02/12/2015 03:00 PM House HEALTH & SOCIAL SERVICES

         HB 27-DHSS DUTIES;CINA; FOSTER CARE; ADOPTION                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
4:52:25 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR SEATON announced that the  final order of business would be                                                               
SPONSOR SUBSTITUTE  FOR HOUSE  BILL NO. 27,  "An Act  relating to                                                               
the  duties of  the  Department of  Health  and Social  Services;                                                               
relating to  hearings on and  plans for permanent placement  of a                                                               
child  in  need   of  aid;  relating  to   school  placement  and                                                               
transportation for  children in  foster care; relating  to foster                                                               
care  transition programs;  relating to  emergency and  temporary                                                               
placement  of   a  child  in   need  of  aid;  relating   to  the                                                               
confidentiality  of information  regarding child  protection; and                                                               
amending  Rule  17.2,  Alaska  Child  in Need  of  Aid  Rules  of                                                               
Procedure."                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
4:53:05 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE LES GARA, Alaska  State Legislature, declared that                                                               
his underlying  guideline for foster care  was the responsibility                                                               
that, as  we take children  out of  their homes, we  become their                                                               
legal  guardians,  essentially  their  parents.    He  asked,  as                                                               
parents, would these  numbers and statistics for  foster youth be                                                               
tolerated.  He stated that  the proposed bill attempts to address                                                               
solutions in  a cost effective way.   He relayed that  24 percent                                                               
of  foster youth  end up  incarcerated and  40 percent  of foster                                                               
youth  end up  either homeless  or  couch surfing.   He  directed                                                               
attention to  a recent  study which  indicated that  foster youth                                                               
have  high ACE  (adverse  childhood  experiences) scores  because                                                               
they are  separated from their  families and, in the  foster care                                                               
system, they  bounce between homes.   He shared that  most states                                                               
have allowed foster  care until age 21, noting that  in 12 states                                                               
non-foster youth,  on average, stayed at  home until age 25.   He                                                               
explained that  a child  was emotionally  harmed when  taken from                                                               
their parents and then placed  in multiple foster homes, and that                                                               
they were  not ready  to leave home  and succeed at  age 18.   He                                                               
reported that  one provision  of the  proposed bill  ensured that                                                               
children were allowed  to stay in foster care until  age 21 if it                                                               
was in their  best interest.  He pointed out  that OCS would have                                                               
to show  to the court,  at a status hearing,  that it was  in the                                                               
child's  best interest  to  release them  prior to  age  21.   He                                                               
explained that  the goal of foster  care was to find  a permanent                                                               
home within 12 -  24 months.  He declared that  Alaska did not do                                                               
this in many  cases, resulting in even more harm  to a child from                                                               
the lack  of a stable, nurturing  home.  He pointed  out that one                                                               
provision of  the proposed bill  stated that OCS, at  the regular                                                               
status hearings, must  show that it had  taken reasonable efforts                                                               
to find a permanent home for a  child.  He explained that both of                                                               
these provisions  would help reduce the  incarceration rates, the                                                               
homelessness rates, and  the ACEs scores.  He  stated that, under                                                               
federal  law, if  a family  moved within  a reasonable  distance,                                                               
homeless  youth were  allowed to  stay in  the same  school.   He                                                               
reported on studies which showed  that each time youth were taken                                                               
out  of school  in the  middle of  a term  they would  fall three                                                               
months  behind.   He declared  that the  goal was  for graduation                                                               
from high school.  He  directed attention to another provision in                                                               
the  proposed  bill, which  stated  that  OCS should  follow  the                                                               
nationally  recognized standard  to allow  youth to  stay in  the                                                               
same school through the end of  the term.  He addressed a problem                                                               
as aired by  Alaska Native organizations and OCS  for the sharing                                                               
of  information  when  a  child   needed  help  even  though  the                                                               
situation did  not necessitate  placement in  foster care.   This                                                               
provision would allow  OCS to work with the tribes  and share its                                                               
information so that the community  could help with the challenges                                                               
faced by  the child.   He referenced  another provision  in state                                                               
law that  declared that foster  children were only entitled  to a                                                               
"basic  education."   As no  other children  in Alaska  were only                                                               
entitled  to  this "basic  education,"  the  proposed bill  would                                                               
delete  this provision  from state  law.   He offered  his belief                                                               
that the term  was offensive, and he proposed  to insert language                                                               
recommended by  OCS which entitled  foster children  to education                                                               
or vocational education.  He  stated that another goal for foster                                                               
children  was  to  help  them  succeed.    He  noted  that  other                                                               
provisions of  the proposed bill  requested that OCS  work toward                                                               
placing  children  with  a  relative,  when  this  was  the  best                                                               
placement possible.  He pointed  out that in many communities and                                                               
cultures  in Alaska  the  extended family  was  "almost like  the                                                               
immediate family and treated and  revered as such."  He explained                                                               
that  OCS  was currently  federally  required  to do  a  diligent                                                               
search for  placement with  family or friends  within 30  days of                                                               
taking a child from  their home.  He said that,  as there was not                                                               
any legal  requirement for continued search  for family placement                                                               
after  that  30  day  period,   or  any  requirement  for  family                                                               
placement in lieu  of any emergency placement, that  this was now                                                               
a provision  in the  proposed bill.   He  offered to  explain the                                                               
reasoning in much more detail, as  there was a lot of evidence in                                                               
support.  He declared that none  of these provisions would cost a                                                               
lot of  money.  He  directed attention to  an issue that  OCS was                                                               
also researching,  "what do you do  with a child who  actually is                                                               
succeeding,  who  comes out  of  foster  care,  so no  longer  is                                                               
entitled  to this  daily reimbursement  rate..."   He offered  an                                                               
example of a child successfully living  in a school dorm, but who                                                               
could  no longer  afford the  cost.   He allowed  that the  daily                                                               
reimbursement rate  could not be paid  as they were no  longer in                                                               
custody, and  yet we wanted  them to succeed.   He shared  that a                                                               
provision,  since  removed,  in  the  proposed  bill  would  have                                                               
allowed payment  up to  the daily  reimbursement rate  to support                                                               
youth to stay in dorms for  job training or higher education.  As                                                               
this provision  had a fiscal  note of  more than $2  million, the                                                               
provision had been  removed, although OCS was  continuing to seek                                                               
a  solution.   He reminded  the  committee that  there were  2400                                                               
foster youth not living with  their families, and they were among                                                               
the most vulnerable children in the state.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
[HB 27 was held over.]