By: Huffman	S.B. No. 568
	(Bonnen of Galveston)

	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
	AN ACT
	relating to the regulation of child-care facilities and family
	homes; providing administrative penalties.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1.  Subchapter C, Chapter 42, Human Resources Code,
	is amended by adding Section 42.04215 to read as follows:
	Sec. 42.04215.  SAFETY TRAINING ACCOUNT. (a)  The safety
	training account is a dedicated account in the general revenue
	fund. The account is composed of:
	(1)  money deposited into the account under Section
	42.078;
	(2)  gifts, grants, and donations contributed to the
	account; and
	(3)  interest earned on the investment of money in the
	account.
	(b)  Section 403.0956, Government Code, does not apply to the
	account.
	(c)  Money in the account may be appropriated only to the
	commission to provide safety training materials at no cost to a
	facility licensed under this chapter or a family home registered or
	listed under this chapter. The commission may contract with a third
	party to create the training materials.
	(d)  The executive commissioner shall adopt rules necessary
	to implement this section.
	SECTION 2.  Subchapter C, Chapter 42, Human Resources Code,
	is amended by adding Section 42.0429 to read as follows:
	Sec. 42.0429.  SAFE SLEEPING STANDARDS. (a)  The executive
	commissioner by rule shall establish safe sleeping standards for
	licensed facilities and registered family homes.  Each licensed
	facility and registered family home shall comply with the safe
	sleeping standards.
	(b)  If the commission determines that a licensed facility or
	registered family home has violated a safe sleeping standard
	established as required by Subsection (a), the facility or home
	shall provide written notice in the form and manner required by the
	executive commissioner to the parent or legal guardian of each
	child attending the facility or home.
	(c)  The executive commissioner shall prescribe the form for
	the notice required by Subsection (b) and post the form on the
	commission's Internet website.
	SECTION 3.  Section 42.04425, Human Resources Code, is
	amended to read as follows:
	Sec. 42.04425.  INSPECTION INFORMATION DATABASE. (a)  If
	feasible using available information systems, the commission
	[department] shall establish a computerized database containing
	relevant inspection information on all licensed facilities
	[day-care centers, licensed group day-care homes,] and registered
	family homes obtained from other state agencies and political
	subdivisions of the state.
	(b)  The commission [department] shall make the data
	collected by the commission [department] available to another state
	agency or political subdivision of the state for the purpose of
	administering programs or enforcing laws within the jurisdiction of
	that agency or subdivision.  If feasible using available
	information systems, the commission [department] shall make the
	data directly available to [the Department of State Health
	Services, the Department of Aging and Disability Services, and] the
	Texas Workforce Commission through electronic information systems.
	The commission [department, the Department of State Health
	Services, the Department of Aging and Disability Services,] and the
	Texas Workforce Commission shall jointly plan the development of
	child-care inspection databases that, to the extent feasible, are
	similar in their design and architecture to promote the sharing of
	data.
	(c)  The commission shall [department may] provide at a
	minimum five years of inspection data for all facilities licensed
	or family homes registered under this chapter to enhance [on
	licensed day-care centers, licensed group day-care homes, or
	registered family homes to the public if the department determines
	that providing inspection data enhances] consumer choice with
	respect to those facilities and homes.
	SECTION 4.  Section 42.049, Human Resources Code, is amended
	to read as follows:
	Sec. 42.049.  LIABILITY INSURANCE REQUIRED. (a)  A license
	or registration holder under this chapter shall maintain liability
	insurance coverage in the amount of $300,000 for each occurrence of
	negligence.  An insurance policy or contract required under this
	section must cover injury to a child that occurs while the child is
	on the premises of [the license holder] or in the care of the
	[license] holder.
	(b)  A license or registration holder under this chapter
	shall annually file with the commission [department] a certificate
	or other evidence from an insurance company showing that the
	[license] holder has an unexpired and uncancelled insurance policy
	or contract that meets the requirements of this section.
