85R7545 MK-D
 
  By: Burkett H.B. No. 1549
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the provision of services by the Department of Family
  and Protective Services, including child protective services and
  prevention and early intervention services.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Article 49.10, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
  amended by adding Subsection (i-1) to read as follows:
         (i-1)  Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, if the
  deceased was a child younger than six years of age whose death is
  determined under Section 264.514, Family Code, to be unexpected or
  the result of abuse or neglect, a justice of the peace must order a
  complete autopsy of the deceased.
         SECTION 2.  Section 9(a), Article 49.25, Code of Criminal
  Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
         (a)  If the cause of death shall be determined beyond a
  reasonable doubt as a result of the investigation, the medical
  examiner shall file a report thereof setting forth specifically the
  cause of death with the district attorney or criminal district
  attorney, or in a county in which there is no district attorney or
  criminal district attorney with the county attorney, of the county
  in which the death occurred. If in the opinion of the medical
  examiner an autopsy is necessary, or if such is requested by the
  district attorney or criminal district attorney, or county attorney
  where there is no district attorney or criminal district attorney,
  the autopsy shall be immediately performed by the medical examiner
  or a duly authorized deputy. In those cases where a complete
  autopsy is deemed unnecessary by the medical examiner to ascertain
  the cause of death, the medical examiner may perform a limited
  autopsy involving the taking of blood samples or any other samples
  of body fluids, tissues or organs, in order to ascertain the cause
  of death or whether a crime has been committed. If the deceased was
  a child younger than six years of age and the death is determined
  under Section 264.514, Family Code, to be unexpected or the result
  of abuse or neglect, the medical examiner shall perform a complete
  autopsy. In the case of a body of a human being whose identity is
  unknown, the medical examiner may authorize such investigative and
  laboratory tests and processes as are required to determine its
  identity as well as the cause of death. In performing an autopsy
  the medical examiner or authorized deputy may use the facilities of
  any city or county hospital within the county or such other
  facilities as are made available. Upon completion of the autopsy,
  the medical examiner shall file a report setting forth the findings
  in detail with the office of the district attorney or criminal
  district attorney of the county, or if there is no district attorney
  or criminal district attorney, with the county attorney of the
  county.
         SECTION 3.  Subchapter C, Chapter 261, Family Code, is
  amended by adding Section 261.2031 to read as follows:
         Sec. 261.2031.  DESIGNATED CHILD FATALITY INVESTIGATION
  CASEWORKERS. The department shall designate caseworkers or create
  a specialized unit of department employees to conduct
  investigations involving child fatalities. Caseworkers or
  employees designated for child fatality investigations shall be
  assigned based on experience and length of time working for the
  department.
         SECTION 4.  Section 261.301, Family Code, is amended by
  adding Subsection (j) to read as follows:
         (j)  In geographic areas with demonstrated need, the
  department shall designate employees to serve specifically as
  investigators and responders for after-hours reports of child abuse
  or neglect.
         SECTION 5.  Section 264.107, Family Code, is amended by
  adding Subsection (b-2) to read as follows:
         (b-2)  The department shall, subject to the availability of
  funds, use a web-based system to assist the department in making the
  best placement decision for a child in foster care. The system must:
               (1)  recommend a level of care for the child;
               (2)  suggest placements based on the child's needs;
               (3)  display the proximity of potential providers to
  the child's home;
               (4)  incorporate foster care provider preferences;
               (5)  provide access to the foster care provider's
  history in providing safe and stable placements for children; and
               (6)  include any other provider information the
  department determines to be relevant.
