1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to human services; making changes affecting 
  1.3             counties, human services policy, child care, 
  1.4             assistance programs, adoption and child placement, 
  1.5             child welfare, economic support, mental health, and 
  1.6             continuing care for the elderly; amending Minnesota 
  1.7             Statutes 2002, sections 119B.02, subdivision 4; 
  1.8             119B.03, subdivision 6; 119B.09, subdivision 4; 
  1.9             119B.21, subdivision 5; 144A.071, subdivision 1a; 
  1.10            245.462, subdivision 18; 245.464, by adding a 
  1.11            subdivision; 256.01, by adding a subdivision; 256B.02, 
  1.12            subdivision 12; 256B.056, by adding subdivisions; 
  1.13            256B.431, subdivision 37; 256D.02, subdivision 17; 
  1.14            256D.06, subdivision 5; 256J.67, subdivisions 1, 3; 
  1.15            256L.04, subdivision 2; 257.85, subdivisions 2, 3; 
  1.16            259.23, subdivisions 1, 2; 259.41, subdivision 3; 
  1.17            259.79, subdivision 1; 260C.001, subdivision 3; 
  1.18            260C.007, subdivisions 7, 8, 18, 22, 27; 260C.151, 
  1.19            subdivision 6; 260C.178; 260C.201, subdivisions 1, 2, 
  1.20            6, 10, 11; 260C.212, subdivision 5; 260C.312; 
  1.21            260C.317, subdivision 3; 549.02, by adding a 
  1.22            subdivision; 549.04; 626.556, subdivisions 1, 10f, 
  1.23            11c, by adding subdivisions; Minnesota Statutes 2003 
  1.24            Supplement, sections 119B.025, subdivision 1; 
  1.25            119B.125, subdivisions 1, 2; 245.4874; 245B.03, 
  1.26            subdivision 2; 256.01, subdivision 2; 256B.0622, 
  1.27            subdivision 8; 256B.431, subdivision 38; 256J.40; 
  1.28            256J.425, subdivision 7; 256J.46, subdivision 1; 
  1.29            256J.521, subdivision 2; 256J.626, subdivisions 6, 7; 
  1.30            256J.95, subdivisions 10, 12; 260.012; 626.556, 
  1.31            subdivisions 2, 3, 10, 10b, 10e, 10i, 11; repealing 
  1.32            Minnesota Statutes 2002, sections 626.5551, 
  1.33            subdivisions 1, 2, 3, 4, 5; Laws 2001, First Special 
  1.34            Session chapter 9, article 9, section 52; Laws 2003, 
  1.35            First Special Session chapter 14, article 3, section 
  1.36            56; Minnesota Rules, part 9560.0220, subpart 6, item B.
  1.37  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.38                             ARTICLE 1 
  1.39                  CHILD CARE; ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS 
  1.40     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 119B.02, 
  1.41  subdivision 4, is amended to read: 
  2.1      Subd. 4.  [UNIVERSAL APPLICATION FORM.] The commissioner 
  2.2   must develop and make available to all counties a universal 
  2.3   application form for child care assistance under this 
  2.4   chapter.  The commissioner may develop and make available to all 
  2.5   counties a child care addendum form to be used to supplement the 
  2.6   combined application form for MFIP, DWP, or Food Support or to 
  2.7   supplement other statewide application forms for public 
  2.8   assistance programs for families applying for one of these 
  2.9   programs in addition to child care assistance.  The application 
  2.10  must provide notice of eligibility requirements for assistance 
  2.11  and penalties for wrongfully obtaining assistance. 
  2.12     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
  2.13  119B.025, subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  2.14     Subdivision 1.  [FACTORS WHICH MUST BE VERIFIED.] (a) The 
  2.15  county shall verify the following at all initial child care 
  2.16  applications using the universal application: 
  2.17     (1) identity of adults; 
  2.18     (2) presence of the minor child in the home, if 
  2.19  questionable; 
  2.20     (3) relationship of minor child to the parent, stepparent, 
  2.21  legal guardian, eligible relative caretaker, or the spouses of 
  2.22  any of the foregoing; 
  2.23     (4) age; 
  2.24     (5) immigration status, if related to eligibility; 
  2.25     (6) Social Security number, if given; 
  2.26     (7) income; 
  2.27     (8) spousal support and child support payments made to 
  2.28  persons outside the household; 
  2.29     (9) residence; and 
  2.30     (10) inconsistent information, if related to eligibility. 
  2.31     (b) If a family did not use the universal application or 
  2.32  child care addendum to apply for child care assistance, the 
  2.33  family must complete the universal application or child care 
  2.34  addendum at its next eligibility redetermination and the county 
  2.35  must verify the factors listed in paragraph (a) as part of that 
  2.36  redetermination.  Once a family has completed a universal 
  3.1   application or child care addendum, the county shall use the 
  3.2   redetermination form described in paragraph (c) for that 
  3.3   family's subsequent redeterminations.  Eligibility must be 
  3.4   redetermined at least every six months.  If a family reports a 
  3.5   change in an eligibility factor before the family's next 
  3.6   regularly scheduled redetermination, the county must recalculate 
  3.7   eligibility without requiring verification of any eligibility 
  3.8   factor that did not change.  
  3.9      (c) The commissioner shall develop a recertification 
  3.10  redetermination form to redetermine eligibility and a change 
  3.11  report form to report changes that minimizes minimize paperwork 
  3.12  for the county and the participant. 
  3.13     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 119B.03, 
  3.14  subdivision 6, is amended to read: 
  3.15     Subd. 6.  [ALLOCATION FORMULA.] The basic sliding fee state 
  3.16  and federal funds shall be allocated on a calendar year basis.  
  3.17  Funds shall be allocated first in amounts equal to each county's 
  3.18  guaranteed floor according to subdivision 8, with any remaining 
  3.19  available funds allocated according to the following formula:  
  3.20     (a) One-fourth of the funds shall be allocated in 
  3.21  proportion to each county's total expenditures for the basic 
  3.22  sliding fee child care program reported during the most recent 
  3.23  fiscal year completed at the time of the notice of allocation.  
  3.24     (b) One-fourth of the funds shall be allocated based on the 
  3.25  number of families participating in the transition year child 
  3.26  care program as reported during the most recent quarter 
  3.27  completed at the time of the notice of allocation. 
  3.28     (c) One-fourth of the funds shall be allocated in 
  3.29  proportion to each county's most recently reported first, 
  3.30  second, and third priority waiting list as defined in 
  3.31  subdivision 2 and the reinstatement list of those families whose 
  3.32  assistance was terminated with the approval of the commissioner 
  3.33  under Minnesota Rules, part 3400.0183, subpart 1. 
  3.34     (d) One-fourth of the funds must be allocated in proportion 
  3.35  to each county's most recently reported waiting list as defined 
  3.36  in subdivision 2 and the reinstatement list of those families 
  4.1   whose assistance was terminated with the approval of the 
  4.2   commissioner under Minnesota Rules, part 3400.0183, subpart 1. 
  4.3      Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 119B.09, 
  4.4   subdivision 4, is amended to read: 
  4.5      Subd. 4.  [ELIGIBILITY; ANNUAL INCOME; CALCULATION.] Annual 
  4.6   income of the applicant family is the current monthly income of 
  4.7   the family multiplied by 12 or the income for the 12-month 
  4.8   period immediately preceding the date of application, or income 
  4.9   calculated by the method which provides the most accurate 
  4.10  assessment of income available to the family.  Self-employment 
  4.11  income must be calculated based on gross receipts less operating 
  4.12  expenses.  Income must be redetermined recalculated when the 
  4.13  family's income changes, but no less often than every six 
  4.14  months.  Income must be verified with documentary evidence.  If 
  4.15  the applicant does not have sufficient evidence of income, 
  4.16  verification must be obtained from the source of the income. 
  4.17     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
  4.18  119B.125, subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  4.19     Subdivision 1.  [AUTHORIZATION.] Except as provided in 
  4.20  subdivision 5, a county must authorize the provider chosen by an 
  4.21  applicant or a participant before the county can authorize 
  4.22  payment for care provided by that provider.  The commissioner 
  4.23  must establish the requirements necessary for authorization of 
  4.24  providers.  A provider must be reauthorized every two years.  A 
  4.25  legal, nonlicensed family child care provider also must be 
  4.26  reauthorized when another person over the age of 13 joins the 
  4.27  household, a current household member turns 13, or there is 
  4.28  reason to believe that a household member has a factor that 
  4.29  prevents authorization.  The provider is required to report all 
  4.30  family changes that would require reauthorization.  When a 
  4.31  provider has been authorized for payment for providing care for 
  4.32  families in more than one county, the county responsible for 
  4.33  reauthorization of that provider is the county of the family 
  4.34  with a current authorization for that provider and who has used 
  4.35  the provider for the longest length of time. 
  4.36     Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
  5.1   119B.125, subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  5.2      Subd. 2.  [PERSONS WHO CANNOT BE AUTHORIZED.] (a) A person 
  5.3   who meets any of the conditions under paragraphs (b) to (n) must 
  5.4   not be authorized as a legal nonlicensed family child care 
  5.5   provider.  To determine whether any of the listed conditions 
  5.6   exist, the county must request information about the provider 
  5.7   from the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the juvenile courts, 
  5.8   and social service agencies.  When one of the listed entities 
  5.9   does not maintain information on a statewide basis, the county 
  5.10  must contact the entity in the county where the provider resides 
  5.11  and any other county in which the provider previously resided in 
  5.12  the past year.  For purposes of this subdivision, a finding that 
  5.13  a delinquency petition is proven in juvenile court must be 
  5.14  considered a conviction in state district court.  If a county 
  5.15  has determined that a provider is able to be authorized in that 
  5.16  county, and a family in another county later selects that 
  5.17  provider, the provider is able to be authorized in the second 
  5.18  county without undergoing a new background investigation unless 
  5.19  one of the following conditions exists: 
  5.20     (1) two years have passed since the first authorization; 
  5.21     (2) another person age 13 or older has joined the 
  5.22  provider's household since the last authorization; 
  5.23     (3) a current household member has turned 13 since the last 
  5.24  authorization; or 
  5.25     (4) there is reason to believe that a household member has 
  5.26  a factor that prevents authorization. 
  5.27     (b) The person has been convicted of one of the following 
  5.28  offenses or has admitted to committing or a preponderance of the 
  5.29  evidence indicates that the person has committed an act that 
  5.30  meets the definition of one of the following offenses:  sections 
  5.31  609.185 to 609.195, murder in the first, second, or third 
  5.32  degree; 609.2661 to 609.2663, murder of an unborn child in the 
  5.33  first, second, or third degree; 609.322, solicitation, 
  5.34  inducement, or promotion of prostitution; 609.323, receiving 
  5.35  profit from prostitution; 609.342 to 609.345, criminal sexual 
  5.36  conduct in the first, second, third, or fourth degree; 609.352, 
  6.1   solicitation of children to engage in sexual conduct; 609.365, 
  6.2   incest; 609.377, felony malicious punishment of a child; 
  6.3   617.246, use of minors in sexual performance; 617.247, 
  6.4   possession of pictorial representation of a minor; 609.2242 to 
  6.5   609.2243, felony domestic assault; a felony offense of spousal 
  6.6   abuse; a felony offense of child abuse or neglect; a felony 
  6.7   offense of a crime against children; or an attempt or conspiracy 
  6.8   to commit any of these offenses as defined in Minnesota 
  6.9   Statutes; or an offense in any other state or country where the 
  6.10  elements are substantially similar to any of the offenses listed 
  6.11  in this paragraph. 
  6.12     (c) Less than 15 years have passed since the discharge of 
  6.13  the sentence imposed for the offense and the person has received 
  6.14  a felony conviction for one of the following offenses, or the 
  6.15  person has admitted to committing or a preponderance of the 
  6.16  evidence indicates that the person has committed an act that 
  6.17  meets the definition of a felony conviction for one of the 
  6.18  following offenses:  sections 609.20 to 609.205, manslaughter in 
  6.19  the first or second degree; 609.21, criminal vehicular homicide; 
  6.20  609.215, aiding suicide or aiding attempted suicide; 609.221 to 
  6.21  609.2231, assault in the first, second, third, or fourth degree; 
  6.22  609.224, repeat offenses of fifth degree assault; 609.228, great 
  6.23  bodily harm caused by distribution of drugs; 609.2325, criminal 
  6.24  abuse of a vulnerable adult; 609.2335, financial exploitation of 
  6.25  a vulnerable adult; 609.235, use of drugs to injure or 
  6.26  facilitate a crime; 609.24, simple robbery; 617.241, repeat 
  6.27  offenses of obscene materials and performances; 609.245, 
  6.28  aggravated robbery; 609.25, kidnapping; 609.255, false 
  6.29  imprisonment; 609.2664 to 609.2665, manslaughter of an unborn 
  6.30  child in the first or second degree; 609.267 to 609.2672, 
  6.31  assault of an unborn child in the first, second, or third 
  6.32  degree; 609.268, injury or death of an unborn child in the 
  6.33  commission of a crime; 609.27, coercion; 609.275, attempt to 
  6.34  coerce; 609.324, subdivision 1, other prohibited acts, minor 
  6.35  engaged in prostitution; 609.3451, repeat offenses of criminal 
  6.36  sexual conduct in the fifth degree; 609.378, neglect or 
  7.1   endangerment of a child; 609.52, theft; 609.521, possession of 
  7.2   shoplifting gear; 609.561 to 609.563, arson in the first, 
  7.3   second, or third degree; 609.582, burglary in the first, second, 
  7.4   third, or fourth degree; 609.625, aggravated forgery; 609.63, 
  7.5   forgery; 609.631, check forgery, offering a forged check; 
  7.6   609.635, obtaining signature by false pretenses; 609.66, 
  7.7   dangerous weapon; 609.665, setting a spring gun; 609.67, 
  7.8   unlawfully owning, possessing, or operating a machine gun; 
  7.9   609.687, adulteration; 609.71, riot; 609.713, terrorist threats; 
  7.10  609.749, harassment, stalking; 260.221, grounds for termination 
  7.11  of parental rights; 152.021 to 152.022, controlled substance 
  7.12  crime in the first or second degree; 152.023, subdivision 1, 
  7.13  clause (3) or (4), or 152.023, subdivision 2, clause (4), 
  7.14  controlled substance crime in third degree; 152.024, subdivision 
  7.15  1, clause (2), (3), or (4), controlled substance crime in fourth 
  7.16  degree; 617.23, repeat offenses of indecent exposure; an attempt 
  7.17  or conspiracy to commit any of these offenses as defined in 
  7.18  Minnesota Statutes; or an offense in any other state or country 
  7.19  where the elements are substantially similar to any of the 
  7.20  offenses listed in this paragraph. 
