SB 88-CHILD PLACEMENT; DILIGENT SEARCH  3:48:51 PM CHAIR DUNBAR reconvened the meeting and announced the consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 88 "An Act relating to placement of a child in need of aid; relating to adoption; relating to variances for foster care licenses; relating to the medical records of children in foster care; and providing for an effective date." 3:49:22 PM LAURA ACHEE, Staff, Senator Jesse Bjorkman, Alaska State Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, offered a brief recap of SB 88. She stated the legislation would establish clearer guidelines and deadlines for family searches to help connect foster children with relatives or family friends willing to take them in. SB 88 would also give OCS and the courts greater flexibility to place children in settings that are in their best interest. 3:50:31 PM CHAIR DUNBAR opened public testimony on SB 88. 3:50:48 PM KARA JOHNSTON, representing self, Soldotna, Alaska, testified in support of SB 88. She explained that after caring for a newborn since birth and being told for 15 months that no biological relatives could be found, OCS suddenly identified six family members seeking placement just as parental rights were being terminated. Her foster daughter, now 16 months old and fully bonded to them, was ordered to be moved to strangers with no meaningful transition plan, causing profound trauma for the child and family. As a result, after a decade of fostering, she decided to close their license because they believe the system is harming children and families. 3:52:57 PM ANDREA BOESHART, representing self, Kenai, Alaska, testified in support of SB 88. She noted that her family was a licensed resource family from 2018 through 2003. She shared a personal story of a three-year-old girl that was removed from their foster care home to live with a biological family member. 3:55:41 PM DESTINEE MCCLUNG, representing self, Anchorage, Alaska, testified in support of SB 88. She said her family fostered eight children over five years and recently closed their license, emphasizing that foster parents are frontline witnesses to serious failures within OCS. She noted that Alaska has lost 32 percent of its general foster homes, in part because foster families become discouraged when they are forced into situations that traumatize children rather than support them. She argued that SB 88's family-search requirements and judicial accountability are necessary to prioritize children's developmental needs, strengthen early attachments, and ensure OCS performs its duties effectively. 3:58:17 PM JOHN KULIKOWSKI, representing self, Anchorage, Alaska, testified in support of SB 88. He stated that he has repeatedly witnessed delays, misinformation, and poor decision-making by OCS that have deprived their foster children of meaningful experiences and stability. He said the adoption process has stretched far beyond promised timelines, creating ongoing uncertainty for several children who have already spent many months in the system. While acknowledging SB 88 is not perfect, he said it adds needed accountability and refocuses the system on the well- being of foster children. 4:00:33 PM KRISTEN HADDOX, representing self, North Pole, Alaska, testified in support of SB 88. She stated that after eight years as a foster and relative placement home, she has seen how children endure severe trauma and need relatives to show genuine, timely interest rather than waiting years before engaging. She described how OCS policies prevented permanency for a child in their care for five years despite extensive medical documentation, and only strong advocacy from a grandmother allowed the child to remain with them. She emphasized that the harsh realities foster parents witness underscore the need to prioritize children's stability and healing over adult preferences. 4:03:10 PM DEANNA MARTIN, representing self, Soldotna, Alaska, testified in support of SB 88. She said that witnessing the harm done to friends and family by a foster care system lacking adequate protection has discouraged her own family from becoming foster parents. She noted foster families step in to shield vulnerable children but are too often undermined by the very system meant to support them. She argued that this dynamic must change. 4:04:02 PM EMILY BOLANDER, representing self, Fairbanks, Alaska, testified in support of SB 88. She explained that although they never intended to be a medical-specialized foster home, they have cared for children with extremely complex medical needs and often received no prior medical history. She said foster parents are denied access to critical medical records, hindering safe and timely care. She stated that SB 88's medical-records provision is essential to protecting children by ensuring caregivers can provide rapid, informed, and comprehensive treatment. 4:06:48 PM JOSH FUNK, representing self, Kotzebue, Alaska, testified in support of SB 88. He relayed a story of his parents and his foster brother. He said his foster brother was murdered by the biological mother after being put back in her care, despite court statements indicating she was unsafe. CHAIR DUNBAR asked how SB 88 might have changed the case described, noting that the relatives involved appeared to have already been known to OCS. He asked whether it was an ICWA case and whether any ICWA provisions could conflict with the bill. 4:10:18 PM MR. FUNK answered that he was unsure whether ICWA conflicts with SB 88 but confirmed the case was an ICWA case. He explained that the child, Peter, was placed with his parents at nine months and remained with them for four and a half years before being returned to his biological mother, noting that the bill would shorten timelines by requiring adoption consideration at 12 months rather than what he heard was two years. He added that Peter died at six years old and his younger sister was four. 4:11:40 PM MICHELLE FUNK, representing self, Kotzebue, Alaska, testified in support of SB 88 and added that the bill's provision addressing long-term placements for children under six would have directly influenced how the court weighed adoption and prevented the process from being drawn out for too long. 4:12:18 PM CHAIR DUNBAR closed public testimony on SB 88. 4:13:27 PM CHAIR DUNBAR held SB 88 in committee.