	(c)  Should the license or registration holder for financial
	reasons or for lack of availability of an underwriter willing to
	issue a policy be unable to secure the insurance required under
	Subsection (a) or should the policy limits be exhausted, the
	[license] holder shall timely notify the parent or guardian of [a
	person standing in parental relationship to] each child for whom
	the [license] holder provides care a written notice that the
	liability coverage is not provided and there will not be a ground
	for an administrative penalty or suspension or revocation of the
	[license] holder's license or registration under this chapter.  The
	[license] holder shall also notify the commission [department] that
	the coverage is not provided and provide the reason for same.  In no
	case shall the inability to secure coverage serve to indemnify the
	[license] holder for damages due to negligence.
	(c-1)  The commission shall prescribe a form that a license
	or registration holder may use to notify a parent or guardian in
	accordance with Subsection (c) that liability coverage is not
	provided. The commission shall post the form on the commission's
	Internet website.
	(d)  The insurance policy or contract shall be maintained at
	all times in an amount as required by this section.  Failure by a
	license or registration holder to renew the policy or contract or to
	maintain the policy or contract in the required amount is a ground
	for suspension or revocation of the [license] holder's license or
	registration under this chapter.
	[(e)     This section does not apply to a group day-care home or
	a listed or registered family home.]
	SECTION 5.  Section 42.050, Human Resources Code, is amended
	by amending Subsections (a), (b), and (c) and adding Subsection
	(c-1) to read as follows:
	(a)  A license holder may apply for renewal of a license in
	compliance with the requirements of this chapter and commission
	[department] rules.
	(b)  The application for renewal of a license must be
	completed and decided on by the commission [department] before the
	expiration of the license under which a facility is operating.
	(c)  The commission [department] shall evaluate the
	application for renewal of a license to determine if all licensing
	requirements are met and whether the facility has been cited for
	repeated violations or has established a pattern of violations
	during the preceding two years.  The evaluation may include a
	specified number of visits to the facility and must include a review
	of all required forms and records. If the commission determines the
	facility has repeated violations or an established pattern of
	violations, before the commission renews the license the commission
	may place restrictions, conditions, or additional requirements on
	the license to ensure the violations cease.
	(c-1)  The commission may not renew the license of a facility
	cited for a violation that is not corrected by the required
	compliance date unless the violation is pending an administrative
	review under commission rules or pending review as a contested case
	under Chapter 2001, Government Code.
	SECTION 6.  Section 42.052, Human Resources Code, is amended
	by amending Subsections (a), (b), (c), (d), (f), (i), (j), and (k)
	and adding Subsections (f-2) and (f-3) to read as follows:
	(a)  A state-operated child-care facility or child-placing
	agency must receive certification of approval from the commission
	[department].  The certification of approval remains valid until
	the certification expires, is revoked, or is surrendered.
	(b)  To be certified, a facility must comply with the
	commission's [department's] rules and standards and any provisions
	of this chapter that apply to a licensed facility of the same
	category. The operator of a certified facility must display the
	certification in a prominent place at the facility.
	(c)  A family home that provides care for compensation for
	three or fewer children, excluding children who are related to the
	caretaker, shall list with the commission [department] if the home
	provides regular care in the caretaker's own residence. The home
	may register with the commission [department].
	(d)  A family home that provides care for four or more
	children, excluding children who are related to the caretaker,
	shall register with the commission [department]. A family home
	that provides care exclusively for any number of children who are
	related to the caretaker is not required to be listed or registered
	with the commission [department].
	(f)  To remain listed or registered with the commission
	[department], a family home must comply with the commission's
	[department's] rules and standards, if applicable, and any
	provision of this chapter that applies to a listed or registered
	family home.
	(f-2)  The commission shall evaluate an application for
	renewal of a facility certification or family home registration to
	determine if all requirements are met and whether the applicant has
	been cited for repeated violations or has established a pattern of
	violations during the preceding two years. The evaluation may
	include a specified number of visits to the facility or family home
	subject to this section and must include a review of all required
	forms and records. If the commission determines the facility or
	family home has repeated violations or an established pattern of
	violations, before the commission renews the certification or
	registration the commission may place restrictions, conditions, or
	additional requirements on the certification or registration to
	ensure the violations cease.
	(f-3)  The commission may not renew the certification or
	registration of a facility or family home cited for a violation that
	is not corrected by the required compliance date unless the
	violation is pending an administrative review under commission
	rules or pending review as a contested case under Chapter 2001,
	Government Code.
