House passes initial bill for foster care reform,

Voting along party lines, the Texas Senate on Monday gave initial approval to legislation requiring the comptroller to study the economic cost to Texas of immigrants who are in the state illegally.

The goal of Senate Bill 764 is to provide a financial esti- mate to show the federal government in hopes of being reimbursed for costs to education, health care, incarceration, border security and law enforcement, said the author, Sen. Don Huffines, R-Dallas.

Several Democrats pressed to expand the study to include the economic benefits that immigrants provide.

“That would be fairer,” said Sen. José Menéndez, D-San Antonio, adding that he expected such a study to show “there is still a net pos- itive.”

“This is about illegal immi- gration,” Huffines replied. “It’s almost disingenuous that we’re going to have benefits from people who are breaking the law.”

Republicans united to defeat two Democratic amendments to study the benefits as well as the costs, then voted 20-11 to approve SB 764. A final vote, expected Tuesday, would send the bill to the House.

The Texas Senate voted 26-5 Monday to allow employ- ees of public and charter schools to store a handgun in vehicles in parking lots of grade schools and high schools.

Senate Bill 1942 would extend the same gun-storage rights to teachers and school employees that already apply to private-sector employees, said Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, author of the bill.

Voting along party lines, senators rejected an amendment by Sen. Sylvia Garcia, D-Houston, who proposed requiring guns to be kept in a locked box, or with a trigger guard, to thwart poten- tial thieves.

SB 1942 next goes to the House.

As the state grapples with finding enough foster care homes, the Texas House tentatively passed a bill on Monday that would keep with their parents children at risk of entering foster care.

House Bill 7, filed by Rep. Gene Wu, D-Houston, would among several other provisions, bar a court from taking children away from par- ents on the grounds that they home schooled their children, were economically disadvan- taged, had reasonably disciplined their children or had been charged with a nonviolent misdemeanor.

“What remains in this bill is what we believe will help the system respond better to child abuse and neglect,” Wu said of his 31-page bill. “This is what we think will do a better job of preserving families, this is what we think will do a better job in having children return to their families, if at all possible.”

Under the bil l , a case against a parent can also be dropped if the court hasn’t made a ruling within a year.

Other provisions of the bill include requiring the state to notify child welfare stakeholders if a foster child moves homes, and the court to review a foster child’s place- ment at every hearing and get a doctor’s evaluation before ordering medical treatment of a foster child.

Other House members tacked on three dozen amendments to Wu’s bill, including one that would allow an attorney assigned to represent the interests of the foster child to know the child better.

The debate became heated when Rep. Jeff Leach, R-Plano, added an amendment that would also bar removal of a child if the parent chooses not to vaccinate him or her. Rep. Jason Villalba, R-Dallas, and other members argued that the amendment wasn’t necessary because the law protects parents who choose not to vaccinate and suggested not vaccinating children endangered them. Leach responded that he wanted government to butt out of such family decisions.

The number of children the state has removed from their parents has grown over the last eight years by 33 percent. In fiscal year 2016, the state removed 19,079 children, according to Child Protective Services.

HB 7 is among a handful of priority bills that lawmakers are considering this session to address problems plaguing the state’s child welfare system. High caseworker turnover rates, lack of foster homes, and children dying while in the state’s care have become some of the worst problems.

House Bill 6 filed by Rep. James Frank, R-Wichita Falls, which the chamber was supposed to consider on Monday but was postponed until Wednesday, is another large measure that would turn over many key foster care services to private entities. A similar bill in the Senate — Senate Bill 11 — passed in March.

The House on Monday also approved House Bill 1542, filed by Rep. Four Price, R-Amarillo, to allow foster children to be placed in so-called cottage homes. Such homes allow groups of up to 12 children. Supporters said that it would relieve the shortage of foster homes while opponents said that such homes are unsafe and are not a family-like environment.