Bills that Protect Youth and Communities by Improving Juvenile Justice
Problems with abuse and neglect in Texas Youth Commission facilities came to public attention in early 2007. In order to effectively hold youth accountable for their wrong actions, the State of Texas must also be responsible to any youth who were abused or neglected while in its custody.
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HB 3316 [McClendon, Madden, Hodge]: Relating to venue for certain offenses committed at Texas Youth Commission facilities.
Analysis: Establishes concurrent venue for criminal offenses against juveniles committed by TYC personnel or contractual service providers in the county where any element of the offense occurred or Travis County. The bill authorizes the district attorney, criminal district attorney, or county attorney representing the state to request prosecutorial assistance from the SPU.
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SCR 1 [Ellis]: Granting certain persons permission to sue the State of Texas and the Texas Youth Commission.
Analysis: Penetrates state immunity to allow youth and the parents of youth who were abused while incarcerated with the Texas Youth Commission to sue the state for damages.
Judicious use of data is critical to the development and administration of an effective juvenile justice system. Enhanced access to and improved utilization of county-level data regarding community-based juvenile probation programs and the specific pattern of a child’s delinquency will facilitate better outcomes.
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CSHB 1351 [Vaught] & CSSB 58 [Zaffirini]: Relating to the administration of the Juvenile Justice Case Management System.
Analysis: Establishes statutory language to allow the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission to participate in the development of the Juvenile Case Management System with major urban counties.
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SB 1286 [West],: Relating to the continuity of care for juveniles with mental impairments in the juvenile justice system.
Analysis: Requires the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission, Texas Youth Commission, Texas Department of State Health Services, Texas Education Agency and Texas Department of Family and Protective Services to adopt a Memorandum of Understanding establishing a continuity of care and service program for juveniles with mental impairments in the juvenile justice system. This bill includes an information sharing section that allows access of local juvenile probation departments, local Mental Health and Mental Retardation authorities, and independent school districts to otherwise confidential information.
“Zero tolerance” school discipline policies remove thousands of youth – often minorities and those with disabilities – from the classroom and send them to in-school and out-of-school suspension and to alternative disciplinary school placements, such as DAEPs and JJAEPs. For many youth, school disciplinary involvement becomes a gateway to the juvenile justice system. Increasing state scrutiny of school disciplinary practices and improving parental notification and involvement in the process will help ensure that local school districts are not criminalizing normal adolescent behavior through over-zealous enforcement of school disciplinary policies.
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CSHB 172 [Olivo]: Relating to the right of a parent of a public school student to prompt notice of certain disciplinary action taken against the student.
Analysis: This bill would require school districts to notify a parent whose child is expelled, or sent to a DAEP or JJAEP, in writing on the day the action is taken, and also by telephone or in person by 5 p.m. the next business day following the expulsion or placement in an alternative educational setting. The written notice must inform the parents of their procedural rights to appeal the school's decision.
House Committee on Public Education Report
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HB 349 [Strama]: Relating to placement of public school students with certain disabilities in juvenile justice alternative education programs.
Analysis: Requires a school district referring a student with certain disabilities who receives special education services to a JJAEP to inform the JJAEP of the student's disability. Also requires both the referring school district and the JJAEP to provide input on the best placement for the student to the student's admission, review and dismissal committee, both pre- and post-JJAEP placement. The bill would require a JJAEP administrator who has concerns that a student's educational or behavioral needs cannot be met in the JJAEP to notify the school board immediately and request reconsideration of the student’s placement.
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CSHB 466 [Paxton]: Relating to procedures relating to placement of a public school student in a disciplinary alternative education program.
Analysis: Entitles a student to due process and representation at a school disciplinary hearing. States that the student and parents should be notified of the decision of the hearing the next school day and have the right to have an appeal heard within 15 days.
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CSHB 552 [Madden, Rodriguez, Eissler, Strama] & SB 453 [West]: Relating to the provision of competitive grants to fund programs for certain public school students assigned to disciplinary alternative education programs or in-school suspension.
Analysis: Creates a grant funding stream for “students at risk of dropping out of school” and allocates that money for intervention services to be provided to youth in disciplinary alternative education programs (DAEPs) or in-school suspension, or a case management system for 6-12 graders in DAEPs or in school suspension. Furthermore, this funding cannot replace local funding.
House Committee on Public Education Report (CSHB 552)
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HB 615 [Turner, S.]: Relating to the right of an employee who is a parent of a child enrolled in special education program to time off from work to meet with certain persons affecting the education of the child.
