This website will be unavailable from Friday, April 26, 2024 at 6:00 p.m. through Monday, April 29, 2024 at 7:00 a.m. due to data center maintenance.

 
 
  H.B. No. 216
 
 
 
 
AN ACT
  relating to the regulation of certain boarding home facilities and
  assisted living facilities; providing penalties.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Subtitle B, Title 4, Health and Safety Code, is
  amended by adding Chapter 254 to read as follows:
  CHAPTER 254. BOARDING HOME FACILITIES
         Sec. 254.001.  DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
               (1)  "Assistance with self-administering medication"
  means assisting a resident by reminding the resident to take
  medication, opening and removing medications from a container, or
  reminding the resident when a prescription medication needs to be
  refilled.
               (2)  "Boarding home facility" means an establishment
  that:
                     (A)  furnishes, in one or more buildings, lodging
  to three or more persons with disabilities or elderly persons who
  are unrelated to the owner of the establishment by blood or
  marriage; and
                     (B)  provides community meals, light housework,
  meal preparation, transportation, grocery shopping, money
  management, laundry services, or assistance with
  self-administration of medication but does not provide personal
  care services as defined by Section 247.002 to those persons.
               (3)  "Commission" means the Health and Human Services
  Commission.
               (4)  "Elderly person" has the meaning assigned by
  Section 48.002, Human Resources Code.
               (5)  "Executive commissioner" means the executive
  commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission.
               (6)  "Person with a disability" means a disabled person
  as defined by Section 48.002, Human Resources Code.
               (7)  "Resident" means a person who is residing in a
  boarding home facility.
         Sec. 254.002.  EXEMPTIONS. This chapter does not apply to:
               (1)  a person that is required to be licensed under
  Chapter 142, 242, 246, 247, or 252;
               (2)  a person that is exempt from licensing under
  Section 142.003(a)(19), 242.003(3), or 247.004(4);
               (3)  a hotel as defined by Section 156.001, Tax Code;
               (4)  a retirement community;
               (5)  a monastery or convent;
               (6)  a child-care facility as defined by Section
  42.002, Human Resources Code;
               (7)  a family violence shelter center as defined by
  Section 51.002, Human Resources Code; or
               (8)  a sorority or fraternity house or other dormitory
  associated with an institution of higher education.
         Sec. 254.003.  MODEL STANDARDS. The executive commissioner
  shall develop and publish in the Texas Register model standards for
  the operation of a boarding home facility relating to:
               (1)  the construction or remodeling of a boarding home
  facility, including plumbing, heating, lighting, ventilation, and
  other housing conditions, to ensure the residents' health, safety,
  comfort, and protection from fire hazard;
               (2)  sanitary and related conditions in a boarding home
  facility and its surroundings, including insect and rodent control,
  water supply, sewage disposal, food handling, and general hygiene
  to ensure the residents' health, safety, and comfort;
               (3)  the reporting and investigation of injuries,
  incidents, and unusual accidents and the establishment of other
  policies and procedures necessary to ensure resident health and
  safety;
               (4)  assistance with self-administering medication;
               (5)  requirements for in-service education of the
  facility's staff;
               (6)  criminal history record checks; and
               (7)  assessment and periodic monitoring to ensure that
  a resident:
                     (A)  does not require the boarding home facility
  to provide personal care, nursing, or other services not listed in
  Section 254.001(2); and
                     (B)  is capable of self-administering medication
  or is aware of what the resident's medications look like and knows
  when the medications should be taken but requires assistance with
  self-administering medication.
         Sec. 254.004.  LOCAL REGULATION. A county or municipality
  may require a person to obtain a permit from the county or
  municipality to operate a boarding home facility within the
  county's or municipality's jurisdiction. A county or municipality
  may adopt the standards developed by the executive commissioner
  under Section 254.003 and require a boarding home facility that
  holds a permit issued by the county or municipality to comply with
  the adopted standards.
         Sec. 254.005.  PERMIT PROCEDURES; FEES; FINES. (a) A county
  or municipality that requires a person to obtain a boarding home
  facility permit as authorized by Section 254.004 may establish
  procedures for the submission of a boarding home facility permit
  application and for the issuance, denial, renewal, suspension, and
  revocation of the permit.
         (b)  A county or municipality that requires a person to
  obtain a boarding home facility permit as authorized under Section
  254.004 may set reasonable fees for issuance of the permit, renewal
  of the permit, and inspections and may impose fines for
  noncompliance with the county or municipal boarding home facility
  regulations. The fees collected and fines imposed by the county or
  municipality must be used to administer the county or municipal
  permitting program or for other purposes directly related to
  providing boarding home facility or other assisted living services
  to elderly persons and persons with disabilities.
         (c)  A person required to obtain a boarding home facility
  permit from a county or municipality as authorized under Section
  254.004 shall pay any fees required or fines imposed by the county
