May 14, 2013 Hearing
Bills Considered by Chairman Raymond’s Committee
SB 44: Reporting in Child Abuse and Neglect Cases
Author: Sen. Judith Zaffirini, et al.
House Sponsor: Rep. Cindy Burkett
The purpose of SB 44 is to exempt parents whose sole purpose for relinquishment of their parental rights is to obtain mental health services for their child from Texas’s abuse and neglect registry. Additionally, if a parent’s name was previously and/or wrongfully added to the “refused to accept parental responsibility” list, parents will also have the right to petition the family court that held the custody hearing to have their name removed from the registry if the only reason the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) took custody was to obtain mental health services for the child.
May 7, 2013 Hearing
Bills Considered by Chairman Raymond’s Committee
SB 128: Criminal History Information
Author: Sen. Jane Nelson
SB 128 allows the Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services (DARS) to better connect clients to employment and training programs by making the agency’s authority to obtain criminal background checks consistent across all programs. Currently, DARS is authorized to conduct background checks on all agency employees and on individuals enrolled in the General Vocational Rehabilitation Program, but DARS is not authorized to conduct background checks on individuals enrolled in the newly formed Vocational Rehabilitation Program for the Blind (VR-B). This bill authorizes DARS to obtain background checks for individuals enrolled in VR-B to ensure that such individuals are not precluded from finding employment because of a criminal history.
As proposed, SB 128 amends current law relating to criminal history record information concerning certain applicants and clients of the Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services.
Bills Considered by Chairman Raymond’s Committee
April 30, 2013 Hearing
SB 7: Improving the Delivery of Certain Health and Human Services
Author: Sen. Jane Nelson, et al.
SB 7 improves the coordination of Medicaid long-term care services and supports with acute care services, redesigns the long-term care services and support system to more efficiently serve individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and expands on quality-based payment initiatives to promote high-quality, efficient care throughout Medicaid. SB 7 amends current law relating to improving the delivery and quality of certain health and human services, including the delivery and quality of Medicaid acute care services and long-term services and supports.
Find us on Facebook!
