By: Bucy, Capriglione, Rose, Klick, Lujan, H.B. No. 2473
      et al.
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to improvements to the Texas Information and Referral
  Network.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 531.0312, Government Code, is amended by
  amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsections (f) and (g) to read
  as follows:
         (a)  The Texas Information and Referral Network at the
  commission is the program responsible for the development,
  coordination, and implementation of a statewide information and
  referral network that integrates existing community-based
  structures with state and local agencies. The network must:
               (1)  include information relating to transportation
  services provided to clients of state and local agencies;
               (2)  be capable of assisting with statewide disaster
  response and emergency management, including through the use of
  interstate agreements with out-of-state call centers to ensure
  preparedness and responsiveness;
               (3)  include technology capable of communicating with
  clients of state and local agencies using one-way and two-way 
  electronic text messaging to:
                     (A)  enhance client access to information and
  referral services;
                     (B)  decrease client wait times;
                     (C)  improve customer service; and
                     (D)  disseminate information to clients in a
  timely manner; [and]
               (4)  include a publicly accessible Internet-based
  system to provide real-time, searchable data about [the location
  and number of] clients of state and local agencies using the system,
  including:
                     (A)  the number of clients;
                     (B)  the location of clients;
                     (C)  [and] the types of requests made by [the]
  clients; and 
                     (D)  aggregated, de-identified demographic
  information regarding the clients and client households served by
  the network, including, if the information is volunteered by the
  clients after the clients have been given an opportunity to provide
  informed and explicit consent:
                           (i)  the gender, race, and ethnicity of each
  client; and
                           (ii)  whether the client or a member of the
  client's household is:
                                 (a)  a veteran;
                                 (b)  involved in the criminal justice
  system;
                                 (c)  pregnant; or
                                 (d)  the caregiver to a child who is
  five years of age or younger or a kinship caregiver;
               (5)  use a standardized screening tool to identify the
  nonmedical drivers of health for all clients who provide informed
  and explicit consent to be screened using the screening tool;
               (6)  provide enhanced navigation services under a level
  of care three (LOC-3) as prescribed by the Department of State
  Health Services' Texas Resilience and Recovery Utilization
  Management Guidelines in order to:
                     (A)  better address complex client needs; and
                     (B)  collaborate with community partners;
               (7)  be capable of providing closed-loop referrals to
  support clients and track referral outcomes;
               (8)  exchange resource data with external partners,
  including vendors, through data sharing agreements for the purposes
  of:
                     (A)  connecting clients to a requested service;
                     (B)  addressing nonmedical drivers of health; and
                     (C)  decreasing redundancies in the health and
  human services system;
               (9)  comply with all applicable state and federal laws
  relating to protecting the privacy of each client's health and
  personal information, including the Health Insurance Portability
  and Accountability Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. Section 1320d et seq.);
               (10)  be part of a national repository of information
  and referral programs and services that provides the most updated
  information about programs and services available at the local,
  regional, state, and national levels; and
               (11)  be capable of providing backup information and
  referrals during a statewide disaster or system malfunction.
         (f)  Health care systems and managed care organizations may
  partner and enter into agreements with the commission and area
  information centers to share data using the Texas Information and
  Referral Network to:
               (1)  facilitate client care coordination; and
               (2)  address nonmedical drivers of health, including
  housing, transportation, food, and financial assistance programs.
         (g)  Not later than December 31 of each even-numbered year,
  the commission shall:
               (1)  prepare and submit a report to the governor, the
  lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of
  representatives that:
                     (A)  summarizes the Texas Information and
  Referral Network's operations, including the effectiveness of the
  network and any improvements made to the network, during the
  preceding two state fiscal years;
                     (B)  identifies existing needs and gaps in
  services in communities in this state that could be addressed
  through additional improvements to the network; and
                     (C)  provides recommendations for improving the
  network, including recommendations for improving data privacy and
  client experience; and
               (2)  make the report publicly available on:
                     (A)  the commission's Internet website; and
                     (B)  the Texas Information and Referral Network
  Internet site established under Section 531.0313.
         SECTION 2.  Subchapter B, Chapter 531, Government Code, is
  amended by adding Section 531.03121 to read as follows:
         Sec. 531.03121.  AREA INFORMATION CENTERS:  ACCREDITATION
  REQUIRED. An area information center that contracts with the
  commission to provide Texas Information and Referral Network
  operations must be accredited by a nationally recognized
  accreditation organization.
         SECTION 3.  Sections 531.0313(a) and (b), Government Code,
  are amended to read as follows:
         (a)  The Texas Information and Referral Network may develop
  an Internet site to provide information to the public regarding the
  health and human services provided by public or private entities
  throughout the state. An Internet site developed under this
  section must be user-friendly and regularly updated to ensure the
  Internet site's interface supports the navigation needs of the
  site's users.
         (b)  The material in the Texas Information and Referral
  Network Internet site must be:
               (1)  geographically indexed and designed to inform an
  individual about the health and human services provided in the area
  where the individual lives; [. The material must be]
               (2)  further indexed by type of service provided within
  each geographic area; and 
               (3)  organized in such a way that the public can search
  and navigate through the Internet site with ease.
         SECTION 4.  If before implementing any provision of this Act
  a state agency determines that a waiver or authorization from a
  federal agency is necessary for implementation of that provision,
  the agency affected by the provision shall request the waiver or
  authorization and may delay implementing that provision until the
  waiver or authorization is granted.
         SECTION 5.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.