Law and Policy Developments in Child Protection Reform Howard Davidson Director, ABA Center on Children and the Law June 29, 2012

A few words about collaboration among those involved in system oversight… SLO, CJA & CRP chairs, and Court Improvement Program director should periodically meet about: -- New or pending state legislation affecting abused and neglected children -- New child protection-related programs initiated by the child welfare agency or by the courts -- Recent reports, or data analysis, of interest to all -- Issues in implementation of federal legislation affecting children in foster care -- Funding collaboration for specific projects/research IDEALLY, JOINT FULL GROUP MEETINGS AS WELL

The Child and Family Services Improvement and Innovation Act Public Law , signed into law on 9/30/11 HIGHLIGHTS IV-E: State health care plans on health screenings for foster children now should address emotional trauma associated with abuse/neglect and removal, and states must have protocols for use & monitoring of psychotropic medications IV-E: State health care plans on health screenings for foster children now should address emotional trauma associated with abuse/neglect and removal, and states must have protocols for use & monitoring of psychotropic medications IV-B: States must describe what they are doing to reduce time in foster care for children under 5, and what they are doing to address the developmental needs of agency-involved children (not just limited to those in foster care) IV-B: States must describe what they are doing to reduce time in foster care for children under 5, and what they are doing to address the developmental needs of agency-involved children (not just limited to those in foster care)

Recent CAPTA Provisions Related to Infants and Toddlers 2010: 34% of substantiated victims were under 3 (188,000) & 20% of those in foster care (84,000) CAPTA 2003: States must have provisions and procedures for referral of a child under the age of 3 who is involved in a substantiated case of child abuse or neglect to early intervention services funded under Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act CAPTA 2003: States must have provisions and procedures for referral of a child under the age of 3 who is involved in a substantiated case of child abuse or neglect to early intervention services funded under Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act CAPTA 2010: States must collect data on the number of children determined to be eligible for referral, and the number of children referred under Part C of the IDEA (also data on FASD Referrals and Youth who Crossover to JJ System) CAPTA 2010: States must collect data on the number of children determined to be eligible for referral, and the number of children referred under Part C of the IDEA (also data on FASD Referrals and Youth who Crossover to JJ System)

U.S. Dept. of Education Issues New Part C IDEA Regulations (9/28/2011) 76 Federal Register (34 CFR 303) 76 Federal Register (34 CFR 303) The Part C program must be coordinated with CPS and child welfare programs, including programs administered by, and services provided through, the foster care agency and the State agency responsible for administering CAPTA The Part C program must be coordinated with CPS and child welfare programs, including programs administered by, and services provided through, the foster care agency and the State agency responsible for administering CAPTA Referral procedures must also address specific at-risk infants & toddlers, including those referred from public agencies and staff in the child welfare system, including CPS and foster care Referral procedures must also address specific at-risk infants & toddlers, including those referred from public agencies and staff in the child welfare system, including CPS and foster care Foster parents can be considered parents in this IDEA process, or court can appoint another person as surrogate parent but not agency or its employee Foster parents can be considered parents in this IDEA process, or court can appoint another person as surrogate parent but not agency or its employee

Infant/Toddler Resources from our Center projects_initiatives/child_and_adolescent_health/ child_health/child_health_publications.html Also… The Judges Page -- March 2012 (National CASA) Young Children Involved in Dependency Court b /k.8E21/Judges_Page.htm

programs/atc/ features/2003/ mar/juvenile_ court/questions_ every_judge_ should_ask.pdf

Model Court-Based Programs Babies Can't Wait -- New York State NY Permanent Judicial Commission on Justice for Children-- Identifies, documents, and tracks infants in family court; provides for their special health and developmental needs; and promotes permanency Provides training on infant health and development to those working in the court and child welfare systems Created a judge's bench card for infants that addresses the special developmental and medical needs of infants Works with the child welfare agency to improve how cases involving infants are handled

Best for Babies -- Yavapai County, Arizona Developed checklist of essential services, delineating responsibilities of the CPS caseworker, foster parents, provider of mental health services for children and adults, and systems of support, a team process developed to help parents in recovery accomplish their case plans for reunification. Project works to convert the checklist from a snapshot in time to a guide for ongoing services, develop a cadre of CASA volunteers to oversee case coordination and collaboration, and enhance case coordination and collaboration among all service providers working with babies and their families.

Zero to Threes Safe Babies Court Teams Teams require leadership of a local judge who is a catalyst for change, each team community requires a local community coordinator to provide child development expertise to judge and the team, and coordinate services and resources, and each community has a team of key community stakeholders devoted to restructuring community response to needs of maltreated infants and toddlers, meeting monthly to learn about available resources, identify service gaps, and discuss issues raised by the cases that the team is monitoring Teams focus on foster care cases involving children younger than 36 months, actively uses concurrent planning when recruiting caretakers, reviews cases monthly, facilitates visitation, develops continuum of mental health services, and evaluates impact

Current Zero to Three Court Team Sites (based on pilot work in Miami Juvenile Court) Cherokee, North Carolina Des Moines, Iowa Douglasville, Georgia Hattiesburg, Mississippi Honolulu, Hawaii Little Rock, Arkansas New Haven, Connecticut New Orleans, Louisiana Omaha, Nebraska San Francisco, California

Continuing with the 2011 Federal Law… States must describe sources used to gauge number of child maltreatment deaths and how data sources will be broadened (for more accurate counts) States must describe sources used to gauge number of child maltreatment deaths and how data sources will be broadened (for more accurate counts) Encourages states to have no less than 90% of foster children visited monthly and, if goal not met, imposes federal financial penalties, and sets a further goal (with penalties for not meeting it) that at least 50% of visits occur in the childs residence (special state grant program continued) Encourages states to have no less than 90% of foster children visited monthly and, if goal not met, imposes federal financial penalties, and sets a further goal (with penalties for not meeting it) that at least 50% of visits occur in the childs residence (special state grant program continued) Extends regional substance abuse grant program * Extends regional substance abuse grant program * Lists new specific family reunification services: peer-to-peer mentoring; support groups for parents/primary caregivers; facilitating child access to/visitation by parents and siblings Lists new specific family reunification services: peer-to-peer mentoring; support groups for parents/primary caregivers; facilitating child access to/visitation by parents and siblings

Court Improvement Program Reauthorization Adds language suggesting CIPs (and therefore courts) should address concurrent planning issues Adds language suggesting CIPs (and therefore courts) should address concurrent planning issues Note: IV-E concurrent planning provisions currently include: a) Allowing reasonable efforts to place children for adoption to be made concurrently with reasonable efforts toward family reunification efforts; and b) Allowing TPR petitions to be filed concurrently with agency work to identify, recruit, and approve an adoptive family Adds to CIP grant purpose: increase and improve engagement of the entire family in court processes, and adds new training element for improvement of such family engagement Adds to CIP grant purpose: increase and improve engagement of the entire family in court processes, and adds new training element for improvement of such family engagement

ABA Resources on Parent Engagement Articles from the ABA Child Law Practice Related to Parent Partner Programs: Articles from the ABA Child Law Practice Related to Parent Partner Programs: – From the Courthouse to the Statehouse: Parents as Partners in Child Welfare – Working with Parent Partners to Achieve Better Outcomes for Families – From Parent to Crisis to Parent Partner initiatives/parentrepresentation/written_materials. html Also see Parent Handbooks at: Also see Parent Handbooks at: initiatives/parentrepresentation/parents_handbook. html Fathers Guides (and other related material): fatherhood-initiative/qic-fatherhood-toolkit/fathers-and-the- courts.html Fathers Guides (and other related material): fatherhood-initiative/qic-fatherhood-toolkit/fathers-and-the- courts.html

Continuing with the 2011 Federal Law… States are required to get every foster child who is 16, and then annually thereafter until discharged from care, consumer credit reports, and states must provide the child assistance in interpreting and resolving inaccuracies in those reports, including when feasible getting assistance for the child from the childs court-appointed advocates (see later slide) States are required to get every foster child who is 16, and then annually thereafter until discharged from care, consumer credit reports, and states must provide the child assistance in interpreting and resolving inaccuracies in those reports, including when feasible getting assistance for the child from the childs court-appointed advocates (see later slide) States must now document how state savings, from revisions of law that expand federal funding for adoption/guardianship assistance, are being re-invested in IV-B services, and specifically on reinvestment in post- adoption services States must now document how state savings, from revisions of law that expand federal funding for adoption/guardianship assistance, are being re-invested in IV-B services, and specifically on reinvestment in post- adoption services

Up to 10 new state waivers of IV-E requirements (called Demonstration Projects) are authorized Up to 10 new state waivers of IV-E requirements (called Demonstration Projects) are authorized All waiver applications from states must indicate how they will address At Least 2 of These 10 Policy-Related Areas of Improvement (called Child Welfare Program Improvement Policies): All waiver applications from states must indicate how they will address At Least 2 of These 10 Policy-Related Areas of Improvement (called Child Welfare Program Improvement Policies): 1. Bill of rights for foster children and youth 2. Better meeting health/mental health needs of foster children and youth 3. Kinship guardianship assistance 4. Extension of IV-E for those youth under age Plan for reducing use of congregate care placements (AFCARS 9/30/ , 000 in group care; 36,000 in institutions)

6. Substantial increases of siblings placed together in foster care, kinship guardianships, or adoptive placements 7. Improving recruitment and retention of high quality foster care providers trained to help children and youth secure permanent families, such as increasing their monthly payments and expanding training, respite care, or other foster parent support services 8. Better preparation of youth for transition from care, such as extracurricular activity involvement, cell phone and computer access, opportunities to obtain drivers licenses, promotion of sibling connections, and provision of counseling and financial support for post-secondary education

9. Better engagement of youth in transition planning that explores reconnection with their biological family and promotes successful and safe reconnection 10. Prevention of foster care entry, including intensive family finding, kinship navigator services, family counseling/peer support, family- based substance abuse treatment, better domestic violence identification and services, or mentoring

Childrens Bureau 5/14/12 announcement with details: _policies/policy/im/2012/im1205.pdf States are currently writing their Waiver Applications! Proposals due to HHS by July 9th

Childrens Bureau Informational Memorandum on Child Well Being policies/ policy/im/2012/im1204.pdf ACYF-CB-IM (4/17/12) Promoting Social and Emotional Well-Being for Children and Youth Receiving Child Welfare Services 21 pages of important information and references on how states can better address child well-being This is the ACYF Commissioners major priority!

Childrens Bureau Program Instruction on Identity Theft Checks ACYF-CB-PI (5/8/12) policies/policy/pi/2012/pi1207.pdf Advises states on how to comply with 2011 federal law (IV-E) requirement to do annual credit reporting agency checks (from all 3 of these agencies) for all foster youth 16 and older Title IV-E agencies must submit their title IV- E plan amendment to show compliance with this requirement by August 13, 2012.

Recent State Differential Response Laws CT 2011 Act, SB 1199, P.A Commissioner may establish DR program whereby report may be referred to appropriate community providers for family assessment and services without investigation or during investigation, provided there has been initial safety assessment and criminal background checks on all adults involved in report. Report classified as lower risk may be referred for family assessment/services and later referred for standard CPS if child safety concerns become evident. Report referred for standard CPS may be referred for family assessment/services if lower risk to child found

NY 2011 Laws, AB 6823, Chap. 45 and AB 8018, Chap. 377 Makes permanent the DR programs for child protection assessments and investigations. Authorizes the subject of the Family Assessment Response (FAR) report access to those records; authorizes court access to FAR records during duration of services; provides for re-disclosure of FAR records; allows records access to a CPS unit if records are relevant to a child abuse investigation or Family Court action; requires CPS to include such information in the investigation records; requires certain data regarding race or ethnicity for FAR cases.

Both families and program staff were more satisfied with the non-investigation pathway than with the investigation pathway. Families were more easily and fully engaged, usually earlier in the service delivery process. Regardless of which (evaluation) method was used, family participation in the non-investigation pathway was demonstrated to reduce the numbers of post-program reports for alleged child abuse and neglect, (though the differences were often modest), so that as several evaluators put it, child safety was not compromised as a result of families being served through the non-investigation pathway. Differential Response in Child Protective Services: A Literature Review – Nov. 2011

Child Welfare Agencies Aiding Child Victims of Trafficking ABA Resolution 103A on Child Trafficking -- 8/8/11 ABA Resolution 103A on Child Trafficking -- 8/8/11 –Screen for these victims in all runaway, juvenile & child welfare settings and assure appropriate assistance from child protective service agencies –Establish safe housing and other services for them –Require immediate reporting when children are missing from foster care or other placement (given their vulnerability to trafficking) –Train police, CPS & courts on identifying these victims, and where to get help for them –Give courts protective order authority & provide a basis for civil actions on behalf of child victims

–Report data on the number of victims served and what services they actually received –Meet the unique needs of girls, boys, gay & transgendered youth who are trafficking victims –Give special attention to non-citizen children, including their proper identification as trafficking victims, mandating their referral to state/local CPS for support & immigration relief, and providing for their immediate protective custody as dependent children in suitable state/county placements –Dont criminally charge prostituted minors, but rather permit their protective custody, as victim dependent children, in suitable settings (keep them out of delinquency/juvenile justice system)

Building Child Welfare Response to Child Trafficking Project Purpose of this project is to build capacity of child welfare agencies and professionals to identify and respond to this often invisible and underserved population Primary goals are to ensure children are correctly identified as trafficked persons and that they receive appropriate protections and referrals to specialized services to which theyre entitled under federal and state laws For more information and a copy, see Monograph.shtml

Will CPS Screen In Child Trafficking Reports? Models for Legislative Authority of CPS define: Dependent child as child who for any cause is in need of the care and protection of the state (e.g., Alabama ) or is homeless or destitute or without adequate parental care (through no parental fault) or whose condition or environment warrants the state, in the childs interests, to assume care (e.g., Ohio ) Dependent child as child who for any cause is in need of the care and protection of the state (e.g., Alabama ) or is homeless or destitute or without adequate parental care (through no parental fault) or whose condition or environment warrants the state, in the childs interests, to assume care (e.g., Ohio ) Child in Need of Services includes a sexually exploited child (e.g., Massachusetts 119/21) or child who has exhibited behaviors that create a serious risk of harm to them (e.g., Washington 13.32A.030) Child in Need of Services includes a sexually exploited child (e.g., Massachusetts 119/21) or child who has exhibited behaviors that create a serious risk of harm to them (e.g., Washington 13.32A.030)

Mandatory Reporting: What May be Changing? Issues Being Addressed: 1) Expanding mandatory reporters – adding to list (e.g., coaches) or making everyone mandated reporter; 2) addressing process of reporting sexual abuse (e.g., universal mandated reporting to police; or for anyone who witnesses it); 3) increasing penalties for failing to report; 4) improving training of reporters and enhancing public awareness of child maltreatment; and 5) special provisions affecting colleges and those employed/volunteering there Issues Being Addressed: 1) Expanding mandatory reporters – adding to list (e.g., coaches) or making everyone mandated reporter; 2) addressing process of reporting sexual abuse (e.g., universal mandated reporting to police; or for anyone who witnesses it); 3) increasing penalties for failing to report; 4) improving training of reporters and enhancing public awareness of child maltreatment; and 5) special provisions affecting colleges and those employed/volunteering there There are 98 bills in 30 states (9 in CA alone), plus as of late December at least 8 Congressional bills, to mandate amendment of state child abuse reporting laws There are 98 bills in 30 states (9 in CA alone), plus as of late December at least 8 Congressional bills, to mandate amendment of state child abuse reporting laws

Forthcoming… Issue Brief on Trauma Informed Legal Advocacy Identification Tool and Resource Guide for Attorneys, GAL, and CASA on Polyvictimization and Trauma Among Court-Involved Youth Will be available at to receive a copy by when available

Center on Children and the Law Resources Legal and Judicial Issues Resource Center: Legal and Judicial Issues Resource Parent Representation/Reunification Day/LGBTQ Issues Parent Representation/Reunification Day/LGBTQ Older Youth in Foster Care/Transitioning Youth Older Youth in Foster Care/Transitioning Kinship (Grandfamilies State Law & Policy Resource Center) Kinship (Grandfamilies State Law & Policy Resource Child/Adolescent Health Child/Adolescent State Permanency Barriers Removal/Trial Skills State Permanency Barriers Removal/Trial Legal Center for Foster Care and Education Legal Center for Foster Care and

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