Sec. 501.092. COMPREHENSIVE REENTRY AND REINTEGRATION PLAN FOR OFFENDERS

(a) The department shall develop a comprehensive plan to reduce recidivism and ensure the successful reentry and reintegration of offenders into the community following an offender's release or discharge from a correctional facility.

(b) The reentry and reintegration plan developed under this section must provide for:

(1) an assessment of offenders entering a correctional facility to determine which skills the offender needs to develop to be successful in the community following release or discharge;

(2) programs that address the assessed needs of offenders;

(3) a comprehensive network of transition programs to address the needs of offenders released or discharged from a correctional facility;

(4) the identification of providers of existing local programs and transitional services with whom the department may contract under Section 495.028 to implement the reentry and reintegration plan; and

(5) subject to Subsection (c), the sharing of information between local coordinators, persons with whom the department contracts under Section 495.028, and other providers of services as necessary to adequately assess and address the needs of each offender.

(c) An offender's personal health information may be disclosed under Subsection (b)(5) only if:

(1) the offender consents to the disclosure; and

(2) the disclosure does not violate the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (Pub. L. No. 104-191) or other state or federal law.

(d) The programs provided under Subsections (b)(2) and (3) must:

(1) be implemented by highly skilled staff who are experienced in working with inmate reentry and reintegration programs;

(2) provide offenders with:

(A) individualized case management and a full continuum of care;

(B) life-skills training, including information about budgeting, money management, nutrition, and exercise;

(C) education and, if an offender has a learning disability, special education;

(D) employment training;

(E) appropriate treatment programs, including substance abuse and mental health treatment programs; and

(F) parenting and relationship building classes; and

(3) be designed to build for former offenders post-release and post-discharge support from the community into which an offender is released or discharged, including support from agencies and organizations within that community.

(e) In developing the reentry and reintegration plan under this section, the department shall ensure that the reentry program for long-term inmates under Section 501.096 and the reintegration services provided under Section 501.097 are incorporated into the plan.

Added by Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 643 , Sec. 2, eff. June 19, 2009.