         SECTION 6.  Subchapter B, Chapter 264, Family Code, is
  amended by adding Section 264.1131 to read as follows:
         Sec. 264.1131.  FOSTER CARE PROVIDER RECRUITMENT PLAN. In
  addition to foster parent recruitment from faith-based
  organizations under Section 264.113, the department shall, subject
  to the availability of funds, collaborate with current foster and
  adoptive parents to develop and implement a foster care provider
  recruitment plan. The plan must:
               (1)  identify geographic areas in the state where there
  is a need for foster care providers using risk stratification
  modeling or risk assessments of geographic areas with high
  occurrences of child abuse and neglect or child fatalities;
               (2)  use data analysis, social media, partnerships with
  faith-based and volunteer organizations, and other strategies for
  recruitment, including targeted and child-focused recruitment;
               (3)  increase the number of available foster care
  providers for children with high needs and expand the use of
  therapeutic or treatment foster care for children in those
  placements;
               (4)  require the provision of:
                     (A)  quality customer service to prospective and
  current foster and adoptive parents; and
                     (B)  assistance to prospective foster parents
  with the certification and placement process;
               (5)  include strategies for increasing the number of
  kinship providers;
               (6)  include strategies to ensure that children in
  foster care do not have to transfer schools after entering foster
  care, unless transferring is in the child's best interest; and
               (7)  include programs to support foster and adoptive
  families, including programs that provide training, respite care,
  and peer assistance.
         SECTION 7.  Subchapter C, Chapter 264, Family Code, is
  amended by adding Section 264.2012 to read as follows:
         Sec. 264.2012.  FAMILY PRESERVATION SERVICES. The
  department shall implement an evidence-based program that provides
  frequent in-home visits with families who have a history of child
  abuse or neglect or who display risk factors for child abuse or
  neglect with the goal of improving family preservation and family
  reunification. The program must contain guidelines for the
  frequency of monthly contact by the department with the family,
  based on the risk factors for child abuse and neglect in each case.
         SECTION 8.  Sections 264.502(a) and (b), Family Code, are
  amended to read as follows:
         (a)  The child fatality review team committee is composed of:
               (1)  a person appointed by and representing the state
  registrar of vital statistics;
               (2)  a person appointed by and representing the
  commissioner of the department;
               (3)  a person appointed by and representing the Title V
  director of the Department of State Health Services; [and]
               (4)  a person appointed by and representing the speaker
  of the house of representatives;
               (5)  a person appointed by and representing the
  lieutenant governor;
               (6)  a person appointed by and representing the
  governor; and
               (7)  individuals selected under Subsection (b).
         (b)  The members of the committee who serve under Subsections
  (a)(1) through (6) [(3)] shall select the following additional
  committee members:
               (1)  a criminal prosecutor involved in prosecuting
  crimes against children;
               (2)  a sheriff;
               (3)  a justice of the peace;
               (4)  a medical examiner;
               (5)  a police chief;
               (6)  a pediatrician experienced in diagnosing and
  treating child abuse and neglect;
               (7)  a child educator;
               (8)  a child mental health provider;
               (9)  a public health professional;
               (10)  a child protective services specialist;
               (11)  a sudden infant death syndrome family service
  provider;
               (12)  a neonatologist;
               (13)  a child advocate;
               (14)  a chief juvenile probation officer;
               (15)  a child abuse prevention specialist;
               (16)  a representative of the Department of Public
  Safety;
               (17)  a representative of the Texas Department of
  Transportation;
               (18)  an emergency medical services provider; and
               (19)  a provider of services to, or an advocate for,
  victims of family violence.
         SECTION 9.  Section 264.503, Family Code, is amended by
  amending Subsections (d) and (e) and adding Subsection (h) to read
  as follows:
         (d)  The Department of State Health Services shall:
               (1)  recognize the creation and participation of review
  teams;
               (2)  promote and coordinate training to assist the
  review teams in carrying out their duties;
               (3)  assist the committee in developing model protocols
  for:
                     (A)  the reporting and investigating of child
  fatalities for law enforcement agencies, child protective
  services, justices of the peace and medical examiners, and other
  professionals involved in the investigations of child deaths;
                     (B)  the collection of data regarding child
  deaths; and
                     (C)  the operation of the review teams;
               (4)  develop and implement procedures necessary for the
  operation of the committee; [and]
               (5)  develop and implement training for justices of the
  peace and medical examiners regarding inquests in child death
  cases; and
               (6)  promote education of the public regarding the
  incidence and causes of child deaths, the public role in preventing
  child deaths, and specific steps the public can undertake to
  prevent child deaths.
