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(a) A child-placing agency that seeks to verify an agency foster home shall request background information about the agency foster home from a child-placing agency that has previously verified the home as an agency foster home or agency foster group home.
(b) Notwithstanding Section 261.201 , Family Code, a child-placing agency that has verified an agency foster home or an agency foster group home is required to release to another child-placing agency background information requested under Subsection (a).
(c) A child-placing agency that releases background information under this section is immune from civil and criminal liability for the release of the information.
(d) For purposes of this section, background information means the home study under which the agency foster home or agency foster group home was verified by the previous child-placing agency and any record of noncompliance with state minimum standards received and the resolution of any such noncompliance by the previous child-placing agency.
(e) The executive commissioner by rule shall develop a process by which a child-placing agency shall report to the department:
(1) the name of any agency foster home that has been closed for any reason, including a voluntary closure;
(2) information regarding the reasons for the closure of the agency foster home; and
(3) the name and other contact information of a person who may be contacted by another child-placing agency to obtain the records relating to the closed agency foster home that are required to be maintained and made available under this section.
(f) Information gathered under Subsection (e) must be made available to child-placing agencies through a searchable database maintained by the department. Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 575, Sec. 36(a), eff. Sept. 1, 1997. Amended by: Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1406 (S.B. 758 ), Sec. 36, eff. September 1, 2007. Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1 (S.B. 219 ), Sec. 4.230, eff. April 2, 2015. Acts 2017, 85th Leg., R.S., Ch. 317 (H.B. 7 ), Sec. 63, eff. September 1, 2017.