By: Wu H.B. No. 39
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the child protective service functions of the
  Department of family and Protective Services.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Subchapter B, Chapter 264, Family Code, is
  amended by adding Section 264.1211 to read as follows:
         Sec. 264.1211.  CAREER DEVELOPMENT AND EDUCATION PROGRAM.
  The department may collaborate with local workforce development
  boards, foster care transition centers, community and technical
  colleges, schools, and any other appropriate workforce industry
  resource to create a program that:
               (1)  assists foster care youth and former foster care
  youth in obtaining:
                     (A)  a high school diploma or a high school
  equivalency certificate; and
                     (B)  industry certifications necessary for high
  demand occupations;
               (2)  provides career guidance to foster care youth and
  former foster care youth; and
               (3)  informs foster care youth and former foster care
  youth about the tuition and fee waivers for institutions of higher
  education that are available under Section 54.366, Education Code.
         SECTION 2.  Chapter 266, Family Code, is amended by adding
  Section 266.0031 to read as follows:
         Sec. 266.0031.  INITIAL MEDICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL
  ASSESSMENT; SCHEDULING OF SERVICES. (a) The department shall
  conduct an initial medical and psychological assessment of a child
  not later than the 14th day after the date the child is removed from
  the child's home, or not later than the fifth day after the date of
  removal for a child removed from the child's home because of an
  immediate risk of abuse or neglect that could have resulted in the
  death of or serious harm to the child.
         (b)  Following the initial assessments of a child under
  Subsection (a), the department may, without court approval,
  schedule for the child any preventive treatment, acute medical
  service, or therapeutic and rehabilitative care to meet the child's
  mental and physical needs. In scheduling a treatment, service, or
  care under this subsection, the department shall adhere to the
  medical services delivery model developed under Section 266.003.
         SECTION 3.  Section 552.117(a), Government Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         (a)  Information is excepted from the requirements of
  Section 552.021 if it is information that relates to the home
  address, home telephone number, emergency contact information, or
  social security number of the following person or that reveals
  whether the person has family members:
               (1)  a current or former official or employee of a
  governmental body, except as otherwise provided by Section 552.024;
               (2)  a peace officer as defined by Article 2.12, Code of
  Criminal Procedure, or a security officer commissioned under
  Section 51.212, Education Code, regardless of whether the officer
  complies with Section 552.024 or 552.1175, as applicable;
               (3)  a current or former employee of the Texas
  Department of Criminal Justice or of the predecessor in function of
  the department or any division of the department, regardless of
  whether the current or former employee complies with Section
  552.1175;
               (4)  a peace officer as defined by Article 2.12, Code of
  Criminal Procedure, or other law, a reserve law enforcement
  officer, a commissioned deputy game warden, or a corrections
  officer in a municipal, county, or state penal institution in this
  state who was killed in the line of duty, regardless of whether the
  deceased complied with Section 552.024 or 552.1175;
               (5)  a commissioned security officer as defined by
  Section 1702.002, Occupations Code, regardless of whether the
  officer complies with Section 552.024 or 552.1175, as applicable;
               (6)  an officer or employee of a community supervision
  and corrections department established under Chapter 76 who
  performs a duty described by Section 76.004(b), regardless of
  whether the officer or employee complies with Section 552.024 or
  552.1175;
               (7)  a current or former employee of the office of the
  attorney general who is or was assigned to a division of that office
  the duties of which involve law enforcement, regardless of whether
  the current or former employee complies with Section 552.024 or
  552.1175;
               (8)  a current or former employee of the Texas Juvenile
  Justice Department or of the predecessors in function of the
  department, regardless of whether the current or former employee
  complies with Section 552.024 or 552.1175;
               (9)  a current or former juvenile probation or
  supervision officer certified by the Texas Juvenile Justice
  Department, or the predecessors in function of the department,
  under Title 12, Human Resources Code, regardless of whether the
  current or former officer complies with Section 552.024 or
  552.1175;
               (10)  a current or former employee of a juvenile
  justice program or facility, as those terms are defined by Section
  261.405, Family Code, regardless of whether the current or former
  employee complies with Section 552.024 or 552.1175; [or]
               (11)  a current or former member of the Texas military
  forces, as that term is defined by Section 437.001; or
               (12)  a current or former child protective services
  caseworker or investigator for the Department of Family and
  Protective Services, regardless of whether the caseworker or
  investigator complies with Section 552.024 or 552.1175, or a
  current or former employee of a department contractor performing
  child protective services caseworker or investigator functions for
  the contractor on behalf of the department.