         (e)  In addition to the duties under Subsection (d), the
  Department of State Health Services shall:
               (1)  collect data under this subchapter and coordinate
  the collection of data under this subchapter with other data
  collection activities; [and]
               (2)  perform annual statistical studies of the
  incidence and causes of child fatalities using the data collected
  under this subchapter; and
               (3)  evaluate the available child fatality data and use
  the data to create public health strategies for the prevention of
  child fatalities.
         (h)  Each member of the committee must be a member of the
  child fatality review team in the county where the committee member
  resides.
         SECTION 10.  Subchapter F, Chapter 264, Family Code, is
  amended by adding Sections 264.5031 and 264.5032 to read as
  follows:
         Sec. 264.5031.  COLLECTION OF NEAR FATALITY DATA. (a) The
  Department of State Health Services shall develop a definition for
  the term "near fatality" to allow for statewide consistency in
  child fatality investigations.
         (b)  The Department of State Health Services shall include
  near fatality child abuse or neglect cases in the child fatality
  case database, for cases in which child abuse or neglect is
  determined to have been the cause of the near fatality. The
  Department of State Health Services must also develop a data
  collection strategy for near fatality child abuse or neglect cases.
         Sec. 264.5032.  TRACKING OF CHILD FATALITY AND NEAR FATALITY
  DATA. (a) The department shall track and analyze data relating to
  child fatality and near fatality cases resulting from child abuse
  or neglect and produce a report containing the following
  information:
               (1)  any prior contact the department had with the
  child's family and the manner in which the case was disposed,
  including cases in which the department made the following
  dispositions:
                     (A)  priority none or administrative closure;
                     (B)  call screened out;
                     (C)  alternative or differential response
  provided;
                     (D)  unable to complete the investigation;
                     (E)  unable to determine whether abuse or neglect
  occurred;
                     (F)  reason to believe abuse or neglect occurred;
  or
                     (G)  child removed and placed into substitute
  care;
               (2)  for any case investigated by the department
  involving the child or the child's family:
                     (A)  the number of caseworkers assigned to the
  case before the fatality or near fatality occurred;
                     (B)  the level of education for each caseworker
  assigned to the case and the caseworker's employment tenure; and
                     (C)  the caseworker's caseload at the time the
  case was opened and at the time the case was closed;
               (3)  for any case in which the department investigation
  concluded that there was reason to believe that abuse or neglect
  occurred, and the family was referred to family-based safety
  services:
                     (A)  the safety plan provided to the family;
                     (B)  the services offered to the family; and
                     (C)  the level of compliance with the safety plan
  or completion of the services by the family;
               (4)  the number of contacts the department made with
  children and families in family-based safety services cases; and
               (5)  the initial and attempted contacts the department
  made with child abuse and neglect victims.
         (b)  The department shall make the data collected under
  Subsection (a) available to allow research into the determining
  factors related to child abuse fatalities, with the purpose of:
               (1)  reducing child fatalities or near fatalities and
  repeated referrals of a child or family to the department; and
               (2)  predicting future occurrences of child fatalities
  and near fatalities to improve prevention and early intervention
  strategies.
         SECTION 11.  Sections 264.505(a) and (c), Family Code, are
  amended to read as follows:
         (a)  A multidisciplinary and multiagency child fatality
  review team may be established for a county to review child deaths
  in that county. A [review team for a] county [with a population of
  less than 50,000] may join with an adjacent county or counties to
  establish a combined review team.
         (c)  A review team must reflect the diversity of the county's
  population and may include:
               (1)  a criminal prosecutor involved in prosecuting
  crimes against children;
               (2)  a sheriff;
               (3)  a justice of the peace or medical examiner;
               (4)  a police chief;
               (5)  a pediatrician experienced in diagnosing and
  treating child abuse and neglect;
               (6)  a child educator;
               (7)  a child mental health provider;
               (8)  a public health professional;
               (9)  a child protective services specialist;
               (10)  a sudden infant death syndrome family service
  provider;
               (11)  a neonatologist;
               (12)  a child advocate;
               (13)  a chief juvenile probation officer; and
               (14)  a child abuse prevention specialist.