  7.21     (d) Less than ten years have passed since the discharge of 
  7.22  the sentence imposed for the offense and the person has received 
  7.23  a gross misdemeanor conviction for one of the following offenses 
  7.24  or the person has admitted to committing or a preponderance of 
  7.25  the evidence indicates that the person has committed an act that 
  7.26  meets the definition of a gross misdemeanor conviction for one 
  7.27  of the following offenses:  sections 609.224, fifth degree 
  7.28  assault; 609.2242 to 609.2243, domestic assault; 518B.01, 
  7.29  subdivision 14, violation of an order for protection; 609.3451, 
  7.30  fifth degree criminal sexual conduct; 609.746, repeat offenses 
  7.31  of interference with privacy; 617.23, repeat offenses of 
  7.32  indecent exposure; 617.241, obscene materials and performances; 
  7.33  617.243, indecent literature, distribution; 617.293, 
  7.34  disseminating or displaying harmful material to minors; 609.71, 
  7.35  riot; 609.66, dangerous weapons; 609.749, harassment, stalking; 
  7.36  609.224, subdivision 2, paragraph (c), fifth degree assault 
  8.1   against a vulnerable adult by a caregiver; 609.23, mistreatment 
  8.2   of persons confined; 609.231, mistreatment of residents or 
  8.3   patients; 609.2325, criminal abuse of a vulnerable adult; 
  8.4   609.2335, financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult; 609.233, 
  8.5   criminal neglect of a vulnerable adult; 609.234, failure to 
  8.6   report maltreatment of a vulnerable adult; 609.72, subdivision 
  8.7   3, disorderly conduct against a vulnerable adult; 609.265, 
  8.8   abduction; 609.378, neglect or endangerment of a child; 609.377, 
  8.9   malicious punishment of a child; 609.324, subdivision 1a, other 
  8.10  prohibited acts, minor engaged in prostitution; 609.33, 
  8.11  disorderly house; 609.52, theft; 609.582, burglary in the first, 
  8.12  second, third, or fourth degree; 609.631, check forgery, 
  8.13  offering a forged check; 609.275, attempt to coerce; an attempt 
  8.14  or conspiracy to commit any of these offenses as defined in 
  8.15  Minnesota Statutes; or an offense in any other state or country 
  8.16  where the elements are substantially similar to any of the 
  8.17  offenses listed in this paragraph. 
  8.18     (e) Less than seven years have passed since the discharge 
  8.19  of the sentence imposed for the offense and the person has 
  8.20  received a misdemeanor conviction for one of the following 
  8.21  offenses or the person has admitted to committing or a 
  8.22  preponderance of the evidence indicates that the person has 
  8.23  committed an act that meets the definition of a misdemeanor 
  8.24  conviction for one of the following offenses:  sections 609.224, 
  8.25  fifth degree assault; 609.2242, domestic assault; 518B.01, 
  8.26  violation of an order for protection; 609.3232, violation of an 
  8.27  order for protection; 609.746, interference with privacy; 
  8.28  609.79, obscene or harassing telephone calls; 609.795, letter, 
  8.29  telegram, or package opening, harassment; 617.23, indecent 
  8.30  exposure; 609.2672, assault of an unborn child, third degree; 
  8.31  617.293, dissemination and display of harmful materials to 
  8.32  minors; 609.66, dangerous weapons; 609.665, spring guns; an 
  8.33  attempt or conspiracy to commit any of these offenses as defined 
  8.34  in Minnesota Statutes; or an offense in any other state or 
  8.35  country where the elements are substantially similar to any of 
  8.36  the offenses listed in this paragraph. 
  9.1      (f) The person has been identified by the county's child 
  9.2   protection agency in the county where the provider resides or a 
  9.3   county where the provider has resided or by the statewide child 
  9.4   protection database as the person allegedly responsible for 
  9.5   physical or sexual abuse of a child within the last seven years. 
  9.6      (g) The person has been identified by the county's adult 
  9.7   protection agency in the county where the provider resides or a 
  9.8   county where the provider has resided or by the statewide adult 
  9.9   protection database as the person responsible for abuse or 
  9.10  neglect of a vulnerable adult within the last seven years. 
  9.11     (h) The person has refused to give written consent for 
  9.12  disclosure of criminal history records. 
  9.13     (i) The person has been denied a family child care license 
  9.14  or has received a fine or a sanction as a licensed child care 
  9.15  provider that has not been reversed on appeal. 
  9.16     (j) The person has a family child care licensing 
  9.17  disqualification that has not been set aside. 
  9.18     (k) The person has admitted or a county has found that 
  9.19  there is a preponderance of evidence that fraudulent information 
  9.20  was given to the county for child care assistance application 
  9.21  purposes or was used in submitting child care assistance bills 
  9.22  for payment. 
  9.23     (l) The person has been convicted or there is a 
  9.24  preponderance of evidence of the crime of theft by wrongfully 
  9.25  obtaining public assistance. 
  9.26     (m) The person has a household member age 13 or older who 
  9.27  has access to children during the hours that care is provided 
  9.28  and who meets one of the conditions listed in paragraphs (b) to 
  9.29  (l). 
  9.30     (n) The person has a household member ages ten to 12 who 
  9.31  has access to children during the hours that care is provided; 
  9.32  information or circumstances exist which provide the county with 
  9.33  articulable suspicion that further pertinent information may 
  9.34  exist showing the household member meets one of the conditions 
  9.35  listed in paragraphs (b) to (l); and the household member 
  9.36  actually meets one of the conditions listed in paragraphs (b) to 
 10.1   (l). 
 10.2      Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 119B.21, 
 10.3   subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
 10.4      Subd. 5.  [CHILD CARE SERVICES GRANTS.] (a) A child care 
 10.5   resource and referral program designated under section 119B.19, 
 10.6   subdivision 1a, may award child care services grants for: 
 10.7      (1) creating new licensed child care facilities and 
 10.8   expanding existing facilities, including, but not limited to, 
 10.9   supplies, equipment, facility renovation, and remodeling; 
 10.10     (2) improving licensed child care facility programs; 
 10.11     (3) staff training and development services including, but 
 10.12  not limited to, in-service training, curriculum development, 
 10.13  accreditation, certification, consulting, resource centers, and 
 10.14  program and resource materials; 
 10.15     (4) interim financing; 
 10.16     (5) capacity building through the purchase of appropriate 
 10.17  technology to create, enhance, and maintain business management 
 10.18  systems; 
 10.19     (6) emergency assistance for child care programs; 
 10.20     (7) new programs or projects for the creation, expansion, 
 10.21  or improvement of programs that serve ethnic immigrant and 
 10.22  refugee communities; and 
 10.23     (8) targeted recruitment initiatives to expand and build 
 10.24  the capacity of the child care system and to improve the quality 
 10.25  of care provided by legal nonlicensed child care providers. 
 10.26     (b) A child care resource and referral program designated 
 10.27  under section 119B.19, subdivision 1a, may award child care 
 10.28  services grants to: 
 10.29     (1) licensed providers; 
 10.30     (2) providers in the process of being licensed; 
 10.31     (3) corporations or public agencies that develop or provide 
 10.32  child care services; 
 10.33     (4) school-age care programs; or 
 10.34     (5) legal nonlicensed providers; or 
 10.35     (6) any combination of clauses (1) to (4) (5). 
 10.36  Unlicensed providers are only eligible for grants under 
 11.1   paragraph (a), clause (7). Providers described under clauses (2) 
 11.2   and (5), are only eligible for grants under paragraph (a), 
 11.3   clauses (3), (7), and (8). 
 11.4      (c) A recipient of a child care services grant for facility 
 11.5   improvements, interim financing, or staff training and 
 11.6   development must provide a 25 percent local match.  
 11.7      Sec. 8.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 256D.02, 
 11.8   subdivision 17, is amended to read: 
 11.9      Subd. 17.  [PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATION.] "Professional 
 11.10  certification" means: 
 11.11     (1) a statement about a person's illness, injury, or 
 11.12  incapacity that is signed by a licensed physician, psychological 
 11.13  practitioner, or licensed psychologist, qualified by 
 11.14  professional training and experience to diagnose and certify the 
 11.15  person's condition; or 
 11.16     (2) a statement about an incapacity involving a spinal 
 11.17  subluxation condition that is signed by a licensed chiropractor 
 11.18  qualified by professional training and experience to diagnose 
 11.19  and certify the condition "qualified professional" as defined in 
 11.20  section 256J.08, subdivision 73a. 
 11.21                             ARTICLE 2 
 11.22                    ADOPTION AND CHILD PLACEMENT 
 11.23     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 11.24  245B.03, subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
 11.25     Subd. 2.  [RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER STANDARDS GOVERNING 
 11.26  SERVICES FOR PERSONS WITH MENTAL RETARDATION OR RELATED 
 11.27  CONDITIONS.] (a) ICFs/MR are exempt from: 
 11.28     (1) section 245B.04; 
 11.29     (2) section 245B.06, subdivisions 4 and 6; and 
 11.30     (3) section 245B.07, subdivisions 4, paragraphs (b) and 
 11.31  (c); 7; and 8, paragraphs (1), clause (iv), and (2). 
 11.32     (b) License holders also licensed under chapter 144 as a 
 11.33  supervised living facility are exempt from section 245B.04. 
 11.34     (c) Residential service sites controlled by license holders 
 11.35  licensed under this chapter for home and community-based 
 11.36  waivered services for four or fewer adults are exempt from 
 12.1   compliance with Minnesota Rules, parts 9543.0040, subpart 2, 
 12.2   item C; 9555.5505; 9555.5515, items B and G; 9555.5605; 
 12.3   9555.5705; 9555.6125, subparts 3, item C, subitem (2), and 4 to 
 12.4   6; 9555.6185; 9555.6225, subpart 8; 9555.6245; 9555.6255; and 
 12.5   9555.6265; and as provided under section 245B.06, subdivision 2, 
 12.6   the license holder is exempt from the program abuse prevention 
 12.7   plans and individual abuse prevention plans otherwise required 
 12.8   under sections 245A.65, subdivision 2, and 626.557, subdivision 
 12.9   14.  The commissioner may approve alternative methods of 
 12.10  providing overnight supervision using the process and criteria 
 12.11  for granting a variance in section 245A.04, subdivision 9.  This 
 12.12  chapter does not apply to foster care homes that do not provide 
 12.13  residential habilitation services funded under the home and 
 12.14  community-based waiver programs defined in section 256B.092. 
 12.15     (d) Residential service sites controlled by license holders 
 12.16  licensed under this chapter for home and community-based 
 12.17  waivered services for four or fewer children are exempt from 
 12.18  compliance with Minnesota Rules, parts 9545.0130; 9545.0140; 
 12.19  9545.0150; 9545.0170; 9545.0220, subparts 1, items C, F, and I, 
 12.20  and 3; and 9545.0230 2960.3060, subpart 3, items B and C; 
 12.21  2960.3070; 2960.3100, subpart 1, items C, F, and I; and 
 12.22  2960.3210. 
 12.23     (e) The commissioner may exempt license holders from 
 12.24  applicable standards of this chapter when the license holder 
 12.25  meets the standards under section 245A.09, subdivision 7.  
 12.26  License holders that are accredited by an independent 
 12.27  accreditation body shall continue to be licensed under this 
 12.28  chapter. 
 12.29     (f) License holders governed by sections 245B.02 to 245B.07 
 12.30  must also meet the licensure requirements in chapter 245A.  
 12.31     (g) Nothing in this chapter prohibits license holders from 
 12.32  concurrently serving consumers with and without mental 
 12.33  retardation or related conditions provided this chapter's 
 12.34  standards are met as well as other relevant standards. 
 12.35     (h) The documentation that sections 245B.02 to 245B.07 
 12.36  require of the license holder meets the individual program plan 
 13.1   required in section 256B.092 or successor provisions. 
 13.2      Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 257.85, 
 13.3   subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
 13.4      Subd. 2.  [SCOPE.] The provisions of this section apply to 
 13.5   those situations in which the legal and physical custody of a 
 13.6   child is established with a relative or important friend with 
 13.7   whom the child has resided or had significant contact according 
 13.8   to section 260C.201, subdivision 11, by a district court order 
 13.9   issued on or after July 1, 1997, or a tribal court order issued 
 13.10  on or after July 1, 2004.  
 13.11     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 257.85, 
 13.12  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
 13.13     Subd. 3.  [DEFINITIONS.] For purposes of this section, the 
 13.14  terms defined in this subdivision have the meanings given them. 
 13.15     (a) "MFIP standard" means the transitional standard used to 
 13.16  calculate assistance under the MFIP program, or, if permanent 
 13.17  legal and physical custody of the child is given to a relative 
 13.18  custodian residing outside of Minnesota, the analogous 
 13.19  transitional standard or standard of need used to calculate 
 13.20  assistance under the TANF program of the state where the 
 13.21  relative custodian lives. 
 13.22     (b) "Local agency" means the local county social services 
 13.23  agency or tribal social services agency with legal custody of a 
 13.24  child prior to the transfer of permanent legal and physical 
 13.25  custody. 
 13.26     (c) "Permanent legal and physical custody" means permanent 
 13.27  legal and physical custody ordered by a Minnesota Juvenile Court 
 13.28  under section 260C.201, subdivision 27 11. 
 13.29     (d) "Relative" has the meaning given in section 260C.007, 
 13.30  subdivision 27. 
 13.31     (e) "Relative custodian" means a person who has permanent 
 13.32  legal and physical custody of a child.  When siblings, including 
 13.33  half-siblings and stepsiblings, are placed together in permanent 
 13.34  legal and physical custody, the person receiving permanent legal 
 13.35  and physical custody of the siblings is considered a relative 
 13.36  custodian of all of the siblings for purposes of this section. 
 14.1      (f) "Relative custody assistance agreement" means an 
 14.2   agreement entered into between a local agency and a person who 
 14.3   has been or will be awarded permanent legal and physical custody 
 14.4   of a child. 
 14.5      (g) "Relative custody assistance payment" means a monthly 
 14.6   cash grant made to a relative custodian pursuant to a relative 
 14.7   custody assistance agreement and in an amount calculated under 
 14.8   subdivision 7. 
 14.9      (h) "Remains in the physical custody of the relative 
 14.10  custodian" means that the relative custodian is providing 
 14.11  day-to-day care for the child and that the child lives with the 
 14.12  relative custodian; absence from the relative custodian's home 
 14.13  for a period of more than 120 days raises a presumption that the 
 14.14  child no longer remains in the physical custody of the relative 
 14.15  custodian. 