Analysis: A parent whose child is in a Special Education program and who has had the same employer for one year accrues 10 hours of leave per year to meet at the request of school administrators regarding their child's disability. If the parent has paid leave of any kind accrued with their employer, it must be used for any authorized planned absence. Otherwise, any authorized planned absence will be unpaid. Unless an emergency, written notice must be given to the parent's employer 48 hours prior to the meeting.
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HB 901 [Dutton]: Relating to referral of public school students to law enforcement officials for violations of an independent school district student code of conduct.
Analysis: Prevents school administrators from referring students to school law enforcements for violations of the code of conduct that are not criminal offenses.
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HB 935 [Dutton]: Relating to the enforcement of certain violations under a student code of conduct.
Analysis: Amends Chapter 37 of the Educational Code so that traffic violations in school zones are not Class C misdemeanors unless they are such under the law.
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HB 1020 [Deshotel, Isett, Anderson, Hodge]: Relating to the use, exhibition, or possession of a firearm by public school students participating in certain school-sponsored programs and activities sponsored or supported by the Parks and Wildlife Department.
Analysis: Prevents the automatic expulsion of a student who displays a firearm (1) at a target range facility not on a school campus or (2) while participating in or preparing for a school-sponsored shooting competition or a Parks and Wildlife Department/shooting sports organization sanctioned activity.
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HB 1050 [Madden]: Relating to placement of public school students with certain disabilities in a disciplinary alternative education programs and juvenile justice alternative education programs.
Analysis: Requires a school district wishing to send a child with a disability who receives special education services to a juvenile justice alternative education program (JJAEP) for certain kinds of serious offenses to provide the JJAEP administrator with reasonable notice of the meeting of the student’s admission, review, and dismissal committee to discuss the proposed expulsion. The JJAEP designee may participate in the meeting concerning the student’s placement. If the JJAEP administrator does not feel the needs of the student can be met, he/she must immediately inform the admission, review and dismissal committee, and the school shall continue to provide special education services.
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CSSB 33 [Zaffirini]: Relating to school district requirements regarding parental notification and documentation in connection with disciplinary alternative education programs.
Analysis: Requires school districts to provide the guardians of students placed in a DAEP with written notice stating the school district's obligation to provide the student with an opportunity to complete coursework required for graduation. Also requires district to keep documentation on all conferences held with parents regarding their child's placement in a DAEP.
Senate Committee on Education Report
House Committee on Public Education Report
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SB 38 [Zaffirini]: Relating to considering school district disciplinary placement information for accountability purposes.
Analysis: Mandates that a school district include its disciplinary statistics on in- and out-of-school suspensions, DAEP and JJAEP placements, and expulsions in its reporting to the Texas Education Agency for accountability purposes.
Too often children end up in the juvenile justice system simply because not enough was done early on to prevent the development of their delinquent behavior. Increased attention to ensuring that youth who are “at-risk” of juvenile justice involvement stay in school, connect with necessary medical and mental health services, and develop positive relationships with peers and adults will improve the likelihood of those youth requiring intervention from the juvenile court.
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HB 289 [Dutton]: Relating to the provision of courses in behavioral modification by disciplinary alternative education programs and juvenile justice alternative education programs.
Analysis: Requires that disciplinary alternative education programs (DAEPs) offer a course in behavior modification taught by someone who has at least a bachelor’s degree in behavioral science.
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HB 620 [Davis, J., Bohac, Coleman, Truitt]: Relating to behavioral health services for children and establishment of the Children’s Behavioral Health Council.
Analysis: Establishes a Children’s Behavioral Health Council composed of representatives of the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS), Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS), Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services (DARS), Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services (DADS), Texas Education Agency (TEA), Texas Correctional Office on Offenders with Medical or Mental Impairments (TCOOMMI), Texas Juvenile Probation Commission (TJPC), and Texas Youth Commission (TYC) to design an integrated, cross-agency funding structure for the provision of behavioral services to children by June 1, 2010. This bill requires the council to maximize funding for home and community-based services for children with severe emotional disturbances by September 1, 2010 and establishes an advisory board to be appointed by the governor to assist the council. The board should include advocates and other experts in the field.
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HB 1025 [Edwards, Deshotel]: Relating to preparation of public school students to enter the workforce.
Analysis: Requires that career and technology education at the high school level include lessons on the skills and attitude necessary for entering the workforce, including social/emotional aspects of the workplace as well as interviewing skills, etiquette, and grooming.
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HB 1232 [Menendez] & SB 1197 [Van de Putte]: Relating to establishing a local behavioral health intervention pilot project.
