89R4168 MCF-D     By: Swanson H.B. No. 437       A BILL TO BE ENTITLED   AN ACT   relating to the placement of children in a detention or   correctional facility according to biological sex.          BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:          SECTION 1.  This Act may be cited as the Juvenile Girls   Protection Act.          SECTION 2.  Section 51.12(m), Family Code, is amended to   read as follows:          (m)  The Texas Juvenile Justice Department may deny,   suspend, or revoke the registration of any facility required to   register under Subsection (i) if the facility fails to:                (1)  adhere to all applicable minimum standards for the   facility; [or]                (2)  timely correct any notice of noncompliance with   minimum standards; or                (3)  strictly comply with the requirements of Section   51.127.          SECTION 3.  Section 51.125(e), Family Code, is amended to   read as follows:          (e)  The Texas Juvenile Justice Department may deny,   suspend, or revoke the registration of any facility required to   register under Subsection (d) if the facility fails to:                (1)  adhere to all applicable minimum standards for the   facility; [or]                (2)  timely correct any notice of noncompliance with   minimum standards; or                (3)  strictly comply with the requirements of Section   51.127.          SECTION 4.  Chapter 51, Family Code, is amended by adding   Section 51.127 to read as follows:          Sec. 51.127.  PLACEMENT OF JUVENILES BASED ON BIOLOGICAL   SEX. (a)  In this section, "department" means the Texas Juvenile   Justice Department.          (b)  A juvenile board created under Chapter 152, Human   Resources Code, or the department, as applicable, shall place a   child in a detention or correctional facility according to the   child's biological sex, as determined by:                (1)  the child's official birth certificate, if the   child's biological sex is correctly stated on the certificate as   described by Subsection (c); or                (2)  if the child's official birth certificate   described by Subdivision (1) is unobtainable, another government   record that states the child's biological sex.          (c)  For purposes of this section, a statement of a child's   biological sex on the child's official birth certificate is   considered to have correctly stated the child's biological sex only   if the statement was:                (1)  entered at or near the time of the child's birth;   and                (2)  not modified except as necessary to correct any   type of scrivener or clerical error in the child's biological sex.          (d)  The vital statistics unit of the Department of State   Health Services may not charge a juvenile board or the department a   fee to issue a birth certificate for use under this section.          (e)  Except as provided by Subsection (b), a juvenile board   or the department, as applicable, shall, in accordance with the   Prison Rape Elimination Act National Standards (28 C.F.R. Part 115,   Subpart D), consider the unique safety needs of each child and take   appropriate action to ensure a child's health and safety.          (f)  A juvenile board and the Texas Juvenile Justice Board   shall adopt any rules necessary to implement this section. The   rules must ensure compliance with state and federal law.          SECTION 5.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives   a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as   provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this   Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this   Act takes effect September 1, 2025.