BILL REQ. #:  H-5058.1 

READ FIRST TIME 02/05/08.   

     AN ACT Relating to voluntary out-of-home placement agreements to provide residential treatment for adoptive children in crisis; amending RCW 74.13.080; adding new sections to chapter 74.13 RCW; and adding a new section to chapter 13.34 RCW.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 74.13 RCW to read as follows:
     The legislature finds that the state has a compelling interest in encouraging adoption of children from foster care. The legislature also finds that children adopted out of the foster care system often have particular or unique needs as a result of their life experiences. These needs may emerge, in part, as a result of the adoption process and may intensify as children enter the sometimes turbulent developmental period of adolescence. The legislature also finds that adoptive families may from time to time require intensive supports to meet the mental and behavioral needs of their adoptive children, including the need for access to residential treatment for adoptive children. The legislature further finds that residential treatment provided at the appropriate time can stabilize children and ultimately preserve adoptions. The availability of voluntary agreements for the provision of residential treatment also serves to demonstrate the state's commitment to promoting successful and enduring adoptions of children from the foster care system.
     The legislature intends to authorize limited voluntary placement agreements for the purpose of responding to children adopted from the foster care system who may have severe mental health or behavioral health needs. These limited voluntary placement agreements are intended to be initiated only when the sole reason for the out-of-home placement is the adoptive child's mental health or behavioral health needs and when the child's behavioral and functional difficulties exceed the parent's ability to effectively and safely manage and meet the child's needs.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 74.13 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The definitions in this subsection apply throughout this section unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
     (a) "Adopted" means that a valid decree of adoption regarding the child and parent was entered and remains intact in Washington or in another jurisdiction.
     (b) "Child" means any child under the age of eighteen who was found to be dependent, placed in out-of-home care, and subsequently was adopted from an out-of-home placement.
     (c) "Licensed facility" means a facility licensed under chapter 74.15 RCW to provide residential evaluation and treatment services for children.
     (d) "Parent" means the adoptive and legal parent of a child according to the terms of a valid decree of adoption, or the legal guardian of an adopted child.
     (e) "Voluntary placement agreement" means a written agreement between the department and a child's parent authorizing the department to place the child in a licensed facility for the purpose of receiving mental health or behavioral health treatment intended to stabilize the child's functioning and support the child's return home. Under the terms of a voluntary placement agreement, the parent retains legal custody of the child while the department temporarily assumes responsibility for the child's placement and care.
     (2) A parent may request and the department may agree to enter into a voluntary placement agreement whenever the following conditions are met:
     (a) The child resides in Washington state;
     (b) Less intensive and traditional family preservation services, community resources, and/or adoption supports have been unsuccessful or are not likely to be successful in stabilizing the child's behavior and functioning; and
     (c) The parent has no reasonable alternative to access the level of care necessary to meet the child's needs and preserve the adoption.
     (3)(a) Whenever the department assumes responsibility for the placement and care of a child under this section, the department, in consultation with the child, the child's parent, and a mental health professional, shall develop a plan for the child's eventual return home. If the plan anticipates the child will remain in out-of-home care one hundred eighty days or longer, or if at any time it appears the child will remain in out-of-home care longer than one hundred eighty days, the department and the parent shall jointly seek a judicial determination that the agreement is in the child's best interests. If the child exits the out-of-home placement before one hundred eighty days have elapsed, no judicial determination is required.
     (b) To obtain the judicial determination required under this section, the department and the parent shall file a joint petition alleging there is located or residing within the county a child who was adopted from the foster care system whose current behavioral health or mental health needs can not be met adequately by the child's parent, and that as a result the child has been placed in out-of-home care pursuant to this section. The petition shall request that the court conduct periodic reviews of the child's placement and make a determination whether continued placement is in the best interests of the child. The petition shall contain the name, date of birth, and residence of the child and the names and residences of the child's parent or legal guardian who has consented to the voluntary placement agreement. The department shall make reasonable attempts to ascertain and set forth in the petition the identity, location, and custodial status of any parent who is not a party to the placement agreement and reasons why that parent cannot assume placement and care authority of the child.
     (c) Permanency planning for the child shall be the joint responsibility of the department and the parent.
     (4) A written agreement under this section must specify the legal status of the child and the rights and obligations of the parent, the child, and the department while the child is in the licensed facility. Any party to the agreement may terminate the agreement at any time by providing advance notice to the other party and to the child if he or she is thirteen years of age or older. Upon termination of the agreement, the child must be returned to the care of his or her parent unless the child has been taken into custody pursuant to RCW 13.34.050 or 26.44.050, placed in shelter care pursuant to RCW 13.34.060, or placed in foster care pursuant to RCW 13.34.130.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   A new section is added to chapter 13.34 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The legislature finds that as a condition of the state's receipt of federal funds for foster care under Title IV-B and Title IV-E of the social security act, all children in foster care must be subjected to periodic court review. Unfortunately, this requirement includes children who were adopted out of foster care and who subsequently are temporarily returned to a foster care placement solely because their parents have determined that the child's mental health or behavioral health service needs require an out-of-home placement. Except for providing such needed services, the parents of these children are completely competent to care for the children. The legislature intends that court review of out-of-home placements pursuant to section 2 of this act be structured to minimize the stress and inconvenience to families caused by complying with these federal requirements.
     (2) Upon filing of the petition required under section 2 of this act, the clerk of the court shall schedule the petition for a hearing to be held no later than fourteen calendar days after the petition has been filed. The department shall provide notification of the time, date, and purpose of the hearing to the parent or legal guardian who has agreed to the child's placement in out-of-home care. The department shall also make reasonable attempts to notify any parent who is not a party to the placement agreement, if the parent's identity and location are known. Notification under this section may be given by the most expedient means, including but not limited to mail, personal service, and telephone.

Sec. 4   RCW 74.13.080 and 1987 c 170 s 11 are each amended to read as follows:
     Except as provided in RCW 74.13.350 and section 2 of this act, the department shall not make payment for any child in group care placement unless the group home is licensed and the department has the ((custody of)) placement and care authority for the child under a court order or a voluntary placement agreement and the authority to remove the child in a cooperative manner after at least seventy-two hours notice to the child care provider; such notice may be waived in emergency situations. However, this requirement shall not be construed to prohibit the department from making or mandate the department to make payment for Indian children placed in facilities licensed by federally recognized Indian tribes pursuant to chapter 74.15 RCW.