Bill Text: OR SB196 | 2011 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relating to programs for children in legal custody of the Department of Human Services; appropriating money; declaring an emergency.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Failed) 2011-06-30 - In committee upon adjournment. [SB196 Detail]

Download: Oregon-2011-SB196-Introduced.html

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     76th OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--2011 Regular Session

NOTE:  Matter within  { +  braces and plus signs + } in an
amended section is new. Matter within  { -  braces and minus
signs - } is existing law to be omitted. New sections are within
 { +  braces and plus signs + } .

LC 2830

                         Senate Bill 196

Sponsored by Senator BATES, Representative BUCKLEY (Presession
  filed.)

                             SUMMARY

The following summary is not prepared by the sponsors of the
measure and is not a part of the body thereof subject to
consideration by the Legislative Assembly. It is an editor's
brief statement of the essential features of the measure as
introduced.

  Requires Department of Human Services and counties to implement
Strengthening, Preserving and Reunifying Families programs in
each county of state to provide family preservation and
reunification services for children in department's legal
custody. Requires department to issue licenses, enter into
agreements with and make payments to eligible programs. Directs
department to seek federal approval to access federal savings
accrued as result of reduction in costs of foster and substitute
care to reinvest in programs under Act. Includes program services
in definition of 'purchase of care.  '
  Creates Strengthening, Preserving and Reunifying Families
Program Fund. Continuously appropriates moneys in fund to
department for specified purposes.
  Requires department and court to include in reasonable effort
considerations and determinations whether preservation and
reunification services provided by programs are most likely to
prevent or eliminate removal of child from child's home or most
likely to make it possible for child to safely return home.
  Requires department to adopt rules.
  Declares emergency, effective on passage.

                        A BILL FOR AN ACT
Relating to programs for children in legal custody of the
  Department of Human Services; creating new provisions; amending
  ORS 418.480, 418.485, 418.495 and 418.990; appropriating money;
  and declaring an emergency.
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
  SECTION 1. { +  Sections 2 to 10 of this 2011 Act are added to
and made a part of ORS chapter 418. + }
  SECTION 2. { +  As used in sections 2 to 10 of this 2011 Act:
  (1) 'Child' means a child or ward in the legal custody of the
Department of Human Services.
  (2) 'Family' means, at a minimum but not to the exclusion of
siblings as that term is defined in ORS 419A.004 or other persons
living in the same household with a child, the child and:
  (a) The child's parent as that term is defined in ORS 419A.004;
  (b) The child's guardian appointed pursuant to ORS chapter 125;
  (c) A person who has a caregiver relationship as that term is
defined in ORS 419B.116 with the child; or

