CHAPTER 51. FAMILY VIOLENCE CENTERS
HUMAN RESOURCES CODE
TITLE 2. DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES AND DEPARTMENT OF
PROTECTIVE AND REGULATORY SERVICES
SUBTITLE E. SERVICES FOR FAMILIES
CHAPTER 51. FAMILY VIOLENCE CENTERS
Sec. 51.001. PURPOSE. The purpose of this chapter is to promote
development of and access to locally based and supported
nonprofit services for victims of family violence throughout the
state.
Added by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3313, ch. 867, Sec. 1, eff.
Sept. 1, 1981. Amended by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 636, Sec. 1,
eff. Sept. 1, 1989; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 6, Sec. 2, eff.
Sept. 1, 2001.
Sec. 51.002. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Family" has the meaning assigned by Section 71.003, Family
Code.
(2) "Family violence" means an act by a member of a family or
household against another member of the family or household that:
(A) is intended to result in physical harm, bodily injury, or
assault or that is a threat that reasonably places the member in
fear of imminent physical harm, bodily injury, or assault, but
does not include defensive measures to protect oneself; or
(B) is intended to inflict emotional harm, including an act of
emotional abuse.
(3) "Family violence center" includes a family violence shelter
center and a family violence nonresidential center.
(4) "Family violence nonresidential center" means a program
that:
(A) is operated by a public or private nonprofit organization;
and
(B) provides comprehensive nonresidential services to victims of
family violence.
(5) "Family violence shelter center" means a program that:
(A) is operated by a public or private nonprofit organization;
and
(B) provides comprehensive residential and nonresidential
services to victims of family violence.
(6) "Family violence special project" means a project that:
(A) is operated by a public or private nonprofit organization;
and
(B) provides at least one specialized family violence service.
(7) "Household" has the meaning assigned by Section 71.005,
Family Code.
(8) "Member of a household" has the meaning assigned by Section
71.006, Family Code.
(9) "Victim of family violence" means:
(A) an adult member of a family or household who is subjected to
an act of family violence; or
(B) a member of the household of the adult described by
Paragraph (A), other than the member of the household who commits
the act of family violence, including an act of emotional abuse.
Added by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3313, ch. 867, Sec. 1, eff.
Sept. 1, 1981. Amended by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 636, Sec. 2,
eff. Sept. 1, 1989; Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 561, Sec. 36, eff.
Aug. 26, 1991; Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 76, Sec. 5.95(27), eff.
Sept. 1, 1995; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 6, Sec. 3, eff. Sept. 1,
2001.
Sec. 51.0021. FAMILY VIOLENCE SERVICES PLAN. (a) The
department shall develop and maintain a plan for delivering
family violence services in this state.
(b) In developing the plan under this section, the department
shall consider the geographic distribution of services and the
need for services, including the need for increasing services for
underserved populations.
Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 6, Sec. 4, eff. Sept. 1, 2001.
Sec. 51.003. CONTRACTS. (a) The department shall contract for
services with family violence centers with consideration given to
the plan for family violence services under Section 51.0021.
These contracts are to expand existing family violence center
services and may not result in reducing financial support a
family violence center receives from another source. The
contracts shall not provide for more than 75 percent of the cost
of the family violence center program. The department shall
develop a declining scale of state financial support for family
violence centers, declining over a six-year period from the
initiation of each individual contract, with no more than 50
percent of a family violence center program's funding to be
provided by the state after the sixth year. The balance each year
shall be provided from other sources. The department may adopt
rules which will allow exceptions to the above scale in
individual instances when a family violence center shall
demonstrate that exigent circumstances require such a waiver.
(b) The department may contract with family violence special
projects for services. The department shall consider the plan for
family violence services under Section 51.0021 in contracting
with family violence special projects.
(c) The department shall contract statewide for activities that
support and advance the work of family violence centers.
Activities contracted for under this subsection must include the
provision of technical assistance and training for family
violence centers. The department may contract for the provision
of public education, consultation to the department, research,
evaluation, and liaison and training for other professionals who
work with victims of family violence, including professionals in
the criminal justice, medical, and social services fields, and
for community or civic groups.
(d) The department shall award all contracts made under
Subsection (c) through a competitive bidding process unless that
process would not be cost-effective.
