1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to protection of children; expanding certain 
  1.3             case plans; authorizing rulemaking; providing for 
  1.4             sharing of certain data; changing records retention 
  1.5             requirements; requiring review and audits; requiring 
  1.6             task forces and a plan; amending Minnesota Statutes 
  1.7             1996, sections 260.191, subdivision 1e; and 626.556, 
  1.8             by adding subdivisions; Minnesota Statutes 1997 
  1.9             Supplement, section 626.556, subdivisions 10e and 11c; 
  1.10            proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, 
  1.11            chapter 626. 
  1.12  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.13     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 260.191, 
  1.14  subdivision 1e, is amended to read: 
  1.15     Subd. 1e.  [CASE PLAN.] For each disposition ordered, the 
  1.16  court shall order the appropriate agency to prepare a written 
  1.17  case plan developed after consultation with any foster parents, 
  1.18  and consultation with and participation by the child and the 
  1.19  child's parent, guardian, or custodian, guardian ad litem, and 
  1.20  tribal representative if the tribe has intervened.  The case 
  1.21  plan shall comply with the requirements of section 257.071, 
  1.22  where applicable.  The case plan shall, among other matters, 
  1.23  specify the actions to be taken by the child and the child's 
  1.24  parent, guardian, foster parent, or custodian to comply with the 
  1.25  court's disposition order, and the services to be offered and 
  1.26  provided by the agency to the child and the child's parent, 
  1.27  guardian, or custodian.  The court shall review the case plan 
  1.28  and, upon approving it, incorporate the plan into its 
  2.1   disposition order.  The court may review and modify the terms of 
  2.2   the case plan in the manner provided in subdivision 2.  For each 
  2.3   disposition ordered, the written case plan shall specify what 
  2.4   reasonable efforts shall be provided to the family.  The case 
  2.5   plan must include a discussion of: 
  2.6      (1) the availability of appropriate prevention and 
  2.7   reunification services for the family to prevent the removal of 
  2.8   the child from the home or to reunify the child with the family 
  2.9   after removal; 
  2.10     (2) any services or resources that were requested by the 
  2.11  child or the child's parent, guardian, foster parent, or 
  2.12  custodian since the date of initial adjudication, and whether 
  2.13  those services or resources were provided or the basis for 
  2.14  denial of the services or resources; 
  2.15     (3) the need of the child and family for care, treatment, 
  2.16  or rehabilitation; 
  2.17     (4) the need for participation by the parent, guardian, or 
  2.18  custodian in the plan of care for the child; 
  2.19     (5) the visitation rights and obligations of the parent or 
  2.20  other relatives, as defined in section 260.181, subdivision 3, 
  2.21  during any period when the child is placed outside the home; and 
  2.22     (6) a description of any services that could prevent 
  2.23  placement or reunify the family if such services were available; 
  2.24  and 
  2.25     (7) the need for continued monitoring of the child and 
  2.26  family by the appropriate local social services agency once the 
  2.27  family has completed all services required in the case plan. 
  2.28     A party has a right to request a court review of the 
  2.29  reasonableness of the case plan upon a showing of a substantial 
  2.30  change of circumstances. 
  2.31     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1997 Supplement, section 
  2.32  626.556, subdivision 10e, is amended to read: 
  2.33     Subd. 10e.  [DETERMINATIONS.] Upon the conclusion of every 
  2.34  assessment or investigation it conducts, the local welfare 
  2.35  agency shall make two determinations:  first, whether 
  2.36  maltreatment has occurred; and second, whether child protective 
  3.1   services are needed.  When maltreatment is determined in an 
  3.2   investigation involving a facility, the investigating agency 
  3.3   shall also determine whether the facility or individual was 
  3.4   responsible for the maltreatment using the mitigating factors in 
  3.5   paragraph (d).  Determinations under this subdivision must be 
  3.6   made based on a preponderance of the evidence. 
  3.7      (a) For the purposes of this subdivision, "maltreatment" 
  3.8   means any of the following acts or omissions committed by a 
  3.9   person responsible for the child's care: 
  3.10     (1) physical abuse as defined in subdivision 2, paragraph 
  3.11  (d); 
  3.12     (2) neglect as defined in subdivision 2, paragraph (c); 
  3.13     (3) sexual abuse as defined in subdivision 2, paragraph 
  3.14  (a); or 
  3.15     (4) mental injury as defined in subdivision 2, paragraph 
  3.16  (k). 
