of student loans for employees of the Department of Family and Protective Services who apply and qualify for the assistance.

Sec. 61.732. ELIGIBILITY. (a) To be eligible to receive repayment assistance, a person must:

(1) apply to the board; and

(2) have been employed for at least one year as, and be currently employed full-time at the Department of Family and Protective Services as:

(A) a child protective services family-based safety services caseworker;

(B) a child protective services investigator;

(C) a child-care licensing investigator or inspector; or

(D) a residential child-care licensing investigator or inspector.

(b) In awarding repayment assistance to first-time applicants, the board shall give priority to applicants who demonstrate financial need.

Sec. 61.733. AMOUNT OF REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE; LIMITATION. (a) For each year that a person meets the eligibility requirements provided by Section 61.732, the person may receive repayment assistance under this subchapter in an amount determined by board rule, not to exceed $2,500.

(b) A person may not receive repayment assistance under this subchapter for more than four years.

(c) If the money available for repayment assistance in a period for which assistance is awarded is insufficient to provide assistance to all eligible applicants described by Section 61.732(b), the board shall award repayment assistance to eligible applicants by prioritizing awards to applicants employed in regions of this state experiencing the highest turnover.

Sec. 61.734. ELIGIBLE LOANS. (a) The board may provide repayment assistance for the repayment of any student loan for education at a public or private institution of higher education, including loans for undergraduate education and graduate education, issued through any lender.

(b) The board may not provide repayment assistance for a student loan that is in default at the time of the person's application.

Sec. 61.735. REPAYMENT. (a) The board shall deliver any repayment assistance made under this subchapter in a lump sum directly to the lender or other holder of the loan on the person's behalf and in accordance with any applicable federal law.

(b) Repayment assistance received under this subchapter may be applied to the principal amount of the loan and to interest that accrues.

Sec. 61.736. FUNDING. (a) The repayment assistance program established by this subchapter is funded only from appropriations made specifically to fund the program and from gifts, grants, and donations. The board shall attempt to provide repayment assistance in each state fiscal biennium in amounts sufficient to use all amounts appropriated for the program in that biennium.

(b) The board may solicit and accept gifts, grants, and donations from any public or private source for the purposes of this subchapter.

Sec. 61.737. RULES. (a) The board shall adopt rules necessary for the administration of this subchapter, including a rule that establishes the amount of repayment assistance awarded to eligible persons each year.

(b) The board shall distribute to each institution of higher education, the Department of Family and Protective Services, and appropriate professional associations copies of the rules adopted under this section and pertinent information in this subchapter.

SECTION 2. Chapter 101, Family Code, is amended by adding Section 101.0013 to read as follows:

Sec. 101.0013. AGE-APPROPRIATE ACTIVITY. "Age-appropriate activity" means an activity or experience that is generally accepted as suitable for a child of the same chronological age or level of maturity or that is determined to be developmentally appropriate for a child based on the development of cognitive, emotional, physical, and behavioral capacities that are typical for an age or age group.

SECTION 3. Chapter 101, Family Code, is amended by amending Section 101.0201 and adding Section 101.0202 to read as follows:

Sec. 101.0201. NORMALCY ACTIVITY. "Normalcy activity" means an activity or experience in which a child who is not in the conservatorship of the state is allowed to participate, including extracurricular activities, in-school and out-of-school social activities, enrichment activities, and employment opportunities.

Sec. 101.0202. NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR JUDICIAL WRIT OF WITHHOLDING. "Notice of application for judicial writ of withholding" means the document delivered to an obligor and filed with the court as required by Chapter 158 for the nonjudicial determination of arrears and initiation of withholding.

SECTION 4. Chapter 101, Family Code, is amended by adding Section 101.0253 to read as follows:

Sec. 101.0253. REASONABLE AND PRUDENT PARENT STANDARD. "Reasonable and prudent parent standard" means the standard characterized by careful and sensible parental decisions that maintain the child's health, safety, and best interests.

SECTION 5. Section 261.3021, Family Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 261.3021. CASEWORK DOCUMENTATION AND MANAGEMENT. Subject to the appropriation of money for these purposes, the department shall:

(1) identify critical investigation actions that impact child safety and require department caseworkers to document those actions in a child's case file not later than the day after the action occurs;

(2) identify and develop a comprehensive set of casework quality indicators that must be reported in real time to support timely management oversight;

(3) provide department supervisors with access to casework quality indicators and train department supervisors on the use of that information in the daily supervision of caseworkers;

(4) develop a case tracking system that:

(A) uses the latest technology to easily link cases involving individuals in the same household by identifying siblings, relatives, and other non-related adults living in the home;

(B) includes expanded read-only access for caseworkers and case coordinators;

(C) tracks subsequent investigations of child protective services provided to children for whom caseworkers are unable to determine whether abuse or neglect occurred; and

(D) notifies department supervisors and management when a case is not progressing in a timely manner;

(5) use current data reporting systems to provide department supervisors and management with easier access to information; and

(6) train department supervisors and management on the use of data to monitor cases and make decisions.

