HF 3800

as introduced - 86th Legislature (2009 - 2010) Posted on 04/26/2010 11:22am

A bill for an act
relating to children; requiring the commissioner of human services to conduct
an assessment of the placement of children under the guardianship of the
commissioner.

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

Section 1. new text begin PERMANENCY PLANNING; ASSESSMENT.
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new text begin (a) The commissioner of human services shall conduct an assessment to identify
methods for the department to ensure that youth who are under the guardianship of
the commissioner are placed and maintained in permanent homes. The results of the
assessment must be submitted to the chairs and ranking minority members of the house
of representatives and senate committees with jurisdiction over the department no later
than January 15, 2011. The commissioner's assessment must include, but is not limited to,
the following:
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new text begin (1) the placement costs for the most recent fiscal year for which data is available for
the 100 oldest youth under guardianship of the commissioner who:
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new text begin (i) do not have an adoptive placement agreement in effect;
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new text begin (ii) are not currently in a relative or kinship care placement; and
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new text begin (iii) may be placed in long-term foster care by court order;
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new text begin (2) the county, state, and federal shares of the placement costs in clause (1);
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new text begin (3) the types of residential placements for the youth, including the number of youth
in each type of placement;
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new text begin (4) the average number of changes in placement for the youth during the prior
12 months;
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new text begin (5) the existing department programs responsible for providing permanency services
to children under the guardianship of the commissioner and how these department
programs can be used to ensure their prompt permanent placement; and
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new text begin (6) the areas that need improvement in order to ensure consistency among counties
in the care and permanent placement of youth under the guardianship of the commissioner.
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new text begin (b) Based on the assessment, the commissioner shall submit the following to
the chairs and ranking minority members of the house of representatives and senate
committees with jurisdiction over the department no later than January 15, 2011:
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new text begin (1) proposed legislation that would grant the commissioner greater control over the
permanent placement planning for youth under the guardianship of the commissioner; and
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new text begin (2) recommendations for a cost-neutral pilot project, involving no more than 100
youth who are under the guardianship of the commissioner, that would decrease the time
between termination of parental rights and the placement of the youth in a permanent home
and would include a strategy for addressing county responsibility for placement costs.
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new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE. new text end

new text begin This section is effective the day following final enactment.
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