  3.17     (b) For the purposes of this subdivision, a determination 
  3.18  that child protective services are needed means that the local 
  3.19  welfare agency has documented conditions during the assessment 
  3.20  or investigation sufficient to cause a child protection worker, 
  3.21  as defined in section 626.559, subdivision 1, to conclude that a 
  3.22  child is at significant risk of maltreatment if protective 
  3.23  intervention is not provided and that the individuals 
  3.24  responsible for the child's care have not taken or are not 
  3.25  likely to take actions to protect the child from maltreatment or 
  3.26  risk of maltreatment. 
  3.27     (c) This subdivision does not mean that maltreatment has 
  3.28  occurred solely because the child's parent, guardian, or other 
  3.29  person responsible for the child's care in good faith selects 
  3.30  and depends upon spiritual means or prayer for treatment or care 
  3.31  of disease or remedial care of the child, in lieu of medical 
  3.32  care.  However, if lack of medical care may result in serious 
  3.33  danger to the child's health, the local welfare agency may 
  3.34  ensure that necessary medical services are provided to the child.
  3.35     (d) When determining whether the facility or individual is 
  3.36  the responsible party for determined maltreatment in a facility, 
  4.1   the investigating agency shall consider at least the following 
  4.2   mitigating factors: 
  4.3      (1) whether the actions of the facility or the individual 
  4.4   caregivers were according to, and followed the terms of, an 
  4.5   erroneous physician order, prescription, individual care plan, 
  4.6   or directive; however, this is not a mitigating factor when the 
  4.7   facility or caregiver was responsible for the issuance of the 
  4.8   erroneous order, prescription, individual care plan, or 
  4.9   directive or knew or should have known of the errors and took no 
  4.10  reasonable measures to correct the defect before administering 
  4.11  care; 
  4.12     (2) comparative responsibility between the facility, other 
  4.13  caregivers, and requirements placed upon an employee, including 
  4.14  the facility's compliance with related regulatory standards and 
  4.15  the adequacy of facility policies and procedures, facility 
  4.16  training, an individual's participation in the training, the 
  4.17  caregiver's supervision, and facility staffing levels and the 
  4.18  scope of the individual employee's authority and discretion; and 
  4.19     (3) whether the facility or individual followed 
  4.20  professional standards in exercising professional judgment. 
  4.21     (e) The commissioner shall adopt rules clarifying the 
  4.22  definition of "maltreatment" in this subdivision by specifying 
  4.23  in greater detail the kinds of acts or omissions that constitute 
  4.24  physical abuse, neglect, sexual abuse, or mental injury.  The 
  4.25  rules must allow individual counties to implement more detailed 
  4.26  definitions or criteria that indicate which allegations to 
  4.27  investigate, as long as a county's policies are consistent with 
  4.28  the definitions in the statutes and rules and are approved by 
  4.29  the county board.  Each local welfare agency shall periodically 
  4.30  inform mandated reporters under subdivision 3 who work in the 
  4.31  county of the definitions of maltreatment in the statutes and 
  4.32  rules and any additional definitions or criteria that have been 
  4.33  approved by the county board. 
  4.34     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 626.556, is 
  4.35  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  4.36     Subd. 10j.  [RELEASE OF DATA TO MANDATED REPORTERS.] A 
  5.1   local social service or child protection agency may provide 
  5.2   relevant private data on individuals obtained under this section 
  5.3   to mandated reporters who have an ongoing responsibility for the 
  5.4   health, education, or welfare of a child affected by the data. 
  5.5      Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 626.556, is 
  5.6   amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  5.7      Subd. 10k.  [RELEASE OF CERTAIN INVESTIGATIVE RECORDS TO 
  5.8   OTHER COUNTIES.] Records maintained under subdivision 11c, 
  5.9   paragraph (a), may be shared with another local welfare agency 
  5.10  that requests the information because it is conducting an 
  5.11  investigation under this section of the subject of the records. 