SECTION 6. Section 261.3022, Family Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 261.3022. CHILD SAFETY CHECK ALERT LIST. (a) Subject to the availability of funds, the Department of Public Safety of the State of Texas shall create a child safety check alert list as part of the Texas Crime Information Center to help locate a child or the child's family for purposes of:

(1) investigating a report of child abuse or neglect;

(2) providing protective services to a child whose life may be at risk and whose family is receiving in-home support services; or

(3) providing protective services to a child in the managing conservatorship of the department who has run away and whose life may be at risk.

(b) If the child safety check alert list is established and the department is unable to locate a child or the child's family for a purpose stated in Subsection (a) [purposes of investigating a report of child abuse or neglect], after the department has exhausted all means available to the department for locating the child or the child's family, the department may seek assistance under this section from the appropriate [county attorney, district attorney, or criminal district] attorney with responsibility for representing the department as provided by Section 264.009.

(c) If the department requests assistance, the county attorney, district attorney, or criminal district attorney, as applicable, may file an application with the court requesting the issuance of an ex parte order requiring the Texas Crime Information Center to place the child or the members of the child's family whom the department is attempting to locate on a child safety check alert list. The application must include a summary of:

(1) either:

(A) the report of child abuse or neglect the department is attempting to investigate; or

(B) the circumstances in a case described by Subsection (a)(2) or (3) that cause a child to be at a substantial risk of harm because the child or family cannot be located; and

(2) the department's efforts to locate the child or the child's family.

(d) If the court determines after a hearing that the family cannot be located to investigate a report of child abuse or neglect or that a child is at risk of substantial harm because the child or family cannot be located and that the department has exhausted all means available to the department for locating the child or the child's family, as applicable, the court shall approve the application and order the appropriate law enforcement agency to notify the Texas Crime Information Center to place the child or the child's family, as applicable, on a child safety check alert list. The alert list must include:

(1) if applicable, the name of the family member alleged to have abused or neglected a child according to the report the department is attempting to investigate;

(2) the name of the child who is the subject of the report or an ongoing department case;

(3) if applicable, a code identifying the type of child abuse or neglect alleged to have been committed against the child;

(4) the family's last known address; and

(5) the minimum criteria for an entry as established by the center.

SECTION 7. Section 261.3023(a), Family Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) If a law enforcement officer encounters a person, including a child, listed on the Texas Crime Information Center's child safety check alert list [who is alleged to have abused or neglected a child, or encounters a child listed on the alert list who is the subject of a report of child abuse or neglect the department is attempting to investigate], the officer shall request information from the person or the child regarding the child's well-being and current residence. The officer shall immediately report that the person or child has been located and the location of the person or child by calling the toll-free telephone number operated by the department to receive reports of child abuse or neglect.

SECTION 8. Section 261.3024(a), Family Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) A law enforcement officer who locates a child listed on the Texas Crime Information Center's child safety check alert list [who is the subject of a report of child abuse or neglect the department is attempting to investigate] and who reports the child's current address and other relevant information to the department under Section 261.3023 shall report to the Texas Crime Information Center that the child has been located.

SECTION 9. Section 261.3126(a), Family Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) In each county, to the extent possible, the department and the local law enforcement agencies that investigate child abuse in the county shall colocate in the same offices investigators from the department and the law enforcement agencies to improve the efficiency of child abuse investigations. With approval of the local children's advocacy center and its partner agencies, in each county in which a children's advocacy center established under Section 264.402 is located, the department shall attempt to locate investigators from the department and county and municipal law enforcement agencies at the center and to increase the number of department investigators located at a center if the rate of retention for investigators at that center exceeds the retention rate of investigators located in other offices.

