Amend Amendment No. 24 by Giddings to CSHB 7 (page 33 of the prefiled amendments packet) as follows:

(1)  On line 2, strike "SECTION" and substitute "SECTIONS".

(2)  Immediately following line 11, insert the following:

SECTION ____.  (a) In this section:

(1)  "Attorney ad litem" has the meaning assigned by Section 107.001, Family Code.

(2)  "Commission" means the Permanent Judicial Commission for Children, Youth and Families established by the supreme court.

(b)  The commission shall study the appointment and use of attorneys ad litem in cases involving the Department of Family and Protective Services. The commission shall:

(1)  examine:

(A)  the method for appointing attorneys ad litem;

(B)  the oversight and accountability measures used across the state to monitor attorneys ad litem;

(C)  the methods by which qualifications for appointment as an attorney ad litem and training requirements for an attorney ad litem are established and enforced;

(D)  the timing of and duration of appointments;

(E)  the rate of compensation for appointments and the method for establishing compensation rates across the state;

(F)  the quality of representation and methods for assessing performance of attorneys ad litem;

(G)  the pretrial and posttrial client satisfaction with representation by attorneys ad litem representing parents and attorneys ad litem representing children;

(H)  organizational studies and national standards related to the workload of attorneys ad litem;

(I)  the best practices for attorneys ad litem; and

(J)  the estimated and average costs associated with legal representation by an attorney ad litem per child compared with the costs associated with foster care per child;

(2)  conduct a survey of attorneys ad litem about the attorney's training, including:

(A)  the attorney's legal education;

(B)  whether the attorney is certified as a specialist by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in any area of law; and

(C)  the professional standards followed by the attorney;

(3)  perform a statistical analysis of the data and information collected under Subdivisions (1) and (2) of this subsection; and

(4)  develop policy recommendations for improving the attorney ad litem appointment process.

(c)  The commission shall prepare a report based on the findings of the study conducted under this section and shall submit the report to each member of the legislature not later than September 1, 2018.