HBA-MPM H.B. 3631 76(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 3631 By: Naishtat Human Services 4/12/1999 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE In 1997, the Texas Legislature enacted legislation addressing the safety of victims of family violence as it relates to their inability to become self-sufficient. This law directed the Texas Department of Human Services (DHS) to coordinate with the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) and the attorney general's child support division to develop policies and procedures to allow Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) clients who are victims of domestic violence to be given temporary exemptions from TANF requirements if meeting these requirements would adversely affect the client's ability to attain financial independence, make it more difficult for the client to escape family violence, or place the client at greater risk of family violence. DHS, TWC, and the child support division have adopted basic regulations allowing the law to be implemented, and further research is ongoing at this time; however, based on that research to date, as well as demonstration projects and reports from domestic violence advocates, implementation of this law has not achieved all of the desired results. H.B. 3631 requires DHS, TWC, and various related entities to receive a specified amount of training about domestic violence, and also requires a TANF recipient who fails to fulfill TANF requirements to be interviewed by an appropriately-trained person to determine if domestic violence or other barriers have contributed to that failure, whether good cause for noncooperation or noncompliance exists, and the services or support systems needed to assist the recipient in complying with TANF requirements and becoming self-sufficient prior to imposing a sanction on the client. 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 Amends Subchapter B, Chapter 31, Section 31.0321, Human Resources Code, by adding Subsections (d) and (e), as follows: (d) Requires the staff of the Texas Department of Human Services (TDHS), the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC), local workforce boards and their subcontractors, and the Title IV-D agency (agency) to receive a minimum of four hours of training about domestic violence, including: _its potential impact on clients' safety and their transition into the workforce; _state laws and agency rules regarding options available to clients receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families block grant funds (TANF funds) for whom domestic violence poses a danger or an impediment to attaining selfsufficiency; and _resources available within state or local government agencies and in local communities to assist victims of domestic violence in making a transition into the workforce. Requires the training to be provided for all staff who perform certain specific functions with respect to TANF funds. (e) Requires a TANF recipient who fails to fulfill TANF requirements to be interviewed by an appropriately-trained person to determine if domestic violence or other barriers have contributed to that failure, whether good cause for noncooperation or noncompliance exists, and the services or support systems needed to assist the recipient in complying with TANF requirements and becoming self-sufficient prior to imposing a sanction on the client. (f) Redesignated from existing Subsection (d). (g) Redesignated from existing Subsection (e). SECTION 2. Requires TDHS, using an independent research group, to conduct a study using existing funds to develop procedures, identify services or support systems, and their availability, to identify TANF applicants or recipients with domestic violence problems posing a barrier to employment and self-sufficiency, and those services or support systems most beneficial to overcoming those barriers. Requires TDHS to report the results of this study to the legislature no later than January 15, 2001. SECTION 3. Requires TDHS, TWC, and the agency to submit a joint report to the legislature concerning the implementation of this Section 31.032, Human Resources Code [sic] no later than January 15, 2001. Provides that the report is required to include certain information. SECTION 4. Emergency clause. Effective date: 90 days after adjournment.