  (d) Any other person with care, custody or control of the
child.
  (3) 'Juvenile court' means the court having jurisdiction of
juvenile matters in the several counties of this state.
  (4) 'Program' means a Strengthening, Preserving and Reunifying
Families program described in section 4 of this 2011 Act.
  (5) 'Reasonable efforts' means the reasonable efforts taken or
to be taken or, if the Indian Child Welfare Act applies, active
efforts taken or to be taken, by the Department of Human Services
to prevent or eliminate the need for removal of a child from the
child's home or, if the child has already been removed from the
child's home, the reasonable or active efforts taken or to be
taken to make it possible for the child to safely return
home. + }
  SECTION 3.  { + The Legislative Assembly finds that:
  (1) There is growing empirical evidence that severe trauma may
result to children who are in the legal custody of the Department
of Human Services by removing them from their families, and that
this trauma may give rise to negative child outcomes that last a
lifetime, cause intergenerational patterns of addiction, abuse
and neglect, and give rise to disrupted and broken families.
  (2) Improving permanency outcomes for children is best
accomplished by providing services that allow children to remain
with their families when appropriate and safe.
  (3) Allowing families to remain intact while parents undergo
mental health or addiction treatment, or to take steps to move
out of poverty by obtaining employment and housing, preserves
child-parent bonds with improved outcomes for children and
families and positive long-term societal effects.
  (4) Where placement in foster or substitute care outside the
home must occur, this can be less traumatic and of shorter
duration with the provision of appropriate family-focused
treatment and services.
  (5) Continuing child and family connections with regular visits
and contacts between children in foster or substitute care and
their families increases the likelihood of reunification and
eases the transition of children back into families.
  (6) System-wide changes in the delivery of child welfare
services for children are needed that emphasize the provision of
supervision and case management and preserving and reunifying
children and their families.
  (7) Adopting a new model for placing children that involves
keeping families together is cost-effective, not only in the
long-term sense that families that remain intact require less
intervention in the future, but also in terms of the direct
expenditure of overall moneys available for the provision of
child welfare services.
  (8) The efficacy of programs that allow families to remain
together or that assist families with reunification has been
demonstrated by pilot programs, including one that has operated
in Jackson County since 2005.
  (9) Increased foster care savings means increased availability
of moneys for child welfare services to all children and families
in Oregon. + }
  SECTION 4. { +  (1) To the extent practicable within available
resources, by the year 2016, the Department of Human Services and
the counties of this state shall implement and have available in
each county at least one Strengthening, Preserving and Reunifying
Families program as described in this section.
  (2) The programs implemented under this section shall provide
an array of services including most if not all of the following:
  (a) Front end intervention services that include accompanying
department caseworkers on initial calls and visits in response to
allegations or reports of abuse or neglect, participating in
assessments to determine the appropriateness and level of program
services required for a child and the child's family and the
development of family preservation plans for presentation to the
juvenile court.
  (b) Residential treatment services whereby a child and the
child's family remain together at the child's and family's home
with 24-hour supervision while the child and child's family
engage in family-strengthening activities and receive appropriate
mental health and addiction treatment interventions.
  (c) Family-centered outpatient treatment services at a program
outpatient site, either after completion of residential treatment
or in lieu of residential treatment, that involve therapeutic day
care and treatment designed specifically for substance-abusing
family members.
  (d) Where a child cannot remain safely together with the
child's family, services that ensure the child remains in contact
with the child's family, through regular visits or otherwise, if
appropriate and safe.
  (e) Case managers that provide ongoing child and family
supervision, assistance identifying and accessing needed
services, intervention when problems emerge or relapse behaviors
occur and observation and monitoring of parenting behavior.
  (f) Immediate access to safe permanent or short-term housing
with on-site case managers and access to supportive services that
increase stability for a child and the child's family.
  (g) Assistance identifying extended family members to provide
additional support, resources and alternative placement options
if necessary.
  (h) Advocate services whereby an advocate acts as a liaison for
a child and the child's family to bridge the court and child
welfare systems, providing information to ensure cooperation with
court orders and legal requirements and, if necessary and
appropriate, assistance with expunging criminal records.
  (i) Other services and interventions as programs evolve,
research develops and funding becomes available.
  (3) The services provided by programs must be culturally
competent, evidence-based and reflect differences in approaches
for urban and rural children and families.
  (4) Programs shall develop and implement training and
continuing education curriculum for persons delivering program
services and, when adequate funding exists, sponsor the
attendance of service providers at state or national training
programs, conferences or other similar events.
  (5) Programs may seek funds from public and private sources to:
  (a) Meet match requirements for state or federal grants to
support the provision of program services;
  (b) Implement and operate the training and educational
requirements of subsection (4) of this section; and
  (c) Provide financial resources for the hiring of personnel and
the provision of existing or enhanced program services.
  (6) The Department of Human Services, in consultation with
programs, shall report annually to the Governor and the
appropriate interim committees of the Legislative Assembly that
address child welfare issues on the progress toward and projected
costs of full implementation of sections 2 to 10 of this 2011
Act. + }
  SECTION 5.  { + (1) Upon finding that a Strengthening,
Preserving and Reunifying Families program described in section 4
of this 2011 Act meets the standards of the Department of Human
Services for the physical health, care and safety of children,
the department shall issue a license to operate the program. The
license shall be valid for a period of two years, unless sooner
suspended or revoked by the department. However, the department
may require that application be made for amendment to an existing
license when changes in a facility or program are to occur. The
department shall charge no fee for its own inspections or
reviews, nor for issuing licenses, but may charge fees to cover

