BILL ANALYSIS

Senate Research Center	H.B. 109
89R20934 RAL-D	By: Rose et al. (Kolkhorst)
	Health & Human Services
	5/5/2025
	Engrossed

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

The Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) has been struggling over the last several years to find suitable placements for children who have increasingly acute mental and behavioral health needs.

The population of children known as Children Without Placement (CWOP) refers to youth for whom DFPS cannot find a licensed or suitable placement despite exhausting all efforts. DFPS historically has relied on offices and hotels as a "makeshift residence" for many of these children, as caseworkers struggled to find a foster care provider that could meet their needs. The Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) and DFPS have identified the need to increase residential treatment capacity to provide safety net placements for youth in the conservatorship of the state. Using funding appropriated in S.B. 1, HHSC will rehabilitate a building on the campus of Terrell State Hospital for the purpose of serving as a residential psychiatric placement for CWOP. However HHSC lacks the legal authority to move forward with this plan. H.B. 109 supports the creation of a residential facility for the CWOP population by amending current statue to allow HHSC to designate another location to serve high acuity children for mental, behavioral health and residential services.

H.B. 109 amends Health and Safety Code Chapter 554�which currently governs state-owned mental health facilities�to strike "Waco Center for Youth" and "Waco Independent School District." The bill broadens the statute to apply to any future "designated facilities" and "local school districts" to serve these children, rather than only applying to the Waco Center for Youth and the Waco Independent School District.

This bill will not impact the operations of Waco Center for Youth and the statutory changes are necessary to allow HHSC to establish a residential treatment facility for foster children in DFPS custody in accordance with S.B. 1 Senate Committee Substitute (Article II, HHSC, Section 28, "Residential Services for High Acuity Youth in Department of Family and Protective Services Conservatorship").

Key Provisions

� H.B. 109 amends Chapter 554, Health and Safety Code, which governs state-owned psychiatric and residential living centers.

� It strikes the specific language that refers to the "Waco Center for Youth," and replaces it with "designate facilities," which will allow HHSC to designate future facilities if needed.

� It strikes the "Waco Independent School District" and replaces it with "a local school district" to allow other districts to serve children who may be residing in future residential treatment facilities.

H.B. 109 amends current law relating to residential treatment facilities for certain juveniles.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Section 554.001(a), Health and Safety Code, to require the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) to designate state facilities for use as residential treatment facilities, rather than to use the Waco Center for Youth as a residential treatment facility, for emotionally disturbed juveniles who meet certain criteria, including being under the managing conservatorship of DFPS and having been admitted under Subtitle C (Texas Mental Health Code) to a state facility designated by DFPS under Section 554.001 (Admission of Certain Juveniles), rather than to the Waco Center for Youth.

SECTION 2. Amends Section 554.002, Health and Safety Code, as follows:

Sec. 554.002. SERVICES. (a) Requires DFPS to provide without charge appropriate education services for all clients residing at state facilities designated by the department under Section 554.001, rather than at the Waco Center for Youth.

(b) Requires DFPS to pay for the services described by Subsection (a) from funds appropriated for that purpose, rather than to the center for that purpose. Makes a nonsubstantive change.

(c) Authorizes a client of a state facility designated by DFPS under Section 554.001 who is not a resident of the school district that serves the geographical area in which the facility is located to receive education services from the district only with the prior approval of the superintendent of the district. Deletes existing text authorizing a client of the center who is not a resident of the Waco Independent School District to receive education services from the Waco Independent School District only with the prior approval of the superintendent of the district.

SECTION 3. Effective date: September 1, 2025.