BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 3980

By: Hunter

Public Health

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Concerns have been raised regarding the rise in suicide rates across Texas. Recent reports indicate that death by suicide is the second leading cause of death for people between the ages of 15 and 34 years. C.S.H.B. 3980 seeks to better inform state and regional efforts to decrease suicide rates by requiring the Statewide Behavioral Health Coordinating Council to prepare a report and make recommendations regarding suicide rates in Texas and state efforts to prevent suicides.

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. 3980 requires the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), in conjunction with the Department of State Health Services (DSHS), to prepare a summary report on the prevalence of suicide in Texas and state policies and programs adopted across state systems and agencies to prevent suicides. The bill sets out the required contents of the summary report and requires HHSC, not later than May 1, 2020, to provide a copy of the report to the Statewide Behavioral Health Coordinating Council, the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, and each standing legislative committee with primary jurisdiction over health and mental health. The bill requires each state agency or institution of higher education that is a member of the council to provide to HHSC the required information for the summary report to the extent that information pertains to the respective work of each agency or institution. The bill requires HHSC and DSHS, in preparing the summary report, to consult, and authorizes HHSC and DSHS to seek assistance from, a nonprofit group that coordinates a multisector network of state and community-based suicide prevention groups and that has experience in the development, implementation, and monitoring of a statewide community-based suicide prevention plan. The bill sets out certain legislative findings and purposes.

C.S.H.B. 3980 requires the council to establish a stakeholder workgroup to assist member agencies in preparing a legislative report and sets out the composition of the workgroup. The council, using the summary report on suicide and input from the stakeholder workgroup, must prepare a legislative report on suicide in Texas that identifies opportunities and makes recommendations, including those that require legislative action, for state agencies to do the following:

·         improve statewide and regional data collection on suicide-related events;

·         use data to guide and inform decisions and policy development relating to suicide prevention; and

·         decrease suicide in Texas while targeting the highest categories of risk.

The bill entitles the chief administrator of each state agency represented on the council to a copy of the legislative report and requires the council, not later than November 1, 2020, to submit a copy of the report to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, and each standing legislative committee with primary jurisdiction over health and mental health. The bill's provisions expire December 1, 2020. 

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. 3980 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 includes a requirement for each state agency or institution that is a part of the council to provide to HHSC the required information for the summary report and a provision relating to HHSC and DSHS consulting a nonprofit group in preparing the report.

The substitute changes the deadline by which HHSC is required to provide a copy of the summary report to applicable entities and the deadline by which the council is required to submit a copy of the legislative report to applicable entities.

The substitute revises the composition of the stakeholder workgroup.