HBA-DMD C.S.S.B. 1423 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.S.B. 1423
By: West
Human Services
4/26/1999
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, the Texas Department of Human Services (department) estimates
that there are approximately 25,000 cases where a person other than a
parent of a child is the primary caretaker for that child, with 18,000 of
those cases consisting of grandparents as the primary caretakers. Most
grandparents are older and have limited resources to adequately support
their grandchildren. C.S.S.B. 1423 specifies the persons to whom the
department is required to provide supplemental financial assistance in
addition to the amount of financial assistance granted for the support of a
dependent child. This bill requires the department to inform an applicant
for financial assistance who meets the eligibility requirements of the
availability of supplemental financial assistance. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Subchapter A, Chapter 31, Human Resources Code, by
adding Section 31.0041, as follows: 

Sec. 31.0041. SUPPLEMENTAL FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR CERTAIN PERSONS. (a)
Specifies the persons to whom the Department of Human Services (department)
is required to provide supplemental financial assistance in addition to the
amount of financial assistance granted for the support of a dependent child
under Section 31.003 (Amount of Financial Assistance), Human Resources
Code. 

(b) Specifies the provisions included in supplemental financial assistance
provided to a person for the support of a dependent child under this
section. 

(c) Requires the department to inform an applicant for financial assistance
under this chapter who meets the eligibility requirements under Subsection
(a) of the availability of supplemental financial assistance. 

(d) Requires the department to maintain complete records and compile
statistics regarding the number of households that receive supplemental
financial assistance under this section. 

SECTION 2.  Amends Subchapter C, Chapter 40, Human Resources Code, by
adding Section 40.070, as follows: 

Sec. 40.070. SUPPORT SERVICES FOR CERTAIN FAMILIES. (a) Specifies
requirements for the Department of Protective and Regulatory Services
(DPRS), if DPRS places a child who is in the conservatorship of the state
in the home of a grandparent of the child. 

(b) Requires DPRS to maintain complete records and compile statistics
regarding the number of children who are placed by DPRS in the home of a
grandparent of the child. 

 SECTION 3.  Provides that if before implementing any provision of this Act
a state agency determines that a waiver or authorization from a federal
agency is necessary for implementation of that provision, the agency
affected by the provision is required to request the waiver or
authorization and may delay implementing that provision until the waiver or
authorization is granted. 

SECTION 4.Effective date: September 1, 1999.

SECTION 5.Emergency clause.     

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

This substitute modifies proposed Section 31.0041, Human Resources Code, in
SECTION 1, by including the condition that a person for whom the Department
of Human Services (department) is required to provide supplemental
financial assistance in addition to the amount of financial assistance
granted for the support of a dependent child under Section 31.003 (Amount
of Financial Assistance), Human Resources Code, have a family income that
is at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level. This substitute
removes proposed Subsection (e), which provided that a grandparent or
grandparents are not eligible for supplemental financial assistance under
this section if their annual household family income exceeds $50,000.