Vol. 2, No. 1 • Fall 1997

Legislature Passes Important
Child Welfare Laws
by Michelle Hughes, North Carolina Child Advocacy Institute

The North Carolina General Assembly adjourned on August 28, 1997, finally bringing to a close one of the longest legislative sessions in state history. Several decisions made by lawmakers this year will have a significant impact on North Carolina's children and their families. In particular, a number of bills aimed at improving the state's foster care and adoption system will enhance the way our state helps abused, neglected, and dependent children move into safe and permanent homes. This legislative update summarizes several key pieces of legislation affecting the state's child welfare system.

Additional information about other legislation impacting families and children (e.g., welfare reform, child care subsidies, graduated driver licensing, restricting tobacco sales) can be obtained from the North Carolina Child Advocacy Institute (NCCAI) at <http://www.ncchild.org/>

Child Welfare Changes. North Carolina House Bill (HB) 896 is the most significant child welfare bill to pass this session. The legislation defines "reasonable efforts" to assure that a child's safety comes first when considering reunification and that court proceedings move more swiftly for children in foster care. Specifically, HB 896 provides for the court to rule that reunification efforts are not required or may be stopped in cases where these efforts "clearly would be futile, or would be inconsistent with the juvenile's safety and the need for a safe, permanent home within a reasonable period of time." This legislation will further protect children's safety and help move foster children into permanent homes more quickly.

HB 896 allows for foster parents to receive the mandated 30 hours of preservice training "either prior to licensure or within six months from the date a provisional license is issued." In North Carolina, relatives are not required to be licensed as foster parents to care for their relative children. This change will allow relative caretakers, who seek licensure and who meet licensing requirements, to take in children immediately and receive foster care services rather than having to wait several weeks or months to finish MAPP-GPS training. Children will benefit, as they will not have to experience an interim placement before being placed with the relative.

Finally, the bill also grants the North Carolina State Division of Social Services oversight authority when local departments of social services are not providing adequate child welfare services, and establishes a Legislative Study Commission on Children and Youth to evaluate and make recommendations to improve child protective, foster care, and adoption services to North Carolina.

Funding for Foster Care and Adoption Workers. It is no secret to foster and adoptive parents that social workers carry too many cases. The nationally recommended standard for caseload size in foster care and adoption is 15 children per social worker. Currently, the North Carolina average is 34 children per worker, almost twice the recommended number of children. Such large caseloads hinder the ability of social workers to help children move from the foster care system into safe, permanent homes. To address this pressing issue, the General Assembly appropriated $4.4 million to hire and train 230 additional county foster care and adoption workers.

Foster Care Criminal Check Amendments. In an effort to ensure the safety of every child in foster care, the North Carolina General Assembly passed Senate Bill (SB) 207, which requires that every individual over 18 years of age residing in a licensed foster family home undergo a criminal record check. While foster parents had previously been required to undergo a criminal check, other adults in the household were not subject to this requirement.

Expediting Waiver Requests. To expedite the process by which the North Carolina State Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)--formerly the Department of Human Resources--responds to waiver requests from counties for certain provisions in the foster care licensing process (e.g., space within home, living arrangements), the state legislature passed SB 1023. This legislation requires DHHS to respond within 10 business days to such waivers. This should be a plus for potential foster parents and county departments of social services seeking waivers for various licensing requirements. Long waits for responses from the state will now be avoided.

Special Needs Adoption Fund. The North Carolina General Assembly appropriated $1.8 million for the biennium to support the adoption of special needs children. Guidelines will be developed for disbursing the funds to licensed public or private agencies up on successful placement to children in adoptive homes.

Michelle Hughes is a senior program associate at the North Carolina Child Advocacy Institute in Raleigh.

Copyright � 2000 Jordan Institute for Families