SECTION 10. Section 263.102(a), Family Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) The service plan must:

(1) be specific;

(2) be in writing in a language that the parents understand, or made otherwise available;

(3) be prepared by the department or other agency in conference with the child's parents;

(4) state appropriate deadlines;

(5) state whether the goal of the plan is:

(A) return of the child to the child's parents;

(B) termination of parental rights and placement of the child for adoption; or

(C) because of the child's special needs or exceptional circumstances, continuation of the child's care out of the child's home;

(6) state steps that are necessary to:

(A) return the child to the child's home if the placement is in foster care;

(B) enable the child to remain in the child's home with the assistance of a service plan if the placement is in the home under the department's or other agency's supervision; or

(C) otherwise provide a permanent safe placement for the child;

(7) state the actions and responsibilities that are necessary for the child's parents to take to achieve the plan goal during the period of the service plan and the assistance to be provided to the parents by the department or other authorized agency toward meeting that goal;

(8) state any specific skills or knowledge that the child's parents must acquire or learn, as well as any behavioral changes the parents must exhibit, to achieve the plan goal;

(9) state the actions and responsibilities that are necessary for the child's parents to take to ensure that the child attends school and maintains or improves the child's academic compliance;

(10) state the name of the person with the department or other agency whom the child's parents may contact for information relating to the child if other than the person preparing the plan; [and]

(11) provide for the elimination of impediments to the child's participation in age-appropriate normalcy activities; and

(12) prescribe any other term or condition that the department or other agency determines to be necessary to the service plan's success.

SECTION 11. Section 263.105, Family Code, is amended by adding Subsection (b-1) to read as follows:

(b-1) As part of the review under Subsection (b), the court shall ensure that the child's caregiver under the plan understands:

(1) the importance of the child's participation in age-appropriate normalcy activities; and

(2) the flexibility the reasonable and prudent parent standard provides the caregiver in approving the child's participation in normalcy activities.

SECTION 12. Section 263.306, Family Code, is amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:

(c) At each permanency hearing, the court shall review the efforts of the department in ensuring that:

(1) the child's caregiver is following the reasonable and prudent parent standard; and

(2) the child has regular, ongoing opportunities to engage in age-appropriate normalcy activities, including activities not listed in the child's service plan.

SECTION 13. Section 263.503, Family Code, is amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:

(c) At each placement review hearing, the court shall review the efforts of the department in ensuring that:

(1) the child's caregiver is following the reasonable and prudent parent standard; and

(2) the child has regular, ongoing opportunities to engage in age-appropriate normalcy activities, including activities not listed in the child's service plan.

SECTION 14. Section 264.015, Family Code, is amended by adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:

(d) In the training for prospective foster parents and in the annual training for foster parents, the department shall include programs to address the potential impact on the family of providing foster care and to recommend methods for maintaining household stability, including respite care and stress relief techniques.

SECTION 15. Section 264.114, Family Code, is amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:

(c) A foster parent, relative or other designated caregiver, or other substitute caregiver caring for a child in the department's managing conservatorship is not liable for harm caused to the child that results from the child's participation in an age-appropriate activity approved by the caregiver if the caregiver acted in the same manner as a reasonable and prudent parent would in approving the child's participation in the activity.

SECTION 16. Section 264.121(f), Family Code, as amended by Chapters 168 (S.B. 1589) and 342 (H.B. 2111), Acts of the 83rd Legislature, Regular Session, 2013, is reenacted and amended to read as follows:

(f) The department shall require a person with whom the department contracts for transitional living services for foster youth to provide or assist youth in obtaining:

(1) housing services;

(2) job training and employment services;

(3) college preparation services beginning at age 14;

(4) services that will assist youth in obtaining a general education development certificate;

(5) services that will assist youth in developing skills in food preparation;

(6) nutrition education that promotes healthy food choices; [and]

(7) [(5)] a savings or checking account if the youth is at least 18 years of age and has a source of income; and

(8) [(7)] any other appropriate transitional living service identified by the department.

SECTION 17. Sections 264.123(a) and (d), Family Code, are amended to read as follows:

(a) If a child in the department's managing conservatorship is missing from the child's substitute care provider, including a child who is abducted or is a runaway, the department shall notify the following persons and entities that the child is missing:

(1) the appropriate law enforcement agencies;

(2) the court with jurisdiction over the department's managing conservatorship of the child;

(3) the child's attorney ad litem;

(4) the child's guardian ad litem; [and]

(5) the child's parent unless the parent:

(A) cannot be located or contacted;

(B) has had the parent's parental rights terminated; or

(C) has executed an affidavit of relinquishment of parental rights; and

(6) the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

(d) The department shall make continuing efforts to determine the location of a missing child until the child returns to substitute care, including:

(1) contacting on a monthly basis:

(A) the appropriate law enforcement agencies;

(B) the child's relatives;

(C) the child's former caregivers; and

(D) any state or local social service agency that may be providing services to the child; [and]

(2) conducting a supervisory-level review of the case on a quarterly basis if the child is 15 years of age or younger to determine whether sufficient efforts have been made to locate the child and whether other action is needed; and

(3) appointing a special investigator to assist in locating the child and in investigating the events affecting the child that occurred while the child was missing.

