![]() ![]() The Senate bill was passed out of Senate committee but was never brought up for a vote on the Senate floor because there were not enough Senators that supported the bill in order to pass it. The House bill was heard in the House committee but never voted on. This would have protected a parent’s decisions regarding the best interest of a child from being haphazardly overruled by a judge who disagreed with those decisions. The Family Unity Act ( HB 3231/SB 1178) would have codified existing constitutional case law that governs the means by which a court must determine the best interest of a child in custody cases. The Mandatory Reporting Reform bill (HB 3379) reforms the mandatory child abuse reporting statute so that a person is only required to report child abuse or neglect if they actually have reasonable cause to believe that the abuse or neglect occurred. The bill restricts a court’s ability to use this as a reason for termination of parental rights. The Grounds for Termination (HB 2924) bill reforms a rule which allows a parent’s rights to be terminated if those rights had previously been terminated with another child. HB 2536 was passed by the legislature and signed by the governor. The Second Medical Opinions bill (HB 2536) clarifies a parent’s decision to get a second opinion about their child’s medical issue does not constitute neglect or grounds for either removal or termination of parental rights. It also requires CPS to inform parents that they have the right to contest CPS’s findings by requesting an administrative review of those findings. The Notification of Right to Record bill (HB 135) requires CPS to inform parents that they have the right to record interviews with CPS before CPS can interview them. Notification of Right to Record – PASSED.HB 2737 progressed out of the house committee, but was not placed on the calendar to be voted on by the entire house in time for the bill to pass. The Notification of Rights bill (HB 2737/SB 647) would have required CPS to notify parents of their rights in investigations when they first communicate with the parents. SB 1578 was passed by the legislature and is currently on the governor’s desk. It accomplishes this by updating the requirements for specialty consultations in investigations. The bill also serves to reduce the number of improper removals of children from their families because of the misdiagnosis of symptoms. The bill prohibits CPS from removing a child based solely on the opinion of a Child Abuse Pediatrician who did not actually examine the child. The Medical Investigation Reform bill (SB 1578) provides many due process protections for families facing CPS investigations that are based on a child’s medical issues.įor example, a Child Abuse Pediatrician is a doctor who specializes in identifying child abuse. The bill was passed by the legislature and is currently on the governor’s desk. ![]() This would apply when a parent has been rehabilitated after previously having their parental rights terminated. The Reinstatement of Parental Rights bill (HB 2926) allows certain parties to petition for reinstatement of their parental rights. Reinstatement of Parental Rights – PASSED.This was their estimate of what it would cost for CPS to wait to place a person’s name on the child abuse registry until after a court had found that they really did commit abuse. Unfortunately, the bill did not pass because CPS told the legislature that it would cost the state over $100 million. This comes after the Pardo family’s high profile fight last year to be removed from the registry after being found innocent in court. The Abuse Registry Reform bill ( HB 1190/SB 1603) would have established due process procedures for placing a person’s name on and removing a person’s name from the child abuse registry. You can also view this guide as a PDF here.The Child Trauma Prevention Act was passed by the legislature and approved by the governor. Welcome to TCJE’s 2021 Bill Analysis Guide, an in-depth analysis of positive justice laws that passed in the regular Texas legislative session. Click the blue links to learn more about the new laws in each category, and head over to our blog post to see all the bills in one place. ![]()
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