 14.16     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 259.23, 
 14.17  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
 14.18     Subdivision 1.  [VENUE.] (a) Except as provided in section 
 14.19  260C.101, subdivision 2, the juvenile court shall have original 
 14.20  jurisdiction in all adoption proceedings.  The proper venue for 
 14.21  an adoption proceeding shall be the county of the petitioner's 
 14.22  residence except as provided in paragraph (b).  However, 
 14.23     (b) Venue for the adoption of children committed to the 
 14.24  guardianship of the commissioner of human services shall be the 
 14.25  county with jurisdiction in the matter according to section 
 14.26  260C.317, subdivision 3. 
 14.27     (c) Upon request of the petitioner, the court having 
 14.28  jurisdiction over the matter under section 260C.317, subdivision 
 14.29  3, may transfer venue of an adoption proceeding involving a 
 14.30  child under the guardianship of the commissioner to the county 
 14.31  of the petitioner's residence upon determining that: 
 14.32     (1) the commissioner has given consent to the petitioner's 
 14.33  adoption of the child or that consent is unreasonably withheld; 
 14.34     (2) there is no other adoption petition for the child that 
 14.35  has been filed or is reasonably anticipated by the commissioner 
 14.36  or the commissioner's delegate to be filed; and 
 15.1      (3) transfer of venue is in the best interests of the child.
 15.2      Transfer of venue under this paragraph shall be according 
 15.3   to the rules of adoption court procedure. 
 15.4      (d) In all other adoptions, if the petitioner has acquired 
 15.5   a new residence in another county and requests a transfer of the 
 15.6   adoption proceeding, the court in which an adoption is initiated 
 15.7   may transfer the proceeding to the appropriate court in the new 
 15.8   county of residence if the transfer is in the best interests of 
 15.9   the person to be adopted.  The court transfers the proceeding by 
 15.10  ordering a continuance and by forwarding to the court 
 15.11  administrator of the appropriate court a certified copy of all 
 15.12  papers filed, together with an order of transfer.  The 
 15.13  transferring court also shall forward copies of the order of 
 15.14  transfer to the commissioner of human services and any agency 
 15.15  participating in the proceedings.  The judge of the receiving 
 15.16  court shall accept the order of the transfer and any other 
 15.17  documents transmitted and hear the case; provided, however, the 
 15.18  receiving court may in its discretion require the filing of a 
 15.19  new petition prior to the hearing.  
 15.20     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 259.23, 
 15.21  subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
 15.22     Subd. 2.  [CONTENTS OF PETITION.] The petition shall be 
 15.23  signed by the petitioner and, if married, by the spouse.  It 
 15.24  shall be verified, and filed in duplicate.  The petition shall 
 15.25  allege: 
 15.26     (a) The full name, age and place of residence of 
 15.27  petitioner, and if married, the date and place of marriage; 
 15.28     (b) The date petitioner acquired physical custody of the 
 15.29  child and from what person or agency; 
 15.30     (c) The date of birth of the child, if known, and the state 
 15.31  and county where born; 
 15.32     (d) The name of the child's parents, if known, and the 
 15.33  guardian if there be one; 
 15.34     (e) The actual name of the child, if known, and any known 
 15.35  aliases; 
 15.36     (f) The name to be given the child if a change of name is 
 16.1   desired; 
 16.2      (g) The description and value of any real or personal 
 16.3   property owned by the child; 
 16.4      (h) That the petitioner desires that the relationship of 
 16.5   parent and child be established between petitioner and the 
 16.6   child, and that it is to the best interests of the child for the 
 16.7   child to be adopted by the petitioner.  
 16.8      In agency placements, the information required in clauses 
 16.9   (d) and (e) above shall not be required to be alleged in the 
 16.10  petition but shall be transmitted to the court by the 
 16.11  commissioner of human services or the agency.  
 16.12     Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 259.41, 
 16.13  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
 16.14     Subd. 3.  [BACKGROUND CHECK; AFFIDAVIT OF HISTORY.] (a) At 
 16.15  the time an adoption study is commenced, each prospective 
 16.16  adoptive parent must: 
 16.17     (1) authorize access by the agency to any private data 
 16.18  needed to complete the study; 
 16.19     (2) provide all addresses at which the prospective adoptive 
 16.20  parent and anyone in the household over the age of 13 has 
 16.21  resided in the previous ten five years; and 
 16.22     (3) disclose any names used previously other than the name 
 16.23  used at the time of the study; and 
 16.24     (4) provide a set of fingerprints, which shall be forwarded 
 16.25  to the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension to facilitate the 
 16.26  criminal conviction background check required under paragraph 
 16.27  (b). 
 16.28     (b) When the requirements of paragraph (a) have been met, 
 16.29  the agency shall immediately begin a background check, on each 
 16.30  person over the age of 13 living in the home, consisting, at a 
 16.31  minimum, of the following: 
 16.32     (1) a check of criminal conviction data with the Bureau of 
 16.33  Criminal Apprehension and local law enforcement authorities; 
 16.34     (2) a check for data on substantiated maltreatment of a 
 16.35  child or vulnerable adult and domestic violence data with local 
 16.36  law enforcement and social services agencies and district 
 17.1   courts; and 
 17.2      (3) for those persons under the age of 25, a check of 
 17.3   juvenile court records. 
 17.4      Notwithstanding the provisions of section 260B.171 or 
 17.5   260C.171, the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, local law 
 17.6   enforcement and social services agencies, district courts, and 
 17.7   juvenile courts shall release the requested information to the 
 17.8   agency completing the adoption study. 
 17.9      When paragraph (b) requires checking the data or records of 
 17.10  local law enforcement and social services agencies and district 
 17.11  and juvenile courts, the agency shall check with the law 
 17.12  enforcement and social services agencies and courts whose 
 17.13  jurisdictions cover the addresses under paragraph (a), clause 
 17.14  (2).  In the event that the agency is unable to complete any of 
 17.15  the record checks required by paragraph (b), the agency shall 
 17.16  document the fact and the agency's efforts to obtain the 
 17.17  information. 
 17.18     (c) At any time prior to completion of the background check 
 17.19  required under paragraph (b), a prospective adoptive parent may 
 17.20  submit to the agency conducting the study a sworn affidavit 
 17.21  stating whether they or any person residing in the household 
 17.22  have been convicted of a crime.  The affidavit shall also state 
 17.23  whether the adoptive parent or any other person residing in the 
 17.24  household is the subject of an open investigation of, or have 
 17.25  been the subject of a substantiated allegation of, child or 
 17.26  vulnerable-adult maltreatment within the past ten five years.  A 
 17.27  complete description of the crime, open investigation, or 
 17.28  substantiated abuse, and a complete description of any sentence, 
 17.29  treatment, or disposition must be included.  The affidavit must 
 17.30  contain an acknowledgment that if, at any time before the 
 17.31  adoption is final, a court receives evidence leading to a 
 17.32  conclusion that a prospective adoptive parent knowingly gave 
 17.33  false information in the affidavit, it shall be determined that 
 17.34  the adoption of the child by the prospective adoptive parent is 
 17.35  not in the best interests of the child. 
 17.36     (d) For the purposes of subdivision 1 and section 259.47, 
 18.1   subdivisions 3 and 6, an adoption study is complete for 
 18.2   placement, even though the background checks required by 
 18.3   paragraph (b) have not been completed, if each prospective 
 18.4   adoptive parent has completed the affidavit allowed by paragraph 
 18.5   (c) and the other requirements of this section have been met.  
 18.6   The background checks required by paragraph (b) must be 
 18.7   completed before an adoption petition is filed.  If an adoption 
 18.8   study has been submitted to the court under section 259.47, 
 18.9   subdivision 3 or 6, before the background checks required by 
 18.10  paragraph (b) were complete, an updated adoption study report 
 18.11  which includes the results of the background check must be filed 
 18.12  with the adoption petition.  In the event that an agency is 
 18.13  unable to complete any of the records checks required by 
 18.14  paragraph (b), the agency shall submit with the petition to 
 18.15  adopt an affidavit documenting the agency's efforts to complete 
 18.16  the checks. 
 18.17     Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 259.79, 
 18.18  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
 18.19     Subdivision 1.  [CONTENT.] (a) The adoption records of the 
 18.20  commissioner, the commissioner's agents and licensed 
 18.21  child-placing agencies shall contain copies of all relevant 
 18.22  legal documents, responsibly collected genetic, medical and 
 18.23  social history of the child and the child's birth parents, the 
 18.24  child's placement record, copies of all pertinent agreements, 
 18.25  contracts, and correspondence relevant to the adoption, and 
 18.26  copies of all reports and recommendations made to the court.  
 18.27     (b) The commissioner of human services shall maintain a 
 18.28  permanent record of all adoptions granted in Minnesota.  Each 
 18.29  record shall contain identifying information about the child, 
 18.30  birth parents and adoptive parents, the date and name of the 
 18.31  placing agency, the county of placement, the date and county of 
 18.32  petition to adopt, and the decree. 
 18.33     (c) Identifying information contained in the adoption 
 18.34  record shall be confidential and shall be disclosed only 
 18.35  pursuant to section 259.61.  
 18.36     Sec. 8.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 19.1   260.012, is amended to read: 
 19.2      260.012 [DUTY TO ENSURE PLACEMENT PREVENTION AND FAMILY 
 19.3   REUNIFICATION; REASONABLE EFFORTS.] 
 19.4      (a) Once a child alleged to be in need of protection or 
 19.5   services is under the court's jurisdiction, the court shall 
 19.6   ensure that reasonable efforts including culturally appropriate 
 19.7   services by the social services agency are made to prevent 
 19.8   placement or and to finalize a permanent plan for the child, as 
 19.9   appropriate.  "Reasonable efforts to finalize the permanent plan 
 19.10  for the child" include the agency's efforts to eliminate the 
 19.11  need for removal and to reunite the child with the child's 
 19.12  family at the earliest possible time, consistent with the best 
 19.13  interests, safety, and protection of the child and place the 
 19.14  child with a family that will be a legally permanent home for 
 19.15  the child in the event the child cannot be reunited with the 
 19.16  parent or guardian from whom the child was removed.  In 
 19.17  determining reasonable efforts to be made with respect to a 
 19.18  child and in making those reasonable efforts, the child's best 
 19.19  interests, health, and safety must be of paramount concern.  
 19.20  Reasonable efforts to prevent placement or for rehabilitation 
 19.21  and reunification are not required upon a determination by the 
 19.22  court that: 
 19.23     (1) a termination of parental rights petition has been 
 19.24  filed stating a prima facie case that: 
 19.25     (i) (1) the parent has subjected a child to egregious harm 
 19.26  as defined in section 260C.007, subdivision 14; 
 19.27     (ii) (2) the parental rights of the parent to another child 
 19.28  have been terminated involuntarily; 
 19.29     (iii) (3) the child is an abandoned infant under section 
 19.30  260C.301, subdivision 2, paragraph (a), clause (2); or 
 19.31     (iv) (4) the parent's custodial rights to another child 
 19.32  have been involuntarily transferred to a relative under section 
 19.33  260C.201, subdivision 11, paragraph (e), clause (1), or a 
 19.34  similar law of another jurisdiction; or 
 19.35     (2) the county attorney has filed a determination not to 
 19.36  proceed with a termination of parental rights petition on these 
 20.1   grounds was made under section 260C.301, subdivision 3, 
 20.2   paragraph (b), and a permanency hearing is held within 30 days 
 20.3   of the determination; or 
 20.4      (3) a termination of parental rights petition or other 
 20.5   petition according to section 260C.201, subdivision 11, has been 
 20.6   filed alleging a prima facie case that 
 20.7      (5) the provision of services or further services for the 
 20.8   purpose of reunification is futile and therefore unreasonable 
 20.9   under the circumstances. 
 20.10     When the court makes a prima facie determination under this 
 20.11  clause, either permanency pleadings required under section 
 20.12  260C.201, subdivision 11, or a termination of parental rights 
 20.13  petition under sections 260C.141 and 260C.301 must be filed and 
 20.14  a permanency hearing under section 260C.201, subdivision 11, be 
 20.15  held within 30 days of this hearing. 
 20.16     In the case of an Indian child, in proceedings under 
 20.17  sections 260B.178 or 260C.178, 260C.201, and 260C.301 the 
 20.18  juvenile court must make findings and conclusions consistent 
 20.19  with the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978, United States Code, 
 20.20  title 25, section 1901 et seq., as to the provision of active 
 20.21  efforts.  If a child is under the court's delinquency 
 20.22  jurisdiction, it shall be the duty of the court to ensure that 
 20.23  reasonable efforts are made to reunite the child with the 
 20.24  child's family at the earliest possible time, consistent with 
 20.25  the best interests of the child and the safety of the public. 
 20.26     (b)(1) "Reasonable efforts to prevent placement" means: 
 20.27     (i) the agency has made reasonable efforts to prevent the 
 20.28  placement of the child; or 
 20.29     (ii) given the particular circumstances of the child and 
 20.30  family at the time of the child's removal, there are no services 
 20.31  or reasonable efforts available which could allow the child to 
 20.32  safely remain in the home. 
 20.33     (2) As appropriate under the particular circumstances and 
 20.34  stage of the case, "reasonable efforts to finalize a permanent 
 20.35  plan for the child" means reasonable efforts by the responsible 
 20.36  social services agency to: 
 21.1      (i) reunify the child with the parent or guardian from whom 
 21.2   the child was removed; 
 21.3      (ii) assess a noncustodial parent's ability to provide 
 21.4   day-to-day care for the child and, where appropriate, to provide 
 21.5   services necessary to enable the noncustodial parent's ability 
 21.6   to safely provide such care; and 
 21.7      (iii) finalize a safe and legally permanent home for the 
 21.8   child, preferably through adoption or transfer of permanent 
 21.9   legal and physical custody of the child, when the child cannot 
 21.10  return to the parent or guardian from whom the child was removed.
 21.11     (3) Reasonable efforts are made upon the exercise of due 
 21.12  diligence by the responsible social services agency to use 
 21.13  appropriate and available services to meet the needs of the 
 21.14  child and the child's family in order to prevent removal of the 
 21.15  child from the child's family; or upon removal, services to 
 21.16  eliminate the need for removal and reunite the family.  
 21.17     (1) (i) Services may include those provided by the 
 21.18  responsible social services agency and other appropriate 
 21.19  services available in the community.  
 21.20     (2) (ii) At each stage of the proceedings where the court 
 21.21  is required to review the appropriateness of the responsible 
 21.22  social services agency's reasonable efforts, the social services 
 21.23  agency has the burden of demonstrating that: 
 21.24     (A) it has made reasonable efforts, or that provision of 
 21.25  services or further services for the purpose of rehabilitation 
 21.26  and reunification is futile and therefore unreasonable under the 
 21.27  circumstances or that reasonable efforts aimed at reunification 
 21.28  are not required under this section to prevent placement; 
 21.29     (B) it has made reasonable efforts to finalize the 
 21.30  permanent plan for the child; or 
 21.31     (C) reasonable efforts to prevent placement and to reunify 
 21.32  the child with the parent or guardian are not required.  The 
 21.33  agency may meet this burden by stating facts in a sworn petition 
 21.34  filed under section 260C.141, or by filing an affidavit 
 21.35  summarizing the agency's reasonable efforts or facts the agency 
 21.36  believes demonstrate there is no need for reasonable efforts to 
 22.1   reunify the parent and child, or through testimony or a 
 22.2   certified report required under juvenile court rules. 