Added by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3313, ch. 867, Sec. 1, eff.
Sept. 1, 1981. Amended by Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 264, Sec. 19,
eff. Aug. 26, 1985; Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 636, Sec. 3, eff.
Sept. 1, 1989; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 6, Sec. 5, eff. Sept. 1,
2001.
Sec. 51.004. CONTRACT BIDS. (a) To be eligible for a contract
under Section 51.003(a), a family violence shelter center must:
(1) provide temporary lodging and direct delivery of services
for adults and their dependents;
(2) have been in actual operation offering shelter services 24
hours a day with a capacity for not less than five persons for at
least one year before the date on which the contract is awarded;
(3) demonstrate that the center, through the services it
provides, is addressing a need in the community consistent with
the plan for family violence services under Section 51.0021; and
(4) submit a contract application on forms prescribed by the
department.
(b) To be eligible for a contract under Section 51.003(a), a
family violence nonresidential center must:
(1) provide, as its primary purpose, direct delivery of services
to adult victims of family violence;
(2) demonstrate a system of referring victims of family violence
to at least one family violence shelter center or other safe
temporary lodging;
(3) have been operating and providing comprehensive services,
including the services described by Section 51.005(b)(3), to
victims of family violence for at least one year before the date
on which the contract is awarded;
(4) demonstrate that the center, through the services it
provides, is addressing a need in the community consistent with
the plan for family violence services under Section 51.0021; and
(5) submit a contract application on forms prescribed by the
department.
(c) The department shall consider the following factors in
awarding contracts under Section 51.003(a):
(1) the family violence center's eligibility for and use of
funds from the federal government, philanthropic organizations,
and voluntary sources;
(2) community support for the family violence center, as
evidenced by financial contributions from civic organizations,
local governments, and individuals;
(3) evidence that the family violence center provides services
that encourage self-sufficiency and effectively uses community
resources;
(4) evidence of involvement with local law enforcement
officials; and
(5) support for the family violence center through volunteer
work, especially volunteer effort by persons who have been
victims of family violence.
(d) To be eligible for a contract under Section 51.003(b), a
family violence special project must:
(1) provide:
(A) community education relating to family violence; or
(B) direct delivery of services for adult victims of family
violence or their children;
(2) demonstrate a system of referring victims of family violence
to at least one family violence shelter center or other safe
temporary lodging;
(3) demonstrate that the project, through the services it
provides, is addressing a need in the community consistent with
the plan for family violence services under Section 51.0021;
(4) demonstrate that the underserved or special population to be
served by the project is involved in the project's design and
implementation, if applicable; and
(5) submit a contract application on forms prescribed by the
department.
(e) The department shall use a noncompetitive procurement
procedure if the department determines that there is no
competition between eligible family violence centers for a
service area. If the department determines that there is
competition between eligible family violence centers for a
service area, the department shall award a contract through a
competitive procurement procedure.
Added by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3313, ch. 867, Sec. 1, eff.
Sept. 1, 1981. Amended by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 636, Sec. 4,
eff. Sept. 1, 1989; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 6, Sec. 6, eff.
Sept. 1, 2001.
Sec. 51.005. CONTRACT SPECIFICATIONS. (a) The department shall
contract only with public or private nonprofit organizations that
fulfill the requirements of this chapter.
(b) The contracts shall require the persons operating a family
violence center to:
(1) make a quarterly and an annual financial report on a form
prescribed by the department;
(2) cooperate with inspections the department makes to ensure
services standards and fiscal responsibility; and
(3) provide, as its primary purpose, services to victims of
family violence that include:
(A) 24-hour-a-day shelter, except that a family violence
nonresidential center may provide access to a 24-hour-a-day
shelter;
(B) a 24-hour-a-day crisis hotline, except that a family
violence nonresidential center may provide access to a
24-hour-a-day crisis hotline operated by another organization
located in the nonresidential center's service area;
(C) access to emergency medical care;
(D) intervention services, including safety planning,
understanding and support, information, education, referrals, and
other resource assistance;
(E) access to emergency transportation;
(F) legal assistance in the civil and criminal justice systems,
including:
(i) identifying individual needs, legal rights, and legal
options; and
(ii) providing support and accompaniment in pursuing those
options;
(G) information about educational arrangements for children;
(H) information about training for and seeking employment;
(I) cooperation with criminal justice officials;
(J) community education;
(K) a referral system to existing community services; and
(L) a volunteer recruitment and training program.
