Anti-Parental Rights Bill on Texas Governor's Desk - We Need Your Help to Veto It !!

by Erin Casssity

Call Gov. Rick Perry to VETO SB 1440 - it is an Attack on your Parental Rights!
Your phone calls and emails are working. Keep calling until he vetoes it!

Call Gov. Perry at 512-463-2000 and voice your opposition to SB 1440.

You can also call the Texas Citizen's Opinion Line at 800-252-9600.

You can email your views at morgan.johnson@governor.state.tx.us .

Another effective thing to do is to call your state rep or state senator and ask them to call upon Gov. Perry to VETO SB 1440.

Texas state reps: http://www.legis.state.tx.us/Members/Members.aspx?Chamber=H .

Texas state senators: http://www.legis.state.tx.us/Members/Members.aspx?Chamber=S

from Robert Morrow 512-306-1510 grassroots political activist

A wide variety of groups oppose SB 1440. These groups include conservative, libertarian and yes, even some liberal child advocacy groups such as the National Coalition for Child Protection Reform, NCCPR: http://nccpr.blogspot.com/2009/06/texas-tries-to-legalize-flds-type-raids.html

In addition to the NCCPR, other activist groups who OPPOSE SB 1440 and are asking Gov. Perry to VETO this attack on parental rights and threat to the well being of children are listed below. The critical problem with SB 1440 is that it would do away with a COURT HEARING for parents and their lawyers before CPS runs roughshod through your life. Many CPS complaints are false, bogus, exaggerated, and sometimes even malicious complaints by neighbors. Oftentimes, these are anonymous complaints as well.

A CPS investigation can be extremely traumatic not just parents but CHILDREN as well. It is critical that parents and/or their lawyers have the chance to appear before a judge to tell their side of the story BEFORE CPS has access to your child, removes your child for an interview, does naked strip searches of your child, snoops around your home or seizes your child's medical and school records.

SB 1440 would do away with the parents' side being heard before a judge; instead it would institutionalize EX PARTE hearings with only CPS present before a judge, in essence turning these hearings into rubber stamping affairs for CPS. THIS THREATENS PARENTS, CHILDREN AND FAMILIES. UNNECESSARY CPS INVESTIGATIONS ARE OFTEN EXTREMELY TRAUMATIC FOR FAMILIES!

Groups that OPPOSE SB 1440 and who are asking Gov. Rick Perry to VETO SB 1440:

TEXAS HOME SCHOOL COALITION -- TIM LAMBERT
EAGLE FORUM - CATHIE ADAMS, BRIAN RUSSELL
FREE MARKET FOUNDATION - KELLY SHACKLEFORD, JONATHON SAENZ
PARENT GUIDANCE CENTER - JOHANNA SCOT
TEXANS FOR ACCOUNTABLE GOVERNMENT - CHUCK YOUNG, KATIE BREWER
TEXAS CAMPAIGN FOR LIBERTY - DEBRA MEDINA
NATIONAL COALITION FOR CHILD PROTECTION REFORM
LIBERTARIAN PARTY - ROBERT BUTLER
CONSTITUTION PARTY
REPUBLICAN LIBERTY CAUCUS - PIERRE DEROCHEMONT, DON ZIMMERMAN
TRAVIS COUNTY REPUBLICAN PARTY CHAIR - ROSEMARY EDWARDS
CITIZENS COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
PAUL D. PERRY - BUSINESSMAN AND MEDIATOR
ROBERT MORROW - GRASSROOTS ACTIVIST

(The above list is not all inclusive)

Links to learn more:

1) Tim Lambert's blog gives a super explanation: http://www.rightintexas.com/

2) Parent Guidance Center: http://www.parentguidancecenter.org/web/ (excellent web page)

3) NCCPR Child Welfare Blog: http://nccpr.blogspot.com/2009/06/texas-tries-to-legalize-flds-type-raids.html

SB 1064 by Senator Kirk Watson was filed early in the session, and it sought to allow CPS, in the course of an investigation of abuse or neglect, to get the medical or mental health records of children who are the focus of an investigation. In order for CPS to accomplish this, the person refusing to give the records and parents must be given notice and a court hearing and CPS must show "good cause" for the action before the court would order the release of said records to CPS.

However, the bill was substituted in committee for a very different SB 1064, which was passed out of the Senate and sent to the House. The new SB 1064 gave the court authority to force parents to give CPS access to the child and/or transport the child for "interview, examination and investigation," without a court hearing or notice to the parent. Worst of all, the language in the current statute that requires CPS to prove "good cause shown" was stricken. Thus this bill would allow CPS, during an investigation in which the parents would not waive their 4th amendment rights, entrance into their home, access to medical or mental health records of their children or transportation of the child, on the simple filing of an affidavit by a CPS worker with no hearing or opportunity for the parents or their legal counsel to present their case.

The reason that the committee substitute was not filed as the original bill is clear. It would have caused a firestorm of opposition for the wholesale destruction of parental rights in the course of an investigation of child abuse by CPS. When the bill was scheduled for a hearing in the House Human Services Committee, officials of the Parent Guidance Center - a pro-parent group that helps families who are under investigation by CPS - presented written testimony and signed witness cards in opposition to the bill. Strangely, that testimony and those witness cards were not entered into the record of the hearing on the bill.

On the last day of the session, Representative Patrick Rose, chairman of the House Human Services Committee, offered a floor amendment to SB 1440 (another bill by Watson), which was on the Local and Consent Calendar. The amendment offered by Rose was the language of committee substitute SB 1064, and since SB 1440 was considered non-controversial and the sponsor of the bill (Rose) agreed to the amendment, it was adopted on a voice vote, and the final language of SB 1440 includes the committee substitute language of SB 1064.

This whole sordid story is an example of how legislation that could never pass a public debate and vote in the Texas legislature can become law. I'm sure the intent of those seeking these changes is to protect children from abuse, but to allow this simply because it makes the process go faster is a gross abuse of parents' rights to protect their children. We hear stories on a regular basis of out of control CPS officials who regularly seek court orders without notice to parents who refuse to open their door and give CPS full access to their children. In fact, a story this week in Corpus Christi explains how a CPS worker made a false allegation of abuse for vindictive reasons. This bill, if it becomes law, will lead to abuse of innocent parents who are dealing with false accusations and simply seeking to protect their children.

SB 1064 - http://www.legis.state.tx.us/tlodocs/81R/billtext/html/SB01064I.htm

Austin American Statesman blog:

http://www.statesman.com/news/content/region/legislature/stories/2009/06/11/0611cps.html