Big Voices for Little Texans Award

2020 big voices for little texans® AwarDs

Thank you to our partner!

Senator lois KolKhorst

Texas CASA is proud to honor Texas State Senator Lois Kolkhorst for her legislation to reform and improve residential treatment centers that house children and youth in foster care with higher needs. We are also recognizing her leadership on securing increased state funding to support CASA programs and to support the ongoing rollout of Community-Based Care in Texas.

86th Legislative Session wins:
Senate Bill 781 raises standards for Residential Treatment Centers in conformance with the federal Family First Act; it provides more regulatory authority for dealing with RTCs that don’t meet required standards; it requires greater community engagement and planning when an RTC is seeking licensure; and it strengthens child safety and runaway prevention procedures at these facilities.

Senator Kolkhorst was the key decision maker in supporting an increase in CASA funding of $1.75 million a year, funding that is absolutely vital to supporting the 72 CASA programs statewide and their efforts to serve as many children in foster care as possible.

Senator Kolkhorst also led efforts to fund the continued roll out of Community-Based Care in Texas, including funding for Stage II services under this new service delivery model.

Senator Angela Paxton

Texas CASA is proud to honor Texas State Senator Angela Paxton for her work on improving medical coverage for adopted children with severe or chronic health conditions, and ensuring children and youth have a voice in the placement decision-making process during their time in foster care.

86th Legislative Session wins:
House Bill 72 improves medical coverage for adopted children with severe or chronic health conditions. Senator Paxton fiercely advocated to ensure funding was authorized for the implementation of HB 72 in the final state budget bill.

House Bill 3390 ensures children and youth have a voice in the placement decision-making process during their time in foster care. HB 3390 requires guardians ad litem, attorneys ad litem, and CPS caseworkers to ask children about any adult who could be a caregiver for them in their community. This important legislation also aligns with CASA’s Collaborative Family Engagement initiative. CFE, a joint initiative with Child Protective Services, aims to preserve and build a network of support for children and families.

Senator José Menéndez

Texas CASA is proud to honor Texas State Senator José Menéndez for his work to help children and youth in, and formerly in, foster care achieve educational success.

86th Legislative Session wins:
House Bill 1709 was legislation that built on Senator Menéndez's work in 2017 in House Bill 1556. Taken together, this legislation removed conflicts with federal law and repealed the restriction that foster parents could not serve as the surrogate parent until they had been serving as foster parent for 60 days. Surrogate parents work to ensure that children and youth who qualify for special education receive the high quality, individualized services they deserve. HB 1709 clarified who can and cannot serve as surrogate parent, it requires school districts to notify DFPS when a surrogate is appointed, and it creates a procedure to replace a surrogate when they are not performing their duties.

House Bill 1702, co-sponsored by Senator Menéndez, requires state higher education institutions to provide information to foster care liaisons to help them identify students who are eligible for the tuition and fee waiver or who have been in state conservatorship. As many as 40 percent of students are unaware that they qualify for the Texas foster care tuition and fee waiver. HB 1702 also strengthens the role of the foster care liaison by supporting additional training for these liaisons and requiring state institutions to better publicize information about how these liaisons can assist youth who have been in state conservatorship.

Senator Menendez was a leader in obtaining $3.5 million in state funding for a pilot project in Bexar County that will support college success for foster youth and youth formerly in foster care. This is a community- wide effort involves UTSA, Texas A&M- San Antonio, Alamo Colleges, CASA, and the local judiciary among others. It is truly a first of its kind effort in Texas and is being closely watched.

Senator kelly hancock

Texas CASA is proud to honor Texas State Senator Kelly Hancock for his work to help youth in, and formerly in, foster care achieve post-secondary educational success, and his support in securing increased state funding to support CASA programs.

86th Legislative Session wins:
Senator Hancock introduced Senate Bill 1357 and ultimately was the Senate sponsor of its companion, House Bill 1702, which is now law. HB 1702 requires state higher education institutions to provide information to foster care liaisons to help them identify students who are eligible for the tuition and fee waiver or who have been in state conservatorship. As many as 40 percent of students are unaware that they qualify for the Texas foster care tuition and fee waiver. HB 1702 also strengthens the role of the foster care liaison by supporting additional training for these liaisons and requiring state institutions to better publicize information about how these liaisons can assist youth who have been in state conservatorship.

Senator Hancock supported an increase in CASA funding of $1.75 million a year, funding that is absolutely vital to supporting the 72 CASA programs statewide and their efforts to serve as many children in foster care as possible.

Representative james white

Texas CASA is proud to honor Texas State Representative James White for his work to ensure youth who are in foster care or experiencing homelessness are able to get basic identity documents and driver’s licenses, and for his efforts to improve medical coverage for children with high medical needs who are adopted while in foster care.

86th Legislative Session wins:
House Bill 123 strengthens efforts to assure that youth who have been in foster care have their birth certificate and a driver’s license or state-issued ID. Having these basic forms of identification is vital to the well-being of foster youth and enables them to get jobs, rent housing and access some transportation options. HB 123 also allows these youth to receive their driver’s license and a copy of their birth certificate without requiring parental consent or any fee.

