BILL REQ. #: H-0775.1

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HOUSE BILL 1233
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State of Washington

58th Legislature

2003 Regular Session

By Representatives Pettigrew, Boldt, Moeller, Kagi, Lovick, Orcutt, Dickerson, Chase, Darneille, Eickmeyer, O'Brien, Roach, Armstrong, Flannigan, Jarrett, Clibborn, Lantz, Kenney, Benson, Shabro, Nixon, Morrell, Mielke and Haigh

Read first time 01/21/2003. Referred to Committee on Children & Family Services.

AN ACT Relating to improving services for kinship caregivers; adding new sections to chapter 74.15 RCW; and creating new sections.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 74.15 RCW to read as follows:
     The department of social and health services shall implement strategies to increase the number of children placed with willing and able relatives when out-of-home placement is required.
     These strategies must include at least the following:
     (1) Development of a standardized, statewide protocol to be used for relative search activities. The protocol must include a requirement that documentation be maintained in the child's case record that identifies kin, and documentation that identifies the assessment criteria and procedures that were followed during initial and ongoing relative searches. The protocol must be used when child safety requires out-of-home placement in the following proceedings: Voluntary placement agreement, dependency, and child in need of services and at-risk youth petitions. To assist with implementation of the protocol, the department shall request that the juvenile court require parents to disclose contact information for relatives to the caseworker within two weeks of an entered order.
     (2) Development of a policy for conducting active outreach efforts to identify and locate relatives during initial and ongoing searches. The policy must include at least the following elements: (a) A requirement of reasonable efforts to interview known relatives, friends, teachers, and other identified community members who may have knowledge of the child's extended family, within sixty days of the child entering out-of-home care; (b) increased use of family group conferences to engage extended family members in reunification efforts, permanency planning, and placement decisions. Family group conferencing should occur as soon as possible after a child enters foster care and potential relative placement resources are available; (c) contacts with interested relatives as part of permanency planning activities and change of placement discussions; (d) establishment of a process for ongoing contact with kin who express interest in being considered as a placement resource for the child; and (e) a requirement that when the decision is made to not place the child with a relative, the department provides documentation that clearly identifies the rationale for the decision and corrective action or actions the relative must take to be considered as a viable placement option.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 74.15 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The department of social and health services shall establish two pilot projects to assist kinship caregivers with understanding and navigating the system of services for children in out-of-home care by establishing a regional kinship care navigator position. The department shall implement the pilot projects no later than December 1, 2003.
     (2) Kinship care navigators shall be responsible for at least the following: (a) Understanding the various state agency systems serving kinship caregivers; (b) working in partnership with local community service providers; (c) tracking trends, concerns, and other factors related to kinship caregivers; and (d) assisting in establishing stable, respectful relationships between kinship caregivers and agency staff.
     (3) The department shall establish the pilot projects in one urban region of the state and one rural region of the state. The department shall contract with a community-based organization for each kinship care navigator position, and work in partnership with private nonprofit organizations and with private sector businesses to identify and provide funds for the kinship care navigator positions.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3 The department of social and health services shall report to the appropriate committees of the legislature on the implementation of the two pilot kinship care navigator projects with recommendations on statewide implementation of the pilot projects by December 1, 2004.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4 It is the intent of the legislature in sections 5 through 7 of this act to assist children in the care of kin to access appropriate medical and education services. Children being raised by kin have faced barriers to medical care and school attendance because their kinship caregivers have not been able to verify that they are the identified primary caregivers of these children. Such barriers pose an especially significant challenge to kinship caregivers in dealing with school officials and health professionals when children are left in their care with little warning. To assist kinship caregivers in executing adequate and appropriate decisions regarding the educational and medical needs of a child in their care, a kinship caregiver's authorization affidavit is hereby created.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5   A new section is added to chapter 74.15 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) A kinship caregiver eighteen years of age or older who completes items 1 through 4 of the affidavit provided in section 7 of this act and signs the affidavit is authorized to enroll a minor in school and consent to school-related medical care on behalf of the minor in his or her care.
     (2) A kinship caregiver who completes items 1 through 8 of the affidavit provided in section 7 of this act and signs the affidavit is authorized to consent to medical care and dental care on behalf of the minor in his or her care.
     (3) The affidavit shall not be valid for more than one year after the date on which it is executed.
     (4) The decision of a kinship caregiver to consent to or to refuse medical or dental care for a minor shall be superseded by any contravening decision of the parent or other person having legal custody of the minor, provided the decision of the parent or other person having legal custody of the minor does not jeopardize the life, health, or safety of the minor.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 6   A new section is added to chapter 74.15 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) A person who acts in good faith reliance on a kinship caregiver's authorization affidavit, provided in section 7 of this act, to provide medical or dental care, without actual knowledge of facts contrary to those stated on the affidavit, is not subject to criminal liability or to civil liability to any person, or is subject to professional disciplinary action, for such reliance if the applicable portions of the affidavit are completed. This section applies even if medical or dental care is provided to a minor in contravention of the wishes of the parent or other person having legal custody of the minor as long as the person providing the medical or dental care has no actual knowledge of the wishes of the parent or other person having legal custody of the minor.
     (2) A person who relies on the affidavit has no obligation to make any further inquiry or investigation.
     (3) Nothing in this section relieves any person from liability for violations of other provisions of law.
     (4) If the minor stops living with the kinship caregiver, the kinship caregiver shall notify any school, health care provider, carrier, or other person or entity to whom the kinship caregiver has provided the affidavit.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7 A new section is added to chapter 74.15 RCW to read as follows:
The kinship caregiver's authorization affidavit must be in substantially the following form:

