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SPONSOR: |
Varela |
DATE TYPED: |
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HB |
63 |
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SHORT TITLE: |
Family Preservation and Support |
SB |
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ANALYST: |
Chabot |
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APPROPRIATION
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Appropriation
Contained |
Estimated
Additional Impact |
Recurring or
Non-Rec |
Fund Affected |
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FY03 |
FY04 |
FY03 |
FY04 |
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NFI |
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(Parenthesis
( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)
LFC Files
Responses
Received From
Children,
Youth and Families Department (CYFD)
Department
of Health (DOH)
State
Department of Education
SUMMARY
Synopsis
of Bill
House Bill 63 enacts
the Family Preservation Act that confirms the state’s policy of support for the
family and emphasizes the responsibilities of parents and the state in the
healthy development of children and the family as an institution. The act states that it is the policy of the
state to support intact, functional families and promote the conditions to keep
families together. It identifies parents
as have the primary responsibility for the well-being of their family. The state has the responsibility for
providing free, quality primary and secondary education, providing public
safety, making available social service programs, developing programs promoting
family strengths and assisting parents in carrying out their responsibilities
in caring for their family. The act
defines eligibility and specifies an array of services to be provided. It also establishes minimum qualification for
persons providing family support services.
CYFD is responsible for coordinating and implementing family support
services. SDE will assist by identifying
children in public schools in need of services.
CYFD will provide crisis intervention and therapeutic services on a
7-day, 24-hour per day basis to assist with solutions to problems affecting
families. CYFD will conduct an annual
evaluation of family support services and collect data that allows comparison
with other states.
Significant Issues
CYFD assesses that
House Bill 63 places more responsibilities on parents than existing language in
the existing Family Support Act that it replaces. In addition, it adds to the state’s
responsibilities to develop additional programs to support families that may
have a fiscal impact in implementation.
DOH states that the
bill is consistent with the DOH Strategic Plan, Program Area 1, Goal A that is
to promote positive maternal, child, adolescent and family health outcomes in
ADMINISTRATIVE
IMPLICATIONS
CYFD states that
federal definitions in Title IV-B of the Social Security Act differentiate between
“family preservation” and “family support” and, as a result, CYFD would have to
clarify for federal agencies what services
TECHNICAL ISSUES
To alleviate any confusion
to federal agencies as to the intent of the new statute, DOH recommends
striking “preservation” in page 1, lines 13, 17, and 20 replacing it with
“support”. It also recommends striking
“preserving” on page 2, line 1 and replacing it with “supporting”. In Section 3 B, page 2, line 9, DOH
recommends adding “if the home is deemed a safe environment” after
“communities”.