	(i)  The commission [department] shall provide to a listed
	family home a copy of the listing.  A listing must contain a
	provision that states:  "THIS HOME IS A LISTED FAMILY HOME.  IT IS
	NOT LICENSED OR REGISTERED WITH THE HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
	COMMISSION [DEPARTMENT OF FAMILY AND PROTECTIVE SERVICES].  IT HAS
	NOT BEEN INSPECTED AND WILL NOT BE INSPECTED."  The operator of a
	listed home is not required to display the listing in a prominent
	place at the home but shall make the listing available for
	examination.  The executive commissioner by rule shall provide for
	a sufficient period to allow operators of family homes to comply
	with the listing requirement of this section.
	(j)  The operator of a listed family home shall undergo
	initial and subsequent background and criminal history checks
	required under Section 42.056.  If the operator of a listed family
	home fails to submit the information required by Section 42.056 for
	a subsequent background and criminal history check, the commission
	[department] shall automatically:
	(1)  suspend the home's listing until the required
	information is submitted; and
	(2)  revoke the home's listing if the required
	information is not submitted within six months after the date the
	automatic suspension begins.
	(k)  The commission [department] shall issue a listing or
	registration to a family home, as appropriate, in both English and
	Spanish when the most recent federal census shows that more than
	one-half of the population in a municipality or in a commissioners
	precinct in a county in which the family home is located is of
	Hispanic origin or Spanish-speaking.
	SECTION 7.  Section 42.063, Human Resources Code, is amended
	by amending Subsections (b), (d), and (g) and adding Subsections
	(b-1) and (b-2) to read as follows:
	(b)  A person licensed under this chapter shall report to the
	commission [department] each serious incident involving a child who
	receives services from the person, regardless of whether the
	department is the managing conservator of the child.
	(b-1)  A person licensed or registered under this chapter
	shall notify in accordance with commission rule a parent or
	guardian of a child in the care of the person of an incident of
	abuse, neglect, or exploitation of the child, injury of the child
	that requires treatment by a medical professional or
	hospitalization, or illness of the child that requires
	hospitalization.
	(b-2)  A person licensed or registered under this chapter
	shall notify in accordance with commission rule a parent or
	guardian of each child in the care of the person of a violation that
	constitutes abuse, neglect, or exploitation of a child.
	(d)  An employee or volunteer of a general residential
	operation, child-placing agency, continuum-of-care residential
	operation, cottage home operation, or specialized child-care home
	shall report any serious incident directly to the commission
	[department] if the incident involves a child under the care of the
	operation, agency, or home.
	(g)  The commission [department] shall implement this
	section using existing appropriations.
	SECTION 8.  Sections 42.072(a), (b), (c), (e), (f), and (g),
	Human Resources Code, are amended to read as follows:
	(a)  The commission [department] may suspend, deny, revoke,
	or refuse to renew the license, listing, registration, or
	certification of approval of a facility or family home that does not
	comply with the requirements of this chapter, commission
	[department] standards and rules, or the specific terms of the
	license, listing, registration, or certification. The commission
	[department] may revoke the probation of a person whose license,
	listing, or registration is suspended if the person violates a term
	of the conditions of probation.
	(b)  If the commission [department] proposes to take an
	action under Subsection (a), the person is entitled to a hearing
	conducted by the State Office of Administrative Hearings.
	Proceedings for a disciplinary action are governed by the
	administrative procedure law, Chapter 2001, Government Code. An
	action under this section, including a revocation of a person's
	license, is a contested case as defined by Chapter 2001, Government
	Code, and is subject to judicial review under the substantial
	evidence rule in accordance with that chapter. Rules of practice
	adopted by the executive commissioner under Section 2001.004,
	Government Code, applicable to the proceedings for a disciplinary
	action may not conflict with rules adopted by the State Office of
	Administrative Hearings.
	(c)  The commission [department] may not issue a license,
	listing, registration, or certification to a person whose license,
	listing, registration, or certification is revoked or not renewed
	or whose application for a license, listing, registration, or
	certification is denied for a substantive reason under this chapter
	before the fifth anniversary of the date on which the revocation or
	nonrenewal takes effect by commission [department] or court order
	or the decision to deny the application is final.
