CCS SS SCS HS HCS HB 1453 -- FOSTER CARE

This bill changes the laws regarding protective services for
children and foster care.

CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT REPORTS

The bill:

(1)  Changes the standard for including an individual on the
child abuse and neglect central registry from probable cause to
believe the individual committed child abuse or neglect to a
finding by the Children's Division within the Department of
Social Services that there is a preponderance of evidence that
the individual committed child abuse or neglect;

(2)  Prohibits mandated reporters from making reports of child
abuse or neglect anonymously.  All other reporters may remain
anonymous;

(3)  Requires the division to use a structured decision-making
model to classify all reports made to the child abuse and neglect
hotline, giving priority to ensuring the well-being and safety of
the child;

(4)  Requires the names of individuals placed on the central
registry before August 28, 2003, to remain on the registry for
the duration of the time required in Section 210.152, RSMo;

(5)  Prohibits the division from meeting with a child at any
school or child care facility building where abuse of the child
is alleged to have occurred;

(6)  Reduces from 10 to five years the amount of time the
division must keep an unsubstantiated report of child abuse made
by a mandated reporter; and

(7)  Requires biological parents, foster parents, guardians ad
litem, and volunteer advocates to be notified of all family
support team meetings.

COURT PROCEEDINGS

The bill:

(1)  Requires the guardian ad litem and volunteer advocate to be
informed of and have the right to attend all meetings involving
the child upon appointment by the court.  The guardian ad litem
is required to advocate for timely court hearings to achieve
permanency for the child as soon as possible;

(2)  Requires that the questioning of a child who is in custody
because the child is in need of care or treatment cease if the
child wishes to have a parent, guardian, or attorney present
during the questioning.  Questioning of the child may resume when
the child does not object to talking about the alleged abuse and
neglect, unless the interviewer has reason to believe that the
parent, guardian, or custodian is acting to protect the alleged
perpetrator.  All video or audio recordings of meetings,
interviews, or interrogations conducted in relation to a child in
the state's custody are presumed admissible as evidence in
proceedings involving the child.  The recordings are inadmissible
only upon a showing by clear and convincing evidence that the
recording lacks sufficient indicia of reliability;

(3)  Requires the court to grant a change of judge upon the
motion of a child or the child's parent;

(4)  Requires the Missouri Supreme Court to promulgate rules by
February 1, 2005, that mandate a hearing within three days of a
child being taken into custody.  An adjudication must be held no
later than 60 days after the child has been taken into custody;
and if at that time the court determines there is sufficient
cause for the child to remain in the state's custody, the court
will conduct a dispositional review no later than 90 days after
the child has been taken into custody.  The court must then
conduct review hearings every 90 to 120 days during the first
year and at least every six months after the first year.  This
section contains an emergency clause; and

(5)  Requires that on or before July 1, 2005, all juvenile court
proceedings for children who are in need of care and treatment
and termination of parental rights cases initiated by the county
juvenile office or the division will be open to the public.  The
proceedings can be closed in certain situations.  The general
public is excluded during the testimony of a child or a victim.

BACKGROUND CHECKS AND FINGERPRINTING

The bill:

(1)  Allows the division or the county juvenile office to request
a name-based criminal history check when an emergency placement
of a child must be made and requires them to determine whether
any person over the age of 17 living in the household is listed
on the child abuse and neglect central registry.  The division
must inquire as to whether any children under the age of 17
living in the household have been certified as adults and
convicted of a crime and conduct a background check on the
individuals;

(2)  Requires the division to conduct a search for full orders of
protection for anyone seeking a foster parent license.  The
applicant and any adult in the applicant's household must also
submit two sets of fingerprints for a criminal background check.
The division must inquire as to whether any children under the
age of 17 living in the household have been certified as adults
and convicted of a crime and conduct a background check on the
individuals;

(3)  Requires persons employed by a school after January 1, 2005,
who are authorized to have contact with children to have a
criminal background check completed before having any
unsupervised contact with a child;

(4)  Requires the court that certifies a juvenile offender as an
adult to order the law enforcement agency to fingerprint the
individual immediately;

(5)  Requires qualified entities to obtain two sets of
fingerprints from the individual if a national criminal record
review is requested; and

(6)  Increases the fees the State Highway Patrol can charge for
name-based criminal history background checks from $5 to $10 and
for checks based on fingerprints from $14 to $20.