         SECTION 12.  Section 264.506(b), Family Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         (b)  To achieve its purpose, a review team shall:
               (1)  adapt and implement, according to local needs and
  resources, the model protocols developed by the department and the
  committee;
               (2)  meet on a regular basis to review child fatality
  cases and recommend methods to improve coordination of services and
  investigations between agencies that are represented on the team;
               (3)  collect and maintain data as required by the
  committee; [and]
               (4)  review and analyze the collected data to identify
  any demographic trends in child fatality cases, including whether
  there is a disproportionate number of child fatalities in a
  particular population group or geographic area; and
               (5)  submit to the vital statistics unit data reports
  on deaths reviewed as specified by the committee.
         SECTION 13.  Section 264.509, Family Code, is amended by
  adding Subsection (b-1) to read as follows:
         (b-1)  The Department of State Health Services shall provide
  a review team with electronic access to the preliminary death
  certificate for a deceased child.
         SECTION 14.  (a) Section 264.514, Family Code, is amended by
  adding Subsection (a-1) and amending Subsection (b) to read as
  follows:
         (a-1)  The commissioners court of a county shall adopt
  regulations relating to the timeliness for conducting an inquest
  into the death of a child. The regulations adopted under this
  subsection must be as stringent as the standards issued by the
  National Association of Medical Examiners unless the commissioners
  court determines that it would be cost prohibitive for the county to
  comply with those standards.
         (b)  The medical examiner or justice of the peace shall
  immediately notify an appropriate local law enforcement agency if
  the medical examiner or justice of the peace determines that the
  death is unexpected or the result of abuse or neglect, and that
  agency shall investigate the child's death. The medical examiner or
  justice of the peace shall notify the appropriate county child
  fatality review team of the child's death not later than the 120th
  day after the date the death is reported.
         (b)  A county must attempt to implement the timeliness
  standards for inquests as described by Section 264.514(a-1), Family
  Code, as added by this Act, as soon as possible after the effective
  date of this Act.
         SECTION 15.  Section 264.755, Family Code, is amended by
  adding Subsection (b-1) to read as follows:
         (b-1)  The executive commissioner by rule may set the maximum
  monetary payment amount that may, subject to an appropriation of
  funds for that purpose, be provided to a relative or designated
  caregiver under this section in an amount not to exceed the amount
  that the department would pay to a licensed foster care provider for
  the care of the child.
         SECTION 16.  Section 264.903, Family Code, is amended by
  adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:
         (a-1)  The department shall expedite the evaluation of a
  potential caregiver under this section to ensure that the child is
  placed with a caregiver who has the ability to protect the child
  from the alleged perpetrator of abuse or neglect against the child.
         SECTION 17.  (a)  Subchapter L, Chapter 264, Family Code, is
  amended by adding Section 264.907 to read as follows:
         Sec. 264.907.  CAREGIVER ASSISTANCE AGREEMENT. (a) The
  department may, subject to the availability of funds, enter into a
  caregiver assistance agreement with a caregiver to provide monetary
  assistance and additional support services to the caregiver. The
  monetary assistance and support services must be based on the
  caregiver's and child's needs, as determined by rules adopted by the
  executive commissioner.
         (b)  The department may agree to provide to a caregiver in an
  agreement under this section any monetary assistance or additional
  support services that may be provided in a caregiver assistance
  agreement under Section 264.755.
         (b)  The executive commissioner of the Health and Human
  Services Commission shall adopt the rules necessary to implement
  Section 264.907, Family Code, as added by this Act, not later than
  December 1, 2017.
         SECTION 18.  Section 265.005, Family Code, is amended by
  amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (f) to read as
  follows:
         (b)  A strategic plan required under this section must:
               (1)  identify methods to leverage other sources of
  funding or provide support for existing community-based prevention
  efforts;
               (2)  include a needs assessment that identifies
  programs to best target the needs of the highest risk populations
  and geographic areas;
               (3)  identify the goals and priorities for the
  department's overall prevention efforts;
               (4)  report the results of previous prevention efforts
  using available information in the plan;
               (5)  identify additional methods of measuring program
  effectiveness and results or outcomes;
               (6)  identify methods to collaborate with other state
  agencies on prevention efforts; [and]
               (7)  identify specific strategies to implement the plan
  and to develop measures for reporting on the overall progress
  toward the plan's goals; and
               (8)  include annual targets that increase each year for
  the number of families receiving prevention and early intervention
  services, with the initial goal of providing services to 50 percent
  of the highest risk families that are eligible to receive services
  through home visiting and community-based programs financed with
  federal, state, local, or private resources.