 22.3      (3) No (4) Once the court determines that reasonable 
 22.4   efforts for reunification are not required when the court makes 
 22.5   a determination because of a prima facie finding under paragraph 
 22.6   (a) unless, the court may only require reasonable efforts for 
 22.7   reunification after a hearing according to section 
 22.8   260C.163, where the court finds there is not clear and 
 22.9   convincing evidence of the facts upon which the court based its 
 22.10  prima facie determination.  In this case, the court may proceed 
 22.11  under section 260C.312.  Reunification of a surviving child with 
 22.12  a parent is not required if the parent has been convicted of: 
 22.13     (i) a violation of, or an attempt or conspiracy to commit a 
 22.14  violation of, sections 609.185 to 609.20; 609.222, subdivision 
 22.15  2; or 609.223 in regard to another child of the parent; 
 22.16     (ii) a violation of section 609.222, subdivision 2; or 
 22.17  609.223, in regard to the surviving child; or 
 22.18     (iii) a violation of, or an attempt or conspiracy to commit 
 22.19  a violation of, United States Code, title 18, section 1111(a) or 
 22.20  1112(a), in regard to another child of the parent. 
 22.21     (c) The juvenile court, in proceedings under sections 
 22.22  260B.178 or 260C.178, 260C.201, and 260C.301 shall make findings 
 22.23  and conclusions as to the provision of reasonable efforts.  When 
 22.24  determining whether reasonable efforts have been made, the court 
 22.25  shall consider whether services to the child and family were: 
 22.26     (1) relevant to the safety and protection of the child; 
 22.27     (2) adequate to meet the needs of the child and family; 
 22.28     (3) culturally appropriate; 
 22.29     (4) available and accessible; 
 22.30     (5) consistent and timely; and 
 22.31     (6) realistic under the circumstances. 
 22.32     In the alternative, the court may determine that provision 
 22.33  of services or further services for the purpose of 
 22.34  rehabilitation is futile and therefore unreasonable under the 
 22.35  circumstances or that reasonable efforts are not required as 
 22.36  provided in paragraph (a). 
 23.1      (d) This section does not prevent out-of-home placement for 
 23.2   treatment of a child with a mental disability when the child's 
 23.3   diagnostic assessment or individual treatment plan indicates 
 23.4   that appropriate and necessary treatment cannot be effectively 
 23.5   provided outside of a residential or inpatient treatment program.
 23.6      (e) If continuation of reasonable efforts described in 
 23.7   paragraph (b) to prevent placement or reunify the child with the 
 23.8   parent or guardian from whom the child was removed is determined 
 23.9   by the court to be inconsistent with the permanent plan for the 
 23.10  child, or upon a determination under paragraph (a), reasonable 
 23.11  efforts must be made to place the child in a timely manner in 
 23.12  accordance with the permanent plan ordered by the court a safe 
 23.13  and permanent home and to complete whatever steps are necessary 
 23.14  to legally finalize the permanent plan for placement of the 
 23.15  child.  
 23.16     (f) Reasonable efforts to place a child for adoption or in 
 23.17  another permanent placement may be made concurrently with 
 23.18  reasonable efforts as described in paragraphs (a) and (b) to 
 23.19  prevent placement or to reunify the child with the parent or 
 23.20  guardian from whom the child was removed.  When the responsible 
 23.21  social services agency decides to concurrently make reasonable 
 23.22  efforts for both reunification and permanent placement away from 
 23.23  the parent under paragraphs (a) and (b), the agency shall 
 23.24  disclose its decision and both plans for concurrent reasonable 
 23.25  efforts to all parties and the court.  When the agency discloses 
 23.26  its decision to proceed on both plans for reunification and 
 23.27  permanent placement away from the parent, the court's review of 
 23.28  the agency's reasonable efforts shall include the agency's 
 23.29  efforts under paragraphs (a) and (b) both plans. 
 23.30     Sec. 9.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.001, 
 23.31  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
 23.32     Subd. 3.  [PERMANENCY AND TERMINATION OF PARENTAL RIGHTS.] 
 23.33  The purpose of the laws relating to permanency and termination 
 23.34  of parental rights is to ensure that: 
 23.35     (1) when required and appropriate, reasonable efforts have 
 23.36  been made by the social services agency to reunite the child 
 24.1   with the child's parents in a home that is safe and permanent; 
 24.2   and 
 24.3      (2) if placement with the parents is not reasonably 
 24.4   foreseeable, to secure for the child a safe and permanent 
 24.5   placement, preferably with adoptive parents or a fit and willing 
 24.6   relative through transfer of permanent legal and physical 
 24.7   custody to that relative. 
 24.8      Nothing in this section requires reasonable efforts to 
 24.9   reunify the child with the parent or guardian to be made in 
 24.10  circumstances where the court has determined that the child has 
 24.11  been subjected to egregious harm or, when the child is an 
 24.12  abandoned infant, the parent has involuntarily lost custody of 
 24.13  another child through a proceeding under section 260C.201, 
 24.14  subdivision 11, or similar law of another state, the parental 
 24.15  rights of the parent to a sibling have been involuntarily 
 24.16  terminated, or the court has determined that reasonable efforts 
 24.17  or further reasonable efforts to reunify the child with the 
 24.18  parent or guardian would be futile. 
 24.19     The paramount consideration in all proceedings for 
 24.20  permanent placement of the child under section 260C.201, 
 24.21  subdivision 11, or the termination of parental rights is the 
 24.22  best interests of the child.  In proceedings involving an 
 24.23  American Indian child, as defined in section 260.755, 
 24.24  subdivision 8, the best interests of the child must be 
 24.25  determined consistent with the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978, 
 24.26  United States Code, title 25, section 1901, et seq. 
 24.27     Sec. 10.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.007, 
 24.28  subdivision 7, is amended to read: 
 24.29     Subd. 7.  [CHILD-PLACING AGENCY.] "Child-placing agency" 
 24.30  means anyone an agency licensed under sections 245A.01 to 
 24.31  245A.16 and 252.28, subdivision 2. 
 24.32     Sec. 11.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.007, 
 24.33  subdivision 8, is amended to read: 
 24.34     Subd. 8.  [COMPELLING REASONS.] "Compelling reasons" means 
 24.35  an individualized determination by the responsible social 
 24.36  services agency, which is approved by the court, related to a 
 25.1   request by the agency not to initiate proceedings to terminate 
 25.2   parental rights or transfer permanent legal and physical custody 
 25.3   of a child to the child's relative or former noncustodial parent 
 25.4   under section 260C.301, subdivision 3, or to continue the child 
 25.5   in foster care past the time required in section 260C.201, 
 25.6   subdivision 11, or 260C.141, subdivision 2, paragraph (b). 
 25.7      Sec. 12.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.007, 
 25.8   subdivision 18, is amended to read: 
 25.9      Subd. 18.  [FOSTER CARE.] "Foster care" means the 24 hour a 
 25.10  day care of a child in any facility which for gain or otherwise 
 25.11  regularly provides one or more children, when unaccompanied by 
 25.12  their parents, with a substitute for the care, food, lodging, 
 25.13  training, education, supervision or treatment they need but 
 25.14  which for any reason cannot be furnished by their parents or 
 25.15  legal guardians in their homes. substitute care for children 
 25.16  placed away from their parents or guardian and for whom a 
 25.17  responsible social services agency has placement and care 
 25.18  responsibility.  "Foster care" includes, but is not limited to, 
 25.19  placement in foster family homes, foster homes of relatives, 
 25.20  group homes, emergency shelters, residential facilities not 
 25.21  excluded in this subdivision, child care institutions, and 
 25.22  preadoptive homes.  A child is in foster care under this 
 25.23  definition regardless of whether the facility is licensed and 
 25.24  payments are made for the cost of care.  Nothing in this 
 25.25  definition creates any authority to place a child in a home or 
 25.26  facility that is required to be licensed which is not licensed.  
 25.27  "Foster care" does not include placement in any of the following 
 25.28  facilities:  hospitals, in-patient chemical dependency treatment 
 25.29  facilities, facilities that are primarily for delinquent 
 25.30  children, any corrections facility or program within a 
 25.31  particular corrections facility not meeting requirements for 
 25.32  Title IV-E facilities as determined by the commissioner, 
 25.33  facilities to which a child is committed under the provision of 
 25.34  chapter 253B, forestry camps, or jails. 
 25.35     Sec. 13.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.007, 
 25.36  subdivision 22, is amended to read: 
 26.1      Subd. 22.  [LEGAL CUSTODY.] "Legal custody" means the right 
 26.2   to the care, custody, and control of a child who has been taken 
 26.3   from a parent by the court in accordance with the provisions of 
 26.4   section 260C.201 or 260C.317.  The expenses of legal custody are 
 26.5   paid in accordance with the provisions of section 
 26.6   260C.331.  "Legal custody" also means "emergency protective 
 26.7   care" and "protective care" as defined in the rules for juvenile 
 26.8   court. 
 26.9      Sec. 14.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.007, 
 26.10  subdivision 27, is amended to read: 
 26.11     Subd. 27.  [RELATIVE.] "Relative" means a person related to 
 26.12  the child by blood, marriage, or adoption, or an individual who 
 26.13  is an important friend with whom the child has resided or had 
 26.14  significant contact.  For an Indian child, relative includes 
 26.15  members of the extended family as defined by the law or custom 
 26.16  of the Indian child's tribe or, in the absence of law or custom, 
 26.17  or in the absence of such law or custom, shall be a person who 
 26.18  has reached the age of 18 and who is the Indian child's 
 26.19  grandparent, aunt or uncle, brother or sister, brother-in-law or 
 26.20  sister-in-law, nieces, nephews, or first or second cousins or 
 26.21  stepparent, as provided in the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978, 
 26.22  United States Code, title 25, section 1903. 
 26.23     Sec. 15.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.151, 
 26.24  subdivision 6, is amended to read: 
 26.25     Subd. 6.  [IMMEDIATE CUSTODY.] If the court makes 
 26.26  individualized, explicit findings, based on the notarized 
 26.27  petition or sworn affidavit, that there are reasonable grounds 
 26.28  to believe the child is in surroundings or conditions which 
 26.29  endanger the child's health, safety, or welfare that require 
 26.30  that responsibility for the child's care and custody be 
 26.31  immediately assumed by the court responsible social services 
 26.32  agency and that continuation of the child in the custody of the 
 26.33  parent or guardian is contrary to the child's welfare, the court 
 26.34  may order that the officer serving the summons take the child 
 26.35  into immediate custody for placement of the child in foster 
 26.36  care.  In ordering that responsibility for the care, custody, 
 27.1   and control of the child be assumed by the responsible social 
 27.2   services agency, the court is ordering emergency protective care 
 27.3   as that term is defined in the rules of juvenile court. 
 27.4      Sec. 16.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.178, is 
 27.5   amended to read: 
 27.6      260C.178 [DETENTION EMERGENCY REMOVAL HEARING.] 
 27.7      Subdivision 1.  [HEARING AND RELEASE REQUIREMENTS.] (a) If 
 27.8   a child was taken into custody under section 260C.175, 
 27.9   subdivision 1, clause (a) or (b)(2), the court shall hold a 
 27.10  hearing within 72 hours of the time the child was taken into 
 27.11  custody, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, to 
 27.12  determine whether the child should continue in custody.  
 27.13     (b) Unless there is reason to believe that the child would 
 27.14  endanger self or others, not return for a court hearing, run 
 27.15  away from the child's parent, guardian, or custodian or 
 27.16  otherwise not remain in the care or control of the person to 
 27.17  whose lawful custody the child is released, or that the child's 
 27.18  health or welfare would be immediately endangered, the child 
 27.19  shall be released to the custody of a parent, guardian, 
 27.20  custodian, or other suitable person, subject to reasonable 
 27.21  conditions of release including, but not limited to, a 
 27.22  requirement that the child undergo a chemical use assessment as 
 27.23  provided in section 260C.157, subdivision 1.  If the court 
 27.24  determines there is reason to believe that the child would 
 27.25  endanger self or others; not return for a court hearing; run 
 27.26  away from the child's parent, guardian, or custodian or 
 27.27  otherwise not remain in the care or control of the person to 
 27.28  whose lawful custody the child is released; or that the child's 
 27.29  health or welfare would be immediately endangered, the court 
 27.30  shall order the child into foster care under the responsibility 
 27.31  of the responsible social services agency or responsible 
 27.32  probation or corrections agency for the purposes of protective 
 27.33  care.  In determining whether the child's health or welfare 
 27.34  would be immediately endangered, the court shall consider 
 27.35  whether the child would reside with a perpetrator of domestic 
 27.36  child abuse.  
 28.1      (c) The court, before determining whether a child should be 
 28.2   placed in or continue in custody foster care under the 
 28.3   protective care of the responsible agency, shall also make a 
 28.4   determination, consistent with section 260.012 as to whether 
 28.5   reasonable efforts, or were made to prevent placement or whether 
 28.6   reasonable efforts to prevent placement are not required.  In 
 28.7   the case of an Indian child, active efforts, according to the 
 28.8   Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978, United States Code, title 25, 
 28.9   section 1912(d), were made to prevent placement.  The court 
 28.10  shall also determine whether there are available services that 
 28.11  would prevent the need for further detention.  In the 
 28.12  alternative, The court shall enter a finding that the 
 28.13  responsible social services agency has made reasonable efforts 
 28.14  to prevent placement when the agency establishes either that it 
 28.15  has actually provided services or made efforts in an attempt to 
 28.16  prevent the child's removal, but that such services or efforts 
 28.17  have not proven sufficient to permit the child to safely remain 
 28.18  in the home or that there are no services or other efforts that 
 28.19  could be made at the time of the hearing that could safely 
 28.20  permit the child to remain home or to return home.  When 
 28.21  reasonable efforts to prevent placement are required and there 
 28.22  are services or other efforts that could be ordered which would 
 28.23  permit the child to safely return home, the court shall order 
 28.24  the child returned to the care of the parent or guardian and the 
 28.25  services or efforts put in place to ensure the child's safety.  
 28.26  When the court makes a prima facie determination that one of the 
 28.27  circumstances under paragraph (e) exists, the court shall 
 28.28  determine that reasonable efforts to prevent placement and to 
 28.29  return the child to the care of the parent or guardian are not 
 28.30  required if the court makes a prima facie determination that one 
 28.31  of the circumstances under paragraph (e) exists. 