FOSTER CARE AND PLACEMENT OF CHILDREN

The bill:

(1)  Requires the division to provide standards and training for
prospective foster parents, as well as performance-based criteria
for licensed foster parents;

(2)  Requires the division to notify parents when their child is
placed in foster care;

(3)  Prohibits the removal of children from school for placement
in foster care before the end of the school day without a court
order;

(4)  Requires the division to hold a family support team meeting
within 72 hours of the child being taken into custody and
additional meetings prior to taking any action relating to the
placement of a child in its custody;

(5)  Requires the division to place a child with relatives if the
court has determined that the placement is not contrary to the
best interests of the child.  The court must make specific
findings on the record detailing why placement with a relative is
not in the best interests of the child;

(6)  Specifies that the age of a relative may not be the only
consideration in determining whether to place the child with that
relative;

(7)  Requires the division to comply with the Federal Indian
Child Welfare Act in placing Native American children;

(8)  Allows parents to temporarily place a child with another
individual, while retaining the right to supervise the care of
the child and resume custody, and allows a parent to use a power
of attorney to delegate his or her powers regarding care or
custody of a minor child to another individual for a period of up
to one year;

(9)  Requires that all information provided at a meeting or
hearing relating to the removal of a child from the child's home
be confidential, except that a party or parent may waive
confidentiality for himself or herself, and that no one may be
required to sign a confidentiality agreement prior to testifying
or providing information at the meeting; and

(10)  Requires the Department of Social Services to seek Title
IV-E waivers from the Department of Health and Senior Services
and requires the Department of Social Services to take the
necessary steps to qualify the state for any federal block grant
money available for foster care and adoption assistance.

PRIVATIZATION OF SERVICES FOR CHILDREN

The bill:

(1)  Requires the division to consult with community providers
and enter into contracts with qualified children's services
providers to provide services to children and families.  The
contracts must be awarded through a competitive process and be
provided by providers and agencies currently contracting for
services with the state, as well as children's services providers
which have a proven record of providing child welfare services in
the State of Missouri, consistent with federal rules and
regulations and state policies in effect on January 1, 2004.
Contracts entered into by the division must be in compliance with
federal law and may not result in the loss of federal funding;
and

(2)  Requires the division to submit a report to the General
Assembly beginning July 15, 2006, and each year thereafter that
the privatization project is in operation.  The bill specifies
the information that must be included in the report.

REPORTS

The bill:

(1)  Requires the Task Force on Children's Justice established by
the Children's Service Commission in accordance with federal law
to conduct an independent review of the policies and procedures
of state and local child protective services agencies and to
conduct reviews of specific cases, when appropriate, to evaluate
how effectively agencies are discharging their responsibilities;

(2)  Requires the Department of Social Services to submit,
beginning February 1, 2006, an annual statistical report
regarding the number of children receiving child protective
services to the Governor and the General Assembly; and

(3)  Requires the division to identify all children in its
custody who are receiving foster care services by January 1,
2005, and report to the General Assembly the type of foster care
being provided and the status of all children.

MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

The bill:

(1)  Establishes the Office of Child Advocate for Children's
Protection and Services within the Office of Administration;

(2)  Designates specified provisions as the "Dominic James
Memorial Foster Care Act of 2004";

(3)  Requires the Family Support Division and the Children's
Division to jointly operate and maintain an office in each
county;

(4)  Requires employees of the Children's Division who are
involved with child protective services and who purposely,
knowingly, and willingly violate a policy, rule, or state law
that is related to the child abuse and neglect activities of the
division be dismissed if the violation results in serious
physical injury or death;

(5)  Allows children with special health care needs that if not
treated would result in death or serious physical injury to
participate in the MC+ for Kids Program without meeting the
six-month uninsured requirement.  This section contains an
emergency clause;

(6)  Revises the Special Needs Child Adoption Tax Credit,
beginning July 1, 2004.  The cap is increased to $4 million. In
the first 90 days of the fiscal year, half of the cap is
allocated to in-state adoptions and half of the cap is allocated
to out-of-state adoptions.  If less than $2 million in out-of-
state credits have been claimed after the first 90 days, the
remaining amount can be used for in-state adoptions.  This
provision contains an emergency clause;

(7)  Requires all hospitals and health care facilities providing
obstetrical services to offer the opportunity for  new mothers
and the father, or other person of the mother's choosing, to
watch a video on shaken baby syndrome before being discharged
from the facility;

(8)  Requires the Department of Health and Senior Services and
the Department of Social Services to collaborate with non-profit
organizations, health maintenance organizations, and the Missouri
Consolidated Health Care Plan to formulate an educational
strategy to increase the number of children who are tested for
lead poisoning under the Medicaid Program, with a goal of 75% of
the children who receive Medicaid being tested; and

(9)  Requires the Department of Health and Senior Services to
prepare and distribute a pamphlet about the putative father
registry.

Missouri House of Representatives
92nd General Assembly, 2nd Regular Session
Last Updated September 23, 2004 at 11:15 am