Bill Text: AZ HB2260 | 2016 | Fifty-second Legislature 2nd Regular | Chaptered
Bill Title: Foster care review board; continuation
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 4-1)
Status: (Passed) 2016-05-11 - Chapter 134 [HB2260 Detail]
Download: Arizona-2016-HB2260-Chaptered.html
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Conference Engrossed |
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State of Arizona House of Representatives Fifty-second Legislature Second Regular Session 2016
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CHAPTER 134
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HOUSE BILL 2260 |
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AN ACT
Amending sections 8-102, 8-103, 8-105, 8-342, 8-509, 8‑515.01, 8-515.03 and 8‑515.04, Arizona Revised Statutes; repealing section 41‑3016.08, Arizona Revised Statutes; amending title 41, chapter 27, article 2, Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding section 41‑3024.16; relating to child safety.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Section 8-102, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
8-102. Who may be adopted
A. Except as provided in title 14, chapter 8 and subsection B of this section, only a child, or a foreign‑born person who is twenty‑one years of age or less and who is not an illegal alien, who is present within this state at the time the petition for adoption is filed may be adopted.
B. A dependent child is not required to be present in this state at the time the petition for adoption is filed if the criteria prescribed in section 8‑103, subsection B are met.
Sec. 2. Section 8-103, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
8-103. Who may adopt
A. Any adult resident of this state, whether married, unmarried or legally separated, is eligible to qualify to adopt children. A husband and wife may jointly adopt children.
B. An adult nonresident of this state, whether married, unmarried or legally separated, is eligible to qualify to adopt a child if all of the following apply:
1. The child is a dependent child and currently under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court in this state.
2. The child currently resides in the home of the applicant.
3. The department placed the child in the home of the applicant pursuant to section 8‑548.
4. The department recommends the adoption of the child by the applicant.
5. The foster care review board has reviewed the child's case as required by section 8‑515.03, except that the court may not delay the child's adoption if the foster care review board has not reviewed the child's case.
B. C. Pursuant to rules adopted by the division department, the division department or adoption agency shall place a child in an adoptive home that best meets the safety, social, emotional, physical and mental health needs of the child. Other relevant factors for consideration, in no order of preference, shall include:
1. The marital status, and the length and stability of the marital relationship of the prospective adoptive parents.
2. Placement with the child's siblings pursuant to section 8‑862.
3. Established relationships between the child and the prospective adoptive family as described in section 8‑862, including placement with a grandparent or another member of the child's extended family, including a person or foster parent who has a significant relationship with the child.
4. The prospective adoptive family's ability to meet the child's safety, social, emotional, physical and mental health needs and the ability to financially provide for the child.
5. The wishes of the child who is twelve years of age or older.
6. The wishes of the child's birth parents unless the rights of the parent have been terminated or the court has established a case plan of severance and adoption.
7. The availability of relatives, the child's current or former foster parents or other significant persons to provide support to the prospective adoptive family and child.
C. D. If all relevant factors are equal and the choice is between a married man and woman certified to adopt and a single adult certified to adopt, placement preference shall be with a married man and woman.
D. E. In each adoption proceeding, the court shall make findings on the record regarding the best interests of the child pursuant to law.
Sec. 3. Section 8-105, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
8-105. Preadoption certification; investigation; central adoption registry
A. Before any prospective adoptive parent may petition to adopt a child the person shall be certified by the court as acceptable to adopt children. A certificate shall be issued only after an investigation conducted by an officer of the court, by an agency, or by the division department or by an entity contracted by the department to do an investigation and home study for foster home licensing or preadoption certification. A written application for certification shall be made directly to the court, to an agency, or to the division department or to an entity contracted by the department, in the form and content required by the court, agency or division department.
B. The division department is not required to accept every application for certification. In determining which applications to accept the division department may give priority to applications filed by adult residents of this state who wish to adopt a child who has any special needs as defined in section 8‑141.
C. After receiving and accepting the written and completed application of the prospective adoptive parent or parents, which shall include a financial statement and a physician's or a registered nurse practitioner's statement of each applicant's physical health, the division department, the agency, or an officer of the court or the entity contracted by the department shall conduct or cause to be conducted an investigation of the prospective adoptive parent or parents to determine if they are fit and proper persons to adopt children.