House Bill 72 supports adoption of children with high medical needs by allowing adoptive parents to remain in STAR Health Medicaid if their child has a chronic health condition. HB 72 also eliminated an existing gap in health coverage that existed for children who were adopted out of state care.

Representative Ina Minjarez

Texas CASA is proud to honor Texas State Representative Ina Minjarez for her work benefiting children who are preparing to exit state care, efforts to improve information provided to kinship families, and support in securing increased state funding to support CASA programs.

86th Legislative Session wins:
House Bill 53 enhances the Preparation for Adult Living (PAL) training program. PAL will now include training in financial literacy, monthly budgeting, insurance, and civic engagement.

House Bill 1884 seeks to help kinship caregivers and families by ensuring DFPS provides them with information about how kinship caregivers can receive greater financial support by becoming certified as a foster family or by accessing funding through permanency care assistance.

Representative Minjarez, a member of the House Appropriations committee, supported an increase in CASA funding of $1.75 million a year, funding that is absolutely vital to supporting the 72 CASA programs statewide and their efforts to serve as many children in foster care as possible.

Representative Sarah Davis

Texas CASA is proud to honor Texas State Representative Sarah Davis for her efforts to reform Medicaid in Texas, and leadership in securing increased state funding to support CASA programs.

86th Legislative Session wins:
Representative Davis spearheaded legislation to improve Texas’ Medicaid services, especially for children with special needs. HB 2453, HB 12 and HB 111 sought to improve accountability and simplify the appeals process for Medicaid recipients served by Medicaid Managed Care Organizations. Her legislation provided significant reforms to protect patients and help ensure denials of services are justified.

Representative Davis was the key House decision maker in supporting an increase in CASA funding of $1.75 million a year, funding that is absolutely vital to supporting the 72 CASA programs statewide and their efforts to serve as many children in foster care as possible.

Representative donna howard

Texas CASA is proud to honor Texas State Representative Donna Howard for her work to help youth in, and formerly in, foster care achieve post-secondary educational success, and for her leadership in addressing issues for pregnant and parenting youth in foster care.

86th Legislative Session wins:

Representative Howard introduced House Bill 1702, which is now law. HB 1702 requires state higher education institutions to provide information to foster care liaisons to help them identify students who are eligible for the tuition and fee waiver or who have been in state conservatorship. As many as 40 percent of students are unaware that they qualify for the Texas foster care tuition and fee waiver. HB 1702 also strengthens the role of the foster care liaison by supporting additional training for these liaisons and requiring state institutions to better publicize information about how these liaisons can assist youth who have been in state conservatorship.

House Bill 475 requires DFPS to develop and provide information to pregnant and parenting minors in foster care to promote child safety and better child and family outcomes.  Parenting is always challenging, but even more so if you are young and in foster care. Research shows that there is an intergenerational cycle of foster care. HB 475 seeks to help break that cycle and support and inform these young parents about safe sleeping, child development, prenatal and postpartum medical care and healthy relationships, among other topics.

Representative Mary González

Texas CASA is proud to honor Texas State Representative Mary González for her work to strengthen state law that determines how surrogate parents are appointed and serve children in foster care, and support in securing increased state funding to support CASA programs.

86th Legislative Session wins:
House Bill 1709 was legislation that built on Representative González's work in 2017 in House Bill 1556. Taken together, this legislation removed conflicts with federal law and repealed the restriction that foster parents could not serve as the surrogate parent until they had been serving as foster parent for 60 days. Surrogate parents work to ensure that children and youth who qualify for special education receive the high quality, individualized services they deserve. HB 1709 clarified who can and cannot serve as surrogate parent, it requires school districts to notify DFPS when a surrogate is appointed, and it creates a procedure to replace a surrogate when they are not performing their duties.

Representative González, a member of the House Appropriations committee, supported an increase in CASA funding of $1.75 million a year, funding that is absolutely vital to supporting the 72 CASA programs statewide and their efforts to serve as many children in foster care as possible.

Representative Jarvis johnson

Texas CASA is proud to honor Texas State Representative Jarvis Johnson for his leadership on legislation to ensure children and youth in foster care continue to have representation in the legal process after they move into Permanent Managing Conservatorship, and his legislative efforts to help youth in foster care obtain a state identification card.

86th Legislative Session wins:
Representative Johnson authored legislation to resolve a problem with current state law by requiring that children who enter the Permanent Managing Conservatorship of the state continue to have an attorney or guardian ad litem to advocate for their needs in the legal process.

Representative Johnson worked to waive fees for state-issued identification cards for youth in foster care. Access to identification documents is a significant tool to support success for foster youth who leave state foster care.

Representative scott sanford

Texas CASA is proud to honor Texas State Representative Scott Sanford for his work ensuring children and youth have a voice in the placement decision-making process during their time in foster care.

86th Legislative Session win:
House Bill 3390 ensures children and youth have a voice in the placement decision-making process during their time in foster care. HB 3390 requires guardians ad litem, attorneys ad litem, and CPS caseworkers to ask children about any adult who could be a caregiver for them in their community. This important legislation also aligns with CASA’s Collaborative Family Engagement initiative. CFE, a joint initiative with Child Protective Services, aims to preserve and build a network of support for children and families.

thank you to our partner!