  or municipality.
         Sec. 254.006.  POSTING. A boarding home facility that holds
  a permit issued by a county or municipality shall prominently and
  conspicuously post for display in a public area of the boarding home
  facility that is readily available to residents, the operator,
  employees, and visitors:
               (1)  the permit issued by a county or municipality;
               (2)  a sign prescribed by the county or municipality
  that issued the permit that specifies how complaints may be
  registered with the county or municipality;
               (3)  a notice in a form prescribed by the county or
  municipality that issued the permit stating that inspection and
  related reports are available at the boarding home facility for
  public inspection and providing a telephone number that may be used
  to obtain information concerning the boarding home facility;
               (4)  a concise summary of the most recent inspection
  report relating to the boarding home facility; and
               (5)  a notice in a form prescribed by the county or
  municipality that issued the permit that lists the name, location,
  and contact information for:
                     (A)  the closest local public health services
  agency in the proximity of the boarding home facility; and
                     (B)  a local organization or entity that
  represents, advocates, or serves elderly persons or persons with
  disabilities, including any related toll-free contact information
  for reporting emergencies to the organization or entity.
         Sec. 254.007.  INSPECTIONS. (a) A county or municipality
  may conduct any inspection, survey, or investigation that it
  considers necessary and may enter the premises of a boarding home
  facility at reasonable times to make an inspection, survey, or
  investigation.
         (b)  A county or municipality is entitled to access to books,
  records, and other documents maintained by or on behalf of a
  boarding home facility to the extent necessary to enforce the
  standards adopted by the county or municipality.
         Sec. 254.008.  INTERLOCAL COOPERATION. Two or more counties
  or municipalities may cooperate and contract with each other for
  the purpose of inspecting and permitting boarding home facilities.
         Sec. 254.009.  REPORTING AND INVESTIGATION OF ABUSE,
  NEGLECT, OR EXPLOITATION. (a) A person, including an owner,
  operator, or employee of a boarding home facility that holds a
  permit issued by a county or municipality, who has cause to believe
  that a resident who is an elderly person or a person with a
  disability is being or has been abused, neglected, or exploited
  shall report the abuse, neglect, or exploitation to the Department
  of Family and Protective Services for investigation by that agency.
  The Department of Family and Protective Services shall investigate
  the allegation of abuse, neglect, or exploitation as authorized and
  in the manner provided by Chapter 48, Human Resources Code.
         (b)  Each boarding home facility that holds a permit issued
  by a county or municipality shall require each employee of the
  boarding home facility, as a condition of employment with the
  boarding home facility, to sign a statement that the employee
  acknowledges that the employee may be criminally liable under
  Section 48.052, Human Resources Code, for failure to report abuse,
  neglect, or exploitation.
         (c)  An owner, operator, or employee of a boarding home
  facility that holds a permit issued by a county or municipality may
  not retaliate against an employee of the facility who in good faith
  makes a complaint to the office of the inspector general of the
  Health and Human Services Commission, cooperates with the office of
  the inspector general in an investigation, or reports abuse,
  neglect, or exploitation of a resident to the Department of Family
  and Protective Services.
         Sec. 254.010.  ANNUAL REPORT TO COMMISSION; LEGISLATIVE
  REPORT. (a) Not later than September 30 of each year following the
  establishment of a county or municipal permitting requirement under
  this chapter, each county or municipality that requires a person to
  obtain a boarding home facility permit under Section 254.004 shall
  submit to the commission a report. The report must include:
               (1)  the total number of:
                     (A)  boarding home facilities permitted during
  the preceding state fiscal year;
                     (B)  boarding home facility applications denied
  permitting, including a summary of cause for denial; and
                     (C)  boarding home facility permits active on
  August 31 of the preceding state fiscal year;
               (2)  the total number of residents reported housed in
  each boarding home facility reported;
               (3)  the total number of inspections conducted at each
  boarding home facility by the county or municipality that requires
  the permit; and
               (4)  the total number of permits revoked or suspended
  as a result of an inspection described by Subdivision (3) and a
  summary of the outcome for the residents displaced by revocation or
  suspension of a permit.
         (b)  The commission shall establish and maintain a
  standardized compilation of information reported under this
  section and provide to the legislature a report of this information
  not later than January 1 of each odd-numbered year.
         Sec. 254.011.  EXCLUSION PROHIBITED. If an entity meets the
  requirements established by a county or municipality under this
  chapter, the entity may not be excluded from a residential area by
  zoning ordinances or similar regulations.
         SECTION 2.  Sections 247.002(1), (2), (4), (5), and (7),
  Health and Safety Code, are amended to read as follows:
               (1)  "Assisted living facility" means an establishment
  that:
                     (A)  furnishes, in one or more facilities, food
  and shelter to four or more persons who are unrelated to the
