State Child Welfare Legislation: SFY 2003

The following state laws in the area of child welfare and child protection were enacted during state fiscal year 2003 (July 1, 2002 through June 30, 2003). More detailed summaries of these laws will be published in Children, Youth and Family Issues: 2003 State Legislative Summary, available from NCSL in January 2004. To request a copy of the summary, or for more information on any of the laws described below, please contact Steve Christian, 303-364-7700 or cyf-info@ncsl.org.

The first Amber Alert system, a joint initiative of broadcast media and the police to locate missing and abducted children, was established in Dallas in 1996. Media coverage of several child abduction cases in the summer of 2002 resulted in a White House Conference on Missing, Exploited, and Runaway Children in October 2002. In April 2003, President Bush signed the PROTECT Act into law, which, among other things, supports the development of state Amber Alert plans.

Responding to these developments, sixteen states (Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas, Vermont, Virginia and West Virginia) passed laws creating or modifying Amber Alert programs in SFY 2003. Virginia also enacted a law requiring each state building to have a Code Adam program to locate lost children.

Arkansas and Florida required reporting of missing children who are in state custody or under state supervision. Maine established procedures for law enforcement investigation of missing children in the state's custody.

In the wake of highly-publicized cases of child sexual abuse perpetrated by priests, many states amended their laws to require reporting of child abuse by members of the clergy. This trend continued in SFY 2003, with seven states (Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, New Mexico and Vermont) adding clergy to the list of people required to report suspected child abuse or neglect.

 Foster Care and Adoption

Foster and adoptive parent support continue to be high on the list of child welfare policy priorities, despite severe budget shortfalls.

Michigan authorized two-year pilot projects for foster parent resource centers. North Carolina created a Special Needs Adoption Incentive Fund to provide financial assistance to facilitate the adoption of children in licensed foster homes. In response to budget problems, Ohio tightened eligibility criteria and reduced subsidies under the Post Adoption Special Services Subsidy Program. Texas required development of a program to recruit and retain foster parents from faith-based organizations. Washington enacted a provision encouraging foster parents to work closely and establish relationships with birth families.

Three western states continued to refine their laws on siblings in foster care. Colorado and Washington created a presumption that joint placement of siblings is in their best interest. California, which has legislated extensively in this area, authorized siblings separated by adoption to petition for visitation.

Six states (Louisiana, Missouri, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia) created or modified safe haven laws, authorizing safe relinquishment of unwanted newborns, bringing to 45 the total number of states with such laws.

Continuing a trend, five states enacted provisions intended to address the problem of children's exposure to the manufacture of methamphetamine. Colorado, Montana and Tennessee added such exposure to their definitions of child abuse. Arkansas and North Dakota created new criminal offenses.

A few states addressed in legislation the connection between domestic violence, substance abuse and child welfare. California passed two measures, one requiring coordinated child welfare/law enforcement responses to domestic violence in homes with children, and another making permanent a presumption that a child living in a home where domestic violence has occurred has sustained physical injury for purposes of eligibility for victim compensation, regardless of whether he or she witnessed such violence.

Florida required the designation of a single managing entity in two districts for the delivery of substance abuse services to child protective service recipients.

Montana amended its definition of psychological abuse to include acts of domestic violence that affect a child's emotional well-being. The provision also addresses actions that may be taken by child welfare agencies to protect children in violent homes.

Finally, North Dakota required reporting of women who use controlled substances during pregnancy. The provision exempts from the reporting requirement women who voluntarily enter treatment.

Although state budget problems have slowed the growth of programs of financial support for relatives caring for children, kinship care continues to be an important issue for state legislators.

Connecticut required the creation of a kinship foster care program. Nevada and Oregon established procedures for creation of permanent legal guardianships for abused and neglected children. Texas authorized development and implementation of a relative placement reimbursement pilot program. Washington required the state to plan and implement strategies to prioritize the placement of children with kin when out-of-home placement is necessary. The provision also establishes kinship navigator pilot projects and establishes an oversight committee to monitor and report on kinship care matters.

A few states continued a trend that began in SFY 2002 to address in legislation the barriers to academic success faced by children in out-of-home placement.

Maryland enacted three measures addressing the education of children in alternative living arrangements. The first measure provides for funding of the education of a child in informal kinship care due to serious family hardship. It also allows a kinship caregiver to enroll a child in school. The second enactment requires certain residential child care programs to, among other things, enroll children in the local school system and to ensure the transfer of academic records. The third provision creates a task force to, among other things, work with the state Department of Education to develop special instructional curricula for children in alternative living arrangements.

Texas passed a law requiring that a child removed from home be returned to school within three days. The law also law requires a school district to accept children in state custody for enrollment without documentation and requires the state to provide the required documentation within 30 days after enrollment.

Washington expressed findings and state policy on the importance of educational stability for children in foster care. It also required the development of protocols between child welfare agencies and school districts and established an oversight committee.

Three states (Florida, Mississippi and Texas) adopted measures to strengthen the child welfare workforce. Florida included in its budget bill provisions to increase the salaries of front-line workers, redesign the child welfare training system and implement front-line retention strategies, including a social worker loan forgiveness program. Another Florida measure established a Protective Investigator Retention Workgroup, directed a study on the impact of service availability on caseworker workload and turnover and required a single integrated curriculum for training of child welfare workers.

Mississippi appropriated funds to hire additional caseworkers and increase salaries.

Texas required a Human Resources Management Plan to improve morale and retention of child welfare employees.

Two states (Nevada and Utah) enacted legislation to open child welfare proceedings to the public. Three states (Idaho, Nevada and Oklahoma) enacted the Uniform Child Witness Testimony by Alternative Methods Act.

Iowa and New Jersey commenced sweeping reform of their child welfare systems. Iowa required an outcomes-based redesign of child welfare and juvenile justice. New Jersey appropriated $30 million to reform its system and settle pending litigation. It also established an Office of the Child Advocate.

Florida required a workgroup to assess and report on the implementation and operation of independent living services in the state. Iowa required review and approval of transition plans for foster children likely to need services from the adult service system upon reaching age 18. Maine expanded its tuition waiver program.