S.B. No. 614
 
 
 
 
AN ACT
  relating to certain procedures relating to children placed under a
  parental child safety placement.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 264.017, Family Code, is amended by
  adding Subsection (f) to read as follows:
         (f)  In addition to the other reports required by this
  section, the department shall publish a monthly report containing
  the following information for the preceding month with respect to
  parental child safety placement agreements:
               (1)  the number of children placed under a parental
  child safety placement agreement;
               (2)  the average duration of a placement under a
  parental child safety placement agreement;
               (3)  the average duration of a placement under a
  parental child safety placement agreement during an investigation;
  and
               (4)  the percentage of children removed from a
  placement under a parental child safety placement agreement and
  placed in the managing conservatorship of the department.
         SECTION 2.  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 3.  Section 264.901, Family Code, is amended by
  amending Subdivision (2) to read as follows:
               (2)  "Parental child safety placement" means any [a]
  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 4.  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 5.  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 6.  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 7.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.
 
 
 
 
 
  ______________________________ ______________________________
     President of the Senate Speaker of the House     
 
         I hereby certify that S.B. No. 614 passed the Senate on
  April 6, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0; and that
  the Senate concurred in House amendment on May 22, 2023, by the
  following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
 
 
  ______________________________
  Secretary of the Senate    
 
         I hereby certify that S.B. No. 614 passed the House, with
  amendment, on May 18, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 145,
  Nays 1, one present not voting.
 
 
  ______________________________
  Chief Clerk of the House   
 
 
 
  Approved:
 
  ______________________________ 
              Date
 
 
  ______________________________ 
            Governor