SECTION 18. Subchapter B, Chapter 264, Family Code, is amended by adding Section 264.126 to read as follows:

Sec. 264.126. NORMALCY ACTIVITIES; REASONABLE AND PRUDENT PARENT STANDARD. (a) The department shall use its best efforts to normalize the lives of children in the managing conservatorship of the department and to allow substitute caregivers to make decisions, similar to the decisions that a parent is entitled to make, regarding the child's participation in age-appropriate normalcy activities without the department's prior approval.

(b) A substitute caregiver shall use a reasonable and prudent parent standard in determining whether to permit a child in the conservatorship of the department to participate in an activity. When making a decision according to the reasonable and prudent parent standard, the caregiver must consider:

(1) the overall health and safety of the child and the child's age, maturity, and development level;

(2) any potential risk factors and the appropriateness of the activity;

(3) the best interest of the child based on the caregiver's knowledge of the child;

(4) the importance of encouraging the child's social, emotional, and developmental growth;

(5) the importance of providing the child with the most family-like living experience possible; and

(6) the behavioral history of the child and the child's ability to safely participate in the proposed activity.

(c) The department shall verify that substitute caregivers providing substitute care services under contract with the department:

(1) promote and protect the ability of a child to participate in age-appropriate normalcy activities; and

(2) implement policies consistent with this section.

(d) The department shall review its policies and procedures to identify policies and procedures that impede a substitute caregiver's ability to make reasonable and prudent parenting decisions and shall adopt new policies that promote a substitute caregiver's ability to make reasonable and prudent parenting decisions.

(e) The department shall require a child's substitute caregiver to complete training on:

(1) decision-making as a reasonable and prudent parent;

(2) appropriate and trauma-informed procedures for addressing a child's misbehavior; and

(3) the importance of a child's participation in age-appropriate normalcy activities and the benefits of participation to a child's social, emotional, and developmental growth, well-being, and mental health.

SECTION 19. Section 264.408(c), Family Code, is amended to read as follows:

(c) The department, a law enforcement agency, and a prosecuting attorney may share with a center or a statewide child advocacy center organization information that is confidential under Section 261.201 as needed to provide services under this chapter. Confidential information shared with or provided to a center or organization remains the property of the agency that shared or provided the information to the center or organization.

SECTION 20. Section 264.503, Family Code, is amended by adding Subsection (f-1) to read as follows:

(f-1) The Department of State Health Services shall identify opportunities for improving the information provided in the report under Subsection (f) and, in areas of this state where a review team is not established, shall monitor the impact on that area of inadequate services.

SECTION 21. Section 264.852, Family Code, is amended by adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:

(e) The department shall provide to a foster child's relative, or other adult with whom that child has a longstanding and significant relationship, with whom the child is residing information about qualifying and becoming licensed or verified by the department as a kinship provider.

SECTION 22. Chapter 265, Family Code, is amended by adding Sections 265.005, 265.006, and 265.007 to read as follows:

Sec. 265.005. EVALUATION OF SERVICES. (a) The department shall establish a process to identify each child or family member who receives prevention and early intervention services and subsequent child protective services and evaluate the success of the prevention and early intervention services initially provided.

(b) The department shall use the information obtained through the evaluation process to determine and provide the most intensive prevention and early intervention services to children and families who are determined most at risk for abuse and neglect and most in need of the services.

Sec. 265.006. HEALTHY OUTCOMES THROUGH PREVENTION AND EARLY SUPPORT (HOPES) AND HELP THROUGH INTERVENTION AND PREVENTION (HIP) PROJECTS. (a) The department shall establish:

(1) a healthy outcomes through prevention and early support (HOPES) project to provide, in communities selected by the department, flexible, community-based child abuse and neglect prevention programs to families of children under five years of age who are at risk of abuse and neglect; and

(2) a help through intervention and prevention (HIP) project to provide voluntary extensive family assessment, home visitation, and education services to families at risk for abuse and neglect to increase protection of the child and prevent child abuse.

(b) Not later than December 1 of each even-numbered year, the department shall submit electronically to each legislative committee with jurisdiction over child protective services a report on the department's efforts and strategies to expand the services provided under Subsection (a) to additional areas in this state and to populations identified as being at higher risk for abuse and neglect.

Sec. 265.007. IDENTIFICATION OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES. The department shall collaborate with the Department of State Health Services to identify additional funding opportunities for children and families receiving prevention and early intervention services to address individual and community factors that contribute to parental substance abuse and domestic violence in those families.

