Bill Text: TX HB730 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relating to policies and procedures regarding certain suits affecting the parent-child relationship, investigations by the Department of Family and Protective Services, and parental child safety placements.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2023-06-09 - Effective on 9/1/23 [HB730 Detail]
Download: Texas-2023-HB730-Enrolled.html
H.B. No. 730 |
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relating to policies and procedures regarding certain suits | ||
affecting the parent-child relationship, investigations by the | ||
Department of Family and Protective Services, and parental child | ||
safety placements. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Section 261.301, Family Code, is amended by | ||
adding Subsection (l) to read as follows: | ||
(l) After the 60th day after the date an investigation is | ||
closed, the department may not reopen the investigation or change | ||
the department's finding in the investigation to find abuse or | ||
neglect occurred. Before the 60th day after the date an | ||
investigation is closed, the department may reopen a closed | ||
investigation and change the department's finding in the | ||
investigation only for good cause shown. The commissioner by rule | ||
shall establish procedures for reopening a closed investigation as | ||
authorized by this section. | ||
SECTION 2. Section 261.303, Family Code, is amended by | ||
amending Subsections (b) and (c) and adding Subsections (f), (g), | ||
and (h) to read as follows: | ||
(b) If admission to the home, school, or any place where the | ||
child may be cannot be obtained, [ |
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court having family law jurisdiction shall order the parent, the | ||
person responsible for the care of the children, or the person in | ||
charge of any place where the child may be to allow entrance for the | ||
interview, examination, and investigation if the court: | ||
(1) has good cause to believe that the child is in | ||
imminent danger of being subjected to aggravated circumstances as | ||
described by Section 262.2015(b); or | ||
(2) has probable cause to believe that admission is | ||
necessary to protect the child from abuse or neglect not described | ||
by Subdivision (1). | ||
(c) If a parent or person responsible for the child's care | ||
does not consent to release of the child's prior medical, | ||
psychological, or psychiatric records or to a medical, | ||
psychological, or psychiatric examination of the child that is | ||
requested by the department, and if the court having family law | ||
jurisdiction has probable cause to believe that releasing the | ||
records or conducting an examination of the child is necessary to | ||
protect the child from abuse or neglect, then the court shall[ |
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examination to be made at the times and places designated by the | ||
court. | ||
(f) A hearing for an order under this section may not be ex | ||
parte unless the court has probable cause to believe there is no | ||
time, consistent with the physical health or safety of the child, | ||
for a full hearing. | ||
(g) A court order described by Subsection (b) or (c) must | ||
include the court's findings regarding the sufficiency of evidence | ||
supporting the order. | ||
(h) On request of a party to the suit, the court shall | ||
provide a copy of an order rendered under this section to the party. | ||
SECTION 3. Section 261.307, Family Code, is amended to read | ||
as follows: | ||
Sec. 261.307. INFORMATION RELATING TO INVESTIGATION | ||
PROCEDURE AND CHILD PLACEMENT RESOURCES. (a) After [ |
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person having legal custody of a child, the department shall, upon | ||
first contact with the parent or with the alleged perpetrator, | ||
provide to the person: | ||
(1) a written summary that: | ||
(A) is brief and easily understood; | ||
(B) is written in a language that the person | ||
understands, or if the person is illiterate, is read to the person | ||
in a language that the person understands; and | ||
(C) contains the following information: | ||
(i) the department's procedures for | ||
conducting an investigation of alleged child abuse or neglect, | ||
including: | ||
(a) a description of the | ||
circumstances under which the department would request to remove | ||
the child from the home through the judicial system; [ |
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(b) an explanation that the law | ||
requires the department to refer all reports of alleged child abuse | ||
or neglect to a law enforcement agency for a separate determination | ||
of whether a criminal violation occurred; and | ||
(c) an explanation that any statement | ||
or admission made by the person to anyone may be used against the | ||
person in a criminal case, as a basis to remove the child who is the | ||
subject of the investigation or any other child from the person's | ||
care, custody, and control either temporarily or permanently, or as | ||
a basis to terminate the person's relationship with the child who is | ||