         (f)  In this section, "highest risk family" means a family
  that has children five years of age or younger and whose family
  income is at or below 50 percent of the federal poverty level.
         SECTION 19.  Subchapter A, Chapter 265, Family Code, is
  amended by adding Sections 265.007 and 265.008 to read as follows:
         Sec. 265.007.  IMPROVING PROVISION OF PREVENTION AND EARLY
  INTERVENTION SERVICES. To improve the effectiveness and delivery
  of prevention and early intervention services, the department
  shall:
               (1)  use a geographic focus to ensure that prevention
  and early intervention services are provided to families with the
  greatest need;
               (2)  identify the geographic areas that have the
  highest need for prevention and early intervention services using:
                     (A)  verified external risk terrain modeling; or
                     (B)  geographic risk assessments that use risk
  indicators of child abuse or neglect and child abuse fatalities;
               (3)  identify geographic areas that have a high need
  for prevention and early intervention services but do not have
  prevention and early intervention services available in the area or
  have only unevaluated prevention and early intervention services
  available in the area; and
               (4)  develop strategies for community partners to:
                     (A)  improve the early recognition of child abuse
  or neglect;
                     (B)  improve the reporting of child abuse and
  neglect; and
                     (C)  prevent child fatalities.
         Sec. 265.008.  EVALUATION OF PREVENTION AND EARLY
  INTERVENTION SERVICES. (a) The department and the Texas Higher
  Education Coordinating Board shall enter into agreements with
  institutions of higher education to conduct efficacy reviews of any
  prevention and early intervention services provided under this
  chapter that have not previously been evaluated for effectiveness
  in a research evaluation that meets the standards described by
  Subsection (b). The efficacy review shall include, when possible, a
  cost-benefit analysis of the program to the state.
         (b)  A prevention and early intervention services program is
  considered to have been previously evaluated if it has been
  evaluated by at least one rigorous randomized controlled research
  trial across heterogeneous populations or communities, the results
  of at least one of which has been published in a peer-reviewed
  journal.
         (c)  The department is not required to enter into an
  agreement to conduct a program efficacy evaluation under this
  section unless:
               (1)  the department is specifically appropriated money
  for the purposes of this section; or
               (2)  the agreement with the institution of higher
  education is cost neutral.
         SECTION 20.  Subchapter B, Chapter 40, Human Resources Code,
  is amended by adding Section 40.038 to read as follows:
         Sec. 40.038.  SECONDARY TRAUMA SUPPORT FOR CASEWORKERS. (a)  
  In this section, "secondary trauma" means trauma incurred as a
  consequence of a person's exposure to acute or chronic trauma.
         (b)  The department shall develop and make available a
  program to provide ongoing support to caseworkers who experience
  secondary trauma resulting from exposure to trauma in the course of
  the caseworker's employment. The program must include critical
  incident stress debriefing. The department may not require that a
  caseworker participate in the program.
         SECTION 21.  Subchapter C, Chapter 40, Human Resources Code,
  is amended by adding Section 40.0529 to read as follows:
         Sec. 40.0529.  CASELOAD MANAGEMENT. (a)  Subject to a
  specific appropriation for that purpose, the department shall
  develop and implement a caseload management system for child
  protective services caseworkers and managers that:
               (1)  ensures equity in the distribution of workload,
  based on the complexity of each case;
               (2)  calculates caseloads based on the number of
  individual caseworkers who are available to handle cases;
               (3)  includes geographic case assignment in areas with
  concentrated high risk populations, to ensure that an adequate
  number of caseworkers and managers with expertise and specialized
  training are available;
               (4)  includes a plan to deploy master investigators in
  anticipation of emergency shortages of personnel; and
               (5)  anticipates vacancies in caseworker positions in
  areas of the state with high caseworker turnover to ensure the
  timely hiring of new caseworkers in those areas.