 28.32     If the court finds the social services agency's preventive 
 28.33  or reunification efforts have not been reasonable but further 
 28.34  preventive or reunification efforts could not permit the child 
 28.35  to safely remain at home, the court may nevertheless authorize 
 28.36  or continue the removal of the child. 
 29.1      (d) The court may not order or continue the foster care 
 29.2   placement of the child unless the court makes explicit, 
 29.3   individualized findings that continued custody of the child by 
 29.4   the parent or guardian would be contrary to the welfare of the 
 29.5   child. 
 29.6      (e) At the detention emergency removal hearing, or at any 
 29.7   time during the course of the proceeding, and upon notice and 
 29.8   request of the county attorney, the court shall make the 
 29.9   following determinations: 
 29.10     (1) determine whether a termination of parental rights 
 29.11  petition has been filed stating a prima facie case that: 
 29.12     (i) (1) the parent has subjected a child to egregious harm 
 29.13  as defined in section 260C.007, subdivision 14; 
 29.14     (ii) (2) the parental rights of the parent to another child 
 29.15  have been involuntarily terminated; or 
 29.16     (iii) (3) the child is an abandoned infant under section 
 29.17  260C.301, subdivision 2, paragraph (a), clause (2); 
 29.18     (2) that (4) the parents' custodial rights to another child 
 29.19  have been involuntarily transferred to a relative under section 
 29.20  260C.201, subdivision 11, paragraph (e), clause (1), or a 
 29.21  similar law of another jurisdiction; or 
 29.22     (5) the provision of services or further services for the 
 29.23  purpose of reunification is futile and therefore unreasonable. 
 29.24     (f) When a petition to terminate parental rights is 
 29.25  required under section 260C.307, but the county attorney has 
 29.26  determined not to proceed with a termination of parental rights 
 29.27  petition under section 260C.307; or 
 29.28     (3) whether a termination of parental rights petition or 
 29.29  other petition according to section 260C.201, subdivision 11, 
 29.30  has been filed alleging a prima facie case that the provision of 
 29.31  services or further services for the purpose of rehabilitation 
 29.32  and reunification is futile and therefore unreasonable under the 
 29.33  circumstances. 
 29.34     If the court determines that the county attorney is not 
 29.35  proceeding with a termination of parental rights petition under 
 29.36  section 260C.307, but is proceeding with a petition under 
 30.1   section 260C.201, subdivision 11, the court shall schedule a 
 30.2   permanency hearing within 30 days., and has instead filed a 
 30.3   petition to transfer permanent legal and physical custody to a 
 30.4   relative under section 260C.201, subdivision 11, the court shall 
 30.5   schedule a permanency hearing within 30 days of a hearing under 
 30.6   this section. 
 30.7      (g) If the county attorney has filed a petition under 
 30.8   section 260C.307, the court shall schedule a trial under section 
 30.9   260C.163 within 90 days of the filing of the petition except 
 30.10  when the county attorney determines that the criminal case shall 
 30.11  proceed to trial first under section 260C.201, subdivision 3. 
 30.12     (f) (h) If the court determines the child should be ordered 
 30.13  into out-of-home placement foster care and the child's parent 
 30.14  refuses to give information to the responsible social services 
 30.15  agency regarding the child's father or relatives of the child, 
 30.16  the court may order the parent to disclose the names, addresses, 
 30.17  telephone numbers, and other identifying information to the 
 30.18  responsible social services agency for the purpose of complying 
 30.19  with the requirements of sections 260C.151, 260C.212, and 
 30.20  260C.215. 
 30.21     (g) (i) If a child ordered into out-of-home 
 30.22  placement foster care has siblings, whether full, half, or step, 
 30.23  who are also ordered into placement foster care, the court shall 
 30.24  inquire of the responsible social services agency of the efforts 
 30.25  to place the children together as required by section 260C.212, 
 30.26  subdivision 2, paragraph (d), if placement together is in each 
 30.27  child's best interests, unless a child is in placement due 
 30.28  solely to the child's own behavior or a child is placed with a 
 30.29  previously noncustodial parent who is not parent to all 
 30.30  siblings.  If the children are not placed together at the time 
 30.31  of the hearing, the court shall inquire at each subsequent 
 30.32  hearing of the agency's efforts to place the siblings together.  
 30.33  If any sibling is not placed with another sibling or siblings, 
 30.34  the agency must develop a plan for visitation among the siblings 
 30.35  as required under section 260C.212, subdivision 1. 
 30.36     Subd. 2.  [DURATION.] If the court determines that the 
 31.1   child should continue in detention, it may order detention 
 31.2   continued for eight days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and 
 31.3   holidays, from and including the date of the order.  The court 
 31.4   shall include in its order the reasons for continued detention 
 31.5   and the findings of fact which support these reasons.  
 31.6      Subd. 3.  [PARENTAL VISITATION.] If a child has been taken 
 31.7   into custody under section 260C.151, subdivision 5, or 260C.175, 
 31.8   subdivision 1, clause (b)(2), and the court determines that the 
 31.9   child should continue in detention foster care, the court shall 
 31.10  include in its order reasonable rules for supervised or 
 31.11  unsupervised parental visitation of the child in the shelter 
 31.12  foster care facility unless it finds that visitation would 
 31.13  endanger the child's physical or emotional well-being.  
 31.14     Subd. 4.  [MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT.] (a) Except as provided 
 31.15  in paragraph (b), a child who is held in detention foster care 
 31.16  as an alleged victim of child abuse as defined in section 
 31.17  630.36, subdivision 2, may not be given mental health treatment 
 31.18  specifically for the effects of the alleged abuse until the 
 31.19  court finds that there is probable cause to believe the abuse 
 31.20  has occurred. 
 31.21     (b) A child described in paragraph (a) may be given mental 
 31.22  health treatment prior to a probable cause finding of child 
 31.23  abuse if the treatment is either agreed to by the child's parent 
 31.24  or guardian in writing, or ordered by the court according to the 
 31.25  standard contained in section 260C.201, subdivision 1.  
 31.26     Subd. 5.  [COPIES OF ORDER.] Copies of the court's order 
 31.27  shall be served upon the parties, including the supervisor of 
 31.28  the detention facility placement facility, who which shall 
 31.29  release the child or continue to hold the child as the court 
 31.30  orders. 
 31.31     When the court's order is served upon these parties, notice 
 31.32  shall also be given to the parties of the subsequent reviews 
 31.33  provided by subdivision 6.  The notice shall also inform each 
 31.34  party of the right to submit to the court for informal review 
 31.35  any new evidence regarding whether the child should be continued 
 31.36  in detention and to request a hearing to present the evidence to 
 32.1   the court.  
 32.2      Subd. 6.  [REVIEW.] If a child held in detention under a 
 32.3   court order issued under subdivision 2 has not been released 
 32.4   prior to expiration of the order, the court or referee shall 
 32.5   informally review the child's case file to determine, under the 
 32.6   standards provided by subdivision 1, whether detention should be 
 32.7   continued.  If detention is continued thereafter, informal 
 32.8   reviews such as these shall be held within every eight days, 
 32.9   excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, of the child's 
 32.10  detention. When a child is placed in foster care, the child's 
 32.11  placement shall be periodically reviewed as required under the 
 32.12  rules of juvenile court including notice to the parties required 
 32.13  to be served with a copy of the order under subdivision 4. 
 32.14     A hearing, rather than an informal review of the child's 
 32.15  case file, shall be held at the request of any one of the 
 32.16  parties notified pursuant to subdivision 5, if that party 
 32.17  notifies the court of a wish to present to the court new 
 32.18  evidence concerning whether the child should be continued in 
 32.19  detention or notifies the court of a wish to present an 
 32.20  alternate placement arrangement to provide for the safety and 
 32.21  protection of the child. 
 32.22     In addition, if a child was taken into detention custody 
 32.23  under section 260C.151, subdivision 5, or 260C.175, subdivision 
 32.24  1, clause (c)(2), and is held in detention foster care or placed 
 32.25  in another facility under a court order issued under subdivision 
 32.26  2, the court shall schedule and hold an adjudicatory hearing on 
 32.27  the petition within 60 days of the detention emergency removal 
 32.28  hearing upon the request of any party to the proceeding.  
 32.29  However, if good cause is shown by a party to the proceeding why 
 32.30  the hearing should not be held within that time period, the 
 32.31  hearing shall be held within 90 days, unless the parties agree 
 32.32  otherwise and the court so orders.  
 32.33     Subd. 7.  [OUT-OF-HOME PLACEMENT PLAN.] (a) An out-of-home 
 32.34  placement plan required under section 260C.212 shall be filed 
 32.35  with the court within 30 days of the filing of a petition 
 32.36  alleging the child to be in need of protection or services under 
 33.1   section 260C.141, subdivision 1, or filed with the petition if 
 33.2   the petition is a review of a voluntary placement under section 
 33.3   260C.141, subdivision 2. 
 33.4      (b) Upon the filing of the out-of-home placement plan which 
 33.5   has been developed jointly with the parent and in consultation 
 33.6   with others as required under section 260C.212, subdivision 1, 
 33.7   the court may approve order the responsible social services 
 33.8   agency to implement the plan based on the allegations contained 
 33.9   in the petition.  The court shall send written notice of the 
 33.10  approval of to all parties that the out-of-home placement plan 
 33.11  to all parties and the county attorney has been ordered or may 
 33.12  state such approval order on the record at a hearing.  A parent 
 33.13  may agree to comply with the terms of the plan filed with the 
 33.14  court. 
 33.15     (c) Upon notice and motion by a parent who agrees to comply 
 33.16  with the terms of an out-of-home placement plan, the court may 
 33.17  modify the plan and order the responsible social services agency 
 33.18  to provide other or additional services for reunification, if 
 33.19  reunification efforts are required, and the court determines the 
 33.20  agency's plan inadequate under section 260.012. If a parent 
 33.21  refuses to cooperate in the development of the out-of-home 
 33.22  placement plan or disagrees with the services recommended by the 
 33.23  responsible social service agency, the agency shall note such 
 33.24  refusal or disagreement for the court in the out-of-home 
 33.25  placement plan filed with the court.  The agency shall notify 
 33.26  the court of the services it will provide or efforts it will 
 33.27  attempt under the plan notwithstanding the parents' refusal to 
 33.28  cooperate or disagreement with the services, and the court may 
 33.29  approve the plan based on the content of the petition. 
 33.30     (d) Unless the parent agrees to comply with the terms of 
 33.31  the out-of-home placement plan, the court may not order a parent 
 33.32  to comply with the provisions of the plan until the court makes 
 33.33  a determination determines that the child is in need of 
 33.34  protection or services and orders disposition under section 
 33.35  260C.201, subdivision 1.  However, the court may find that the 
 33.36  responsible social services agency has made reasonable efforts 
 34.1   for reunification if the agency makes efforts to implement the 
 34.2   terms of an out-of-home placement plan ordered or approved under 
 34.3   this section. 
 34.4      Sec. 17.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.201, 
 34.5   subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
 34.6      Subdivision 1.  [DISPOSITIONS.] (a) If the court finds that 
 34.7   the child is in need of protection or services or neglected and 
 34.8   in foster care, it shall enter an order making any of the 
 34.9   following dispositions of the case: in paragraphs (b) to (l). 
 34.10     (1) (b) Place the child under the protective supervision of 
 34.11  the responsible social services agency or child-placing agency 
 34.12  in the home of a parent of the child under conditions prescribed 
 34.13  by the court directed to the correction of the child's need for 
 34.14  protection or services: 
 34.15     (i) the court may order the child into the home of a parent 
 34.16  who does not otherwise have legal custody of the child, however, 
 34.17  an order under this section does not confer legal custody on 
 34.18  that parent; 
 34.19     (ii) if the court orders the child into the home of a 
 34.20  father who is not adjudicated, he must cooperate with paternity 
 34.21  establishment proceedings regarding the child in the appropriate 
 34.22  jurisdiction as one of the conditions prescribed by the court 
 34.23  for the child to continue in his home; and 
 34.24     (iii) the court may order the child into the home of a 
 34.25  noncustodial parent with conditions and may also order both the 
 34.26  noncustodial and the custodial parent to comply with the 
 34.27  requirements of a case plan under subdivision 2; or. 
 34.28     (2) (c) Transfer legal custody to one of the following: 
 34.29     (i) a child-placing agency; or 
 34.30     (ii) the responsible social services agency. 
 34.31     (d) In placing making a foster care placement for a child 
 34.32  whose custody has been transferred under this paragraph 
 34.33  subdivision, the agencies agency shall make an individualized 
 34.34  determination of how the placement is in the child's best 
 34.35  interests using the consideration for relatives and the best 
 34.36  interest factors in section 260C.212, subdivision 2, paragraph 
 35.1   (b); or. 
 35.2      (e) When an agency has legal custody of a child, the court 
 35.3   may order a trial home visit, which means the child is returned 
 35.4   to the care of the parent or guardian from whom the child was 
 35.5   removed for a period not to exceed six months.  During the 
 35.6   period of the trial home visit, the responsible social services 
 35.7   agency: 
 35.8      (1) shall continue to have legal custody of the child, 
 35.9   which means the agency may see the child in the parent's home, 
 35.10  at school, in a child care facility, or other setting as the 
 35.11  agency deems necessary and appropriate; 
 35.12     (2) shall continue to have the ability to access 
 35.13  information under section 260C.208; 
 35.14     (3) shall continue to provide appropriate services to both 
 35.15  the parent and the child during the period of the trial home 
 35.16  visit; 
 35.17     (4) without previous court order or authorization, may 
 35.18  terminate the trial home visit and remove the child to foster 
 35.19  care; 
 35.20     (5) shall advise the court and parties within three days of 
 35.21  the termination of the trial home visit when a visit is 
 35.22  terminated by the responsible social services agency without a 
 35.23  court order; and 
 35.24     (6) shall prepare a report for the court when the trial 
 35.25  home visit is terminated whether by the agency or court order 
 35.26  which describes the child's circumstances during the trial home 
 35.27  visit and recommends appropriate orders, if any, for the court 
 35.28  to enter to provide for the child's safety and stability.  In 
 35.29  the event a trial home visit is terminated by the agency by 
 35.30  removing the child to foster care without prior court order or 
 35.31  authorization, the court shall conduct a hearing within ten days 
 35.32  of receiving notice of the termination of the trial home visit 
 35.33  by the agency and shall order disposition under this subdivision 
 35.34  or conduct a permanency hearing under subdivision 11 or 11a.  
 35.35  This time period for the hearing may be extended by the court 
 35.36  for good cause shown and if it is in the best interests of the 
 36.1   child as long as the total time the child spends in foster care 
 36.2   without a permanency hearing does not exceed 12 months. 
