Current through Reg. 49, No. 38; September 20, 2024
(a) During a
service planning team meeting to develop an enrollment, a revised, or a renewal
IPC and IPP, a case manager must inform an individual or LAR of the following
if the individual is interested in receiving SFS or CFS:
(1) that if the individual or LAR selects SFS
or CFS, the individual or LAR will be responsible for paying room and board in
accordance with a residential agreement described in subsections (b) and (c) of
this section;
(2) that if the
individual or LAR does not pay room or board as required by a residential
agreement, the individual's support family may evict the individual in
accordance with the residential agreement and state law; and
(3) that if the individual is evicted by a
support family and the individual or LAR has not paid the delinquent room or
board, HHSC will deny the individual SFS or CFS until the individual or LAR
pays the delinquent room or board.
(b) An individual's support family agency or
continued family agency must ensure that an individual receiving SFS or CFS has
a written residential agreement with the support family.
(c) The residential agreement required by
subsection (b) of this section must include:
(1) the physical address of the
residence;
(2) the name of the
individual;
(3) the name of the
support family;
(4) the beginning
date of the residential agreement;
(5) the date the residential agreement
expires;
(6) a provision that:
(A) the support family and the individual or
LAR agree that the residential agreement is a "lease," as defined in Texas
Property Code Chapter 92 and that they are subject to state law governing
residential tenancies, including Texas Property Code Chapters 24, 91, and 92
and Texas Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 510; and
(B) to the extent allowed by law, in the
event of a conflict or inconsistency between any provision of the residential
agreement and any provision of state statutory law, including Texas Property
Code Chapters 91 and 92, the provision in the residential agreement
governs;
(C) the individual or LAR
is not waiving any right or remedy provided to tenants under state law,
including the Texas Fair Housing Act in Texas Property Code Chapter 301, and is
not agreeing to any notice period that is shorter than the notice period to
which tenants are entitled under state law;
(D) allows the individual or LAR to terminate
the residential agreement before its expiration date without any obligation
under the residential agreement except an obligation that accrued before the
date of termination, if the individual permanently moves from the residence for
any reason, including transferring to a different support family agency or
continued family agency;
(E) the
support family agrees to refund to the individual or LAR an amount for room and
board paid to the support family for the days that the individual was away from
the residence because the individual permanently moved from the residence using
the following formula to determine the daily amount for room and board (the
monthly amount for room and board divided by the number of days in the
month);
(F) the individual may
furnish and decorate the individual's bedroom;
(G) the support family agrees to be
responsible for all repairs to the residence of the support family, including
the support family's real property or personal property, resulting from normal
wear and tear, as defined in Texas Property Code §
92.001;
(H) that allows eviction of the individual
only if:
(i) the individual or LAR fails to
pay room or board, which does not include any late fee; or
(ii) the individual's CLASS Program services
are terminated;
(I) the
support family will, before giving the individual or LAR a notice to vacate,
give the individual or LAR a notice of proposed eviction that allows the
individual or LAR at least 60 calendar days to pay the delinquent room or
board;
(J) if the individual or LAR
pays the delinquent room or board within the period required by subparagraph
(I) of this paragraph, the support family will not give the individual or LAR a
notice to vacate or otherwise proceed to evict the individual; and
(K) the support family will not accelerate
the entire balance of the unpaid room or board owed under the remainder of the
term of the residential agreement if the individual or LAR violates the
residential agreement and the violation does not result in an
eviction;
(7) the amount
the individual or LAR is paying for room and board;
(8) the day of the month that the amount for
room and board is due, which will not be before the day of the month that an
individual receives a primary source of income, such as supplemental security
income and social security disability insurance;
(9) the amount of a late fee, if any, which
may be charged only once per month and will not exceed 10 percent of the amount
for room and board, that the support family may charge the individual or LAR if
room and board is not paid by the third day after it is due;
(10) the signature of the support family;
and
(11) the signature of the
individual or the LAR.
(d) A support family must:
(1) give the individual or LAR at least three
calendar days to review, request changes, and sign the residential
agreement;
(2) ensure the
residential agreement is fully executed before the individual begins living in
a residence in which SFS or CFS is provided, except that an individual may
begin living in one of these residences before a residential agreement is fully
executed in the event of an emergency;
(3) if an individual begins living in a
residence in which SFS or CFS is provided before a residential agreement is
fully executed because of an emergency, as allowed by paragraph (2) of this
subsection:
(A) document the details of the
emergency; and
(B) ensure the
residential agreement is fully executed within seven calendar days after the
individual begins living in the residence; and
(4) provide one copy of the residential
agreement to the individual or LAR within three business days after the date
the residential agreement is fully executed.
(e) If a support family agency or continued
family agency becomes aware that a modification to the provision in the
residential agreement that the individual may furnish and decorate the
individual's bedroom is needed based on a specific assessed need of the
individual, the support family agency or continued family agency must:
(1) notify the case manager of the needed
modification; and
(2) provide the
case manager with the information described in subsection (n) of this section
as requested by the case manager.
