87R20914 BDP-D
 
  By: Reynolds, Guillen H.B. No. 2742
 
  Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2742:
 
  By:  Murr C.S.H.B. No. 2742
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the reentry and reintegration programs provided by the
  Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Sections 501.092(b) and (g), Government Code,
  are amended to read as follows:
         (b)  The reentry and reintegration plan adopted under this
  section must:
               (1)  incorporate the use of the risk and needs
  assessment instrument adopted under Section 501.0921;
               (2)  provide for programs that address the assessed
  needs of offenders and require the programs to begin as soon as
  practicable after the offender is taken into the custody of the
  department;
               (3)  provide for a comprehensive network of transition
  programs to address the needs of offenders released or discharged
  from a correctional facility, including following the completion of
  a period of parole or mandatory supervision;
               (4)  identify and define the transition services that
  are to be provided by the department and which offenders are
  eligible for those services;
               (5)  coordinate the provision of reentry and
  reintegration services provided to offenders through state-funded
  and volunteer programs across divisions of the department to:
                     (A)  target eligible offenders efficiently; and
                     (B)  ensure maximum use of existing facilities,
  personnel, equipment, supplies, and other resources;
               (6)  provide for collecting and maintaining data
  regarding the number of offenders who received reentry and
  reintegration services and the number of offenders who were
  eligible for but did not receive those services, including
  offenders who did not participate in those services;
               (7)  provide for evaluating the effectiveness of the
  reentry and reintegration services provided to offenders by
  collecting, maintaining, and reporting outcome information,
  including recidivism data as applicable;
               (8)  identify providers of existing local programs and
  transitional services with whom the department may contract under
  Section 495.028 to implement the reentry and reintegration plan;
  and
               (9)  subject to Subsection (f), provide for the sharing
  of information between local coordinators, persons with whom the
  department contracts under Section 495.028, and other providers of
  services as necessary to adequately assess and address the needs of
  each offender.
         (g)  The programs provided under Subsections (b)(2) and (3)
  must:
               (1)  be implemented by highly skilled staff who are
  experienced in working with inmate reentry and reintegration
  programs;
               (2)  provide offenders with:
                     (A)  individualized case management and a full
  continuum of care;
                     (B)  life-skills training, including information
  about:
                           (i)  budgeting and [,] money management;
                           (ii) [,] nutrition [,] and exercise; and
                           (iii)  the development of prosocial behavior
  and positive relationships;
                     (C)  education and, if an offender has a learning
  disability, special education; and
                     (D)  spiritual guidance, if requested by the
  offender [employment training;
                     [(E)  appropriate treatment programs, including
  substance abuse and mental health treatment programs; and
                     [(F)  parenting and relationship building
  classes]; and
               (3)  be designed to build for former offenders
  post-release and post-discharge support from the community into
  which an offender is released or discharged, including support from
  agencies and organizations within that community.
         SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.