BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 4414

By: Allison

Public Education

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

In response to traumatic events such as Hurricane Harvey and recent school shootings, there have been calls to address student mental health. Reports indicate that many schools have implemented student mental health initiatives, often in partnership with other schools or community stakeholders in the mental health field. However, with such a wide variety of providers and other related organizations, it has been noted that it can be difficult for schools to determine where to look for resources or other assistance in implementing such initiatives. At the same time, many schools, especially those in remote or rural areas, report that there are very few resources in place for them to use in developing their own initiatives. H.B. 4414 seeks to mitigate these issues and ensure that schools are sufficiently prepared in addressing student mental health by requiring the identification and development of student mental health resources both regionally and statewide.

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

H.B. 4414 amends the Education Code to require the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to develop, in conjunction with specified state agencies, a rubric for use by regional education service centers in identifying resources related to student mental health that are available to schools in their respective regions. The bill requires TEA to develop and distribute the rubric to each regional education service center not later than December 1, 2019. The bill requires the rubric to provide for the identification of certain specified resources and requires TEA, not later than December 1 of each odd‑numbered year, to revise the rubric as necessary to reflect changes in resources that may be available to schools and provide the rubric to each regional education service center.

H.B. 4414 requires each regional educational service center to use the rubric to develop a regional inventory of resources related to student mental health available to schools in the center's region, including evidence-based and promising programs and best practices, that:

· create school environments that support the social, emotional, and academic development of students;

· identify students who may need additional behavioral or mental health support before issues arise;

· provide early, effective interventions to students in need of additional support;

· connect students and their families to specialized services in the school or community when needed; and

· assist schools in aligning resources necessary to address the mental health of students.

The bill authorizes a regional education service center to consult with any entity the center considers necessary in developing its inventory and to complete and report to TEA on its inventory not later than March 1, 2020. The bill requires each regional education service center, not later than March 1 of each even-numbered year, to use the revised rubric to identify any additional resources that may be available to schools in the center's region and submit to TEA a report on resources identified through the process, including any such additional resource identified.

H.B. 4414 requires TEA, not later than March 1, 2020, to develop in collaboration with specified entities a statewide inventory of statewide resources available to public school districts to address the mental health of students. The bill requires TEA to include in the inventory any resource available through an entity identified as a resource through collaboration with those specified entities, including such a specified entity, that provides certain of the evidence-based and promising programs and best practices required to be identified by a regional education service center. The bill requires TEA to complete the statewide inventory of mental health resources not later than March 1, 2020, and to revise the inventory not later than March 1 of each even‑numbered year.

H.B. 4414 requires TEA, not later than April 1, 2020, to develop a statewide plan to ensure all students have access to adequate mental health resources. The bill sets out the required contents of the plan, including TEA goals for student mental health access to be applied across Texas, and requires TEA, in developing those goals, to consult with any person TEA believes is necessary. The bill requires TEA to revise the plan not later than April 1 of each even-numbered year and, as soon as practicable after completing or revising the plan, to take the following actions:

· hold public meetings in each regional education service center's region to present the plan and to provide an opportunity for public comment at each meeting;

· submit an electronic copy of the plan to the legislature; and

· post the plan on the TEA website.

The bill requires TEA to submit the copy of the plan and post it on the TEA website not later than April 1, 2020.

H.B. 4414 requires TEA to use the statewide plan to develop and revise the agency's long-term strategic plan and to use the TEA recommendations to the legislature included in the plan to develop each TEA legislative appropriations request. The bill requires TEA to provide to the legislature a description of any changes the agency has made to the rubric to identify resources related to student mental health and an analysis of each region's progress toward meeting TEA goals developed under the statewide plan.

EFFECTIVE DATE

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