Commission on Children in Foster CareApril 14, 2008Washington State Supreme Court
Members present: Justice Bobbe Bridge (ret.) Washington State Supreme Court, Commission Co-Chair Members not present: Ms. Daniele Baxter Guests present: Ms. Mary Herrick, College Success Foundation Staff present: Mr. Michael Curtis, CCFC Executive Director The meeting was called to order by Justice Bridge. Justice Bobbe Bridge (ret.) welcomed everyone and said that the day’s agenda will include a discussion about the outcomes of the 2008 Legislative Session. She added that the last thing on the agenda, as an additional task for the Commission, will be to act as the oversight body for the commitments made by various parties at the Foster Care/Education Conference held last fall. Justice Bridge introduced Mr. Julio Carranza who is replacing Adam Cornell as the Foster Youth Alumnus member of the Commission. Justice Bridge said that she first met Julio at the inaugural Foster Youth and Alum Summit and she is very happy to have him here. Mr. Carranza expressed his thanks for the invitation to join the Commission and provided some brief background information. Approval of February 11, 2008 Meeting Minutes A correction to the February 11, 2008 minutes was offered by Mr. Steve Hassett. It was moved, seconded, and carried that the minutes from the Commission’s February 11, 2008 meeting be approved as amended. Children’s Administration Updates Cheryl Stephani provided the following CA updates:
Child & Family Service Review Plan Oversight Cheryl reconfirmed the Commission’s oversight role for the Child and Family Service Reviews (CFSR). Washington’s review is being pushed out to 2010, most likely commencing in the spring or fall. This delay will allow more time for preplanning and preparation. She added that, with the new FamLink IT System, the delay will allow time for ensuring all the information is clean and translates. A Working Advisory Committee is compiling a new timeline, which, if available, will be presented at the June 9 Commission meeting. 2008 Legislative Session As a reference for directing the discussion, Commission members were provided a copy of a 2008 Budget Highlights report prepared by Laurie Lippold. OPD Reauthorization Joanne Moore started the discussion informing of OPD’s reauthorization under SB 6442. When created in 1996, the authorizing legislation included a June 2008 sunset clause. The legislation also clarifies those specific program areas OPD is to administer, including parent representation. Hoped for funding to expand the parent representation program to Whatcom and King Counties did not materialize although OPD did receive funding to cover additional costs associated with legislation mandating the filing of termination petitions (HB 3205). Mandatory Filing of Termination Petitions Steve Hassett advised that the AGs office is anticipating an increase in filings (100-125 petitions annually) due to passage of HB3205, mandating the filing of petitions seeking the termination of parental rights for some cases. He informed that the WSCCR study, “Timeliness of Dependency Case Processing in Washington, 2004-2007” was the impetus for this legislation. Family and Juvenile Court Improvement Janet Skreen reported that in the 2008 supplemental budget, HB2822 - Family Juvenile Court Improvement Plan, received an $800,000 appropriation for implementation. Next week, specifics with regard to implementation of the legislation will be presented to the Board for Judicial Administration (BJA). Youth In Court Janet Skreen reported that as part of the implementation of certain sections of ESSB 6792, funding is provided for four pilot sites, allowing for on-record, in-chambers meetings between a child (age 12 or older) who is subject of a dependency petition and the judge. The pilot sites are King, Spokane, Thurston, and Benton-Franklin Counties. AOC will be evaluating the pilot project. Justice Bridge suggested that the Commission would be a good source for input on evaluation development. Kelly Stockman Reid commented that there are many logistical issues to address with regard to implementation of this bill. She wants to make sure that CASAs input is included when the implementation work plan is developed. Visitation Rights of Relatives Janet Skreen informed that pursuant to SSB 6306, as of June 12, relatives of legally-free dependent children will have the right to petition the court requesting visitation with the child. Janet identified various challenges associated with the implementation of the law. Cheryl Stephani suggested the AOC and CA might want to work collaboratively on developing the implementation plan. Legal Representation of Children Although introduced, child legal representation legislation did not pass during the 2008 session. Justice Bridge identified multiple activities currently in progress related to this issue:
the education advocacy materials to ensure their consistency with the youth legal rights materials being developed by CLS. Additional activities suggested for the CCFC Child Representation Workgroup includes:
At the conclusion of the lengthy discussion on legal representation of children, it was moved by Julio Carranza, seconded by Joanne Moore and carried that the Children’s Representation Work Group be reconvened, its membership expanded to include advocates and youth and its responsibilities expanded, incorporating tasks and issues identified during the preceding discussion. Foster Youth ID Cards Sydney Forrester informed that SB 6792 establishes a process for sharing information between DOL and DSHS to facilitate youth in foster care obtaining a WA State ID card. Justice Bridge noted this was a specific concern identified at the last Foster Youth/Alumni Leadership Summit. Foster Care Education Ron Hertel reported that of the original version of HB 2679 (Education of Youth in Foster Care) passed by the legislature, the Governor vetoed most sections of the bill. As enacted the legislation requires OSPI to provide an annual report to the legislature regarding the educational experiences and progress of children in out-of-home care. Ron advised that this report will compare the progress/experiences of youth in care with the general population. The new law also establishes a two-school-day deadline for school districts to respond to DSHS requests for records of children in foster care. Cheryl Stephani recommended adding to future CCFC meeting agendas, review of OSPI’s Building Bridges (drop-out prevention) program. The program specifically identifies children and youth in foster care as a targeting group. The following updates on various legislative proposals were reported by Cheryl Stephani: Social Workers Workload CA is required to meet with bargaining representatives from the union to address social worker workload issues. In the discussions