         (b)  In calculating the caseworker caseload under Subsection
  (a)(2), the department:
               (1)  may not count caseworkers who are on leave for four
  weeks or more as available caseworkers;
               (2)  may not create fictive caseworkers to compensate
  for overtime hours worked by caseworkers; and
               (3)  shall only count caseworkers who are on reduced
  caseloads at a value of .3 or less.
         SECTION 22.  Subchapter C, Chapter 40, Human Resources Code,
  is amended by adding Section 40.078 to read as follows:
         Sec. 40.078.  PREVENTION ADVISORY BOARD. (a) In this
  section, "board" means the Prevention Advisory Board.
         (b)  The board is established in the department to promote
  public awareness and make recommendations to the Health and Human
  Services Commission, the Department of State Health Services, the
  department, the governor, and the legislature for changes to law,
  policy, and practices regarding:
               (1)  the prevention of child abuse and neglect;
               (2)  the development of a state strategy to promote
  child safety and well-being using enhanced data collection and
  analysis; and
               (3)  the expansion of evidence-based and promising
  practice programs, as those terms are described by Sections
  531.983(b) and (c), Government Code.
         (c)  The board is composed of not more than 25 members,
  appointed as follows:
               (1)  one member appointed by the governor from the
  governor's staff;
               (2)  one member appointed by the lieutenant governor
  from the lieutenant governor's staff;
               (3)  one member appointed by the speaker of the house of
  representatives from the speaker's staff;
               (4)  one staff member from the Senate Health and Human
  Services Committee;
               (5)  one staff member from the House Public Health
  Committee; and
               (6)  any remaining members appointed by the
  commissioner.
         (d)  The members appointed under Subsections (c)(1) through
  (5) serve as ex officio nonvoting members of the board.
         (e)  In appointing members to the board, the commissioner
  shall attempt to select individuals whose qualifications are not
  already represented by existing members of the board.  Board
  members must include:
               (1)  a chair of a child fatality review team committee;
               (2)  a pediatrician;
               (3)  a judge;
               (4)  representatives of relevant state agencies;
               (5)  prosecutors who specialize in child abuse and
  neglect;
               (6)  medical examiners;
               (7)  representatives of service providers to the
  department; and
               (8)  policy experts in child abuse and neglect
  prevention, community advocacy, or related fields.
         (f)  The board shall select a chair from among its members
  and shall meet at least quarterly, with additional meetings called
  by the chair as necessary.
         (g)  A vacancy on the board shall be filled in the same manner
  as the original appointment.
         (h)  A member of the board is not entitled to compensation or
  reimbursement of expenses incurred in performing board duties.
         (i)  The board may take testimony and receive evidence that
  the board considers necessary to carry out the duties of the board.
         (j)  In developing the recommendations under Subsection (b),
  the board shall collaborate with the prevention and early
  intervention services division of the department to:
               (1)  use a public health approach by applying
  population-based, universal, and targeted strategies for
  prevention;
               (2)  consider the evidence-based and promising
  practice programs for home visiting under Section 531.983,
  Government Code, and parent education under Section 265.101, Family
  Code, as added by Chapter 1257 (H.B. 2630), Acts of the 84th
  Legislature, Regular Session, 2015, in structuring accountability
  and evidence-based measures for child abuse fatality prevention
  programming;
               (3)  maximize funding sources to expand prevention
  programs, including federal and local government funds and private
  funds; and
               (4)  research and make recommendations regarding the
  training of external stakeholders, including the expansion of
  mandated training for medical professionals, child care workers,
  educators, and higher education professionals with access to
  minors, to improve the identification, recognition, reporting, and
  prevention of child abuse and neglect.
         (k)  The board shall collaborate with the department and the
  Department of State Health Services to develop and maintain a
  database of the most effective state and national evidence-based or
  promising practice programs that address child abuse and neglect
  and the prevention of child abuse and neglect fatalities.  The
  database shall include the cost per family and a cost-benefit
  analysis for each program.
         SECTION 23.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.