Kinship Caregiver's Authorization Affidavit

     Use of this affidavit is authorized by RCW 74.15.--- (section 5 of this act).

     Instructions: Completion of items 1 through 4 and the signing of the affidavit is sufficient to authorize enrollment of a minor in school and authorize school-related medical care. Completion of items 5 through 8 is additionally required to authorize any other medical care. Print clearly.

     The minor named below lives in my home and I am eighteen years of age or older.
     1. Name of minor:
     2. Minor's birth date:
     3. My name (adult giving authorization):
     4. My home address:
     5. ( ) I am a grandparent, aunt, uncle, or other qualified relative of the minor (see elsewhere on this form for a definition of "qualified relative").
     6. Check one or both (for example, if one parent was advised and the other cannot be located):
     ( ) I have advised the parent(s) or other person(s) having legal custody of the minor of my intent to authorize medical care, and have received no objection.
     ( ) I am unable to contact the parent(s) or other person(s) having legal custody of the minor at this time, to notify them of my intended authorization.
     7. My date of birth:
     8. My Washington driver's license or identification card number:

     **Warning: Do not sign this form if any of the statements above are incorrect, or you will be committing a crime punishable by a fine, imprisonment, or both.**

     I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of Washington that the foregoing is true and correct.

     Dated: . . . . . . . .     Signed: . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

     Notices:

     1. This declaration does not affect the rights of the minor's parents or legal guardian regarding the care, custody, and control of the minor, and does not mean that the kinship caregiver has legal custody of the minor.
     2. A person who relies on this affidavit has no obligation to make any further inquiry or investigation.
     3. This affidavit is not valid for more than one year after the date on which it is executed.

     Additional Information:

     TO KINSHIP CAREGIVERS:
     1. "Qualified relative," for purposes of item 5, means a spouse, parent, stepparent, brother, sister, stepbrother, stepsister, half-brother, half-sister, uncle, aunt, niece, nephew, first cousin, or any person denoted by the prefix "grand" or "great," or the spouse of any of the persons specified in this definition, even after the marriage has been terminated by death or dissolution.
     2. If the minor stops living with you, you are required to notify any school, health care provider, carrier, or other person or entity to whom you have provided the affidavit.
     3. If you do not have the information requested in item 8 (Washington driver's license or I.D.), provide another form of identification such as your social security number.

     TO SCHOOL OFFICIALS:
     1. This affidavit constitutes a sufficient basis for a determination of residency of the minor, without the requirement of a guardianship or other custody order, unless the school district determines from actual facts that the minor is not living with the kinship caregiver.
     2. The school district may require additional reasonable evidence that the kinship caregiver lives at the address provided in item 4.

     TO HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS AND CARRIERS:
     1. A person who acts in good faith reliance on a kinship caregiver's authorization affidavit to provide medical or dental care, without actual knowledge of facts contrary to those stated on the affidavit, is not subject to criminal liability or to civil liability to any person, or is subject to professional disciplinary action, for such reliance if the applicable portions of the affidavit are completed.
     2. This affidavit does not confer dependency for health care coverage purposes.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 8   A new section is added to chapter 74.15 RCW to read as follows:
     Within existing resources, the department of social and health services shall establish an oversight committee to monitor, guide, and report on kinship care recommendations and implementation activities. The committee shall: (1) Draft a kinship care definition and set of principles; (2) monitor the implementation of recommendations contained in the 2002 kinship care report; (3) partner with nonprofit organizations and private sector businesses to guide a public education awareness campaign; and (4) assist with developing future recommendations on kinship care issues.
     The oversight committee must consist of a minimum of thirty percent kinship caregivers, who shall represent a diversity of kinship families. Statewide representation with geographic, ethnic, and gender diversity is required. Other members shall include representatives of the department of social and health services, representatives of relevant state agencies, representatives of the private nonprofit and business sectors, child advocates, and representatives of the legal or judicial field. Birth parents, foster parents, and others who have an interest in these issues may also be included.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9 The kinship care oversight committee shall report to the appropriate committees of the legislature on the status of kinship care issues by December 1, 2004.

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