the subject of the investigation or any other child; | ||
(ii) the person's right to file a complaint | ||
with the department or to request a review of the findings made by | ||
the department in the investigation; | ||
(iii) the person's right to review all | ||
records of the investigation unless the review would jeopardize an | ||
ongoing criminal investigation or the child's safety; | ||
(iv) the person's right to seek legal | ||
counsel; | ||
(v) references to the statutory and | ||
regulatory provisions governing child abuse and neglect and how the | ||
person may obtain copies of those provisions; [ |
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(vi) the process the person may use to | ||
acquire access to the child if the child is removed from the home; | ||
(vii) the rights listed under Subdivision | ||
(2); and | ||
(viii) the known allegations the department | ||
is investigating; | ||
(2) a verbal notification of the right to: | ||
(A) not speak with any agent of the department | ||
without legal counsel present; | ||
(B) receive assistance from an attorney; | ||
(C) have a court-appointed attorney if: | ||
(i) the person is indigent; | ||
(ii) the person is the parent of the child; | ||
and | ||
(iii) the department seeks a court order in | ||
a suit filed under Section 262.101 or 262.105 or a court order | ||
requiring the person to participate in services under Section | ||
264.203; | ||
(D) record any interaction or interview subject | ||
to the understanding that the recording may be subject to | ||
disclosure to the department, law enforcement, or another party | ||
under a court order; | ||
(E) refuse to allow the investigator to enter the | ||
home or interview the child without a court order; | ||
(F) have legal counsel present before allowing | ||
the investigator to enter the home or interview the child; | ||
(G) withhold consent to the release of any | ||
medical or mental health records; | ||
(H) withhold consent to any medical or | ||
psychological examination of the child; | ||
(I) refuse to submit to a drug test; and | ||
(J) consult with legal counsel prior to agreeing | ||
to any proposed voluntary safety plan; | ||
(3) if the department determines that removal of the | ||
child may be warranted, a proposed child placement resources form | ||
that: | ||
(A) instructs the parent or other person having | ||
legal custody of the child to: | ||
(i) complete and return the form to the | ||
department or agency; | ||
(ii) identify in the form at least three | ||
individuals who could be relative caregivers or designated | ||
caregivers, as those terms are defined by Section 264.751; | ||
(iii) ask the child in a developmentally | ||
appropriate manner to identify any adult, particularly an adult | ||
residing in the child's community, who could be a relative | ||
caregiver or designated caregiver for the child; and | ||
(iv) list on the form the name of each | ||
individual identified by the child as a potential relative | ||
caregiver or designated caregiver; and | ||
(B) informs the parent or other person of a | ||
location that is available to the parent or other person to submit | ||
the information in the form 24 hours a day either in person or by | ||
facsimile machine or e-mail; and | ||
(4) [ |
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261.3071. | ||
(b) The child placement resources form described by | ||
Subsection (a)(3) [ |
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of time by which the department must complete a background check. | ||
(c) The department investigator shall document that the | ||
investigator provided the verbal notification required by | ||
Subsection (a)(2). | ||
(d) The department shall adopt a form for the purpose of | ||
verifying that the parent or other person having legal custody of | ||
the child received the verbal notification and written summary | ||
required by this section. The department shall provide a true and | ||
correct copy of the signed form to the person who is the subject of | ||
the investigation or that person's attorney, if represented by an | ||
attorney. | ||
(e) If a person who is the subject of an investigation does | ||
not receive the verbal notification and written summary required by | ||
this section, any information obtained from the person, and any | ||
other information that would not have been discovered without that | ||
information, is not admissible for use against the person in any | ||
civil proceeding. | ||
SECTION 4. Subchapter D, Chapter 261, Family Code, is | ||
amended by adding Section 261.3081 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 261.3081. NOTICE REGARDING CHANGES MADE BY DEPARTMENT | ||
TO INVESTIGATION REPORT. The department shall notify the following | ||
interested parties of any edits or corrections, other than edits or | ||
corrections to remedy spelling or grammatical errors, the | ||
department makes to the written report prepared by the department | ||
under Section 261.308: | ||
(1) the child's parent; | ||
(2) the attorney for the child's parent if represented | ||
by an attorney; | ||
(3) an attorney ad litem for the child appointed under | ||