 36.3      (3) (f) If the child has been adjudicated as a child in 
 36.4   need of protection or services because the child is in need of 
 36.5   special services or care to treat or ameliorate a physical or 
 36.6   mental disability, the court may order the child's parent, 
 36.7   guardian, or custodian to provide it.  The court may order the 
 36.8   child's health plan company to provide mental health services to 
 36.9   the child.  Section 62Q.535 applies to an order for mental 
 36.10  health services directed to the child's health plan company.  If 
 36.11  the health plan, parent, guardian, or custodian fails or is 
 36.12  unable to provide this treatment or care, the court may order it 
 36.13  provided.  Absent specific written findings by the court that 
 36.14  the child's disability is the result of abuse or neglect by the 
 36.15  child's parent or guardian, the court shall not transfer legal 
 36.16  custody of the child for the purpose of obtaining special 
 36.17  treatment or care solely because the parent is unable to provide 
 36.18  the treatment or care.  If the court's order for mental health 
 36.19  treatment is based on a diagnosis made by a treatment 
 36.20  professional, the court may order that the diagnosing 
 36.21  professional not provide the treatment to the child if it finds 
 36.22  that such an order is in the child's best interests; or. 
 36.23     (4) (g) If the court believes that the child has sufficient 
 36.24  maturity and judgment and that it is in the best interests of 
 36.25  the child, the court may order a child 16 years old or older to 
 36.26  be allowed to live independently, either alone or with others as 
 36.27  approved by the court under supervision the court considers 
 36.28  appropriate, if the county board, after consultation with the 
 36.29  court, has specifically authorized this dispositional 
 36.30  alternative for a child. 
 36.31     (b) (h) If the child was adjudicated in need of protection 
 36.32  or services because the child is a runaway or habitual truant, 
 36.33  the court may order any of the following dispositions in 
 36.34  addition to or as alternatives to the dispositions authorized 
 36.35  under paragraph (a): 
 36.36     (1) counsel the child or the child's parents, guardian, or 
 37.1   custodian; 
 37.2      (2) place the child under the supervision of a probation 
 37.3   officer or other suitable person in the child's own home under 
 37.4   conditions prescribed by the court, including reasonable rules 
 37.5   for the child's conduct and the conduct of the parents, 
 37.6   guardian, or custodian, designed for the physical, mental, and 
 37.7   moral well-being and behavior of the child; or with the consent 
 37.8   of the commissioner of corrections, place the child in a group 
 37.9   foster care facility which is under the commissioner's 
 37.10  management and supervision; 
 37.11     (3) subject to the court's supervision, transfer legal 
 37.12  custody of the child to one of the following: 
 37.13     (i) a reputable person of good moral character.  No person 
 37.14  may receive custody of two or more unrelated children unless 
 37.15  licensed to operate a residential program under sections 245A.01 
 37.16  to 245A.16; or 
 37.17     (ii) a county probation officer for placement in a group 
 37.18  foster home established under the direction of the juvenile 
 37.19  court and licensed pursuant to section 241.021; 
 37.20     (4) require the child to pay a fine of up to $100.  The 
 37.21  court shall order payment of the fine in a manner that will not 
 37.22  impose undue financial hardship upon the child; 
 37.23     (5) require the child to participate in a community service 
 37.24  project; 
 37.25     (6) order the child to undergo a chemical dependency 
 37.26  evaluation and, if warranted by the evaluation, order 
 37.27  participation by the child in a drug awareness program or an 
 37.28  inpatient or outpatient chemical dependency treatment program; 
 37.29     (7) if the court believes that it is in the best interests 
 37.30  of the child and of public safety that the child's driver's 
 37.31  license or instruction permit be canceled, the court may order 
 37.32  the commissioner of public safety to cancel the child's license 
 37.33  or permit for any period up to the child's 18th birthday.  If 
 37.34  the child does not have a driver's license or permit, the court 
 37.35  may order a denial of driving privileges for any period up to 
 37.36  the child's 18th birthday.  The court shall forward an order 
 38.1   issued under this clause to the commissioner, who shall cancel 
 38.2   the license or permit or deny driving privileges without a 
 38.3   hearing for the period specified by the court.  At any time 
 38.4   before the expiration of the period of cancellation or denial, 
 38.5   the court may, for good cause, order the commissioner of public 
 38.6   safety to allow the child to apply for a license or permit, and 
 38.7   the commissioner shall so authorize; 
 38.8      (8) order that the child's parent or legal guardian deliver 
 38.9   the child to school at the beginning of each school day for a 
 38.10  period of time specified by the court; or 
 38.11     (9) require the child to perform any other activities or 
 38.12  participate in any other treatment programs deemed appropriate 
 38.13  by the court.  
 38.14     (i) To the extent practicable, the court shall enter a 
 38.15  disposition order the same day it makes a finding that a child 
 38.16  is in need of protection or services or neglected and in foster 
 38.17  care, but in no event not more than 15 days after the finding 
 38.18  unless the court finds that the best interests of the child will 
 38.19  be served by granting a delay.  If the child was under eight 
 38.20  years of age at the time the petition was filed, the disposition 
 38.21  order must be entered within ten days of the finding and the 
 38.22  court may not grant a delay unless good cause is shown and the 
 38.23  court finds the best interests of the child will be served by 
 38.24  the delay. 
 38.25     (c) (j) If a child who is 14 years of age or older is 
 38.26  adjudicated in need of protection or services because the child 
 38.27  is a habitual truant and truancy procedures involving the child 
 38.28  were previously dealt with by a school attendance review board 
 38.29  or county attorney mediation program under section 260A.06 or 
 38.30  260A.07, the court shall order a cancellation or denial of 
 38.31  driving privileges under paragraph (b) (h), clause (7), for any 
 38.32  period up to the child's 18th birthday. 
 38.33     (d) (k) In the case of a child adjudicated in need of 
 38.34  protection or services because the child has committed domestic 
 38.35  abuse and been ordered excluded from the child's parent's home, 
 38.36  the court shall dismiss jurisdiction if the court, at any time, 
 39.1   finds the parent is able or willing to provide an alternative 
 39.2   safe living arrangement for the child, as defined in Laws 1997, 
 39.3   chapter 239, article 10, section 2.  
 39.4      (e) (l) When a parent has complied with a case plan ordered 
 39.5   under subdivision 6 and the child is in the care of the parent, 
 39.6   the court may order the responsible social services agency to 
 39.7   monitor the parent's continued ability to maintain the child 
 39.8   safely in the home under such terms and conditions as the court 
 39.9   determines appropriate under the circumstances. 
 39.10     Sec. 18.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.201, 
 39.11  subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
 39.12     Subd. 2.  [WRITTEN FINDINGS.] (a) Any order for a 
 39.13  disposition authorized under this section shall contain written 
 39.14  findings of fact to support the disposition and case plan 
 39.15  ordered and shall also set forth in writing the following 
 39.16  information: 
 39.17     (1) why the best interests and safety of the child are 
 39.18  served by the disposition and case plan ordered; 
 39.19     (2) what alternative dispositions or services under the 
 39.20  case plan were considered by the court, if any, and why such 
 39.21  dispositions or services were not appropriate in the instant 
 39.22  case; 
 39.23     (3) when legal custody of the child is transferred, the 
 39.24  appropriateness of the particular placement made or to be made 
 39.25  by the placing agency using responsible social services agency's 
 39.26  determinations regarding the factors in section 260C.212, 
 39.27  subdivision 2, paragraph (b); and 
 39.28     (4) when the child is removed from the care of a parent or 
 39.29  guardian, whether reasonable efforts consistent with section 
 39.30  260.012 were made to prevent or eliminate the necessity of the 
 39.31  child's removal and to reunify the family after removal.  The 
 39.32  court's findings must include a brief description of what 
 39.33  preventive and reunification efforts were made and why further 
 39.34  efforts could not have prevented or eliminated the necessity of 
 39.35  removal or that reasonable efforts were not required under 
 39.36  section 260.012 or 260C.178, subdivision 1. 
 40.1      (b) If the court finds that the social services agency's 
 40.2   preventive or reunification efforts have not been reasonable but 
 40.3   that further preventive or reunification efforts could not 
 40.4   permit the child to safely remain at home, the court may 
 40.5   nevertheless authorize or continue the removal of the child. 
 40.6      (c) If the child has been identified by the responsible 
 40.7   social services agency as the subject of concurrent permanency 
 40.8   planning, the court shall review the reasonable efforts of the 
 40.9   agency to recruit, identify, and make a placement in a home 
 40.10  where the foster parent or relative that has committed to being 
 40.11  the legally permanent home for the child in the event 
 40.12  reunification efforts are not successful. 
 40.13     Sec. 19.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.201, 
 40.14  subdivision 6, is amended to read: 
 40.15     Subd. 6.  [CASE PLAN.] (a) For each disposition ordered 
 40.16  where the child is placed away from a parent or guardian, the 
 40.17  court shall order the responsible social services agency to 
 40.18  prepare a written out-of-home placement plan according to the 
 40.19  requirements of section 260C.212, subdivision 1. 
 40.20     (b) In cases where the child is not placed out of the home 
 40.21  or is ordered into the home of a noncustodial parent, the 
 40.22  responsible social services agency shall prepare a plan for 
 40.23  delivery of social services to the child and custodial parent 
 40.24  under section 626.556, subdivision 10, or any other case plan 
 40.25  required to meet the needs of the child.  The plan shall be 
 40.26  designed to safely maintain the child in the home or to reunite 
 40.27  the child with the custodial parent. 
 40.28     (c) The court may approve order the case plan as presented 
 40.29  or modify it after hearing from the parties.  Once the plan is 
 40.30  approved ordered, the court shall order all parties to shall 
 40.31  comply with it.  A copy of the approved case plan that is 
 40.32  ordered shall be attached to the court's order and incorporated 
 40.33  into it by reference. 
 40.34     (d) A party has a right to request a court review of the 
 40.35  reasonableness of the case plan upon a showing of a substantial 
 40.36  change of circumstances. 
 41.1      Sec. 20.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.201, 
 41.2   subdivision 10, is amended to read: 
 41.3      Subd. 10.  [COURT REVIEW OF OUT-OF-HOME PLACEMENTS FOSTER 
 41.4   CARE.] (a) If the court places a child in a residential 
 41.5   facility, as defined in section 260C.212, subdivision 1 foster 
 41.6   care, the court shall review the out-of-home placement at least 
 41.7   every 90 days as required in juvenile court rules to determine 
 41.8   whether continued out-of-home placement is necessary and 
 41.9   appropriate or whether the child should be returned home.  
 41.10     (b) No later than six months after the child's out-of-home 
 41.11  placement in foster care, the court shall review agency efforts 
 41.12  pursuant to section 260C.212, subdivision 2, and order that the 
 41.13  efforts continue if the agency has failed to perform the duties 
 41.14  under that section.  
 41.15     (c) The court shall review the out-of-home placement plan 
 41.16  and may modify the plan as provided under subdivisions 6 and 7.  
 41.17     (d) When the court orders out-of-home placement foster care 
 41.18  or protective supervision with a noncustodial parent under 
 41.19  subdivision 1, the court shall notify the parents of the 
 41.20  provisions of subdivisions 11 and 11a as required under juvenile 
 41.21  court rules. 
 41.22     Sec. 21.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.201, 
 41.23  subdivision 11, is amended to read: 
 41.24     Subd. 11.  [REVIEW OF COURT ORDERED PLACEMENTS; PERMANENT 
 41.25  PLACEMENT DETERMINATION.] (a) Except for This subdivision and 
 41.26  subdivision 11a do not apply in cases where the child is in 
 41.27  placement due solely to the child's developmental disability or 
 41.28  emotional disturbance, and where legal custody has not been 
 41.29  transferred to the responsible social services agency, and where 
 41.30  the court finds compelling reasons under section 260C.007, 
 41.31  subdivision 8, to continue the child in foster care past the 
 41.32  time periods specified in this subdivision.  Foster care 
 41.33  placements of children due solely to their disability are 
 41.34  governed by section 260C.141, subdivision 2, paragraph (b).  In 
 41.35  all other cases where the child is in foster care or in the care 
 41.36  of a noncustodial parent under subdivision 1 of this section, 
 42.1   the court shall conduct a hearing to determine the permanent 
 42.2   status of a child not later than 12 months after the child is 
 42.3   placed out of the home of the has been placed in foster care or 
 42.4   in the care of a noncustodial parent. 
 42.5      For purposes of this subdivision, the date of the child's 
 42.6   placement out of the home of the parent in foster care is the 
 42.7   earlier of the first court-ordered placement under section 
 42.8   260C.178 or 60 days after the date on which the child has been 
 42.9   voluntarily placed out of the home in foster care by the child's 
 42.10  parent or guardian.  For purposes of this subdivision, time 
 42.11  spent by a child under the protective supervision of the 
 42.12  responsible social services agency in the home of a noncustodial 
 42.13  parent pursuant to an order under subdivision 1 of this section 
 42.14  counts towards the requirement of a permanency hearing under 
 42.15  this subdivision or subdivision 11a.  Time spent on a trial home 
 42.16  visit does not count towards the requirement of a permanency 
 42.17  hearing under this subdivision or subdivision 11a. 
 42.18     For purposes of this subdivision, 12 months is calculated 
 42.19  as follows: 
 42.20     (1) during the pendency of a petition alleging that a child 
 42.21  is in need of protection or services, all time periods when a 
 42.22  child is placed out of the home of the parent in foster care or 
 42.23  in the home of a noncustodial parent are cumulated; 
 42.24     (2) if a child has been placed out of the home of the 
 42.25  parent in foster care within the previous five years under one 
 42.26  or more previous petitions, the lengths of all prior time 
 42.27  periods when the child was placed out of the home in foster care 
 42.28  within the previous five years are cumulated.  If a child under 
 42.29  this clause has been out of the home in foster care for 12 
 42.30  months or more, the court, if it is in the best interests of the 
 42.31  child and for compelling reasons, may extend the total time the 
 42.32  child may continue out of the home under the current petition up 
 42.33  to an additional six months before making a permanency 
 42.34  determination.  
