BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 3950

By: Frank

Human Services

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

It has been noted that recently passed legislation sought the expansion of community-based care for the state's child welfare system and that the federal Family First Prevention Services Act may allow federal funding to be used for certain services to prevent children from entering foster care. C.S.H.B. 3950 seeks to establish the child welfare task force to develop a statewide plan for the continued implementation of community-based care and the implementation of family preservation and other related prevention services for the state's child welfare system.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 3950 establishes the child welfare task force, which is required to develop a statewide plan for the continued implementation of community-based care and the implementation of family preservation and other related prevention services for the state's child welfare system. The bill sets out the composition of the nine-member task force, which contains members appointed by the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of representatives. The bill sets out provisions relating to the election of a chair and vice chair, task force meetings, and reimbursement of member expenses and establishes that a task force member is not entitled to compensation.

C.S.H.B. 3950 sets out the required components of the statewide plan developed by the task force, authorizes the task force to request relevant information from relevant state agencies, and requires those agencies to comply with the request, unless the provision of the information is prohibited by state or federal law. The bill authorizes the task force, using available resources, to contract with a third-party consultant to assist the task force in carrying out its duties and to employ a full-time staff. The task force is administratively attached to the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) for the purpose of contracting under the bill's provisions, and task force members and personnel may be appointed or employed from different catchment areas.

C.S.H.B. 3950 requires the task force to submit a written report on the statewide plan to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, and each member of the standing committees of the senate and house of representatives having primary jurisdiction over child welfare not later than September 1, 2020. The bill requires the task force to monitor the continued implementation of community-based care and family preservation and other related prevention services and the community-based care implementation plan developed by the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS). The bill requires the task force to submit a final evaluation of the implementation of community-based care to the same legislative entities not later than December 30, 2024. The bill prohibits its provisions from being construed to supersede or limit DFPS's duty to develop and maintain the community-based care implementation plan.

C.S.H.B. 3950 expires and the task force is abolished December 31, 2024.

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2019.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE

While C.S.H.B. 3950 may differ from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.

The substitute revises certain required components of the statewide plan.

The substitute establishes that the task force administratively is attached to HHSC for the purpose of contracting under the bill's provisions and that task force members and personnel may be appointed or employed from different catchment areas.