Chapter 107; | ||
(4) a guardian ad litem for the child appointed under | ||
Chapter 107, including a volunteer advocate; and | ||
(5) any other person the court determines has an | ||
interest in the child's welfare. | ||
SECTION 5. Section 262.206, Family Code, is reenacted and | ||
amended to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 262.206. EX PARTE HEARINGS [ |
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otherwise authorized by this chapter or other law, a hearing held by | ||
a court in a suit under this chapter may not be ex parte. | ||
(b) A court that holds an ex parte hearing authorized by | ||
this chapter shall prepare and keep a record of the hearing in the | ||
form of an audio or video recording or a court reporter | ||
transcription. | ||
(c) On request of a party to the suit, the court shall | ||
provide a copy of the record of an ex parte hearing to the party. | ||
(d) The Department of Family and Protective Services shall | ||
provide notice of an ex parte hearing authorized by this chapter if | ||
the department has received notice that a parent who is a party is | ||
represented by an attorney. | ||
SECTION 6. Sections 264.203(e) and (n), Family Code, are | ||
amended to read as follows: | ||
(e) In a suit filed under this section, the court may render | ||
a temporary restraining order as provided by Section 105.001, | ||
except that the court may not issue an order that places the child: | ||
(1) outside of the child's home; or | ||
(2) in the conservatorship of the department. | ||
(n) If the court renders an order granting the petition, the | ||
court shall: | ||
(1) state its findings in the order; | ||
(2) make appropriate temporary orders under Chapter | ||
105 necessary to ensure the safety of the child, except that the | ||
court may not issue a temporary order that places the child: | ||
(A) outside of the child's home; or | ||
(B) in the conservatorship of the department; and | ||
(3) order the participation in specific services | ||
narrowly tailored to address the findings made by the court under | ||
Subsection (m). | ||
SECTION 7. Subchapter C, Chapter 264, Family Code, is | ||
amended by adding Section 264.2032 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 264.2032. REPORT ON COURT-ORDERED PARTICIPATION IN | ||
SERVICES. The department shall report the number of cases in which | ||
a court under Section 264.203 orders the following persons with | ||
respect to a child who is placed with a caregiver under a parental | ||
child safety placement under Subchapter L to participate in | ||
services: | ||
(1) the child's parent; | ||
(2) the child's managing conservator; | ||
(3) the child's guardian; or | ||
(4) another member of the child's household. | ||
SECTION 8. Section 264.901(2), Family Code, is amended to | ||
read as follows: | ||
(2) "Parental child safety placement" means any [ |
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temporary out-of-home placement of a child with a caregiver that is | ||
made by a parent or other person with whom the child resides in | ||
accordance with a written agreement approved by the department that | ||
ensures the safety of the child: | ||
(A) during an investigation by the department of | ||
alleged abuse or neglect of the child; or | ||
(B) while the parent or other person is receiving | ||
services from the department. | ||
SECTION 9. Section 264.902, Family Code, is amended by | ||
amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsections (e), (f), (g), (h), | ||
(i), and (j) to read as follows: | ||
(a) A parental child safety placement agreement must | ||
include terms that clearly state: | ||
(1) the respective duties of the person making the | ||
placement and the caregiver, including a plan for how the caregiver | ||
will access necessary medical treatment for the child and the | ||
caregiver's duty to ensure that a school-age child is enrolled in | ||
and attending school; | ||
(2) conditions under which the person placing the | ||
child may have access to the child, including how often the person | ||
may visit and the circumstances under which the person's visit may | ||
occur; | ||
(3) the duties of the department; | ||
(4) subject to Subsection (f), the date on which the | ||
agreement will terminate unless terminated sooner or extended to a | ||
subsequent date as provided under department policy; and | ||
(5) any other term the department determines necessary | ||
for the safety and welfare of the child. | ||
(e) Before a parent or other person making a parental child | ||
safety placement and the caregiver enter into a parental child | ||
safety placement agreement, the department shall notify each person | ||
of the person's right to consult with an attorney and provide the | ||
person with a reasonable time in which to do so. | ||
(f) An initial parental child safety placement agreement | ||
automatically terminates on the earlier of the 30th day after the | ||
date: | ||
(1) the agreement is signed; or | ||
(2) the child is placed with the caregiver. | ||
(g) On the expiration of a parental child safety placement | ||
agreement, the department may for good cause enter into not more | ||
