Relating to the payment of support rights and benefits for a child placed with a relative or other designated caregiver.

SB 200 allows relatives or designated caregivers to receive a child’s support rights and benefits on the child’s behalf when the child is placed with them by Texas’ child welfare department. The bill requires the department to assign the child’s support rights to the caregiver and designate them as the representative payee for programs like Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits. This change ensures caregivers directly receive payments intended for the child, rather than the payments going through the state. The law takes effect September 1, 2025, and applies to children in substitute care placed with relatives or designated caregivers.