 42.35     (b) Unless the responsible social services agency 
 42.36  recommends return of the child to the custodial parent or 
 43.1   parents, not later than 30 ten days prior to this hearing, the 
 43.2   responsible social services agency shall file pleadings in 
 43.3   juvenile court to establish the basis for the juvenile court to 
 43.4   order permanent placement of the child, including a termination 
 43.5   of parental rights petition, according to paragraph (d).  Notice 
 43.6   of the hearing and copies of the pleadings must be provided 
 43.7   pursuant to section 260C.152.  If a termination of parental 
 43.8   rights petition is filed before the date required for the 
 43.9   permanency planning determination and there is a trial under 
 43.10  section 260C.163 scheduled on that petition within 90 days of 
 43.11  the filing of the petition, no hearing need be conducted under 
 43.12  this subdivision. At the permanency hearing scheduled under this 
 43.13  subdivision, the court shall: 
 43.14     (1) review the pleadings filed to determine whether the 
 43.15  pleadings state a prima facie basis on which to order the child 
 43.16  placed permanently away from the parent, including a prima facie 
 43.17  basis for termination of parental rights where a termination of 
 43.18  parental rights petition has been filed; 
 43.19     (2) review the pleadings and record to determine whether 
 43.20  the pleadings and record state a prima facie basis to find that 
 43.21  reasonable efforts have been made to reunify the child with the 
 43.22  parent or guardian where such efforts are required; 
 43.23     (3) upon determining there is a prima facie basis as 
 43.24  required in clauses (1) and (2), the court shall require the 
 43.25  parent or guardian of the child to answer the pleadings as 
 43.26  required in rules of juvenile court; 
 43.27     (4) in the event the parent or guardian enters a denial to 
 43.28  the pleadings, or another party, including the child, objects to 
 43.29  the proposed permanent placement sought in the pleadings or to 
 43.30  the termination of parental rights, the court shall set the 
 43.31  matter for trial according to section 260C.163 not later than 60 
 43.32  days from the date of the permanency hearing required under this 
 43.33  subdivision, or where trial is required on a termination of 
 43.34  parental rights petition, not later than 90 days from the date 
 43.35  of the permanency hearing required under this subdivision; and 
 43.36     (5) in the event the court finds that the pleadings do not 
 44.1   state a prima facie basis on which to order permanent placement 
 44.2   of the child away from the parent, the court shall proceed 
 44.3   according to the requirements of the rules of juvenile court. 
 44.4      (c) At the conclusion of the hearing or the trial on the 
 44.5   permanency or termination of parental rights petition, the court 
 44.6   shall order the child returned to the care of the parent or 
 44.7   guardian from whom the child was removed, or order a trial home 
 44.8   visit and delay further orders regarding permanent placement of 
 44.9   the child pending the agency's assessment of the trial home 
 44.10  visit and further hearing, or order a permanent placement or 
 44.11  termination of parental rights if permanent placement or 
 44.12  termination of parental rights is in the child's best 
 44.13  interests.  The "best interests of the child" means all relevant 
 44.14  factors to be considered and evaluated.  Transfer of permanent 
 44.15  legal and physical custody, termination of parental rights, or 
 44.16  guardianship and legal custody to the commissioner through a 
 44.17  consent to adopt are preferred permanency options for a child 
 44.18  who cannot return home. 
 44.19     (d) If the child is not returned to the home, the court 
 44.20  must order one of the following dispositions: 
 44.21     (1) permanent legal and physical custody to a relative in 
 44.22  the best interests of the child according to the following 
 44.23  conditions: 
 44.24     (i) an order for transfer of permanent legal and physical 
 44.25  custody to a relative shall only be made after the court has 
 44.26  reviewed the suitability of the prospective legal and physical 
 44.27  custodian; 
 44.28     (ii) in transferring permanent legal and physical custody 
 44.29  to a relative, the juvenile court shall follow the standards 
 44.30  applicable under this chapter and chapter 260, and the 
 44.31  procedures set out in the juvenile court rules; 
 44.32     (iii) an order establishing permanent legal and physical 
 44.33  custody under this subdivision must be filed with the family 
 44.34  court; 
 44.35     (iv) a transfer of legal and physical custody includes 
 44.36  responsibility for the protection, education, care, and control 
 45.1   of the child and decision making on behalf of the child; 
 45.2      (v) the social services agency may bring a petition or 
 45.3   motion naming a fit and willing relative as a proposed permanent 
 45.4   legal and physical custodian.  The commissioner of human 
 45.5   services shall annually prepare for counties information that 
 45.6   must be given to proposed custodians about their legal rights 
 45.7   and obligations as custodians together with information on 
 45.8   financial and medical benefits for which the child is eligible; 
 45.9   and 
 45.10     (vi) the juvenile court may maintain jurisdiction over the 
 45.11  responsible social services agency, the parents or guardian of 
 45.12  the child, the child, and the permanent legal and physical 
 45.13  custodian for purposes of ensuring appropriate services are 
 45.14  delivered to the child and permanent legal custodian or for the 
 45.15  purpose of ensuring conditions ordered by the court related to 
 45.16  the care and custody of the child are met; 
 45.17     (2) termination of parental rights when the requirements of 
 45.18  sections 260C.301 to 260C.328 are met or according to the 
 45.19  following conditions: 
 45.20     (i) unless order the social services agency has already 
 45.21  filed to file a petition for termination of parental 
 45.22  rights under section 260C.307, the court may order such a 
 45.23  petition filed and in which case all the requirements of 
 45.24  sections 260C.301 to 260C.328 remain applicable; and 
 45.25     (ii) an adoption completed subsequent to a determination 
 45.26  under this subdivision may include an agreement for 
 45.27  communication or contact under section 259.58; 
 45.28     (3) long-term foster care according to the following 
 45.29  conditions: 
 45.30     (i) the court may order a child into long-term foster care 
 45.31  only if it finds approves the responsible social service 
 45.32  agency's compelling reasons that neither an award of permanent 
 45.33  legal and physical custody to a relative, nor termination of 
 45.34  parental rights is in the child's best interests; and 
 45.35     (ii) further, the court may only order long-term foster 
 45.36  care for the child under this section if it finds the following: 
 46.1      (A) the child has reached age 12 and reasonable efforts by 
 46.2   the responsible social services agency have failed has made 
 46.3   reasonable efforts to locate and place the child with an 
 46.4   adoptive family for the child or with a fit and willing relative 
 46.5   who will agree to a transfer of permanent legal and physical 
 46.6   custody of the child, but such efforts have not proven 
 46.7   successful; or 
 46.8      (B) the child is a sibling of a child described in subitem 
 46.9   (A) and the siblings have a significant positive relationship 
 46.10  and are ordered into the same long-term foster care home; and 
 46.11     (iii) at least annually, the responsible social services 
 46.12  agency reconsiders its provision of services to the child and 
 46.13  the child's placement in long-term foster care to ensure that: 
 46.14     (A) long-term foster care continues to be the most 
 46.15  appropriate legal arrangement for meeting the child's need for 
 46.16  permanency and stability, including whether there is another 
 46.17  permanent placement option under this chapter that would better 
 46.18  serve the child's needs and best interests; 
 46.19     (B) whenever possible, there is an identified long-term 
 46.20  foster care family that is committed to being the foster family 
 46.21  for the child as long as the child is a minor or under the 
 46.22  jurisdiction of the court; 
 46.23     (C) the child is receiving appropriate services or 
 46.24  assistance to maintain or build connections with the child's 
 46.25  family and community; 
 46.26     (D) the child's physical and mental health needs are being 
 46.27  appropriately provided for; and 
 46.28     (E) the child's educational needs are being met; 
 46.29     (4) foster care for a specified period of time according to 
 46.30  the following conditions: 
 46.31     (i) foster care for a specified period of time may be 
 46.32  ordered only if: 
 46.33     (A) the sole basis for an adjudication that the child is in 
 46.34  need of protection or services is the child's behavior; 
 46.35     (B) the court finds that foster care for a specified period 
 46.36  of time is in the best interests of the child; and 
 47.1      (C) the court finds approves the responsible social 
 47.2   services agency's compelling reasons that neither an award of 
 47.3   permanent legal and physical custody to a relative, nor 
 47.4   termination of parental rights is in the child's best interests; 
 47.5      (ii) the order does not specify that the child continue in 
 47.6   foster care for any period exceeding one year; or 
 47.7      (5) guardianship and legal custody to the commissioner of 
 47.8   human services under the following procedures and conditions: 
 47.9      (i) there is an identified prospective adoptive home agreed 
 47.10  to by the responsible social services agency that has agreed to 
 47.11  adopt the child and the court accepts the parent's voluntary 
 47.12  consent to adopt under section 259.24 except that such consent 
 47.13  executed by a parent under this clause shall be irrevocable 
 47.14  unless fraud is established and an order issues permitting 
 47.15  revocation as stated in item (vii); 
 47.16     (ii) if the court accepts a consent to adopt in lieu of 
 47.17  ordering one of the other enumerated permanency dispositions, 
 47.18  the court must review the matter at least every 90 days.  The 
 47.19  review will address the reasonable efforts of the agency to 
 47.20  achieve a finalized adoption; 
 47.21     (iii) a consent to adopt under this clause vests all legal 
 47.22  authority regarding the child, including guardianship and legal 
 47.23  custody of the child, with the commissioner of human services as 
 47.24  if the child were a state ward after termination of parental 
 47.25  rights; 
 47.26     (iv) the court must forward a copy of the consent to adopt, 
 47.27  together with a certified copy of the order transferring 
 47.28  guardianship and legal custody to the commissioner, to the 
 47.29  commissioner; and 
 47.30     (v) if an adoption is not finalized by the identified 
 47.31  prospective adoptive parent within 12 months of the execution of 
 47.32  the consent to adopt under this clause, the commissioner of 
 47.33  human services or the commissioner's delegate shall pursue 
 47.34  adoptive placement in another home unless the commissioner 
 47.35  certifies that the failure to finalize is not due to either an 
 47.36  action or a failure to act by the prospective adoptive parent.; 
 48.1      (vi) notwithstanding item (v), as soon as the commissioner 
 48.2   or commissioner's delegate determines that finalization of the 
 48.3   adoption with the identified prospective adoptive parent is not 
 48.4   possible, that the prospective adoptive parent is not 
 48.5   cooperative in completing the steps necessary to finalize the 
 48.6   adoption, or upon the commissioner's determination to withhold 
 48.7   consent to the adoption under chapter 259, the commissioner or 
 48.8   commissioner's delegate shall pursue adoptive placement in 
 48.9   another home; and 
 48.10     (vii) except as otherwise required by the Indian Child 
 48.11  Welfare Act, United States Code, title 25, section 1913, a 
 48.12  consent to adopt executed under this section shall be 
 48.13  irrevocable upon acceptance by the court except upon order 
 48.14  permitting revocation issued by the same court after written 
 48.15  findings that consent was obtained by fraud. 
 48.16     (e) In ordering a permanent placement of a child, the court 
 48.17  must be governed by the best interests of the child, including a 
 48.18  review of the relationship between the child and relatives and 
 48.19  the child and other important persons with whom the child has 
 48.20  resided or had significant contact. 
 48.21     (f) Once a permanent placement determination has been made 
 48.22  and permanent placement has been established, further court 
 48.23  reviews are necessary if: 
 48.24     (1) the placement is long-term foster care or foster care 
 48.25  for a specified period of time; 
 48.26     (2) the court orders further hearings because it has 
 48.27  retained jurisdiction of a transfer of permanent legal and 
 48.28  physical custody matter; 
 48.29     (3) an adoption has not yet been finalized; or 
 48.30     (4) there is a disruption of the permanent or long-term 
 48.31  placement.  
 48.32     (g) Court reviews of an order for long-term foster care, 
 48.33  whether under this section or section 260C.317, subdivision 3, 
 48.34  paragraph (d), or foster care for a specified period of time 
 48.35  must be conducted at least yearly and must review the child's 
 48.36  out-of-home placement plan and the reasonable efforts of the 
 49.1   agency to finalize the permanent plan for the child including 
 49.2   the agency's efforts to: 
 49.3      (1) ensure that long-term foster care continues to be the 
 49.4   most appropriate legal arrangement for meeting the child's need 
 49.5   for permanency and stability or, if not, to identify and attempt 
 49.6   to finalize another permanent placement option under this 
 49.7   chapter that would better serve the child's needs and best 
 49.8   interests; 
 49.9      (2) identify a specific long-term foster home for the child 
 49.10  or a specific foster home for the time the child is specified to 
 49.11  be out of the care of the parent, if one has not already been 
 49.12  identified; 
 49.13     (2) (3) support continued placement of the child in the 
 49.14  identified home, if one has been identified; 
 49.15     (3) (4) ensure appropriate services are provided to address 
 49.16  the physical health, mental health, and educational needs of the 
 49.17  child during the period of long-term foster care or foster care 
 49.18  for a specified period of time and also ensure appropriate 
 49.19  services or assistance to maintain relationships with 
 49.20  appropriate family members and the child's community; and 
 49.21     (4) (5) plan for the child's independence upon the child's 
 49.22  leaving long-term foster care living as required under section 
 49.23  260C.212, subdivision 1; and 
 49.24     (5) where placement is for a specified period of time, a 
 49.25  plan for the safe return of the child to the care of the parent. 
 49.26     (h) In the event it is necessary for a child that has been 
 49.27  ordered into foster care for a specified period of time to 
 49.28  exceed one year in foster care, not later than 12 months after 
 49.29  the time the child was ordered into foster care for a specified 
 49.30  period of time, the matter must be returned to court for a 
 49.31  review of the appropriateness of continuing the child in foster 
 49.32  care and of the responsible social services agency's reasonable 
 49.33  efforts to finalize a permanent plan for the child; if it is in 
 49.34  the child's best interests to continue the order for foster care 
 49.35  for a specified period of time past a total of 12 months, the 
 49.36  court shall set objectives for the child's continuation in 
 50.1   foster care, specify any further amount of time the child may be 
 50.2   in foster care, and review the plan for the safe return of the 
 50.3   child to the parent. 
 50.4      (h) (i) An order under this subdivision permanently placing 
 50.5   a child out of the home of the parent or guardian must include 
 50.6   the following detailed findings: 
 50.7      (1) how the child's best interests are served by the order; 
 50.8      (2) the nature and extent of the responsible social service 
 50.9   agency's reasonable efforts, or, in the case of an Indian child, 
 50.10  active efforts to reunify the child with the parent or 
 50.11  parents guardian where such efforts are required; 
 50.12     (3) the parent's or parents' efforts and ability to use 
 50.13  services to correct the conditions which led to the out-of-home 
 50.14  placement; and 
 50.15     (4) whether that the conditions which led to the 
 50.16  out-of-home placement have not been corrected so that the child 
 50.17  can safely return home. 
 50.18     (i) (j) An order for permanent legal and physical custody 
 50.19  of a child may be modified under sections 518.18 and 518.185.  