         SECTION 4.  The heading to Section 552.1175, Government
  Code, is amended to read as follows:
         Sec. 552.1175.  EXCEPTION: CONFIDENTIALITY OF CERTAIN
  PERSONAL IDENTIFYING INFORMATION OF PEACE OFFICERS AND OTHER
  OFFICIALS PERFORMING SENSITIVE GOVERNMENTAL FUNCTIONS [, COUNTY
  JAILERS, SECURITY OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES OF CERTAIN CRIMINAL OR
  JUVENILE JUSTICE AGENCIES OR OFFICES, AND FEDERAL AND STATE
  JUDGES].
         SECTION 5.  Section 552.1175(a), Government Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         (a)  This section applies only to:
               (1)  peace officers as defined by Article 2.12, Code of
  Criminal Procedure;
               (2)  county jailers as defined by Section 1701.001,
  Occupations Code;
               (3)  current or former employees of the Texas
  Department of Criminal Justice or of the predecessor in function of
  the department or any division of the department;
               (4)  commissioned security officers as defined by
  Section 1702.002, Occupations Code;
               (5)  employees of a district attorney, criminal
  district attorney, or county or municipal attorney whose
  jurisdiction includes any criminal law or child protective services
  matters;
               (6)  officers and employees of a community supervision
  and corrections department established under Chapter 76 who perform
  a duty described by Section 76.004(b);
               (7)  criminal investigators of the United States as
  described by Article 2.122(a), Code of Criminal Procedure;
               (8)  police officers and inspectors of the United
  States Federal Protective Service;
               (9)  current and former employees of the office of the
  attorney general who are or were assigned to a division of that
  office the duties of which involve law enforcement;
               (10)  current or former juvenile probation and
  detention officers certified by the Texas Juvenile Justice
  Department, or the predecessors in function of the department,
  under Title 12, Human Resources Code;
               (11)  current or former employees of a juvenile justice
  program or facility, as those terms are defined by Section 261.405,
  Family Code;
               (12)  current or former employees of the Texas Juvenile
  Justice Department or the predecessors in function of the
  department; [and]
               (13)  federal judges and state judges as defined by
  Section 13.0021, Election Code; and
               (14)  a current or former child protective services
  caseworker or investigator for the Department of Family and
  Protective Services or a current or former employee of a department
  contractor performing child protective services caseworker or
  investigator functions for the contractor on behalf of the
  department.
         SECTION 6.  Subchapter B, Chapter 40, Human Resources Code,
  is amended by adding Sections 40.0327, 40.0328, 40.036, and 40.038
  to read as follows:
         Sec. 40.0327.  NONPROFIT AGENCY SERVICES COORDINATOR. The
  department shall designate an office as the nonprofit agency
  services coordinator to serve as a liaison between the department
  and nonprofit agencies that provide adoption services and
  assistance to families in crisis and children in care.
         Sec. 40.0328.  CASEWORKER CASELOAD MANAGEMENT SYSTEM. The
  department shall manage the duties of caseworkers to maintain the
  safety of children in child protective services by establishing a
  caseload management system that:
               (1)  assigns a risk score to each child in the
  department's care based on an assessment of the current and
  potential risk of harm to the child from abuse or neglect as
  provided by Section 40.0529;
               (2)  determines the appropriate number of cases to be
  assigned to a caseworker based on the risk scores of the children
  assigned to the caseworker; and
               (3)  proportionally limits the number of children with
  higher risk scores that may be assigned to any one caseworker.
         Sec. 40.036.  TRAUMA-BASED CARE TRAINING REQUIREMENT FOR
  CASEWORKERS. The department shall ensure that each child
  protective services caseworker who interacts with children on a
  daily basis receives training in trauma-based care.
         Sec. 40.038.  SECONDARY TRAUMA SUPPORT FOR CASEWORKERS. (a)
  In this section, "secondary trauma" means trauma incurred as a
  consequence of a person's exposure to acute or chronic trauma.
         (b)  The department shall develop and make available a
  program to provide ongoing support to caseworkers who experience
  secondary trauma resulting from exposure to trauma in the course of
  the caseworker's employment. The program must include critical
  incident stress debriefing. The department may not require that a
  caseworker participate in the program.
         SECTION 7.  Subchapter C, Chapter 40, Human Resources Code,
  is amended by adding Section 40.0523 to read as follows:
         Sec. 40.0523.  BEST PRACTICES GUIDE FOR CHILD PROTECTIVE
  SERVICES CASES. (a) The University of Houston, The University of
  Texas at Austin, and Texas A&M University in collaboration with
  children's advocacy centers shall create a work group to develop a
  best practices guide to establish uniform practices in child
  protective services cases across this state. In developing the
  guide, the work group may use any existing guide created by the
  department. The guide must:
               (1)  describe the different stages of a child
  protective services case, including intake, initial investigation,
  assessment of the child and family, case planning, court
  proceedings, case management services, and case closure;
               (2)  describe the roles and responsibilities of the
  persons involved in each stage identified in Subdivision (1); and
               (3)  include definitions of commonly used terms,
  acronyms, model timelines and procedural flowcharts for the most
  common child protective services cases, and a list by area of
  services available to children and parents.