	(e)  A person may continue to operate a facility or family
	home during an appeal of a [license, listing, or registration]
	revocation or refusal to renew a license, certification, or
	registration unless the operation of the facility or family home
	poses a risk to the health or safety of children.  The executive
	commissioner shall by rule establish the criteria for determining
	whether the operation of a facility or family home poses a risk to
	the health or safety of children.  The commission [department]
	shall notify the facility or family home of the criteria the
	commission [department] used to determine that the operation of the
	facility or family home poses a risk to health or safety and that
	the facility or family home may not operate.  A person who has been
	notified by the commission [department] that the facility or home
	may not operate under this section may seek injunctive relief from a
	district court in Travis County or in the county in which the
	facility or home is located to allow operation during the pendency
	of an appeal.  The court may grant injunctive relief against the
	commission's [department's] action only if the court finds that the
	child-care operation does not pose a health or safety risk to
	children.  A court granting injunctive relief under this subsection
	shall have no other jurisdiction over an appeal of final commission
	[department] action unless conferred by Chapter 2001, Government
	Code.
	(f)  The commission [department] shall deny an application
	or renewal for listing or registering a family home or shall revoke
	a family home's listing or registration if the results of a
	background or criminal history check conducted by the commission
	[department] under Section 42.056 show that a person has been
	convicted of an offense under Title 5 or 6, Penal Code, or Chapter
	43, Penal Code.
	(g)  Notwithstanding Subsection (c), the commission
	[department] may refuse to issue a license, listing, registration,
	or certification to:
	(1)  a person whose license, listing, registration, or
	certification for a facility or family home was revoked by the
	commission [department] or by court order;
	(2)  a person who was a controlling person of a facility
	or family home at the time conduct occurred that resulted in the
	revocation of the license, listing, registration, or certification
	of the facility or family home;
	(3)  a person who voluntarily closed a facility or
	family home or relinquished the person's license, listing,
	registration, or certification after:
	(A)  the commission [department] took an action
	under Subsection (a) in relation to the facility, family home, or
	person; or
	(B)  the person received notice that the
	commission [department] intended to take an action under Subsection
	(a) in relation to the facility, family home, or person; or
	(4)  a person who was a controlling person of a facility
	or family home at the time conduct occurred that resulted in the
	closure of the facility or family home or relinquishment of the
	license, listing, registration, or certification in the manner
	described by Subdivision (3).
	SECTION 9.  Section 42.078, Human Resources Code, is amended
	by amending Subsections (a), (a-2), (e), (f), (g), (h), (i), (m),
	(n), and (r) and adding Subsections (e-1), (e-2), and (e-3) to read
	as follows:
	(a)  The commission [department] may impose an
	administrative sanction or an administrative penalty against a
	facility or family home licensed, registered, or listed under this
	chapter that violates this chapter or a rule or order adopted under
	this chapter.  In addition, the commission [department] may impose
	an administrative penalty against a facility or family home or a
	controlling person of a facility or family home if the facility,
	family home, or controlling person:
	(1)  violates a term of a license or registration
	issued under this chapter;
	(2)  makes a statement about a material fact that the
	facility or person knows or should know is false:
	(A)  on an application for the issuance of a
	license or registration or an attachment to the application; or
	(B)  in response to a matter under investigation;
	(3)  refuses to allow a representative of the
	commission [department] to inspect:
	(A)  a book, record, or file required to be
	maintained by the facility; or
	(B)  any part of the premises of the facility;
	(4)  purposefully interferes with the work of a
	representative of the commission [department] or the enforcement of
	this chapter; or
	(5)  fails to pay a penalty assessed under this chapter
	on or before the date the penalty is due, as determined under this
	section.
	(a-2)  The commission [department] may impose an
	administrative penalty without first imposing a nonmonetary
	administrative sanction for violating a minimum standard
	applicable to a facility or family home under this chapter that is
	determined by the commission [department] to be a high-risk
	standard, including standards for a violation constituting abuse,
	neglect, or exploitation of a child, background check standards,
	safety hazard standards, standards establishing times for
	reporting information to a parent or guardian or the commission,
	and supervision standards.