D. The division department shall not present for certification a prospective adoptive parent unless that person and each other adult member of the household have a valid fingerprint clearance card issued pursuant to section 41-1758.07. The prospective adoptive parent and each other adult member of the household must certify on forms that are provided by the division department and that are notarized whether that person is awaiting trial on or has ever been convicted of any of the criminal offenses listed in section 41‑1758.07, subsections B and C in this state or similar offenses in another state or jurisdiction.
E. An officer of the court may obtain a state and federal criminal records check pursuant to section 41‑1750 and Public Law 92‑544. The department of public safety may exchange this fingerprint data with the federal bureau of investigation.
F. This investigation and report to the court shall consider all relevant and material facts dealing with the prospective adoptive parents' fitness to adopt children and shall include:
1. A complete social history.
2. The financial condition of the applicant.
3. The moral fitness of the applicant.
4. The religious background of the applicant.
5. The physical and mental health condition of the applicants.
6. Any court action for or adjudication of child abuse, abandonment of children, dependency or termination of parent‑child relationship in which the applicant had control, care or custody of the child who was the subject of the action.
7. Whether the person or persons wish to be placed on the central registry established in subsection M of this section.
8. All other facts bearing on the issue of the fitness of the prospective adoptive parents that the court, agency or division department may deem relevant.
G. The investigator shall not reveal to the prospective adoptive parents the identity of a child or the child's parent or parents and shall not reveal to the child or the child's parent or parents the identity of the prospective adoptive parents if these facts are not already known.
H. Within ninety days after the original application prescribed by subsection A of this section has been accepted, the division or department, the agency or the entity contracted by the department or a person or agency designated by the court to conduct an investigation shall present to the juvenile court the written report required by subsection F of this section, which shall include a definite recommendation for certifying the applicant as being acceptable or nonacceptable to adopt children and the reasons for the recommendation.
I. Within sixty days after receiving the investigation report required by subsections F and H of this section, the court shall certify the applicant as being acceptable or nonacceptable to adopt children based on the investigation report and recommendations of the report. A certification remains in effect for eighteen months from the date of its issuance and may be extended for additional one year periods if after review the court finds that there have been no material changes in circumstances that would adversely affect the acceptability of the applicant to adopt.
J. The court may require additional investigation if it finds that additional information is necessary on which to make an appropriate decision regarding certification.
K. Any applicant who has been certified as nonacceptable may petition the court to review such that certification. Notice shall be given to all interested parties and notice may be given to the foster care review board if the child sought to be adopted is in out‑of‑home placement and is a dependent child or the subject of a dependency action. The matter shall be heard by the court, which may affirm or reverse the certification.
L. If the applicant is certified as nonacceptable, the applicant may not reapply for certification to the court, to any agency, or to the division department or to an entity contracted by the department for one year.
M. The division department shall maintain a central adoption registry that includes the names of all prospective adoptive parents currently certified by the court as acceptable to adopt children, except those who request that their names not be included, the names of all children who are under the jurisdiction of the division department and who are currently available for adoption, the names of any other children who are currently available for adoption and whose names are voluntarily entered in the registry by any agency, parent or other person that has the right to give consent to the child's adoption, and other information as the division department may elect to include in aid of adoptive placements. Access to information in the registry shall be made available on request to any agency under assurances as the division department may require that the information sought is in furtherance of adoptive placements and that confidentiality of the information is preserved.
N. This section does not apply if:
1. The prospective adoptive parent is the spouse of the birth or legal parent of the child to be adopted or is an uncle, aunt, adult sibling, grandparent or great‑grandparent of the child of the whole or half‑blood or by marriage or adoption.
2. The birth or legal parent is deceased but at the time of death the parent had legal and physical custody of the child to be adopted and the child had resided primarily with the spouse of the birth or legal parent during the twenty‑four months before the death of the parent.