         (b)  The department shall design the best practices guide to
  assist:
               (1)  an attorney representing a child in a suit
  affecting the parent-child relationship filed by the department;
               (2)  an attorney representing a parent in a suit
  affecting the parent-child relationship filed by the department;
               (3)  a judge presiding over a case described in
  Subdivision (1);
               (4)  a guardian ad litem representing a child in a case
  described by Subdivision (1);
               (5)  a child protective services caseworker or
  investigator or a court-appointed volunteer advocate; 
               (6)  a caregiver or family member associated with the
  child's case; and
               (7)  any other individual involved in a child
  protective services case that the department determines would
  benefit from the best practices guide.
         (c)  The department shall include in the best practices
  guide:
               (1)  advice from people experienced in the child
  protective services system on best practices in carrying out the
  person's particular role in the process; and
               (2)  other information the department determines could
  benefit a person serving in the child protective services system.
         (d)  The department shall update the best practices guide
  biannually.
         (e)  The department shall make the best practices guide
  available on the department's Internet website and may charge a
  reasonable fee for a printed copy of the guide.
         SECTION 8.  Section 40.0528(d), Human Resources Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         (d)  The department shall measure the [In reporting
  information relating to] caseloads of child protective services
  caseworkers [,] in accordance with standards developed by [addition
  to reporting caseload by each individual affected by the case,] the
  department. The standards must include:
               (1)  the total number of children involved in the case;
               (2)  the type of placement for each child involved in
  the case;
               (3)  the total number of placements for the case;
               (4)  the level of care required for each child involved
  in the case;
               (5)  the level of department intervention and parental
  or family services required for the case; and
               (6)  the level of caseworker experience required to
  appropriately manage the case [shall report the number of cases for
  each caseworker on the basis of family unit].
         SECTION 9.  Subchapter C, Chapter 40, Human Resources Code,
  is amended by adding Section 40.0529 to read as follows:
         Sec. 40.0529.  RISK OF HARM ASSESSMENT. (a) The department
  shall establish an evidence-based system for assessing the risk of
  harm to a child from abuse or neglect for each child who is the
  subject of a report of abuse or neglect or of an active child
  protective services case. The system shall provide a score for each
  case on a scale from 1 for a child at the lowest risk of harm to 10
  for a child at the highest risk of harm.
         (b)  The department, with assistance from the Bush School of
  Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University, the Lyndon
  B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at The University of Texas, and
  the Graduate College of Social Work at the University of Houston,
  shall study child protective services cases to identify factors
  that indicate a risk of child abuse or neglect and develop objective
  criteria to be used in the risk of harm assessment.
         (c)  In assessing the risk of harm to a child from abuse or
  neglect, the department shall consider:
               (1)  the risk of harm a parent poses to a child who
  remains in the child's home, including:
                     (A)  the likelihood of the child's death or
  serious injury; and
                     (B)  the likelihood of serious psychological harm
  to the child;
               (2)  the potential psychological harm to a child who
  remains in the child's home;
               (3)  the potential psychological harm to a child who is
  removed from the child's home;
               (4)  the risk of harm to a child who is returned to the
  child's home; and
               (5)  the services required to address the child's
  needs, including the child's medical and mental health care needs.
         (d)  After the department assigns a risk of harm assessment
  score to a child's case, the child protective services caseworker
  for the child's case may adjust the score by up to one point based on
  the caseworker's knowledge and experience with the child.
         (e)  The department shall complete a risk of harm assessment
  for each child protective services case before a court holds a full
  adversary hearing on the case and shall periodically reassess the
  risk of harm to the child.
         (f)  The department shall use the risk of harm assessment
  score when making decisions relating to:
               (1)  caseworker assignments;
               (2)  parental access to the child; and
               (3)  caseload limits for caseworkers.
         (g)  The department may only assign an experienced
  caseworker to a child protective services case that has been
  assigned a high risk of harm assessment score.
         (h)  The risk of harm assessment score is inadmissible in
  court as evidence.
         SECTION 10.  Subchapter C, Chapter 42, Human Resources Code,
  is amended by adding Section 42.0533 to read as follows:
         Sec. 42.0533.  EMERGENCY PLACEMENT. (a) In this section,
  "emergency placement" means the temporary placement of a child in a
  foster home, foster group home, agency foster home, or agency
  foster group home for not more than 30 days.