(c) The contracts may require the persons operating a family
violence center to use intake and case study forms. Forms
required shall be developed by the department with consultation
as outlined in Section 51.008.
Added by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3313, ch. 867, Sec. 1, eff.
Sept. 1, 1981. Amended by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 636, Sec. 5,
eff. Sept. 1, 1989; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 6, Sec. 7, eff.
Sept. 1, 2001.
Sec. 51.0051. MAXIMIZING FEDERAL FUNDING FOR PROGRAMS TO BENEFIT
VICTIMS OF FAMILY VIOLENCE. To maximize the state's receipt of
federal matching funds for emergency assistance under Part A,
Title IV, Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Section 601 et seq.),
the department shall:
(1) ensure that a contract made under Section 51.003 includes
provisions necessary to maximize federal funding for services for
victims of family violence;
(2) file amendments to the state's plan for aid and services to
needy families with children under Part A, Title IV, Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. Section 601 et seq.), that are necessary
to maximize federal funding; and
(3) establish by rule any reporting procedures that federal law
requires as a condition of receiving federal matching funds.
Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 609, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1995; Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 655, Sec. 6.11, eff. Sept. 1,
1995.
Sec. 51.006. REPORT. Not later than November 1 of each
even-numbered year, the department shall publish a report that
summarizes reports from family violence centers under contract
with the department and that analyzes the effectiveness of the
contracts authorized by this chapter. The reports must include
information on the expenditure of funds authorized under this
chapter, the services provided, the number of persons for whom a
service was provided, and any other information relating to the
provision of family violence services. The report may be combined
with the report required by Section 21.011. Copies of the report
shall be submitted to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the
speaker of the house of representatives, the Legislative Budget
Board, and the standing committees of the senate and house of
representatives having primary jurisdiction over the department.
Added by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3313, ch. 867, Sec. 1, eff.
Sept. 1, 1981. Amended by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 636, Sec. 5,
eff. Sept. 1, 1989; Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 693, Sec. 6, eff.
Sept. 1, 1995; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 6, Sec. 8, eff. Sept. 1,
2001.
Sec. 51.007. CONFIDENTIALITY. The department may not disclose
any information that would identify:
(1) a particular family violence center location;
(2) a board member of a family violence center or family
violence special project; or
(3) a person working at or receiving services through a family
violence center or family violence special project.
Added by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3313, ch. 867, Sec. 1, eff.
Sept. 1, 1981. Amended by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 636, Sec. 5,
eff. Sept. 1, 1989; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 6, Sec. 9, eff.
Sept. 1, 2001; Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 161, Sec. 1, eff. May
27, 2003.
Sec. 51.008. CONSULTATIONS. In implementing this chapter, the
department shall consult with individuals and groups having
knowledge of and experience in the problems of family violence.
Added by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3313, ch. 867, Sec. 1, eff.
Sept. 1, 1981.
Sec. 51.009. GRANTS AND FUNDS. The department may seek other
funds that may be available for the contracts authorized by this
chapter.
Added by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3313, ch. 867, Sec. 1, eff.
Sept. 1, 1981.
Sec. 51.010. RULES. The department may adopt rules necessary to
implement this chapter.
Added by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3313, ch. 867, Sec. 1, eff.
Sept. 1, 1981.
Sec. 51.011. FUNDING. (a) In order to finance the program
created by this chapter, the department is authorized to solicit
and receive grants of money from either private or public
sources, including appropriation by the legislature from the
general revenue fund of the State of Texas, and in that regard it
is hereby declared that the need for and importance of this
program require priority and preferential consideration in
appropriation.
(b) The department may use not more than six percent of the
annual legislative appropriation to the family violence program
for administration of this chapter and not more than six percent
annually for the contracts described in Section 51.003(c).
Added by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3313, ch. 867, Sec. 1, eff.
Sept. 1, 1981. Amended by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 6, Sec. 10,
eff. Sept. 1, 2001.
Sec. 51.012. COORDINATION OF SERVICES. The department and the
Department of Protective and Regulatory Services shall coordinate
the provision of violence prevention services for children.
Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 6, Sec. 11, eff. Sept. 1,
2001.