costs of inspections done by other governmental agencies for the
department.
  (2) No person or organization shall operate a program without
having a current, valid license issued by the department.
  (3) Any person, including the Director of Human Services, may
file a complaint with the department alleging that a child or the
child's family is not receiving services necessary to the health,
safety or welfare of the child.
  (4) The department shall investigate complaints made under
subsection (3) of this section and, if a reasonable basis for
sustaining the complaint appears, shall set a hearing to examine
publicly the complaint. Except as provided in subsection (6) of
this section, at least two weeks' written notice of the hearing
and substance of the complaint and the evidence in support of the
complaint must be provided to the program that is the subject of
the complaint. The parents or guardian of the child involved
shall be notified if such persons can be conveniently located.
Notice shall be served personally on the program, but may be
served by mail at the last-known or determined address of the
parent or guardian of the child.
  (5) The hearing shall comply with the provisions of ORS chapter
183 as to procedures, findings and orders. Where the evidence at
the hearing justifies such an order, the department is authorized
to order the program to correct the conditions not in conformity
with standards. If corrections are not made within time limits
set by the department, the department may suspend or revoke the
license or may refuse to renew the license and is empowered to
make any other lawful orders necessary to the protection of the
child involved.
  (6) Where a condition exists that immediately endangers the
health or safety of a child, the director may issue an interim
order without any notice, or with such notice as is practical
under the circumstances, requiring the program to alter the
conditions under which the child lives or receives services. The
interim emergency order shall remain in force until a final
order, after a hearing as provided in subsection (4) of this
section, is entered.
  (7) Inspections and reviews of programs may be conducted by the
department at times and frequencies of the department's choosing.
The department shall consult with representatives of the programs
in developing the standards that shall be the basis for
inspections and reviews.
  (8) A program shall cooperate with the department in making any
inspection or review or investigating any complaint made under
this section.
  (9) In addition to remedies otherwise provided under this
section and ORS 418.992 to 418.998, the department may commence
an action to enjoin operation of a program:
  (a) If the program is being operated without a valid license
issued under this section; or
  (b) If the program provider fails to correct the conditions not
in conformity with standards, as set out in an order issued under
subsection (5) of this section, within the time specified in the
order.
  (10) The department shall adopt rules to implement this section
in accordance with ORS chapter 183. + }
  SECTION 6. { +  (1) The Director of Human Services or the
authorized representative of the director shall enter into
agreements with, and make reasonable payment for services
provided by, Strengthening, Preserving and Reunifying Families
programs that have been licensed in accordance with section 5 of
this 2011 Act for the provision of preservation or reunification
services for children in the legal custody of the Department of
Human Services and their families as described in section 4 of
this 2011 Act.