         (b)  The department shall identify all licensed foster homes
  and foster group homes or verified agency foster homes and agency
  foster group homes that are able to accept the emergency placement
  of a child when a safe and suitable long-term placement is not
  available. A licensed foster home and foster group home and a
  verified agency foster home and agency foster group home shall take
  an emergency placement on request of the department or child
  placing agency.
         (c)  The department shall ensure that a child placed in an
  emergency placement continues to attend the school in which the
  child was enrolled immediately before the child was removed from
  the child's home or another school in that school district if it is
  not in the best interest of the child to remain in the same school.
         (d)  The department shall:
               (1)  develop procedures for the emergency placement of
  children; and
               (2)  increase the number of foster homes, foster group
  homes, agency foster homes, and agency foster group homes that are
  able to accept the emergency placement of children.
         (e)  The executive commissioner shall adopt rules governing
  the reimbursement of a foster home, a foster group home, an agency
  foster home, or an agency foster group home that accepts the
  emergency placement of a child.
         SECTION 11.  Section 25.025(a), Tax Code, is amended to read
  as follows:
         (a)  This section applies only to:
               (1)  a current or former peace officer as defined by
  Article 2.12, Code of Criminal Procedure;
               (2)  a county jailer as defined by Section 1701.001,
  Occupations Code;
               (3)  an employee of the Texas Department of Criminal
  Justice;
               (4)  a commissioned security officer as defined by
  Section 1702.002, Occupations Code;
               (5)  a victim of family violence as defined by Section
  71.004, Family Code, if as a result of the act of family violence
  against the victim, the actor is convicted of a felony or a Class A
  misdemeanor;
               (6)  a federal judge, a state judge, or the spouse of a
  federal judge or state judge;
               (7)  a current or former employee of a district
  attorney, criminal district attorney, or county or municipal
  attorney whose jurisdiction includes any criminal law or child
  protective services matters;
               (8)  an officer or employee of a community supervision
  and corrections department established under Chapter 76,
  Government Code, who performs a duty described by Section 76.004(b)
  of that code;
               (9)  a criminal investigator of the United States as
  described by Article 2.122(a), Code of Criminal Procedure;
               (10)  a police officer or inspector of the United
  States Federal Protective Service;
               (11)  a current or former United States attorney or
  assistant United States attorney and the spouse and child of the
  attorney;
               (12)  a current or former employee of the office of the
  attorney general who is or was assigned to a division of that office
  the duties of which involve law enforcement;
               (13)  a medical examiner or person who performs
  forensic analysis or testing who is employed by this state or one or
  more political subdivisions of this state;
               (14)  a current or former member of the United States
  armed forces who has served in an area that the president of the
  United States by executive order designates for purposes of 26
  U.S.C. Section 112 as an area in which armed forces of the United
  States are or have engaged in combat;
               (15)  a current or former employee of the Texas
  Juvenile Justice Department or of the predecessors in function of
  the department;
               (16)  a current or former juvenile probation or
  supervision officer certified by the Texas Juvenile Justice
  Department, or the predecessors in function of the department,
  under Title 12, Human Resources Code; [and]
               (17)  a current or former employee of a juvenile
  justice program or facility, as those terms are defined by Section
  261.405, Family Code; and
               (18)  a current or former child protective services
  caseworker or investigator for the Department of Family and
  Protective Services or a current or former employee of a department
  contractor performing child protective services caseworker or
  investigator functions for the contractor on behalf of the
  department.
         SECTION 12.  (a)  Section 266.0031, Family Code, as added by
  this Act, applies only to a child who enters the conservatorship of
  the Department of Family and Protective Services on or after the
  effective date of this Act. A child who enters the conservatorship
  of the Department of Family and Protective Services before the
  effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
  date the child entered foster care, and the former law is continued
  in effect for that purpose.
 
         (b)  The changes in law made by this Act to Sections 552.117
  and 552.1175, Government Code, and Section 25.025, Tax Code, apply
  only to a request for information that is received by a governmental
  body or an officer on or after the effective date of this Act. A
  request for information that was received before the effective date
  of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the request
  was received, and the former law is continued in effect for that
  purpose.
         (c)  As soon as practicable after the effective date of this
  Act, the Department of Family and Protective Services shall
  establish and implement the caseload management system as required
  under Section 40.0328, Human Resources Code, as added by this Act.
         (d)  Section 42.0529, Human Resources Code, as added by this
  Act applies only to a child protective services case initiated on or
  after the effective date of this Act. A child protective services
  case initiated before that date is governed by the law in effect on
  the date the case began, and the former law is continued in effect
  for that purpose.
         SECTION 13.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.