HBA-LJP H.B. 1790 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1790 By: Clark Juvenile Justice & Family Issues 2/25/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Under current law, when certain cases concerning a child are referred to a juvenile court, the parent or guardian of the child does not have to be notified. As a result, the parent or guardian is often unaware of the charges being made in a child's case until the case is in juvenile court. The time span between a case being referred to juvenile court and the actual hearing may be lengthy, which may not be in the best interest of the child. House Bill 1790 requires the person or agency referring the case of a child to a juvenile court to notify the child's parent or guardian. 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. ANALYSIS House Bill 1790 amends the Family Code to require a person or agency making a referral of a case of a child who has not been taken into custody to the office or official designated by the juvenile court to promptly give notice of the referral and a statement of the reason for the referral to the child's parent, guardian, or custodian. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.