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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the establishment by the commissioner of education of |
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an autism program to provide applied behavior analysis services to |
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students with autism spectrum disorder and to the coordination of |
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autism services in this state. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Chapter 33, Education Code, is amended by adding |
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Subchapter H to read as follows: |
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SUBCHAPTER H. AUTISM PROGRAM |
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Sec. 33.281. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter: |
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(1) "Certified assistant behavior analyst" means an |
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individual who is certified as a board certified assistant behavior |
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analyst by the Behavior Analyst Certification Board, Inc., or has |
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earned a similar credential from another entity that is approved by |
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the commissioner and is accredited by the National Commission on |
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Certifying Agencies or the American National Standards Institute to |
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issue credentials in the professional practice of applied behavior |
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analysis. |
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(2) "Certified behavior analyst" means an individual |
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who is certified as a board certified behavior analyst or board |
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certified behavior analyst-Doctoral by the Behavior Analyst |
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Certification Board, Inc., or has earned a similar credential from |
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another entity that is approved by the commissioner and accredited |
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by the National Commission on Certifying Agencies or the American |
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National Standards Institute to issue credentials in the |
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professional practice of applied behavior analysis. |
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(3) "Participating entity" means a university, local |
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community agency, or organization that has entered into a grant |
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contract with a school district to provide applied behavior |
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analysis services under the program to students of the district. |
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(4) "Program" means the autism program established |
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under this subchapter. |
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(5) "Service provider" means one or more individuals |
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employed by or under a contract with a participating entity to |
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provide applied behavior analysis services under the program to |
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students. |
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Sec. 33.282. ESTABLISHMENT; CONTRACT WITH HEALTH AND HUMAN |
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SERVICES COMMISSION. (a) The commissioner shall establish and |
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administer an autism program to provide applied behavior analysis |
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services to students with autism spectrum disorder through grant |
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contracts between school districts and participating universities, |
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local community agencies, and other organizations that provide |
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applied behavior analysis services in this state, to the extent |
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funds are appropriated by the legislature for that purpose. |
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(b) The Health and Human Services Commission shall contract |
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with the commissioner for the agency to assume all responsibilities |
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of the Health and Human Services Commission and the Department of |
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Assistive and Rehabilitative Services relating to the provision of |
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autism services to students eligible for services under this |
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subchapter who are recipients of assistance under the Medicaid |
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program or the child health plan program. |
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Sec. 33.283. STUDENT ELIGIBILITY AND ENROLLMENT. (a) To be |
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eligible for services under the program, a student must: |
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(1) apply to a participating entity on the form and in |
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the manner prescribed by commissioner rule; |
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(2) be a resident of this state; |
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(3) be eight years of age or younger; and |
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(4) have a documented diagnosis on the autism spectrum |
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made by a qualified professional. |
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(b) The application and enrollment process adopted by the |
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commissioner must provide that if a participating entity receives |
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more applications from eligible students for admission to a |
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participating entity's program than available positions in the |
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program, the eligible student who is not initially offered |
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admission to the program may be placed on an interest list |
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maintained by the participating entity and may be offered admission |
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to the program upon the opening of available positions with the |
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participating entity. |
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Sec. 33.284. PROGRAM SERVICES. (a) A participating entity |
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shall: |
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(1) ensure that services provided to a student with |
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autism spectrum disorder under the program do not include physical |
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aversive interventions that cause pain or discomfort; |
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(2) develop a treatment plan for each student served |
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under the program; |
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(3) provide parent training as a component of services |
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offered under the program; |
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(4) provide ongoing analysis and evaluation of the |
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progress of each student under the program; |
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(5) document the services provided to each student |
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under the program; |
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(6) administer pretreatment and posttreatment |
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measures in accordance with contractual requirements between the |
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participating entity and a school district; and |
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(7) create and maintain documented transition plans |
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for each student determined to no longer require services under the |
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program. |
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(b) A school district may contract with a university for the |
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university to act as a participating entity only if the university |
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has an autism center or program. |
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Sec. 33.285. DURATION OF TREATMENT. (a) The duration of |
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each student's treatment under the program must be based on the |
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student's needs, except that a student may not receive services |
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under the program for more than a cumulative period of 24 months, |
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which may be composed of nonconsecutive periods of treatment. |
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(b) The maximum period of a student's treatment prescribed |
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by Subsection (a) applies regardless of any change in a contract |
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between a school district and a participating entity or any change |
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in service providers. |
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(c) A student who ceases receiving treatment under the |
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program before receiving services for the maximum period of |
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treatment prescribed by Subsection (a) may reenroll in the program |
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not earlier than six months after the date the student ceases |
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receiving services under the program, unless the student receives |
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written approval for early reenrollment from the school district |
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before withdrawing from the program. |
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(d) A parent or guardian of a student who has received |
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treatment under the program for the maximum period prescribed by |
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Subsection (a) may elect to pay the expense for the student to |
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continue receiving services from the participating entity under a |
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contract between the parent or guardian and the participating |
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entity. A school district is not liable for any costs accrued in the |
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provision of services to a student who has received treatment under |
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the program for the maximum period prescribed by Subsection (a). |
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Sec. 33.286. SERVICE PROVIDER REQUIREMENTS. (a) A service |
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provider who provides assessment of or oversees treatment of |
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students under the program or who trains and supervises |
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paraprofessional personnel involved in direct delivery of program |
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services must have: |
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(1) a master's degree or doctoral degree in |
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psychology, behavior analysis, or a related field obtained from an |
