87R6167 MCF-D

By: Blanco S.B. No. 870

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the composition and duties of the Public Health Funding and Policy Committee.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 117.052, Health and Safety Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 117.052. APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS. (a) The commissioner shall appoint 10 [nine] members to the committee as follows:

(1) two regional health directors, each of whom is serving as a health authority in a municipality or county;

(2) one local health entity representative of a municipality or county with a population of 50,000 or less;

(3) one local health entity representative from a municipality or county with a population greater than 50,000 but less than 250,000;

(4) one local health entity representative from a municipality or county with a population of at least 250,000;

(5) two local health entity representatives, each of whom serves in a municipality or county as the health authority; [and]

(6) two representatives of schools or programs of public health at institutions of higher education in this state; and

(7) one representative from the Task Force of Border Health Officials established under Chapter 120.

(a-1) The committee members appointed under Subsection (a)(1) are ex officio nonvoting members.

(b) In making appointments under Subsections (a)(2), (3), (4), [and] (5), (6), and (7), the commissioner shall select the members from nominations submitted by the entity, institution, or task force of which the nominated member is an employee or member [associations representing local health departments, county governments, and municipal governments].

SECTION 2. Section 117.053(a), Health and Safety Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) Committee members serve staggered six-year terms, with the terms of three or four members expiring on February 1 of each odd-numbered year.

SECTION 3. Section 117.055, Health and Safety Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 117.055. PRESIDING OFFICER. The presiding officer is elected by a majority vote of all the committee members and serves for a term of two years.

SECTION 4. Section 117.056, Health and Safety Code, is amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:

(c) The committee shall meet with the Task Force of Border Health Officials established under Chapter 120 at least annually and at the call of the presiding officers of the committee and the task force.

SECTION 5. Section 117.101, Health and Safety Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 117.101. GENERAL DUTIES OF COMMITTEE. (a) The committee shall:

(1) summarize the scope and type of [define the core] public health services provided by [a] local health entities, with a focus on differences in the availability of services in urban, rural, and border areas of this state [entity should provide in a county or municipality];

(2) monitor the availability of [evaluate] public health services in this state, [and] identify the disparity between services and funding for those services, and develop recommendations to address the disparity [initiatives for areas that need improvement];

(3) recommend [identify all funding sources available for use by local health entities to perform core public health functions;

[(4) establish public] health issue [policy] priorities for this state and coordinate efforts to address the priorities with the department; and

(4) [(5)] at least biennially [annually], make formal recommendations to the department regarding:

(A) the use and allocation of funds available exclusively to local health entities to perform core public health functions;

(B) ways to improve the overall public health of citizens in this state;

(C) methods for transitioning from a contractual relationship between the department and the local health entities to a cooperative-agreement relationship between the department and the local health entities; and

(D) methods for fostering a continuous collaborative relationship between the department and the local health entities.

(b) Recommendations made under Subsection (a)(4)(A) [(a)(5)(A)] must be in accordance with:

(1) prevailing epidemiological evidence, variations in geographic and population needs, best practices, and evidence-based interventions related to the populations to be served;

(2) state and federal law; and

(3) federal funding requirements.

SECTION 6. The heading to Section 117.151, Health and Safety Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 117.151. BIENNIAL [ANNUAL] REPORT.

SECTION 7. Section 117.151(a), Health and Safety Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) Not [Beginning in 2012, not] later than November 30 of each even-numbered year the department shall file a biennial [an annual] report with the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of representatives detailing:

(1) the implementation of the committee's recommendations described in Section 117.101(a)(4) [117.101(a)(5)]; and

(2) an explanation of the department's reasons for not implementing a recommendation.

SECTION 8. Section 120.054, Health and Safety Code, is amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:

(c) The task force shall meet with the Public Health Funding and Policy Committee established under Chapter 117 at least annually and at the call of the presiding officers of the task force and the committee.

SECTION 9. As soon as practicable after the effective date of this Act, the commissioner of public health of the Department of State Health Services shall make the appointment required by Section 117.052(a)(7), Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act.

SECTION 10. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.