3. The grandparent, great‑grandparent, uncle, aunt, great‑uncle, great‑aunt or adult sibling or uncle is deceased but at the time of death that person had legal and physical custody of the child to be adopted and the child had resided primarily with the spouse of the grandparent, great‑grandparent, uncle, aunt, great‑uncle, great‑aunt or adult sibling or uncle during the twenty‑four months before the death of the grandparent, great‑grandparent, uncle, aunt, great‑uncle, great‑aunt or adult sibling or uncle.
4. The applicant is a licensed foster parent who is petitioning to adopt a child currently placed by the department in the foster parent's home and the department recommends the adoption of the child by the foster parent applicant.
O. If the applicant is not a licensed foster parent and has adopted a child within three years preceding the current application and is applying to adopt another child or is a foster parent who is licensed by this state, the division department, or the agency or an entity contracted by the department or a person designated by the court to conduct an investigation shall only provide an update report on any changes in circumstances that have occurred since the previous certification or licensing report. If the applicant has adopted a child more than three years before the current application and is applying to adopt another child, the division department, or the agency or an entity contracted by the department or a person designated by the court to conduct an investigation may provide an updated report on any changes in circumstances that have occurred since the previous certification or licensing report. The court shall certify the applicant as acceptable to adopt unless there are changes in circumstances that adversely affect the applicant's parenting ability. In making this determination, the court shall consider information from the prior certification or licensing report.
Sec. 4. Section 8-342, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
8-342. Commitment of child; medical examination
A. A child who is any of the following shall not be committed or awarded to the department of juvenile corrections:
1. Adjudicated delinquent for an offense that is not a felony unless the child has been previously adjudicated delinquent for an offense that is a felony or is seriously mentally ill.
2. Under fourteen years of age.
3. A dependent or incorrigible child unless the child is adjudicated delinquent and is not excluded under paragraph 1 or 2 of this subsection.
B. Before commitment to the department of juvenile corrections, every child shall be given a medical examination. If it is determined that any contagious or infectious disease is present, the child shall not be committed to the department of juvenile corrections, but the juvenile court shall order that the child be given the necessary medical treatment at the county hospital or other medical facility. When the child is discharged by competent medical authority, the juvenile court may order the child's commitment to the department of juvenile corrections. In any case copies of records, examinations and evaluations shall be made of the findings of the medical examination and of any subsequent treatment and discharge, which copies shall accompany the child's commitment papers.
C. If the child is a dependent child and is committed or awarded to the department of juvenile corrections, the foster care review board shall review the child's case as required by section 8‑515.03.
Sec. 5. Section 8-509, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
8-509. Licensing of foster homes; renewal of license; provisional license; exemption from licensure; immunization requirements
A. The division department shall license and certify foster homes. Licenses are valid for a period of two years.
B. The division department shall not issue a license without satisfactory proof that the foster parent or parents have completed six actual hours of approved initial foster parent training as set forth in section 8‑503 and that each foster parent and each other adult member of the household has a valid fingerprint clearance card issued pursuant to section 41‑1758.07. The foster parent and each other adult member of the household must certify on forms that are provided by the division department and that are notarized whether the foster parent or other adult member of the household is awaiting trial on or has ever been convicted of any of the criminal offenses listed in section 41‑1758.07, subsections B and C in this state or similar offenses in another state or jurisdiction.
C. The division department shall not renew a license without satisfactory proof that the foster parent or parents have completed six twelve actual hours of approved ongoing foster parent training per year during the two‑year period of licensure as set forth in section 8‑503.
D. Notwithstanding the requirements of subsections B and C of this section, If the division department determines that completing the training required in subsections B and C of this section would be a condition of hardship to the foster parent or parents, the division department may issue a provisional license for a period not to exceed six months. A provisional license may not be renewed.
E. Child welfare agencies that submit foster homes for licensing shall conduct an investigation of the foster home pursuant to licensing rules of the division department. The division department shall conduct investigations of all other foster homes. If the foster home meets all requirements set by the division department, the agency shall submit an application stating the foster home's qualifications to the division department. The agency may also recommend the types of licensing and certification to be granted to the foster home.