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accredited institution of higher education; |
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(2) documented graduate level coursework in |
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behavioral assessment and intervention, selecting outcomes and |
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strategies, behavior change procedures, experimental methods, and |
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measuring and interpreting behavioral data; |
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(3) knowledge of typical childhood development of |
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children in the age range of 3 years through 15 years; and |
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(4) a board certified behavior analyst accreditation |
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issued by the Behavior Analyst Certification Board, Inc. |
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(b) A service provider must include at least one individual |
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with the accreditation described by Subsection (a)(4) who has |
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experience providing applied behavior analysis services for a child |
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of each age in the age range of 3 years through 15 years. |
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(c) A service provider who provides any direct services to |
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students under the program must: |
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(1) have been awarded a high school diploma or the |
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equivalent; |
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(2) be 18 years of age or older; |
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(3) have completed at least 40 hours of training |
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before working with students under the program; |
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(4) receive ongoing training; and |
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(5) be supervised by a certified behavior analyst. |
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(d) The training required under Subsection (c) must: |
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(1) be formalized training developed and supervised by |
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a certified behavior analyst on methods for data collection, |
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procedures for implementing discrete trial teaching, prompting |
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procedures, behavior management strategies for addressing problem |
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behavior, and other applied behavior analysis techniques and |
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program-specific methods; |
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(2) be provided by a certified behavior analyst or a |
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certified assistant behavior analyst through didactic instruction, |
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workshops, readings, observation of modeling of techniques by |
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supervisors, role-play with supervisors, and training in the |
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natural environment in which supervisors provide specific feedback |
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and additional training as needed; |
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(3) to ensure individual acquisition of the skills |
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necessary to accurately implement applied behavior analysis |
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treatments, be assessed for effectiveness through: |
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(A) written exams, with criteria to determine |
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mastery; or |
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(B) direct observation by an individual who is a |
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board certified behavior analyst supervisor of therapists working |
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directly with students, with fidelity checklists to determine |
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accurate use of procedures and criteria to determine mastery; |
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(4) provide instruction on all of the tasks in the |
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Behavior Analyst Certification Board, Inc.'s, Registered Behavior |
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Technician Task List; and |
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(5) include ethics and professional conduct training. |
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(e) The supervision required under Subsection (c)(5) must: |
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(1) occur at least once every two weeks; |
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(2) include direct observation of applied behavior |
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analysis programming to assess if procedures are implemented |
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accurately and to inform the supervisor of the potential need to |
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adjust teaching procedures; and |
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(3) include ongoing review, no less than two times per |
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week, of data from applied behavior analysis programs and data |
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pertaining to problem behavior. |
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Sec. 33.287. COORDINATION OF SERVICES; COMMUNICATION ON |
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BEST PRACTICES. In administering the program, the commissioner |
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shall ensure communication and coordination among school |
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districts, participating entities, service providers, and other |
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state agencies or other entities providing applied behavior |
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analysis services to children with autism spectrum disorder in this |
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state regarding best practices for delivering those services. |
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Sec. 33.288. RESTRICTION ON GRANT USE. A grant awarded to a |
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participating entity through the program may be used only to |
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provide applied behavior analysis services to students under the |
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program and may not be used for educational, research, or student |
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loan repayment assistance purposes. |
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Sec. 33.289. STATEWIDE AUTISM DATABASE; REPORT. (a) The |
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commissioner shall maintain a statewide autism database of |
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information regarding the number of students served through the |
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program, statewide best practices for the delivery of applied |
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behavior analysis services to students with autism spectrum |
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disorder, and the identification of underserved regions of the |
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state with regard to those services. |
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(b) Annually, the commissioner shall submit to the |
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legislature a report on the information maintained in the database. |
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(c) On request by the commissioner, a service provider shall |
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submit any quarterly data the commissioner considers necessary to |
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carry out the commissioner's duties under this section. |
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(d) The commissioner may not include in the database |
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personal information of any kind pertaining to a student receiving |
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services under the program or the student's family. |
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(e) The commissioner shall make the database readily |
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accessible online for school districts, participating entities, |
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service providers, and the public. |
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Sec. 33.290. RULES. The commissioner shall adopt rules as |
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necessary for the administration of this subchapter. |
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SECTION 2. SELECT COMMITTEES ON AUTISM SERVICES. (a) Not |
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later than November 30, 2015: |
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(1) the speaker of the house of representatives shall |
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appoint to a House Select Committee on Statewide Coordination of |
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Autism Services seven members with one member designated as chair; |
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and |
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(2) the lieutenant governor shall appoint to a Senate |
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Select Committee on Statewide Coordination of Autism Services five |
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members with one member designated as chair. |
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(b) The committees established under this section may meet |
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separately at the call of the chair of the committee or jointly at |
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the call of both chairs. In joint meetings, the chairs shall act as |
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joint chairs. |
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(c) The committees established under this section, meeting |
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separately or jointly, shall review, study, and evaluate: |
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(1) autism service programs in other states; |
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(2) university programs in this state that provide |
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autism treatment and services; |
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(3) community agencies and organizations that provide |
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ABA services; |
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(4) ways to improve communication and coordination |
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among entities providing autism services across the state; |
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(5) areas of the state that are most underserved with |
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regard to autism services; and |
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(6) ways to provide autism services to more children. |
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(d) Following consideration of the factors described by |
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Subsection (c) of this section, the committees established under |
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this section shall jointly adopt recommendations related to the |
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reviewed topics and shall provide a written report to the |
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legislature of the committees' recommendations for legislative or |
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other action not later than January 13, 2017. |
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(e) This section expires September 1, 2017. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |