BILL REQ. #:  S-1635.2 

Read first time 02/21/2005.   Referred to Committee on Human Services & Corrections.

     AN ACT Relating to safety in children's placement services; amending RCW 13.34.132, 13.34.136, 13.34.260, and 74.13.250; adding new sections to chapter 13.34 RCW; creating a new section; and prescribing penalties.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The legislature finds that when families and children are provided statutorily required transition services based on an evidence-based model, the safe reunification of their children is more likely. The legislature further finds that consequences should apply, as authorized by law or collective bargaining agreement, when social workers and supervisors fail to follow policies and protocols in practice manuals, policy, laws, and rules.
     The legislature finds in reviewing the deaths of five very young children in the care of the state since 1995, that transition plans should include activities that are proven effective in addressing the needs of children to attach to new caregivers even if those caregivers are their own parents. Children, particularly those placed at birth, need activities and services over time to successfully attach to their new caregiver and separate from their last caregiver. Biological and foster parents must be provided services to accomplish this goal.
     The legislature finds that the federal government requires the state to make reasonable efforts to safely reunify children with their parents or to find permanent homes for dependent children within one year and the department needs to do more to achieve this goal. Children need consistent contact with parents. While this cannot always be achieved through face-to-face contact, there are many ways for parents to keep in touch with their children that give children a sense of belonging and consistent attention. Evidence shows that there are stressors related to the reunification of all children with their parents or the placement of children in permanent homes and that there are services including individual child specific parenting classes that will help to ameliorate those stressors.
     The legislature finds that all children, but particularly the youngest children, are harmed by multiple placements and the lack of a permanent home. Therefore, the legislature finds that when children are in out-of-home placement and subsequently returned to their parents more than three times, a petition for termination of parental rights must be filed, if in the best interests of the child.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 13.34 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) Transition services means a greater level of casework support before and after the return of the child to his or her family or into a permanent home. The type of services and the length of these services shall be determined by evidence-based best practices, which means intervention services for which there is consistent scientific evidence showing that the interventions improve client outcomes. When developing the transition services plan, the department must identify components that will enable the department to measure the performance of the case management team in safely placing a child into a safe, stable, and permanent home and hold those who do not adhere to the components accountable, in accordance with applicable laws and collective bargaining agreements.
     (2) An individual case management team shall be put in place to monitor and measure the progress a family and child are making toward attachment and bonding. Transition services must be made available to all families reunifying with their biological or adoptive children who have been in out-of-home care since birth or for an extended period of time, or any family providing a permanent home to a child who has been in out-of-home care including guardians or legal custodians; adoptive homes; guardianships; permanent legal custodians; and long-term relative or foster care, until the child is age eighteen. If the child has been in foster care, the foster parent, if willing, must be involved in this case management team to the fullest feasible extent. The plan must include regular and substantial visits between the child and the child's foster parents for at least six months after reunification with the child's parents. The child's family and friends of the family must be involved in this plan to ensure the safety and well-being of the child.
     (3) The transition services plan must include activities and services that consider:
     (a) The length of time that the child or children have been in out-of-home care and the age of the children;
     (b) The parents' history in its entirety, the child's history in its entirety, and the level of attachment and bonding between the parent and child;
     (c) The level of participation in services offered to the parent during the time the child was out of the parent's care and how services have impacted the risk and protective factors with regard to the parent's ability to care for his or her child and his or her attachment and bonding to the child;
     (d) A thorough exploration and assessment of parent-child ambivalence toward reunification;
     (e) A recognition with the family that reunification is typically accompanied by increased stressors;
     (f) A continued assessment of risk and protective factors, which must include contacts with foster parents, family, and friends who are part of the transition case management team;
     (g) An assessment of problems that might develop and planning of ways to address them;
     (h) An assessment of risk and protective factors that, based on national practice standards, are recognized as useful in appropriately reducing required services and contacts with the case management team based on family readiness and competencies rather than an arbitrary time frame; and
     (i) The quality and extent of services that must be in place during the transition period both before the child is returned and after the child is reunified with his or her parent or placed in a permanent home.

Sec. 3   RCW 13.34.132 and 2000 c 122 s 16 are each amended to read as follows:
     A court may order that a petition seeking termination of the parent and child relationship be filed if the following requirements are met:
     (1) The court has removed the child from his or her home pursuant to RCW 13.34.130;
     (2) Termination is recommended by the supervising agency and the supervising agency must make the recommendation if a child has been in out-of-home care and subsequently returned home three or more times as a result of abuse or neglect;
     (3) Termination is in the best interests of the child; and
     (4) Because of the existence of aggravated circumstances, reasonable efforts to unify the family are not required. Notwithstanding the existence of aggravated circumstances, reasonable efforts may be required if the court or department determines it is in the best interests of the child. In determining whether aggravated circumstances exist by clear, cogent, and convincing evidence, the court shall consider one or more of the following:
     (a) Conviction of the parent of rape of the child in the first, second, or third degree as defined in RCW 9A.44.073, 9A.44.076, and 9A.44.079;
     (b) Conviction of the parent of criminal mistreatment of the child in the first or second degree as defined in RCW 9A.42.020 and 9A.42.030;
     (c) Conviction of the parent of one of the following assault crimes, when the child is the victim: Assault in the first or second degree as defined in RCW 9A.36.011 and 9A.36.021 or assault of a child in the first or second degree as defined in RCW 9A.36.120 or 9A.36.130;
     (d) Conviction of the parent of murder, manslaughter, or homicide by abuse of the child's other parent, sibling, or another child;
     (e) Conviction of the parent of attempting, soliciting, or conspiring to commit a crime listed in (a), (b), (c), or (d) of this subsection;
     (f) A finding by a court that a parent is a sexually violent predator as defined in RCW 71.09.020;
     (g) Failure of the parent to complete available treatment ordered under this chapter or the equivalent laws of another state, where such failure has resulted in a prior termination of parental rights to another child and the parent has failed to effect significant change in the interim. In the case of a parent of an Indian child, as defined in the Indian Child Welfare Act, P.L. 95-608 (25 U.S.C. Sec. 1903), the court shall also consider tribal efforts to assist the parent in completing treatment and make it possible for the child to return home;
     (h) ((An infant)) If a child has been in out-of-home care and subsequently returned home three times as a result of abuse and neglect and it is in the best interests of the child;
     (i) A minor under ((three)) six years of age has been abandoned;
     (((i))) (j) Conviction of the parent, when a child has been born of the offense, of: (A) A sex offense under chapter 9A.44 RCW; or (B) incest under RCW 9A.64.020.

Sec. 4   RCW 13.34.136 and 2004 c 146 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Whenever a child is ordered removed from the child's home, the agency charged with his or her care shall provide the court with:
     (a) A permanency plan of care that shall identify one of the following outcomes as a primary goal and may identify additional outcomes as alternative goals: Return of the child to the home of the child's parent, guardian, or legal custodian; adoption; guardianship; permanent legal custody; long-term relative or foster care, until the child is age eighteen, with a written agreement between the parties and the care provider; successful completion of a responsible living skills program; or independent living, if appropriate and if the child is age sixteen or older. The department shall not discharge a child to an independent living situation before the child is eighteen years of age unless the child becomes emancipated pursuant to chapter 13.64 RCW;
     (b) A permanency plan of care that verifies that all adults residing in the family home from which the child was removed and to which the child may return must participate in education and experiential activities that produce measurable increased competency in parenting, communication, problem solving, coping, and other essential areas of life;
     (c) Unless the court has ordered, pursuant to RCW 13.34.130(4), that a termination petition be filed, a specific plan as to where the child will be placed, what steps will be taken to return the child home, including the educational and experiential activities for parents and other adults living in the home, a specific transition services plan, what steps the agency will take to promote existing appropriate sibling relationships and/or facilitate placement together or contact in accordance with the best interests of each child, and what actions the agency will take to maintain parent-child ties. All aspects of the plan shall include the goal of achieving ((permanence)) a safe, stable, and permanent home for the child.
     (i) The agency plan shall specify what services the parents will be offered to enable them to resume custody, what requirements the parents must meet to resume custody, and a time limit for each service plan and parental requirement.
     (ii) Visitation is the right of the family, including the child and the parent, in cases in which visitation is in the best interest of the child. Early, consistent, and frequent visitation is crucial for maintaining parent-child relationships and making it possible for parents and children to safely reunify. The agency shall encourage the maximum parent and child and sibling contact possible, when it is in the best interest of the child, including regular visitation and participation by the parents in the care of the child while the child is in placement. Visitation shall not be limited as a sanction for a parent's failure to comply with court orders or services where the health, safety, or welfare of the child is not at risk as a result of the visitation. Visitation may be limited or denied only if the court determines that such limitation or denial is necessary to protect the child's health, safety, or welfare. The court and the agency should rely upon community resources, relatives, foster parents, and other appropriate persons to provide transportation and supervision for visitation to the extent that such resources are available, and appropriate, and the child's safety would not be compromised.
     (iii) A child shall be placed as close to the child's home as possible, preferably in the child's own neighborhood, unless the court finds that placement at a greater distance is necessary to promote the child's or parents' well-being.
     (iv) The agency charged with supervising a child in placement shall provide all reasonable services that are available within the agency, or within the community, or those services which the department has existing contracts to purchase. It shall report to the court if it is unable to provide such services. However, each child and family that is being reunified after the child has been in out-of-home care shall receive transition services as provided in section 2 of this act; and
     (((c))) (d) If the court has ordered, pursuant to RCW 13.34.130(4), that a termination petition be filed, a specific plan as to where the child will be placed, what steps will be taken to achieve permanency for the child, services to be offered or provided to the child, and, if visitation would be in the best interests of the child, a recommendation to the court regarding visitation between parent and child pending a fact-finding hearing on the termination petition. The agency shall not be required to develop a plan of services for the parents or provide services to the parents if the court orders a termination petition be filed. However, reasonable efforts to ensure visitation and contact between siblings shall be made unless there is reasonable cause to believe the best interests of the child or siblings would be jeopardized.
     (2) If the court determines that the continuation of reasonable efforts to prevent or eliminate the need to remove the child from his or her home or to safely return the child home should not be part of the permanency plan of care for the child, reasonable efforts shall be made to place the child in a timely manner and to complete whatever steps are necessary to finalize the permanent placement of the child.
     (3) The court shall consider the child's relationships with the child's siblings in accordance with RCW 13.34.130(3).

Sec. 5   RCW 13.34.260 and 2003 c 226 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) In an attempt to minimize the inherent intrusion in the lives of families involved in the foster care system and to maintain parental authority where appropriate, the department, absent good cause, shall follow the wishes of the natural parent regarding the placement of the child. Preferences such as family constellation, sibling relationships, ethnicity, and religion shall be considered when matching children to foster homes. Parental authority is appropriate in areas that are not connected with the abuse or neglect that resulted in the dependency and shall be integrated through the foster care team.
     (2) When a child is placed in out-of-home care, the child's caseworker must consult the child's foster parents ((are encouraged)) at regular intervals to:
     (a) Provide consultation to the foster care team based upon their experience with the child placed in their care;
     (b) Assist the birth parents by helping them understand their child's needs and correlating appropriate parenting responses;
     (c) Participate in educational activities, and enter into community-building activities with birth families and other foster families;
     (d) Transport children to family time visits with birth families and assist children and their families in maximizing the purposefulness of family time; and
     (e) Participate in appropriate and applicable transition services as required by the transition plan in section 2 of this act before and after the child is reunified with the biological or adoptive parents including substantial contact at regular intervals for a period of time no shorter than six months after the time of reunification.
     (3) For purposes of this section, "foster care team" means the foster parent currently providing care, the currently assigned social worker, and the parent or parents; and "birth family" means the persons described in RCW 74.15.020(2)(a).

Sec. 6   RCW 74.13.250 and 1990 c 284 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Preservice training is recognized as a valuable tool to reduce placement disruptions, the length of time children are in care, and foster parent turnover rates. Preservice training also assists potential foster parents in making their final decisions about foster parenting and assists social service agencies in obtaining information about whether to approve potential foster parents.
     (2) Foster parent preservice training shall include information about the potential impact of placement on foster children; social service agency administrative processes; the requirements, responsibilities, expectations, and skills needed to be a foster parent; attachment, separation, and loss issues faced by birth parents, foster children, and foster parents, and skills necessary to assist in transition services for children being reunified with their parents; child management and discipline; birth family relationships; and helping children leave foster care. Preservice training shall assist applicants in making informed decisions about whether they want to be foster parents. Preservice training shall be designed to enable the agency to assess the ability, readiness, and appropriateness of families to be foster parents. As a decision tool, effective preservice training provides potential foster parents with enough information to make an appropriate decision, affords potential foster parents an opportunity to discuss their decision with others and consider its implications for their family, clarifies foster family expectations, presents a realistic picture of what foster parenting involves, and allows potential foster parents to consider and explore the different types of children they might serve.
     (3) Preservice training shall be completed prior to the issuance of a foster care license, except that the department may, on a case by case basis, issue a written waiver that allows the foster parent to complete the training after licensure, so long as the training is completed within ninety days following licensure.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 7   A new section is added to chapter 13.34 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) If the department fails to comply with the transition services requirements in this chapter, any aggrieved person may institute proceedings for injunctive or other appropriate relief for enforcement of the requirement to provide evidence-based transition services. These proceedings may be instituted in the superior court for the county in which the person resides, or, if the person is not then a resident of this state, in the superior court for Thurston county.
     (2) In a proceeding under this section, the court shall enforce obedience to the requirement to provide evidence-based transition services by enjoining compliance upon the secretary. The court may issue such writs and processes as are necessary to carry out its orders and may award a penalty of up to one thousand dollars and reasonable attorneys' fees and court costs to the aggrieved person who instituted the proceedings.
     (3) A proceeding under this section does not preclude other methods of enforcement provided for by law.