(f) If an individual or LAR is delinquent in
payment of room or board and the support family wants to evict the individual,
the support family agency or continued family agency must:
(1) notify the case manager that the
individual or LAR is delinquent in the payment of room or board under the
residential agreement and that the support family wants to evict the
individual;
(2) after providing the
notification required by paragraph (1) of this subsection, meet with the
individual or LAR, including the representative payee if one has been appointed
by the Social Security Administration, and the case manager to discuss the
alleged non-payment of room or board and options to prevent an eviction;
and
(3) if the support family
intends to proceed to evict the individual at the meeting required by paragraph
(2) of this subsection:
(A) give the
individual or LAR a written notice of proposed eviction that allows the
individual or LAR at least 60 calendar days to pay the delinquent room or
board; and
(B) provide the case
manager with a copy of the written notice of proposed eviction.
(g) If an individual or
LAR pays the delinquent room or board within the period required by subsection
(f)(3) of this section, the support family must not give the individual or LAR
a notice to vacate or otherwise proceed to evict the individual.
(h) If an individual or LAR does not pay the
delinquent room or board within the period required by subsection (f)(3) of
this section, the support family agency or continued family agency:
(1) must report the failure to pay to one of
the following, as appropriate:
(A) the Social
Security Administration;
(B) the
probate court that appointed the individual's guardian; or
(C) DFPS as an allegation of the LAR's
exploitation or neglect of the individual;
(2) must meet with the individual or LAR and
the case manager to discuss alternative living settings for the individual;
and
(3) if the support family wants
to proceed to evict the individual, the support family must:
(A) give the individual or LAR a written
notice to vacate the residence in accordance with the residential agreement and
state law; and
(B) send a copy of
the written notice described in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph to the
individual's case manager within one business day after the individual or LAR
is given the notice.
(i) If an individual is evicted by a support
family and the individual or LAR has not paid the delinquent room or board, the
case manager must convene a meeting or meetings to update the IPC and IPP as
described in §
259.79(c) or (d)
of this chapter (relating to Renewal and Revision of an IPC). If the individual
or LAR wants to keep SFS or CFS on the individual's IPC, the case manager must
inform the individual or LAR at the meeting or meetings that HHSC will deny CFS
and SFS, if included on the individual's IPC, until the individual pays the
delinquent room or board.
(j) If a
support family evicts an individual who has an LAR and the LAR fails to arrange
an alternative living setting for the individual, the support family agency or
continued family agency must report the LAR's failure to DFPS as neglect of the
individual and notify the case manager that such a report was made.
(k) If an individual pays the delinquent room
or board, a support family agency or continued family agency must, within one
business day after the payment, notify the individual's case manager that the
individual is no longer delinquent.
(l) In each residence in which a support
family agency provides SFS or a continued family agency provides CFS, the
support family agency or the continued family agency must ensure that, except
as provided in subsection (m) of this section:
(1) an individual has privacy in the
individual's bedroom;
(2) an
individual has the option not to share a bedroom with a roommate;
(3) an individual sharing a bedroom has a
choice of roommates;
(4) a lock is
installed on the individual's bedroom door at no cost to the individual and
that:
(A) the lock is operable by the
individual; and
(B) only the
individual, a roommate of the individual, and the support family has keys to
the individual's bedroom door;
(5) an individual can furnish and decorate
the individual's bedroom;
(6) while
in the residence, an individual has the freedom and support:
(A) to control the individual's schedule and
activities that are not part of the implementation plan; and
(B) to have access to food at any
time;
(7) an individual
may have visitors of the individual's choosing at any time; and
(8) the residence is physically accessible
and free of hazards to the individual.
(m) If a support family agency or continued
family agency becomes aware that a modification to a requirement described in
subsection (l)(1) - (7) of this section is needed based on a specific assessed
need of an individual, the support family agency or continued family agency
must:
(1) notify the case manager of the
needed modification; and
(2)
provide the case manager with the information described in subsection (n) of
this section as requested by the case manager.
(n) A case manager must, if notified in
accordance with subsection (e)(1) or (m)(1) of this section, convene a service
planning team meeting to update the individual's IPP to include the following:
(1) a description of the specific and
individualized assessed need that justifies the modification;
(2) a description of any positive
interventions and supports that have been tried but did not work;
(3) a description of any less intrusive
methods of meeting the need that have been tried but did not work;
(4) a description of the condition that is
directly proportionate to the specific assessed need;
(5) a description of how data will be
routinely collected and reviewed to measure the ongoing effectiveness of the
modification;
(6) the established
time limits for periodic reviews to determine if the modification is still
necessary or can be terminated;
(7)
the individual's or LAR's signature on the IPP evidencing informed consent to
the modification; and
(8) the
support family agency or continued family agency's assurance that the
modification will cause the individual no harm.
(o) After the service planning team updates
the IPP as required by subsection (n) of this section, the support family may
implement the modification.
(p) A
support family agency or a continued family agency must provide ongoing
recruitment, support, training, and monitoring of SFS or CFS, including:
(1) ensuring that a support family is
available to serve an eligible individual;
(2) helping an individual transition from
institutional services to SFS;
(3)
supporting an individual living with a support family to prevent placement
breakdown or admission to an institution;
(4) providing an alternative support family
when an individual's placement with a support family is no longer available or
appropriate;
(5) establishing a
safe and permanent placement for an individual as approved by the service
planning team;
(6) training the
support family to provide the SFS or CFS the service planning team assigns and
as documented on the individual's IPC and IPP; and
(7) monitoring and reporting to the case
manager about the individual's placement, as often as needed but at least
monthly, as described in §259.211(4) of this division (relating to Ongoing
Support) and §259.213 of this division (relating to Monthly
Monitoring).