SECTION 23. Section 40.032(c), Human Resources Code, is amended to read as follows:

(c) The executive director or the executive director's designated representative shall develop a system of annual performance evaluations based on measurable job tasks. All merit pay for department employees must be based on the system established under this subsection. The department's retention strategies for child protective services caseworkers may include merit-based advancement opportunities for caseworkers and coaching or corrective action procedures to address deficient performance evaluations without negatively impacting merit eligibility.

SECTION 24. Subchapter B, Chapter 40, Human Resources Code, is amended by adding Section 40.03211 to read as follows:

Sec. 40.03211. SALARY SUPPLEMENT PILOT PROJECT FOR CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES CASEWORKERS. (a) The department may establish a pilot project to supplement the salary of a child protective services caseworker based on the average salary for similar positions in the area of the employee's assigned place of employment, the extent to which the caseworker's salary meets cost-of-living expenses in that area, and other location factors.

(b) Section 659.020, Government Code, does not apply to the supplement authorized by this section.

SECTION 25. Subchapter B, Chapter 40, Human Resources Code, is amended by adding Sections 40.0328 and 40.0329 to read as follows:

Sec. 40.0328. CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES CASEWORKERS. (a) The department shall periodically restructure the duties of caseworkers as necessary to maintain the safety of children in child protective services, increase the time a caseworker spends with children, prioritize the time required to effectively address cases above caseload, and successfully manage child protective services caseloads.

(b) The department shall:

(1) create a streamlined child protective services policy handbook to assist caseworkers in understanding their duties;

(2) establish caseworker support centers to provide administrative support to the caseworkers;

(3) increase the number of support staff for investigation units to be separately located from other investigation units;

(4) develop information resources to assist caseworkers and their supervisors in prioritizing caseworker time; and

(5) assign master caseworkers to areas with high caseworker vacancy numbers or case numbers.

(c) The department shall require a caseworker each month to report a face-to-face visit with each foster child assigned to the caseworker.

Sec. 40.0329. DISRUPTION SPECIALISTS. The department shall designate as disruption specialists a sufficient number of personnel to provide family group conference services, support timely intervention efforts that reduce preventable placement disruptions, and more frequently use family team meetings to engage the family and community in making critical child-placing decisions.

SECTION 26. Subchapter C, Chapter 40, Human Resources Code, is amended by adding Section 40.0565 to read as follows:

Sec. 40.0565. REGIONAL YOUTH LEADERSHIP COUNCILS. The department shall establish and fund regional youth leadership councils. The department shall include the councils in making decisions related to creating stable environments for foster children.

SECTION 27. Section 40.058(c), Human Resources Code, is amended to read as follows:

(c) The department shall monitor a contractor's performance under a contract for the purchase of program-related client services. In monitoring performance, the department shall:

(1) use a risk-assessment methodology that employs empirically driven predictive analytics to monitor the contracts and ensure compliance with financial and performance requirements under the contract; and

(2) obtain and evaluate program cost information to ensure that all costs, including administrative costs, are reasonable and necessary to achieve program objectives.

SECTION 28. Subchapter C, Chapter 40, Human Resources Code, is amended by adding Section 40.075 to read as follows:

Sec. 40.075. RECORDS RETENTION. The department shall retain child protective services records as follows:

(1) for cases in which the department has reason to believe a child was abused or neglected and the child was removed from the child's home, 50 years;

(2) for cases in which the department has reason to believe a child was abused or neglected, the designated perpetrator of the abuse or neglect appeals the department's findings, and the findings are substantiated, 20 years;

(3) for cases in which the department has reason to believe a child was abused or neglected, the department is unable to determine whether the abuse or neglect happened or is unable to complete the investigation, and the child remains in the child's home, 20 years; and

(4) for cases in which the department rules out abuse or neglect and the department's risk assessment indicates a significant level of risk remains with the family, no significant risks exist within the family, or the risk factors within the family are controlled, five years.

SECTION 29. Section 42.053, Human Resources Code, is amended by adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:

(e) A licensed child-placing agency shall conduct an annual home study for each agency foster home or agency foster group home operated by the agency.

SECTION 30. As soon as practicable after the effective date of this Act, the executive commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission shall adopt the necessary rules and policies and the Department of Family and Protective Services shall develop the procedures and take the steps necessary to implement the changes in law made by this Act.

SECTION 31. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board shall adopt the rules for the repayment assistance program under Subchapter N, Chapter 61, Education Code, as added by this Act, not later than December 1, 2015.

SECTION 32. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails over another Act of the 84th Legislature, Regular Session, 2015, relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted codes.

SECTION 33. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.