	(e)  If the commission [department] determines that a
	violation has occurred, the commission [department]  may issue a
	recommendation on the imposition of a penalty, including a
	recommendation on the amount of the penalty.
	(e-1)  Notwithstanding the amounts required by Subsections
	(b) and (c) and except as provided by Subsection (e-3), the
	commission shall recommend the penalty for the following violations
	by a facility or family home to be assessed in the following
	amounts:
	(1)  $1,000 for a violation that constitutes abuse,
	neglect, or exploitation of a child;
	(2)  $500 for failure to report to a parent or guardian
	of a child or the commission within the time required by commission
	standards an injury of a child in the care of the facility or home
	that requires treatment by a medical professional or
	hospitalization or an illness of a child that requires
	hospitalization;
	(3)  $50 for failure to report to a parent or guardian
	of each child in the care of the facility or home within the time
	required by commission standards that the commission cited the
	facility or home for a violation:
	(A)  that constitutes abuse, neglect, or
	exploitation of a child; or
	(B)  of a safe sleeping standard; and
	(4)  $50 for failure to report to a parent or guardian
	of each child in the care of the facility or home within the time
	required by commission standards that the facility or home does not
	maintain liability insurance coverage.
	(e-2)  For purposes of Subsections (e-1)(3) and (4), the
	commission shall recommend a penalty of $50 for the initial
	violation and an additional penalty of $50 for each day the
	violation continues or occurs.
	(e-3)  Subsection (e-1)(1) does not apply to a residential
	child-care facility.
	(f)  Within 14 days after the date the recommendation is
	issued, the commission [department] shall give written notice of
	the recommendation to the person owning or operating the facility
	or family home or to the controlling person, if applicable.  The
	notice may be given by certified mail.  The notice must include a
	brief summary of the alleged violation and a statement of the amount
	of the recommended penalty and must inform the person that the
	person has a right to a hearing on the occurrence of the violation,
	the amount of the penalty, or both the occurrence of the violation
	and the amount of the penalty.
	(g)  Within 20 days after the date the person receives the
	notice, the person in writing may accept the determination and
	recommended penalty of the commission [department] or may make a
	written request for a hearing on the occurrence of the violation,
	the amount of the penalty, or both the occurrence of the violation
	and the amount of the penalty.
	(h)  If the person accepts the determination and recommended
	penalty of the commission [department] or fails to respond to the
	notice in a timely manner, the commission [department] shall issue
	an order and impose the recommended penalty.
	(i)  If the person requests a hearing, the commission
	[department] shall set a hearing and give notice of the hearing to
	the person.  The hearing shall be held by an administrative law
	judge of the State Office of Administrative Hearings.  The
	administrative law judge shall make findings of fact and
	conclusions of law and issue a final decision finding that a
	violation has occurred and imposing a penalty or finding that no
	violation occurred.
	(m)  On receipt of a copy of an affidavit under Subsection
	(l)(2), the commission [department] may file with the court, within
	five days after the date the copy is received, a contest to the
	affidavit.  The court shall hold a hearing on the facts alleged in
	the affidavit as soon as practicable and shall stay the enforcement
	of the penalty on finding that the alleged facts are true.  The
	person who files an affidavit has the burden of proving that the
	person is financially unable to pay the amount of the penalty and to
	give a supersedeas bond.
	(n)  If the person does not pay the amount of the penalty and
	the enforcement of the penalty is not stayed, the commission
	[department] may refer the matter to the attorney general for
	collection of the amount of the penalty.
	(r)  A penalty collected under this section shall be sent to
	the comptroller for deposit in the safety training account
	established under Section 42.04215 [general revenue fund].
	SECTION 10.  As soon as practicable after the effective date
	of this Act, the executive commissioner of the Health and Human
	Services Commission shall adopt the rules necessary to implement
	the changes in law made by this Act.
	SECTION 11.  The Health and Human Services Commission is
	required to implement a provision of this Act only if the
	legislature appropriates money specifically for that purpose.  If
	the legislature does not appropriate money specifically for that
	purpose, the commission may, but is not required to, implement a
	provision of this Act using other appropriations available for that
	purpose.
	SECTION 12.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.