House bill would restructure youth‑camp oversight, add water‑safety experts and lift some regulatory limits

Representative Katie Hall, the bill's author, told the House Committee on Public Health that House Bill 265 is focused on 'youth camp safety reform.' "This bill is focused on youth camp safety reform," she said as she opened the committee hearing.

The bill would restructure the youth camp advisory committee, change enforcement of inspection findings, and move several background-check and first‑aid requirements from rule into statute. "Youth camps are licensed and regulated by DSHS," Hall said, and her measure would "restructure this committee to include child health and safety experts who have more expertise in industry standards for these types of rules."

Why it matters: witnesses and lawmakers said Texas camp oversight has gaps that contributed to recent tragedies. Several parents and safety advocates told the committee that camps near open water lack consistent lifeguard standards, swim testing and emergency response protocols, and that the current advisory committee is dominated by camp operators.

What the bill would do and what supporters said

- Advisory committee makeup: The bill would redraw the Youth Camp Advisory Committee from a membership heavily weighted toward camp operators to a panel that includes emergency management, law enforcement, pediatric or pediatric‑care clinicians, child‑abuse prevention experts, a parent or guardian of a camper, public members and at least one camp operator. Representative Hall said the substitute she expects on the floor will also add a water‑safety expert and allow the pediatric slot to be filled by a pediatric nurse practitioner or physician assistant.

- Rule review and meetings: The bill directs the department that regulates camps to conduct a comprehensive review of youth camp rules before the next camp season and would codify the committee's meetings as subject to open‑meetings requirements, Hall said.

- Enforcement and fines: Hall said the measure would "remove the prohibition on issuing violations during inspections so that repeat grievous violations can be penalized and removes the statutory cap on fines so that these can be set by rule to address severe violations." She…