they are identifying those responsibilities that can be removed (taken off the plate) and negotiating on those that can be contracted out. Reports to the legislature are due in July and the fall. The process is requiring the identification of key tasks that drive outcomes. Tiered Classification System HB3145 establishes a pilot program comprised of 75 foster homes located in two pilot sites. These foster homes will be for children with special needs, either medical-fragile or with behavioral issues. The proposal includes foster parent training so they have the knowledge, skills and abilities to provide the services for these children. The project also includes funding for providing a Mockingbird Hub set-up as well as for project evaluation, to be conducted by Partners for our Children. Foster Home Re-licensing HB 2834, extending the timeframe for foster care re-licensing when foster parents move to a different address, did not pass. It is believed its failure was due to the legislature running out of time, as opposed to their being concerns with the proposal. If anyone has heard otherwise, Cheryl is requesting they let her know. Background Checks Legislation revising statutes requiring background checks in emergency placement cases did pass. As mentioned during the last Commission meeting, the CA request legislation recommended by the FBI, requires removal of a child from an emergency placement if any adult residing in the home refuses to be fingerprinted or to give permission for a background check. Child Fatality Reviews Legislation requires that the Department complete child fatality reviews within 180 days and that child fatality review reports be posted on a public website. CA currently has a policy with a 180 day deadline for these reports but it is rarely met. To meet the 180 day timeframe, CA in collaboration with Aging and Adult Services is developing a general format for these reports. Mandatory Reporting to OFCO CA is now required to report to the Office of the Family and Children’s Ombudsman, those cases where there are three or more founded referrals within a 12-month time period. CASA/GAL Requirements ESSB 6792 includes language requiring that, prior to making recommendations to the court regarding the child’s best interests, a CASA or GAL must meet with, interview or observe the child at least once. It also requires the CASA or GAL to report to the court any preferences or wishes expressed by the child regarding issues to be decided in the court. Monthly Social Worker-Foster Child Face-to-Face Visits ESSB 6792 includes language mandating monthly social worker face-to-face visits as of December 31, 2008 and authorizes accredited child placement agencies to conduct the monthly visits. Hope Act – Street Youth and At-Risk Youth ESSB 6792 includes language providing that minors may self-refer to a HOPE center. Removing Children from non-Abusive Parents Steve Hassett noted that SB6792 includes language providing that uncertainty by the non-abusive parent that the alleged abuser has in fact abused the child, shall not alone, be the basis for removing the child from the non-abusive parent. Supplemental Budget Laurie Lippold commented that some of the budget pieces, especially the vetoes, were very disappointing. She was confused by the veto messages for the vetoed sections of the Foster Youth Education Bill, in that they did not seem to relate to what the bill is intended to do. She intends to follow up with the governor’s office. Cheryl Stephani gave the legislature credit for its support of the base budget, increasing funding for visitation, targeted case management (closing a funding gap created by Federal budget cuts) and increased funding for behavioral residential services. Children’s Representation Justice Bridge noted that the future of this work group was addressed during the discussion on the 2008 legislative session. Unified Family Court Justice Bridge commented that the Juvenile and Family Court Improvement legislation, HB2822 incorporates many of the Commission-adopted recommendations of the UFC Work Group. When inquiring about next steps with regard to moving forward the recommendations of the UFC work group, it was agreed to wait until the BJA plan for implementation of the legislation has been developed. This will be revisited at the Commission’s June meeting. Foster Youth Education Summit/Follow-up Oversight Mary Herrick informed that she had worked with Justice Bridge and Michael Curtis to organize a process for monitoring the Education Summit commitments. Given the short notice of the request for the updates, few of those from whom updates were requested actually responded. However, Michael Curtis stated that for future updates, this situation should not exist since all have been informed of the due dates for future reports. With regard to the April update, Ron Hertel was the lone responder providing updates. Ron informed that it’s been an incredible year with regard to attendance at the summits bringing together educators and children’s administration practitioners. A curriculum is being followed that addresses the issues of children who have been traumatized and who are now not able to learn. The program is working with social workers and schools to help them understand what’s in the minds of these children and helping schools to develop trauma-sensitive schools. They’ve partnered with Massachusetts Advocates for Children and the Harvard Law School in developing the training program. The book guiding the training can be downloaded from: http://Massachusettsadvocatesforchildren.org In addition to the training, the Mental Health Transformation Project has provided funding for implementing a trauma-sensitive school pilot project. Ron advised that data between DSHS and OSPI has been exchanged and requested the due date for this as reflected on the update form be entered as January 1, 2008. In response to Ron’s statement that OSPI cannot share identifiable data, Justice Bridge said that the task is identifying what tools could be used to facilitate data exchange, allowing for better decision making and outcomes. It might be an amendment to FERPA, exempting certain data exchanges from the regulations. With regard to the report in general, Kelly Stockman Reid requested that acronyms be spelled out or an acronym page attached. Kelly Stockman Reid informed the commission members of a feasibility study being conducted by the NW Institute for Children & Families, related to the evaluation the CASA program. An advisory committee will be reviewing the options for the study. Kelly requested this issue be added to the Commission’s June agenda. The next Commission on Children in Foster Care meeting is June 9, 2008 at 1:00 p.m. in the Reception Room at the Temple of Justice, Olympia. Adjourned. |
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