SECTION 707.467. What is neglectful supervision?

(a) Neglect is defined in Texas Family Code (TFC) §261.001(4) as an act or failure to act by a person responsible for a child's care, custody, or welfare evidencing the person's blatant disregard for the consequences of the act or failure to act that results in harm to the child or that creates an immediate danger to the child's physical health or safety. Neglectful supervision is a subset of the statutory definition of neglect and involves the following acts or omissions by a person:

(1) Placing a child in or failing to remove a child from a situation that a reasonable person would realize requires judgment or actions beyond the child's level of maturity, physical condition, or mental abilities and that results in bodily injury or an immediate of harm to the child;

(2) Placing a child in or failing to remove the child from a situation in which the child would be exposed to an immediate danger of sexual conduct harmful to the child; or

(3) Placing a child in or failing to remove the child from a situation in which the child would be exposed to acts or omissions that constitute abuse under TFC §261.001(1)(E), (F), (G), (H), or (K) committed against another child.

(b) Neglectful supervision as defined in paragraph (1) of subsection (a) excludes the following:

(1) An accident.

(2) Pursuant to TFC §261.001(4)(B), allowing the child to engage in independent activities that are appropriate and typical for the child's level of maturity, physical condition, developmental abilities or culture.

(c) For purposes of evaluating an allegation of "neglectful supervision", we will consider the following factors when assessing immediate danger:

(1) The child's age;

(2) Any arrangements the parents made to ensure the child's safety;

(3) The child's physical condition, psychological functioning, and level of maturity;

(4) Any intellectual, physical, or medical disability the child has;

(5) Any previous history or patterns of abuse or neglect;

(6) The frequency and duration of similar incidents; and

(7) The overall safety of the child's environment.

(d) In the case of prenatal use of alcohol or a controlled substance that was not lawfully prescribed by a medical practitioner, was lawfully prescribed as a result of the mother seeking out multiple health care providers as a means of exceeding ordinary dosages, or was not being used in accordance with a lawfully issued prescription, the mother is responsible for neglectful supervision under paragraph (1) of subsection (a) if:

(1) The mother knew or reasonably should have known she was pregnant; and

(2) It appears that the mother's use endangered the physical and emotional well-being of the infant. It is not necessary that the infant actually suffers from an injury.

(A) For the limited purpose of this subsection, "endangered" means that the mother's prenatal use exposed the infant to loss or injury or jeopardized the infant's emotional or physical health.

(B) "Endangered" includes but is not limited to a consideration of the following factors: evidence the mother extensively used alcohol or regularly or extensively used a controlled substance over the course of the pregnancy or in close proximity to the child's expected birth date, evidence that the mother has an alcohol or drug addiction, or evidence that the infant was in immediate danger of harm from the mother's use of alcohol or a controlled substance.

Source Note: The provisions of this §707.467 adopted to be effective July 15, 2020, 45 TexReg 4780; amended to be effective September 22, 2022, 47 TexReg 6250