  (2) The agreement shall provide for such services as are
available through the program existing in each county.
  (3) The agreement shall be signed by the person or authorized
representative of the person operating the program providing the
agreed-upon services and by the director or the authorized
representative of the director.
  (4) A program licensed under section 5 of this 2011 Act and
contracted with under subsection (1) of this section shall be the
guardian of each child committed to the program. + }
  SECTION 7.  { + (1) There is established in the State Treasury,
separate and distinct from the General Fund, the Strengthening,
Preserving and Reunifying Families Program Fund. Interest earned
by the Strengthening, Preserving and Reunifying Families Program
Fund shall be credited to the fund. The fund consists of:
  (a) Moneys received by the Department of Human Services under
section 8 of this 2011 Act;
  (b) Amounts donated to the fund;
  (c) Amounts appropriated or otherwise transferred to the fund
by the Legislative Assembly;
  (d) Investment earnings received on moneys in the fund; and
  (e) Other amounts deposited in the fund from any source.
  (2) Moneys in the fund are continuously appropriated to the
Department of Human Services for the purposes of sections 2 to 10
of this 2011 Act.
  (3) The administrative costs and expenses of the department in
implementing sections 2 to 10 of this 2011 Act may be paid from
moneys available in the fund. + }
  SECTION 8. { +  (1) The Department of Human Services shall seek
federal approval, renewal of an existing waiver of federal
requirements or a new waiver of federal requirements as necessary
to:
  (a) Access federal savings that have accrued to the state as a
result of a reduction in the cost of foster and substitute care
to children in the legal custody of the department; and
  (b) Create a reinvestment plan for federal savings under
paragraph (a) of this subsection into the provision of services
through Strengthening, Preserving and Reunifying Families
programs under sections 2 to 10 of this 2011 Act.
  (2) The department shall combine state, federal and private
resources to support implementation of a statewide system of
programs at the local level as provided under sections 2 to 10 of
this 2011 Act. + }
  SECTION 9.  { + (1) In considering what constitutes reasonable
efforts or whether reasonable efforts have been made under ORS
419B.185, 419B.337, 419B.340, 419B.470, 419B.476, 419B.498 and
419C.173, the Department of Human Services and the juvenile court
shall determine whether:
  (a) A Strengthening, Preserving and Reunifying Families program
and at least one program provider exist in the child's county of
residence as that term is defined in ORS 419A.004; and
  (b) Placement of a child and referral of a child and the
child's family to a program is or was in the child's best
interests and the action most likely to prevent or eliminate the
need for removal of the child from the child's home or the action
most likely to make it possible for the child to safely return
home.
  (2) If the department or juvenile court determines that
placement of the child and referral of the child and the child's
family to a program would not prevent or eliminate the need for
removal of the child from the child's home or be the action most
likely to make it possible for the child to safely return home:
  (a) The department shall, in any description or documentation
of its reasonable efforts, include a written explanation of the
reasons why the department did not believe the placement of the
child and referral of the child and the child's family to the
program was in the child's best interests and the course most
likely to prevent or shorten the child's separation from the
child's family; and
  (b) The court shall, in any order where a determination or
written findings of the department's reasonable efforts are
required, include a written explanation of the reasons why the
court did not believe the placement of the child and referral of
the child and the child's family to the program was in the
child's best interests and the course most likely to prevent or
shorten the child's separation from the child's family. + }
  SECTION 10.  { +  The Department of Human Services shall adopt
rules to implement the provisions of sections 2 to 10 of this
2011 Act. + }
  SECTION 11. ORS 418.480 is amended to read:
  418.480. As used in ORS 418.480 to 418.500, 'purchase of care'
includes the purchase of institutional and foster family care and
services, adoptive services,  { + services provided by
Strengthening, Preserving and Reunifying Families programs under
sections 2 to 10 of this 2011 Act, + } services to the unwed
mother and her child and such other care and services as the
Department of Human Services shall determine to be necessary to
carry out the policy stated in ORS 418.485.
  SECTION 12. ORS 418.485 is amended to read:
  418.485. It is the policy of the State of Oregon to strengthen
family life and to insure the protection of all children either
in their own homes or in other appropriate care outside their
homes. In affording such protection, the Director of Human
Services shall in cooperation with public and private
child-caring agencies  { + and with Strengthening, Preserving and
Reunifying Families programs under sections 2 to 10 of this 2011
Act, + } develop a set of short-range and long-range priorities
for the development of needed child care and services, such
priorities to be periodically reviewed and revised as necessary.
Such priorities are to be set out in a form enumerating the
number of children in each category of need, the type of child
care and services needed, the areas of the state where such care
and services are needed, and the projected costs. The State of
Oregon hereby commits itself to the purchase of care and services
for children who need care and to encourage private child-caring
agencies  { + and Strengthening, Preserving and Reunifying
Families programs under sections 2 to 10 of this 2011 Act  + }to
develop programs required to meet the needs of the children of
this state and money may be appropriated therefor. In developing
programs necessary to meet the needs of the children of this
state, the Director of Human Services shall make every attempt
feasible to develop  { + local, + } community  { + and
county-based + } organizations.   { - Such efforts to develop
community organizations are to be documented and presented to the
next session of the Legislative Assembly. - }  { + The Department
of Human Services shall document and present an annual report to
the appropriate interim committees of the Legislative Assembly
that address child welfare issues regarding efforts taken under
this section. + }
  SECTION 13. ORS 418.495 is amended to read:
  418.495. (1) Within the limits of funds available therefor, the
Department of Human Services may enter into agreements with
licensed child-caring agencies { + , licensed Strengthening,
Preserving and Reunifying Families programs under sections 2 to
10 of this 2011 Act  + }and other appropriate facilities,
including youth care centers, for the purchase of care for
children who require and are eligible for such care, regardless
of whether the children are wards of the state or whether the
department is their guardian or has their custody or whether the
children are surrendered to a child-caring agency  { + or to a
licensed Strengthening, Preserving and Reunifying Families
program under sections 2 to 10 of this 2011 Act + } or committed
thereto by order of a court under ORS chapter 419B or 419C. The
agreement shall prescribe the procedures for payment, the rate of
payment and may contain such other conditions as the department
and the agency { + , + }   { - or - }  facility  { + or program
 + }may agree.
  (2) The department shall by rule adopt payment standards for
foster care. In establishing standards, the department may take
into account the income, resources and maintenance available to
and the necessary expenditures of a foster parent who is a
relative, as defined by rule, of the child placed in care.
  SECTION 14. ORS 418.990 is amended to read:
  418.990. (1) A person who violates ORS 418.250 (2), 418.255,
418.290 or 418.300 commits a Class D violation.
  (2) A person who violates ORS 418.630 commits a Class B
misdemeanor.
  (3) Violation of ORS 418.215, 418.250 (1) { + , + }
 { - or - }  418.327 (3)  { +  or section 5 (2) of this 2011
Act + } is a Class A misdemeanor. Each day of violation is a
separate offense.
  SECTION 15.  { + This 2011 Act being necessary for the
immediate preservation of the public peace, health and safety, an
emergency is declared to exist, and this 2011 Act takes effect on
its passage. + }
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