SF0042 - Child Protection Act-amendments.
2001 |
State of Wyoming |
01LSO-0174.E1 ENGROSSED |
SENATE FILE NO. SF0042
Child Protection Act-amendments.
Sponsored by: Joint Judiciary Interim Committee
A BILL
for
1 AN ACT relating to the
Child Protection Act; specifying
2
requirements relating to reasonable efforts to reunify
3
families; providing for the filing of a petition for
4
termination of parental rights in certain cases; providing
5
for periodic review of disposition orders; specifying
6
procedures for service of process in proceedings under the
7
act; and providing for an effective date.
8
9 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:
10
11 Section 1. W.S. 14-3-440 is created to read:
12
13 14-3-440. Reasonable efforts for
family
14 reunification; exceptions.
15
Page 1
1 (a) Except as
provided in W.S. 14-2-309(b) or (c),
2
reasonable efforts shall be made to preserve and reunify
3
the family:
4
5 (i) Prior to
placement of the child outside the
6
home, to prevent or eliminate the need for removing the
7
child from the child's home; and
8
9 (ii) To make it
possible for the child to safely
10 return to the child's home.
11
12 (b) In
determining what reasonable efforts shall be
13 made with respect to a child and in
making those reasonable
14 efforts, the child's health and
safety shall be the
15 paramount concern.
16
17 (c) Reasonable
efforts to place a child for adoption
18 or with a legal guardian may be made
concurrently with the
19 reasonable efforts described in
subsection (a) of this
20 section.
21
22 (d) If
continuation of reasonable efforts described
23 in subsection (a) of this section is
determined to be
24 inconsistent with the permanency
plan for the child,
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1 reasonable
efforts shall be made for placement of the child
2
in a timely manner in accordance with the permanency plan,
3
and to complete the steps necessary to finalize the
4
permanent placement of the child.
5
6 (e) Reasonable
efforts determinations shall include
7
whether or not services to the family have been accessible,
8
available and appropriate.
9
10 (f) The court
shall make the reasonable efforts
11 determinations required under this
section at every court
12 hearing. The reasonable efforts
determinations shall be
13 documented in the court's orders.
14
15 (g) If the
court determines as provided in W.S.
16 14-2-309(a)(vi), (b) or (c) that
reasonable efforts to
17 preserve and reunify the family are
not required:
18
19 (i) A
permanency hearing as described in W.S.
20 14-3-431(c) shall be held for the
child within thirty (30)
21 days after the determination; and
22
23 (ii) Reasonable
efforts shall be made to place
24 the child in a timely manner in
accordance with the
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1 permanency
plan, and to complete whatever steps are
2
necessary to finalize the permanent placement of the child.
3
4 (h) A petition
to terminate parental rights shall be
5
filed within sixty (60) days of a judicial determination
6
that reasonable efforts to reunify the child and parent are
7
not required pursuant to W.S. 14-2-309(a)(vi), (b) or (c).
8
9 Section
2. W.S.
14-3-402(a)(xviii), 14-3-414(c) and
10 14-3-431(c) and by creating new
subsections (d) through (f)
11 are amended to read:
12
13 14-3-402. Definitions.
14
15 (a) As used in this act:
16
17 (xviii) "This
act" means W.S. 14-3-401 through
18 14-3-439
14-3-440.
19
20 14-3-414. Service of process; order of custody.
21
22 (c) If it
appears to the court by affidavit that the
23 parents, guardian or custodian of
the child cannot be found
24 within the state, the court may
order personal service
Page 4
1 outside
the state or service by certified mail with return
2
receipt requested signed by addressee only. If
The state
3 agency having custody of the child
shall also file an
4 affidavit with the court explaining
the efforts made to
5 locate the missing parent when
the address of the child's
6
parents, guardian or custodian is unknown and cannot with
7
reasonable diligence be ascertained, and
the court shall
8
appoint a guardian ad litem to represent the child and to
9
receive service of process.
10
11 14-3-431. Duration of orders of
disposition;
12 termination of orders; petition for
termination of parental
13 rights.
14
15 (c) Not less than once every twelve (12) months, The
16 court of
jurisdiction shall conduct a formal shall
conduct
17 a review to assess and
determine the appropriateness of the 18
current placement, the reasonable efforts made to reunify 19
the family, the safety of the child and the permanency plan 20
for the child hearing
six (6) months from the date of the
21 child's removal from the home, twelve (12) months from the
22 date of the child's removal from the home, and not less
23 than once every twelve (12) months thereafter. At each of
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1 these review hearings the court shall review the case plan
2 to determine:
3
4 (i) The health and safety of the child;
5
6 (ii) The continuing necessity for the placement;
7
8 (iii) The appropriateness of the placement;
9
10 (iv) The extent of compliance with the case
11 plan;
12
13 (v) If progress has been made toward alleviating
14 or
mitigating the causes necessitating placement outside
15 the home and the extent of that progress; and
16
17 (vi) The date the child is expected to be
18 returned
to the home or placed for adoption or legal
19 guardianship.
20
21 (d) When a child has been placed in foster care under
22 the
responsibility of the state for fifteen (15) of the
23 most recent twenty-two (22) months the state shall file a
24 petition to terminate parental rights or seek to be joined
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1 as a party to the petition if a petition has been filed by
2 another party, unless:
3
4 (i) The child is in the care of a relative;
5
6 (ii) The state agency
has documented in the case
7 plan a compelling reason for
determining that filing the
8 petition is not in the best interest
of the child; or
9
10 (iii) The state agency has not provided services
11 to
the child's family deemed to be necessary for the safe
12 return of the child to the home, if reasonable efforts
13 described in W.S. 14-3-440 are required to be made.
14
15 (e) Concurrently with the filing of a petition under
16 subsection
(d) of this section, the state agency shall
17 identify, recruit, process and approve a qualified family
18 for adoption of the child.
19
20 (f) A termination of parental rights hearing shall be
21 held
within ninety (90) days of the filing of the
22 termination petition unless continued by the court for good
23 cause shown.
24
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1 Section 2. This act is effective July 1, 2001.
2
3 (END)
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