  5.12     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 1997 Supplement, section 
  5.13  626.556, subdivision 11c, is amended to read: 
  5.14     Subd. 11c.  [WELFARE, COURT SERVICES AGENCY, AND SCHOOL 
  5.15  RECORDS MAINTAINED.] Notwithstanding sections 138.163 and 
  5.16  138.17, records maintained or records derived from reports of 
  5.17  abuse by local welfare agencies, court services agencies, or 
  5.18  schools under this section shall be destroyed as provided in 
  5.19  paragraphs (a) to (d) by the responsible authority. 
  5.20     (a) If upon assessment or investigation there is no 
  5.21  determination of maltreatment or the need for child protective 
  5.22  services, the records may must be maintained for a period of 
  5.23  four years.  After the individual alleged to have maltreated a 
  5.24  child is notified under subdivision 10f of the determinations at 
  5.25  the conclusion of the assessment or investigation, upon that 
  5.26  individual's request, records shall be destroyed within 30 days 
  5.27  or after the appeal rights under subdivision 10i have been 
  5.28  concluded, whichever is later. 
  5.29     (b) All records relating to reports which, upon assessment 
  5.30  or investigation, indicate either maltreatment or a need for 
  5.31  child protective services shall be maintained for at least ten 
  5.32  years after the date of the final entry in the case record. 
  5.33     (c) All records regarding a report of maltreatment, 
  5.34  including any notification of intent to interview which was 
  5.35  received by a school under subdivision 10, paragraph (d), shall 
  5.36  be destroyed by the school when ordered to do so by the agency 
  6.1   conducting the assessment or investigation.  The agency shall 
  6.2   order the destruction of the notification when other records 
  6.3   relating to the report under investigation or assessment are 
  6.4   destroyed under this subdivision. 
  6.5      (d) Private or confidential data released to a court 
  6.6   services agency under subdivision 10h must be destroyed by the 
  6.7   court services agency when ordered to do so by the local welfare 
  6.8   agency that released the data.  The local welfare agency shall 
  6.9   order destruction of the data when other records relating to the 
  6.10  assessment or investigation are destroyed under this subdivision.
  6.11     Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 626.556, is 
  6.12  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  6.13     Subd. 15.  [SUPERVISORY REVIEW OF DETERMINATIONS.] Each 
  6.14  determination made by a local welfare agency official as to 
  6.15  whether maltreatment has occurred must be reviewed and approved 
  6.16  by a supervisor. 
  6.17     Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 626.556, is 
  6.18  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  6.19     Subd. 16.  [AUDITING.] The department of human services 
  6.20  shall regularly audit for accuracy the data reported by counties 
  6.21  on maltreatment of minors. 
  6.22     Sec. 8.  [626.5565] [TASK FORCES.] 
  6.23     Subdivision 1.  [RISK ASSESSMENT ALTERNATIVES.] The 
  6.24  commissioner of human services shall establish a task force of 
  6.25  county and state officials who are involved with the child 
  6.26  protection system to determine if there is a better alternative 
  6.27  to the existing system of child protection risk assessment in 
  6.28  Minnesota. 
  6.29     Subd. 2.  [PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT.] The commissioner of 
  6.30  human services shall establish a task force of county and state 
  6.31  officials to identify: 
  6.32     (1) statewide measures of the performance of child welfare 
  6.33  services, and steps needed to collect reliable information on 
  6.34  these measures; and 
  6.35     (2) potentially useful practices that individual counties 
  6.36  could use to monitor and evaluate child welfare services. 
  7.1      Subd. 3.  [REPORTS.] The task forces in subdivisions 1 and 
  7.2   2 shall report their findings to the commissioner by January 1, 
  7.3   1999.  The commissioner shall recommend to the legislature in 
  7.4   1999 any legislative action required to implement task force 
  7.5   recommendations. 
  7.6      Sec. 9.  [PLAN FOR EXTERNAL REVIEWS.] 
  7.7      By January 1, 1999, the commissioner of human services 
  7.8   shall present to the appropriate committees in the senate and 
  7.9   the house of representatives a plan for periodic external 
  7.10  reviews of: 
  7.11     (1) county compliance with state statutes and rules in the 
  7.12  area of child protection; and 
  7.13     (2) the appropriateness of decisions by county child 
  7.14  protection agencies in selected individual cases. 
  7.15     Sec. 10.  [REPEALER.] 
  7.16     Section 8 is repealed January 1, 1999.