Analysis: Establishes a behavioral health intervention pilot program for Bexar County and requires a memorandum of understanding between DSHS, DFPS, TYC, TEA and local agencies to facilitate collaboration on early identification, treatment, and information sharing concerning youth at risk of placement in an alternative setting for behavior management.
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CSHB 1629 [Naishtat, Madden]: Relating to the care and protection of foster children committed to or released under supervision by the Texas Youth Commission.
Analysis: Provides a comprehensive response to the extensive array of needs of youth in the custody of TYC who are both dually delinquent and dependent. It would ensure communication between supervisory agencies, collaboration in developing reporting guidelines, and access to necessary services (including medical, educational, etc.) for foster youth in the custody of TYC.
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CSHB 4451 [McReynolds, Miller, S., Marquez]: Relating to continuity of care services for youth with mental illness or mental retardation who are discharged or paroled from the Texas Youth Commission.
Analysis: Authorizes a child discharged from the Texas Youth Commission due to mental retardation or mental illness to qualify for and receive continuity of care services through the Texas Correctional Office on Offenders with Medical or Mental Impairments. The bill authorizes a child who is receiving services through the office as a TYC parolee to continue with treatment until the child reaches the parole completion date.
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SB 1362 [Shapiro]: Relating to the authority of certain counties to construct, acquire, improve, operate, or maintain causeways, bridges, tunnels, turnpikes, ferries, and highways.
Analysis: Requires TYC to adopt and administer reliable reading assessments to measure a student's reading proficiency and to monitor progress in reading. This bill also requires TYC to: provide students who have reading deficiencies with an hour of daily reading instruction, train teachers in appropriate content-based reading instruction, and adopt a system-wide classroom and individual positive behavior support system that is based on behavioral research.
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SB 518 [Harris]: Relating to providing access to certain information relating to the discretionary transfer of a child from a juvenile court to a criminal court.
Analysis: Requires that the court allow a defense attorney of a child and the prosecuting attorney at least five days prior to the transfer hearing to review the juvenile's file.
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CSSB 839 [Hinojosa]: Relating to the punishment for a capital felony committed by a juvenile whose case is transferred to criminal court.
Analysis: Allows judges the discretion to sentence certified juveniles convicted of a capitol felony to life with parole eligibility after serving 40 years in prison.
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CSHB 2386 [Castro] & SB 2106 [Uresti]: Relating to the sealing of juvenile records.
Analysis: Allows a juvenile court to immediately seal an adjudicated youth’s records upon successful completion of a drug court program or other court-ordered special program. Requires verification that records have been sealed from all agencies involved.
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CSSB 2224 [West]: Relating to orders of nondisclosure for the records of children convicted of certain offenses punishable by fine only.
Analysis: Requires the convicting court to immediately issue an order prohibiting criminal justice agencies from disclosing to the public criminal history record information related to the offense for juveniles adjudicated for a misdemeanor offense punishable by fine only that does not constitute conduct indicating a need for supervision. Also requires private entities to destroy, and prohibits them disseminating, any information in their possession if they have received notice that an order of nondisclosure has been issued.
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HB 1349 [Vaught] & CSSB 54 [Zaffirini]: Relating to the supervision of juvenile case managers.
Analysis: A judge whose court contracts with a juvenile case manager must either supervise the juvenile case manager's work or delegate that supervision to another officer of the court who is not the clerk.
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HB 1352 [Vaught] & SB 53 [Zaffirini]: Relating to minimum standards for juvenile case managers.
Analysis: Requires the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission to adopt reasonable rules that provide a code of ethics, minimum education requirements, and minimum training standards for juvenile case managers.
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HB 1630 [Naishtat] & SB 2031 [Watson]: Relating to the eligibility of certain individuals for child health plan c overage or medical assistance on placement, detention, or commitment in and release from certain facilities or other settings.
Analysis: Eligibility for the Children's Health Plan coverage would be suspended (rather than terminated as is the current practice) for any child placed, detained, or committed under the juvenile justice section of the Family Code, and would be automatically reinstated on the date of release. The period of suspension does not decrease the length of the child's eligibility.
Analysis: Makes motions for new trials seeking to vacate juvenile adjudications governable by Rule 21 of the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure.
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CSSB 1374 [West]: Relating to annual reports by the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission on the operations and conditions of probation services in this state.
Analysis: Requires TJPC to report annually on the effectiveness of community-based services and cost comparisons between community-based services and commitment to TYC.