than two additional parental child safety placement agreements for | ||
the child. On entering an additional parental child safety | ||
placement agreement under this subsection, the department shall: | ||
(1) reevaluate the terms and conditions of the | ||
original agreement; and | ||
(2) notify the parents of their right to: | ||
(A) refuse to enter into the agreement; and | ||
(B) be represented by an attorney or a | ||
court-appointed attorney if: | ||
(i) the parent is indigent; and | ||
(ii) the department subsequently seeks a | ||
court order to require the parents to participate in services. | ||
(h) An additional parental child safety placement agreement | ||
described by Subsection (g) automatically terminates on the 30th | ||
day after the date the agreement is signed. | ||
(i) Notwithstanding Subsections (g) and (h), the department | ||
may not place a child outside of the child's home under a parental | ||
child safety placement for longer than 90 calendar days unless the | ||
parental child safety placement agreement is signed by both the | ||
parent and the parent's attorney or a court otherwise renders an | ||
order regarding the placement under Chapter 262. This subsection | ||
may not be construed to affect the duration of an agreement between | ||
the department and the parent other than a parental child safety | ||
placement agreement. | ||
(j) A parental child safety placement agreement must | ||
include the following language: "THIS AGREEMENT IS ENTIRELY | ||
VOLUNTARY. THE AGREEMENT MAY NOT LAST LONGER THAN 30 DAYS. THE | ||
AGREEMENT MAY BE RENEWED NOT MORE THAN TWO TIMES AND FOR NOT MORE | ||
THAN 30 DAYS EACH TIME. A CHILD MAY NOT BE PLACED OUTSIDE OF THE | ||
CHILD'S HOME FOR LONGER THAN A TOTAL OF 90 CALENDAR DAYS WITHOUT A | ||
SIGNED AGREEMENT BY THE CHILD'S PARENT AND THE PARENT'S ATTORNEY OR | ||
A COURT ORDER RENDERED UNDER CHAPTER 262." | ||
SECTION 10. Subchapter L, Chapter 264, Family Code, is | ||
amended by adding Section 264.907 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 264.907. INCLUSIONS IN REPORTS OF PARENTAL CHILD | ||
SAFETY PLACEMENTS. The department shall, where appropriate: | ||
(1) include children who are placed with a caregiver | ||
under a parental child safety placement agreement in any report, | ||
including reports submitted to the United States Department of | ||
Health and Human Services or another federal agency, in which the | ||
department is required to report the number of children in the child | ||
protective services system who are removed from the children's | ||
homes; and | ||
(2) report the information described by Subdivision | ||
(1) separately from information regarding the number of children | ||
removed under a suit filed under Section 262.101 or 262.105. | ||
SECTION 11. (a) Section 261.303, Family Code, as amended by | ||
this Act, applies only to an order rendered on or after the | ||
effective date of this Act. An order rendered before the effective | ||
date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date of the | ||
order, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. | ||
(b) Section 261.307, Family Code, as amended by this Act, | ||
applies only to an investigation of a report of child abuse or | ||
neglect that is made on or after the effective date of this Act. An | ||
investigation of a report of child abuse or neglect made before the | ||
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the | ||
date the report was made, and the former law is continued in effect | ||
for that purpose. | ||
(c) Section 262.206, Family Code, as amended by this Act, | ||
applies only to an ex parte hearing held on or after the effective | ||
date of this Act. An ex parte hearing held before that date is | ||
governed by the law in effect on the date the ex parte hearing was | ||
held, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. | ||
(d) Section 264.902, Family Code, as amended by this Act, | ||
applies only to a parental child safety placement agreement | ||
executed on or after the effective date of this Act. A parental | ||
child safety placement agreement executed before the effective date | ||
of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the | ||
agreement was executed, and the former law is continued in effect | ||
for that purpose. | ||
SECTION 12. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. | ||
______________________________ | ______________________________ | |
President of the Senate | Speaker of the House | |
I certify that H.B. No. 730 was passed by the House on May 1, | ||
2023, by the following vote: Yeas 139, Nays 3, 1 present, not | ||
voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B. | ||
No. 730 on May 19, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 139, Nays 1, 2 | ||
present, not voting. | ||
______________________________ | ||
Chief Clerk of the House | ||
I certify that H.B. No. 730 was passed by the Senate, with | ||
amendments, on May 15, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays | ||
0. | ||
______________________________ | ||
Secretary of the Senate | ||
APPROVED: __________________ | ||
Date | ||
__________________ | ||
Governor |