Bill Text: MI HB5024 | 2017-2018 | 99th Legislature | Introduced

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Bill Title: Children; foster care; training of foster parent on use of reasonable and prudent parenting standard for foster children; require. Amends 1973 PA 116 (MCL 722.111 - 722.128) by adding sec. 8c.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-09-28 - Bill Electronically Reproduced 09/27/2017 [HB5024 Detail]

Download: Michigan-2017-HB5024-Introduced.html

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HOUSE BILL No. 5024

 

 

September 27, 2017, Introduced by Rep. Kosowski and referred to the Committee on Families, Children, and Seniors.

 

     A bill to amend 1973 PA 116, entitled

 

"An act to provide for the protection of children through the

licensing and regulation of child care organizations; to provide

for the establishment of standards of care for child care

organizations; to prescribe powers and duties of certain

departments of this state and adoption facilitators; to provide

penalties; and to repeal acts and parts of acts,"

 

(MCL 722.111 to 722.128) by adding section 8c.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 8c. (1) A caregiver of a child in foster care must

 

possess knowledge and skills relating to the reasonable and prudent

 

parent standard.

 

     (2) Except for licensed foster family homes, each licensed

 

community care facility that provides care and supervision to

 

children and operates with staff shall designate at least 1 on-site

 

staff member to apply the reasonable and prudent parent standard to

 

decisions involving the participation of a child who is placed in

 

the facility in age or developmentally appropriate activities in

 

accordance with section 471(a)(10) of the social security act, 42

 

USC 671.

 

     (3) A licensed foster parent or facility staff member, as

 

described in subsection (2), shall receive training related to the

 

reasonable and prudent parent standard that is consistent with

 

section 471(a)(24) of the social security act, 42 USC 671. This

 

training shall include knowledge and skills relating to the

 

reasonable and prudent parent standard for the participation of the

 

child in age or developmentally appropriate activities, including

 

knowledge and skills relating to the developmental stages of the

 

cognitive, emotional, physical, and behavioral capacities of a

 

child, and knowledge and skills relating to applying the standard

 

to decisions such as whether to allow the child to engage in

 

extracurricular, enrichment, cultural, and social activities,

 

including sports, field trips, and overnight activities lasting 1

 

or more days, and to decisions involving signing permission slips

 

and arranging transportation for the child to and from

 

extracurricular, enrichment, and social activities.

 

     (4) A caregiver may arrange for occasional short-term

 

babysitting of his or her foster child and allow an individual to

 

supervise the foster child for the purposes set forth in this

 

section, or on occasion, including, but not limited to, a medical

 

or other health care appointment, grocery or other shopping, a

 

personal grooming appointment, a special occasion for the foster

 

parent, foster parent training classes, school-related meetings,

 

including a parent-teacher conference, a business meeting, an adult

social gathering, or an occasional evening out by the foster

 

parent. A caregiver shall use a reasonable and prudent parent

 

standard in determining and selecting an appropriate babysitter for

 

occasional short-term use.

 

     (5) As used in this section:

 

     (a) "Age-appropriate" means an activity or item that is

 

generally accepted as suitable for a child of the same

 

chronological age or level of maturity. Age appropriateness is

 

based on the development of cognitive, emotional, physical, and

 

behavioral capacity that is typical for an age or age group.

 

     (b) "Caregiver" means a person with whom the child is placed

 

in foster care. Caregiver includes a foster parent or a relative

 

caregiver.

 

     (c) "Reasonable and prudent parent standard" means the

 

standard characterized by careful and sensible parental decisions

 

that maintain the child's health, safety, and best interests while

 

at the same time encouraging the child's emotional and

 

developmental growth, that a caregiver must use when determining

 

whether to allow a child in foster care to participate in

 

extracurricular, enrichment, or social activity.

 

     (d) "Short-term" means no more than 24 consecutive hours.

 

     Enacting section 1. This amendatory act takes effect 90 days

 

after the date it is enacted into law.