F. The division department shall accept an adoptive home certification study as a licensing home study if the study has been updated within the past three months to include the information necessary to determine whether the home meets foster care licensing standards.
G. This section does not apply if the child is placed in a home by a means other than by court order and if the home does not receive compensation from this state or any political subdivision of this state.
H. The division does department may not prohibit a person operating a licensed foster home from applying for or receiving compensation as a foster home parent due to employment with this state.
I. The division department shall not require a foster parent to immunize the foster parent's natural or adoptive children as a condition of foster home licensure.
J. A licensee may modify the renewal date of a license issued pursuant to this section by submitting an application for modification of renewal date with the division department on a form prescribed by the division department. The licensee must specify the new month of renewal on the application. The modified renewal date must be prior to before, but not more than six months earlier than, the existing renewal date.
K. The foster care review board shall review the cases of children placed by the department in foster homes licensed pursuant to this section as required by section 8‑515.03.
Sec. 6. Section 8-515.01, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
8-515.01. Local foster care review boards; appointment; exclusions; terms; training; compensation; meetings
A. The presiding judge of the juvenile court in each
county shall establish local foster care review boards for the review of cases
of children who are in out‑of‑home placement and who are the
subject of a dependency action to assist in the review required pursuant to
section 8‑862. The judge shall establish one board for each
one hundred children, or fraction of that number. The judge may
decide not to create an additional review board if the number of children
assigned to a review board exceeds one hundred by fewer than fifty
children. The boards shall consist of at least five regular
members. The judge may appoint one alternate member for each board
if deemed necessary. The alternate member shall receive all case
correspondence and reports and shall serve on the review board in the absence
of one of the regular members. Each board shall, to the maximum extent feasible, shall represent the various socioeconomic,
racial and ethnic groups of the county in which it serves. A list of
the members of each local board shall be sent to the supreme court.
B. The presiding judge shall not appoint a person
employed by the division, any child welfare agency
or the juvenile court to a local board.
C. On the appointment of a new local board, regular board members shall divide themselves by lot into three classes as nearly equal in number as possible. Members of the first class shall serve for a term of one year, members of the second class shall serve for a term of two years and members of the third class shall serve for a term of three years. All subsequent local board members, including alternate members, shall serve for a term of three years, except if a member has been appointed to fill a vacancy occasioned other than by the expiration of a full term of office. The term of each member shall expire on the third Monday in January of the appropriate year. Members shall continue to serve until a successor is appointed. In the event a vacancy occurs on the local board, the judge shall appoint another person to serve the unexpired portion of the term.
D. A person shall not remain on a local board unless the person participates in the training established pursuant to section 8‑515.04.
E. Each local board shall elect a chairman and a vice‑chairman and other officers as it deems necessary.
F. Local board members shall be compensated pursuant to title 38, chapter 4, article 2.
G. Each local board shall meet, at a place designated by the juvenile court, as often as it deems necessary to carry out the duties of the local board. A local board shall not meet less than twice annually.
Sec. 7. Section 8-515.03, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
8-515.03. Duties of local foster care review boards
Local foster care review boards shall:
1. Review within six months of placement and at least once every six months thereafter the case of each child who remains in out‑of‑home placement and who is the subject of a dependency action to determine what efforts have been made by the division department and the agency with which the child has been placed to carry out the case plan for the permanent placement of such child. The review period for out‑of‑home placement includes time that a child is in voluntary placement pursuant to section 8‑806. The court and the division department shall review a local foster care review board's findings and recommendations at the next scheduled dependency review hearing and the court shall address the board's recommendations on the record. The division department shall provide the local foster care review board with written notice within ten business days of the date of the receipt of the recommendation if the division department intends to accept or not implement the board's recommendations.
2. Allow a child's parents and grandparents to attend the local foster care review board's review of the case. The parent or grandparent may be accompanied at the review by an advocate of the parent parent's or grandparent's choice.
3. Review any case assigned by the juvenile court for early review of the case plan within sixty days after the removal of a child from that child's home.
