Report Title:

Child Protective Act; Mandatory Ohana Conferences

Description:

Requires, rather than allows, the use of ohana conferences for family decision making in the preparation of a service plan before placing a child in foster care, which is to include a discussion of the feasibility of placing the child with a member of the child's extended family.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

665

TWENTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2003

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 


 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

relating to CHILDREN.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that section 587-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, provides that the purpose of the Child Protective Act is to provide children with prompt and ample protection from harm, "with an opportunity for timely reconciliation with their families if the families can provide safe family homes, and with timely and appropriate service or permanent plans to ensure the safety of the child so they may develop and mature into responsible, self-sufficient, law-abiding citizens."

That section further provides that the service plan "shall effectuate the child's remaining in the family home, when the family home can be immediately made safe with services, or the child's returning to a safe family home", and should be "carefully formulated with the family in a timely manner. ... Full and careful consideration should be given to the religious, cultural, and ethnic values of the child's legal custodian when service plans are being discussed and formulated."

The legislature finds that one important way to achieve these objectives is through the use of an "ohana conference", a family-focused, strength-based meeting facilitated by trained community facilitators that is designed to build and strengthen the network of protection of the extended family and the community for a child.

The legislature further finds that ohana conferences include extended family members and other important people in the child's life and rely on them to participate in making plans and decisions. The purpose of the ohana conference is to establish a plan that provides for the safety and permanency needs of the child. The practice of ohana conferencing, which allows for input from family members to expedite decision making, may shorten the time a protected child is placed in foster care.

Under current law, however, ohana conferences may, but are not required, to be included in the formulation of a service plan. This means that parents of children who may be placed in foster care may not be afforded the opportunity to discuss the child's future with extended family members and other important people in the child's life.

Moreover, under current law, children may be taken away from a parent without the opportunity for the parent to discuss in an ohana conference the possibility that their child be placed with an extended family member, rather than with a stranger.

The legislature finds that requiring ohana conferencing would allow for a discussion of the feasibility of placing the child with a member of the child's extended family who is able and willing to provide the child with a safe, secure, loving home, rather than placing the child with a complete stranger. This would assist in achieving the objective of the Child Protective Act that full and careful consideration be given to the "religious, cultural, and ethnic values of the child's legal custodian when service plans are being discussed and formulated."

The legislature finds that ohana conferencing is a critical factor in establishing a plan that provides for the safety and permanency needs of the child. Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to require, rather than allow, service plans to include the use of ohana conferences for family decision making, including a discussion of the feasibility of placing the child with a member of the child's extended family.

SECTION 2. Section 587-26, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§587-26 Service plan. (a) A service plan is a specific written plan prepared by an authorized agency and child's family and presented to such members of the child's family as the appropriate authorized agency deems to be necessary to the success of the plan, including, but not limited to, the member or members of the child's family who have legal custody, guardianship, or permanent custody of the child at the time that the service plan is being formulated or revised under this chapter.

(b) The service plan should set forth:

(1) The steps that will be necessary to facilitate the return of the child to a safe family home, if the proposed placement of the child is in foster care under foster custody;

(2) The steps that will be necessary for the child to remain in a safe family home with the assistance of a service plan, if the proposed placement of the child is in a family home under family supervision; and

(3) The steps that will be necessary to make the family home a safe family home and to terminate the appropriate authorized agency's intervention into the family and eliminate, if possible, the necessity for the filing of a petition with the court under this chapter.

(c) The service plan should also include, but not necessarily be limited to:

[(1) The consideration given to the use of ohana conferences for family decision making;

(2)] (1) The specific, measurable, behavioral changes that must be achieved by the parties; the specific services or treatment that the parties will be provided and the specific actions the parties must take or specific responsibilities that the parties must assume; the time frames during which the services will be provided and such actions must be completed and responsibilities must be assumed; provided that, services and assistance should be presented in a manner that does not confuse or overwhelm the parties;

[(3)] (2) The specific consequences that may be reasonably anticipated to result from the parties' success or failure in making the family home a safe family home, including, but not limited to, the consequence that, unless the family is willing and able to provide the child with a safe family home within the reasonable period of time specified in the service plan, their respective parental and custodial duties and rights shall be subject to termination by award of permanent custody; and

[(4)] (3) Such other terms and conditions as the appropriate authorized agency deems to be necessary to the success of the service plan.

(d) The service plan shall include the use of ohana conferences for family decision making, which shall include a discussion of the feasibility of placing the child with a member of the child's extended family.

[(d)] (e) The service plan should include steps that are structured and presented in a manner which reflects careful consideration and balancing the priority, intensity, and quantity of the services which are needed with the family's ability to benefit from those services.

[(e)] (f) After each term and condition of the service plan has been thoroughly explained to and is understood by each member of the child's family whom the appropriate authorized agency deems to be necessary to the success of the service plan, the service plan shall be agreed to and signed by each family member. Thereafter, a copy of the service plan shall be provided to each family member who signed the service plan.

[(f)] (g) If a member of a child's family whom the appropriate authorized agency deems to be necessary to the success of the service plan cannot or does not understand or agree to the terms and conditions set forth in the service plan, the authorized agency shall proceed pursuant to section 587-21(b)."

SECTION 3. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

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