  proprietor of the establishment; [and]
                     (B)  provides:
                           (i)  personal care services; or
                           (ii)  administration of medication by a
  person licensed or otherwise authorized in this state to administer
  the medication; and
                     (C)  may provide assistance with or supervision of
  the administration of medication.
               (2)  "Board" means the executive commissioner of the
  Health and [Texas Board of] Human Services Commission.
               (4)  "Department" means the [Texas] Department of Aging
  and Disability [Human] Services.
               (5)  "Personal care services" means:
                     (A)  assistance with feeding [meals], dressing,
  moving [movement], bathing, or other personal needs or maintenance;
  or
                     (B)  [the administration of medication by a person
  licensed to administer medication or the assistance with or
  supervision of medication; or
                     [(C)]  general supervision or oversight of the
  physical and mental well-being of a person who needs assistance to
  maintain a private and independent residence in an assisted living
  facility or who needs assistance to manage the person's personal
  life, regardless of whether a guardian has been appointed for the
  person.
               (7)  "Commissioner" means the commissioner of the
  department [human services].
         SECTION 3.  Section 247.004, Health and Safety Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         Sec. 247.004.  EXEMPTIONS.  This chapter does not apply to:
               (1)  a boarding home facility as defined by Section
  254.001 [that has rooms for rent and that may offer community meals,
  light housework, meal preparation, transportation, grocery
  shopping, money management, or laundry services but that does not
  provide personal care services];
               (2)  an establishment conducted by or for the adherents
  of the Church of Christ, Scientist, for the purpose of providing
  facilities for the care or treatment of the sick who depend
  exclusively on prayer or spiritual means for healing without the
  use of any drug or material remedy if the establishment complies
  with local safety, sanitary, and quarantine ordinances and
  regulations;
               (3)  a facility conducted by or for the adherents of a
  qualified religious society classified as a tax-exempt
  organization under an Internal Revenue Service group exemption
  ruling for the purpose of providing personal care services without
  charge solely for the society's professed members or ministers in
  retirement, if the facility complies with local safety, sanitation,
  and quarantine ordinances and regulations; or
               (4)  a facility that provides personal care services
  only to persons enrolled in a program that is funded in whole or in
  part by the department [Texas Department of Mental Health and
  Mental Retardation] and that is monitored by the department [Texas
  Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation] or its
  designated local mental retardation authority in accordance with
  standards set by the department [Texas Department of Mental Health
  and Mental Retardation].
         SECTION 4.  Section 247.030, Health and Safety Code, is
  repealed.
         SECTION 5.  It is the intent of the legislature that the
  passage by the 81st Legislature, Regular Session, 2009, of another
  bill that amends Subtitle B, Title 4, Health and Safety Code, and
  Chapter 247, Health and Safety Code, and the amendments made by this
  Act shall be harmonized, if possible, as provided by Section
  311.025(b), Government Code, so that effect may be given to each.
  If the amendments made by this Act to Subtitle B, Title 4, Health
  and Safety Code, and Chapter 247, Health and Safety Code, and the
  amendments made to Subtitle B, Title 4, Health and Safety Code, and
  Chapter 247, Health and Safety Code, by any other bill are
  irreconcilable, it is the intent of the legislature that this Act
  prevail, regardless of the relative dates of enactment of this Act
  and the other bill or bills, but only to the extent that differences
  are irreconcilable.
         SECTION 6.  Not later than September 1, 2010, the executive
  commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission shall
  adopt the model standards required by Section 254.003, Health and
  Safety Code, as added by this Act.
         SECTION 7.  (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this
  section, this Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
         (b)  Sections 254.004 through 254.008, Health and Safety
  Code, as added by this Act, and Section 4 of this Act take effect
  September 1, 2010.
 
 
  ______________________________ ______________________________
     President of the Senate Speaker of the House     
 
 
         I certify that H.B. No. 216 was passed by the House on May 1,
  2009, by the following vote:  Yeas 140, Nays 2, 1 present, not
  voting; that the House refused to concur in Senate amendments to
  H.B. No. 216 on May 23, 2009, and requested the appointment of a
  conference committee to consider the differences between the two
  houses; and that the House adopted the conference committee report
  on H.B. No. 216 on May 31, 2009, by the following vote:  Yeas 143,
  Nays 0, 1 present, not voting.
 
  ______________________________
  Chief Clerk of the House   
 
         I certify that H.B. No. 216 was passed by the Senate, with
  amendments, on May 20, 2009, by the following vote:  Yeas 31, Nays
  0; at the request of the House, the Senate appointed a conference
  committee to consider the differences between the two houses; and
  that the Senate adopted the conference committee report on H.B. No.
  216 on May 31, 2009, by the following vote:  Yeas 31, Nays 0.
 
  ______________________________
  Secretary of the Senate   
  APPROVED: __________________
                  Date       
   
           __________________
                Governor