4. Submit to the juvenile court within thirty days following the review its findings and recommendations regarding the efforts and progress made by the division department and agency to carry out the case plan, together with any other recommendations it chooses to make regarding the child. The findings and recommendations shall include the date of the next review. A copy of such findings and recommendations shall be sent to the division or the agency, if the juvenile court has awarded custody of the child to the agency, and to such other interested parties as the court may require.
5. Encourage and facilitate the timely return of children to their natural parents or, if the board finds that one or more of the grounds listed in section 8‑533 may exist, encourage the appropriate agency to initiate such procedures as would make the child eligible for adoption, followed by a maximum effort by the agency to place the child for adoption.
6. Encourage the division department and all agencies involved in placing children in out‑of‑home placement to exert all possible efforts to make arrangements for permanent plans for children for whom return to natural parents or adoption is determined to be infeasible or impossible.
7. Promote and encourage the division department and all agencies involved in placing children in foster care to maximize stability and family continuity for children in foster care by discouraging unnecessary changes in the placement of foster children and by recruiting foster parents who may be suitable and eligible as adoptive parents.
8. Assist the division department and agencies in informing natural parents, foster parents and other interested parties of their rights and responsibilities with respect to any child in out‑of‑home placement. Natural parents, foster parents and other interested parties may be involved in the review process when appropriate.
9. Make recommendations to the state board regarding foster care policies and procedures as they relate to the children assigned for their review.
Sec. 8. Section 8-515.04, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
8-515.04. State foster care review board; members; personnel; training programs; compensation
A. The state foster care review board is established
within the supreme court consisting of seven three persons who have
knowledge of the problems of foster care and who are appointed by the supreme
court and of the members of the local foster care review boards who are
appointed by the presiding judge of the juvenile court. In counties
having only one foster care review board, the judge shall appoint one
member. In counties having more than one foster care review board,
the presiding judge of the juvenile court shall appoint to the state board only
one member for every three ten boards except that not more than six
members may be appointed from any county. Members of the state board
who are local board members shall serve terms that are coterminous with their
terms as members of local review boards. Members who are appointed by the
supreme court shall serve terms that are not less than two years, nor more than
five years.
B. The state board shall select a chairman and a vice‑chairman and any other officers it deems necessary.
C. The state board shall meet no less than twice annually and more frequently on the call of the chairman or as the board determines. The supreme court may adopt reasonable rules relating to the functions and procedures of the local boards and the state board in accordance with the duties of the boards as provided in this article. The state board shall review and coordinate the activities of the local boards.
D. The supreme court shall employ a coordinator and other personnel it deems necessary to carry out the duties of the state board and the local boards. Compensation for all personnel shall be determined pursuant to section 38‑611.
E. The state board shall establish training programs for local board members, which shall include periodic in‑service training.
F. State board members shall be compensated as determined pursuant to title 38, chapter 4, article 2.
Sec. 9. Repeal
Section 41-3016.08, Arizona Revised Statutes, is repealed.
Sec. 10. Title 41, chapter 27, article 2, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 41-3024.16, to read:
41-3024.16. State foster care review board; termination July 1, 2024
A. The state foster care review board terminates on July 1, 2024.
B. Section 8‑515.04 is repealed on January 1, 2025.
Sec. 11. Review of foster parent requirements; report; delayed repeal
A. The department of child safety shall:
1. Review the implementation of the foster home licensing rules, guidelines and checklists.
2. Review the cases in which foster home licenses were denied.
3. Hold public meetings to solicit input from foster families on the implementation of the foster home licensing rules, guidelines and checklists.
4. Identify any modifications required in the new rules, guidelines or checklists.
B. The department shall provide a report of its findings in the review to the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the senate on or before December 31, 2016.
C. This section is repealed from and after September 30, 2017.
Sec. 12. Purpose
Pursuant to section 41‑2955, subsection B, Arizona Revised Statutes, the legislature continues the state foster care review board to aid the juvenile court to determine the proper disposition of children in foster care.
Sec. 13. Retroactivity
Sections 9 and 10 of this act are effective retroactively to July 1, 2016.
APPROVED BY THE GOVERNOR MAY 11, 2016.
FILED IN THE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE MAY 11, 2016.
