00 SENATE BILL NO. 287 01 "An Act establishing a higher education savings program for eligible persons who were 02 placed in foster care by the state; and providing for confidentiality of identifying 03 information of a beneficiary under the program." 04 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 05  * Section 1. AS 47.05 is amended by adding a new section to read: 06 Article 4. Alaska Higher Education Savings Program for Foster Children.  07 Sec. 47.05.400. Higher education savings program. (a) The department shall 08 administer a program to encourage investment by a person or entity in the higher 09 education of eligible foster children in the state. The program must include 10 (1) a central office, dedicated to faith-based and community services, 11 for development and marketing of the program; 12 (2) a mechanism for the department to enter into a participation 13 agreement with the Board of Regents of the University of Alaska under AS 14.40.802 14 to establish and maintain an individual trust account under that section or to enter into 01 an advance college tuition savings contract under AS 14.40.803 - 14.40.817, or both, 02 for each child who is a beneficiary of the program; 03 (3) a process for identifying donors and eligible beneficiaries; 04 (4) a process for distributing nonconfidential information about an 05 eligible beneficiary to a potential donor, including the age, sex, and general location of 06 the beneficiary; 07 (5) terms and conditions for participation in the program that are 08 consistent with state and federal law for higher education savings accounts; and 09 (6) a procedure for monitoring success of the program, for record 10 keeping, and for maintaining confidentiality of records as required by federal and state 11 law. 12 (b) A person is eligible for participation in the higher education savings 13 program as a beneficiary if the person was ordered committed to the custody of the 14 department under AS 47.10.080(c) or AS 47.12.120(b)(3), was placed in a foster home 15 for not less than two years, and is a resident of the state. 16 (c) The commissioner or the commissioner's designee may name a new 17 beneficiary to an existing trust account or savings contract established under (a) of this 18 section if authorized under federal law and if the named beneficiary dies or if the 19 beneficiary fails to enroll in an eligible program before the beneficiary becomes 30 20 years of age. 21 (d) Identifying information of a beneficiary contained in records related to the 22 program is confidential. 23 (e) In this section, 24 (1) "beneficiary" has the meaning given in AS 14.40.802; 25 (2) "donor" means the person or entity who contributes to a higher 26 education savings program account or savings contract established for a foster child 27 under this section; 28 (3) "eligible program" has the meaning given in 20 U.S.C. 1088; 29 (4) "participation agreement" has the meaning given in AS 14.40.802. 30  * Sec. 2. AS 47.10.093(b) is amended to read: 31 (b) A state or municipal agency or employee shall disclose appropriate 01 confidential information regarding a case to 02 (1) a guardian ad litem appointed by the court; 03 (2) a person or an agency requested by the department or the child's 04 legal custodian to provide consultation or services for a child who is subject to the 05 jurisdiction of the court under AS 47.10.010 as necessary to enable the provision of 06 the consultation or services; 07 (3) an out-of-home care provider as necessary to enable the out-of- 08 home care provider to provide appropriate care to the child, to protect the safety of the 09 child, and to protect the safety and property of family members and visitors of the out- 10 of-home care provider; 11 (4) a school official as necessary to enable the school to provide 12 appropriate counseling and support services to a child who is the subject of the case, to 13 protect the safety of the child, and to protect the safety of school students and staff; 14 (5) a governmental agency as necessary to obtain that agency's 15 assistance for the department in its investigation or to obtain physical custody of a 16 child; 17 (6) a law enforcement agency of this state or another jurisdiction as 18 necessary for the protection of any child or for actions by that agency to protect the 19 public safety; 20 (7) a member of a multidisciplinary child protection team created 21 under AS 47.14.300 as necessary for the performance of the member's duties; 22 (8) the state medical examiner under AS 12.65 as necessary for the 23 performance of the duties of the state medical examiner; 24 (9) a person who has made a report of harm as required by 25 AS 47.17.020 to inform the person that the investigation was completed and of action 26 taken to protect the child who was the subject of the report; 27 (10) the child support services agency established in AS 25.27.010 as 28 necessary to establish and collect child support for a child who is a child in need of aid 29 under this chapter; 30 (11) a parent, guardian, or caregiver of a child or an entity responsible 31 for ensuring the safety of children as necessary to protect the safety of a child; [AND] 01 (12) a review panel established by the department for the purpose of 02 reviewing the actions taken by the department in a specific case; and 03 (13) the Board of Regents of the University of Alaska under the  04 Alaska higher education savings program for foster children established under  05 AS 47.05.400, but only to the extent that the information is necessary to support  06 the program and only if the information released is maintained as a confidential  07 record by the Board of Regents. 08  * Sec. 3. AS 47.12.310(b) is amended to read: 09 (b) A state or municipal agency or employee shall disclose 10 (1) information regarding a case to a federal, state, or municipal law 11 enforcement agency for a specific investigation being conducted by that agency; 12 [AND] 13 (2) appropriate information regarding a case to 14 (A) a guardian ad litem appointed by the court; 15 (B) a person or an agency requested by the department or the 16 minor's legal custodian to provide consultation or services for a minor who is 17 subject to the jurisdiction of the court under this chapter as necessary to enable 18 the provision of the consultation or services; 19 (C) school officials as may be necessary to protect the safety of 20 the minor who is the subject of the case and the safety of school students and 21 staff or to enable the school to provide appropriate counseling and supportive 22 services to meet the needs of a minor about whom information is disclosed; 23 (D) a governmental agency as may be necessary to obtain that 24 agency's assistance for the department in its investigation or to obtain physical 25 custody of a minor; 26 (E) a law enforcement agency of this state or another 27 jurisdiction as may be necessary for the protection, rehabilitation, or 28 supervision of any minor or for actions by that agency to protect the public 29 safety; 30 (F) a victim or to the victim's insurance company as may be 31 necessary to inform the victim or the insurance company about the arrest of the 01 minor, including the minor's name and the names of the minor's parents, copies 02 of reports, or the disposition or resolution of a case involving a minor; 03 (G) the state medical examiner under AS 12.65 as may be 04 necessary to perform the duties of the state medical examiner; 05 (H) foster parents or relatives with whom the child is placed by 06 the department as may be necessary to enable the foster parents or relatives to 07 provide appropriate care for the child who is the subject of the case, to protect 08 the safety of the child who is the subject of the case, and to protect the safety 09 and property of family members and visitors of the foster parents or relatives; 10 (I) the Department of Law or its agent for use and subsequent 11 release if necessary for collection of an order of restitution on behalf of the 12 recipient; 13 (J) the Violent Crimes Compensation Board established in 14 AS 18.67.020 for use in awarding compensation under AS 18.67.080; and 15 (K) a state, municipal, or federal agency of this state or another 16 jurisdiction that has the authority to license adult or children's facilities and 17 services; and  18 (3) to the Board of Regents of the University of Alaska under the  19 Alaska higher education savings program for foster children established under  20 AS 47.05.400, but only to the extent that the information is necessary to support  21 the program and only if the information released is maintained as a confidential  22 record by the Board of Regents.