 50.20  The social services agency is a party to the proceeding and must 
 50.21  receive notice.  A parent may only seek modification of an order 
 50.22  for long-term foster care upon motion and a showing by the 
 50.23  parent of a substantial change in the parent's circumstances 
 50.24  such that the parent could provide appropriate care for the 
 50.25  child and that removal of the child from the child's permanent 
 50.26  placement and the return to the parent's care would be in the 
 50.27  best interest of the child.  The responsible social services 
 50.28  agency may seek vacation of an order for long-term foster care 
 50.29  upon a prima facie showing that there is a factual basis for the 
 50.30  court to order another permanency option under this chapter and 
 50.31  that such an option is in the child's best interests.  Upon a 
 50.32  hearing where the court determines that there is a factual basis 
 50.33  for vacating the order for long-term foster care and that 
 50.34  another permanent order regarding the placement of the child is 
 50.35  in the child's best interests, the court may vacate the order 
 50.36  for long-term foster care and enter a different order for 
 51.1   permanent placement that is in the child's best interests.  The 
 51.2   court shall not require further reasonable efforts to reunify 
 51.3   the child with the parent or guardian as a basis for vacating 
 51.4   the order for long-term foster care and ordering a different 
 51.5   permanent placement in the child's best interests.  The county 
 51.6   attorney must file pleadings and give notice as required under 
 51.7   the rules of juvenile court in order to modify an order for 
 51.8   long-term foster care under this clause. 
 51.9      (j) (k) The court shall issue an order required under this 
 51.10  section within 15 days of the close of the proceedings.  The 
 51.11  court may extend issuing the order an additional 15 days when 
 51.12  necessary in the interests of justice and the best interests of 
 51.13  the child. 
 51.14     Sec. 22.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.212, 
 51.15  subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
 51.16     Subd. 5.  [RELATIVE SEARCH; NATURE.] (a) In implementing 
 51.17  the requirement that the responsible social services agency must 
 51.18  consider placement with a relative under subdivision 2 as soon 
 51.19  as possible without delay after identifying the need for 
 51.20  placement of the child in foster care, the responsible social 
 51.21  services agency shall identify relatives of the child and notify 
 51.22  them of the need for a foster care home for the child and of the 
 51.23  possibility of the need for a permanent out-of-home placement of 
 51.24  the child.  The relative search required by this section shall 
 51.25  be reasonable and comprehensive in scope and may last up to six 
 51.26  months or until a fit and willing relative is 
 51.27  identified.  Relatives should be notified that a decision not to 
 51.28  be a placement resource at the beginning of the case may affect 
 51.29  the relative being considered for placement of the child with 
 51.30  that relative later The relative search required by this section 
 51.31  shall include both maternal relatives of the child and paternal 
 51.32  relatives of the child, if paternity is adjudicated.  The 
 51.33  relatives must be notified that they must keep the responsible 
 51.34  social services agency informed of their current address in 
 51.35  order to receive notice that a permanent placement is being 
 51.36  sought for the child.  A relative who fails to provide a current 
 52.1   address to the responsible social services agency forfeits the 
 52.2   right to notice of the possibility of permanent placement.  A 
 52.3   decision by a relative not to be a placement resource at the 
 52.4   beginning of the case shall not affect whether the relative is 
 52.5   considered for placement of the child with that relative later. 
 52.6      (b) A responsible social services agency may disclose 
 52.7   private or confidential data, as defined in section 13.02, to 
 52.8   relatives of the child for the purpose of locating a suitable 
 52.9   placement.  The agency shall disclose only data that is 
 52.10  necessary to facilitate possible placement with relatives.  If 
 52.11  the child's parent refuses to give the responsible social 
 52.12  services agency information sufficient to identify the maternal 
 52.13  and paternal relatives of the child, the agency shall determine 
 52.14  whether the parent's refusal is in the child's best interests.  
 52.15  If the agency determines the parent's refusal is not in the 
 52.16  child's best interests, the agency shall file a petition under 
 52.17  section 260C.141, and shall ask the juvenile court to order the 
 52.18  parent to provide the necessary information.  If a parent makes 
 52.19  an explicit request that relatives or a specific relative not be 
 52.20  contacted or considered for placement, the agency shall bring 
 52.21  the parent's request to the attention of the court to determine 
 52.22  whether the parent's request is consistent with the best 
 52.23  interests of the child and the agency shall not contact 
 52.24  relatives or a specific relative unless authorized to do so by 
 52.25  the juvenile court. 
 52.26     (c) When the placing agency determines that a permanent 
 52.27  placement hearing is necessary because there is a likelihood 
 52.28  that the child will not return to a parent's care, the agency 
 52.29  may send the notice provided in paragraph (d), may ask the court 
 52.30  to modify the requirements of the agency under this paragraph, 
 52.31  or may ask the court to completely relieve the agency of the 
 52.32  requirements of this paragraph.  The relative notification 
 52.33  requirements of this paragraph do not apply when the child is 
 52.34  placed with an appropriate relative or a foster home that has 
 52.35  committed to being the permanent legal placement for the child 
 52.36  and the agency approves of that foster home for permanent 
 53.1   placement of the child.  The actions ordered by the court under 
 53.2   this section must be consistent with the best interests, safety, 
 53.3   and welfare of the child. 
 53.4      (d) Unless required under the Indian Child Welfare Act or 
 53.5   relieved of this duty by the court under paragraph (c), when the 
 53.6   agency determines that it is necessary to prepare for the 
 53.7   permanent placement determination hearing, or in anticipation of 
 53.8   filing a termination of parental rights petition, the agency 
 53.9   shall send notice to the relatives, any adult with whom the 
 53.10  child is currently residing, any adult with whom the child has 
 53.11  resided for one year or longer in the past, and any adults who 
 53.12  have maintained a relationship or exercised visitation with the 
 53.13  child as identified in the agency case plan.  The notice must 
 53.14  state that a permanent home is sought for the child and that the 
 53.15  individuals receiving the notice may indicate to the agency 
 53.16  their interest in providing a permanent home.  The notice must 
 53.17  state that within 30 days of receipt of the notice an individual 
 53.18  receiving the notice must indicate to the agency the 
 53.19  individual's interest in providing a permanent home for the 
 53.20  child or that the individual may lose the opportunity to be 
 53.21  considered for a permanent placement.  
 53.22     (e) The Department of Human Services shall develop a best 
 53.23  practices guide and specialized staff training to assist the 
 53.24  responsible social services agency in performing and complying 
 53.25  with the relative search requirements under this subdivision. 
 53.26     Sec. 23.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.312, is 
 53.27  amended to read: 
 53.28     260C.312 [DISPOSITION; PARENTAL RIGHTS NOT TERMINATED.] 
 53.29     (a) If, after a hearing, the court does not terminate 
 53.30  parental rights but determines that the child is in need of 
 53.31  protection or services, or that the child is neglected and in 
 53.32  foster care, the court may find the child is in need of 
 53.33  protection or services or neglected and in foster care and may 
 53.34  enter an order in accordance with the provisions of section 
 53.35  260C.201. 
 53.36     (b) When a child has been in placement 15 of the last 22 
 54.1   months after a trial on a termination of parental rights 
 54.2   petition, if the court finds that the petition is not proven or 
 54.3   that termination of parental rights is not in the child's best 
 54.4   interests, the court must order the child returned to the care 
 54.5   of the parent unless the court finds approves the responsible 
 54.6   social services determination of compelling reasons why the 
 54.7   child should remain out of the care of the parent.  If the court 
 54.8   orders the child returned to the care of the parent, the court 
 54.9   may order a trial home visit, protective supervision, or 
 54.10  monitoring under section 260C.201. 
 54.11     Sec. 24.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.317, 
 54.12  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
 54.13     Subd. 3.  [ORDER; RETENTION OF JURISDICTION.] (a) A 
 54.14  certified copy of the findings and the order terminating 
 54.15  parental rights, and a summary of the court's information 
 54.16  concerning the child shall be furnished by the court to the 
 54.17  commissioner or the agency to which guardianship is 
 54.18  transferred.  The orders shall be on a document separate from 
 54.19  the findings.  The court shall furnish the individual to whom 
 54.20  guardianship is transferred a copy of the order terminating 
 54.21  parental rights. 
 54.22     (b) The court shall retain jurisdiction in a case where 
 54.23  adoption is the intended permanent placement disposition until 
 54.24  the child's adoption is finalized, the child is 18 years of age, 
 54.25  or the child is otherwise ordered discharged from the 
 54.26  jurisdiction of the court.  The guardian ad litem and counsel 
 54.27  for the child shall continue on the case until an adoption 
 54.28  decree is entered.  A hearing must be held every 90 days 
 54.29  following termination of parental rights for the court to review 
 54.30  progress toward an adoptive placement and the specific 
 54.31  recruitment efforts the agency has taken to find an adoptive 
 54.32  family or other placement living arrangement for the child and 
 54.33  to finalize the adoption or other permanency plan.  
 54.34     (c) When adoption is not the intended disposition, The 
 54.35  responsible social services agency may make a determination of 
 54.36  compelling reasons for a child to be in long-term foster care 
 55.1   when the agency has made exhaustive efforts to recruit, 
 55.2   identify, and place the child in an adoptive home, and if the 
 55.3   child continues in out-of-home placement foster care for 12 at 
 55.4   least 24 months after the court has issued the order terminating 
 55.5   parental rights and at.  Upon approving the agency's 
 55.6   determination of compelling reasons, the court may order the 
 55.7   child placed in long-term foster care.  At least every 12 months 
 55.8   thereafter as long as the child continues in out-of-home 
 55.9   placement, the court shall conduct a permanency review hearing 
 55.10  to determine the future status of the child, including, but not 
 55.11  limited to, whether the child should be continued in out-of-home 
 55.12  placement, should be placed for adoption, or should, because of 
 55.13  the child's special needs and for compelling reasons, be ordered 
 55.14  into long-term out-of-home placement using the review 
 55.15  requirements of section 260C.201, subdivision 11, paragraph (g). 
 55.16     (d) The court shall retain jurisdiction through the child's 
 55.17  minority in a case where long-term foster care is the permanent 
 55.18  disposition whether under paragraph (c) or section 260C.201, 
 55.19  subdivision 11.  All of the review requirements under section 
 55.20  260C.201, subdivision 11, paragraph (g), apply. 
 55.21     Sec. 25.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 55.22  626.556, subdivision 10, is amended to read: 
 55.23     Subd. 10.  [DUTIES OF LOCAL WELFARE AGENCY AND LOCAL LAW 
 55.24  ENFORCEMENT AGENCY UPON RECEIPT OF A REPORT.] (a) If the report 
 55.25  alleges neglect, physical abuse, or sexual abuse by a parent, 
 55.26  guardian, or individual functioning within the family unit as a 
 55.27  person responsible for the child's care, the local welfare 
 55.28  agency shall immediately conduct an assessment including 
 55.29  gathering information on the existence of substance abuse and 
 55.30  offer protective social services for purposes of preventing 
 55.31  further abuses, safeguarding and enhancing the welfare of the 
 55.32  abused or neglected minor, and preserving family life whenever 
 55.33  possible.  If the report alleges a violation of a criminal 
 55.34  statute involving sexual abuse, physical abuse, or neglect or 
 55.35  endangerment, under section 609.378, the local law enforcement 
 55.36  agency and local welfare agency shall coordinate the planning 
 56.1   and execution of their respective investigation and assessment 
 56.2   efforts to avoid a duplication of fact-finding efforts and 
 56.3   multiple interviews.  Each agency shall prepare a separate 
 56.4   report of the results of its investigation.  In cases of alleged 
 56.5   child maltreatment resulting in death, the local agency may rely 
 56.6   on the fact-finding efforts of a law enforcement investigation 
 56.7   to make a determination of whether or not maltreatment 
 56.8   occurred.  When necessary the local welfare agency shall seek 
 56.9   authority to remove the child from the custody of a parent, 
 56.10  guardian, or adult with whom the child is living.  In performing 
 56.11  any of these duties, the local welfare agency shall maintain 
 56.12  appropriate records.  
 56.13     If the assessment indicates there is a potential for abuse 
 56.14  of alcohol or other drugs by the parent, guardian, or person 
 56.15  responsible for the child's care, the local welfare agency shall 
 56.16  conduct a chemical use assessment pursuant to Minnesota Rules, 
 56.17  part 9530.6615.  The local welfare agency shall report the 
 56.18  determination of the chemical use assessment, and the 
 56.19  recommendations and referrals for alcohol and other drug 
 56.20  treatment services to the state authority on alcohol and drug 
 56.21  abuse. 
 56.22     (b) When a local agency receives a report or otherwise has 
 56.23  information indicating that a child who is a client, as defined 
 56.24  in section 245.91, has been the subject of physical abuse, 
 56.25  sexual abuse, or neglect at an agency, facility, or program as 
 56.26  defined in section 245.91, it shall, in addition to its other 
 56.27  duties under this section, immediately inform the ombudsman 
 56.28  established under sections 245.91 to 245.97.  The commissioner 
 56.29  of education shall inform the ombudsman established under 
 56.30  sections 245.91 to 245.97 of reports regarding a child defined 
 56.31  as a client in section 245.91 that maltreatment occurred at a 
 56.32  school as defined in sections 120A.05, subdivisions 9, 11, and 
 56.33  13, and 124D.10. 
 56.34     (c) Authority of the local welfare agency responsible for 
 56.35  assessing the child abuse or neglect report, the agency 
 56.36  responsible for assessing or investigating the report, and of 
 57.1   the local law enforcement agency for investigating the alleged 
 57.2   abuse or neglect includes, but is not limited to, authority to 
 57.3   interview, without parental consent, the alleged victim and any 
 57.4   other minors who currently reside with or who have resided with 
 57.5   the alleged offender.  The interview may take place at school or 
 57.6   at any facility or other place where the alleged victim or other 
 57.7   minors might be found or the child may be transported to, and 
 57.8   the interview conducted at, a place appropriate for the 
 57.9   interview of a child designated by the local welfare agency or 
 57.10  law enforcement agency.  The interview may take place outside 
 57.11  the presence of the alleged offender or parent, legal custodian, 
 57.12  guardian, or school official.  Except as provided in this 
 57.13  paragraph, the parent, legal custodian, or guardian shall be 
 57.14  notified by the responsible local welfare or law enforcement 
 57.15  agency no later than the conclusion of the investigation or 
 57.16  assessment that this interview has occurred.  Notwithstanding 
 57.17  rule 49.02 of the Minnesota Rules of Procedure for Juvenile 
 57.18  Courts, the juvenile court may, after hearing on an ex parte 
 57.19  motion by the local welfare agency, order that, where reasonable 
 57.20  cause exists, the agency withhold notification of this interview 
 57.21  from the parent, legal custodian, or guardian.  If the interview 
 57.22  took place or is to take place on school property, the order 
 57.23  shall specify that school officials may not disclose to the 
 57.24  parent, legal custodian, or guardian the contents of the 
 57.25  notification of intent to interview the child on school 
 57.26  property, as provided under this paragraph, and any other 
 57.27  related information regarding the interview that may be a part 
 57.28  of the child's school record.  A copy of the order shall be sent 
 57.29  by the local welfare or law enforcement agency to the 
 57.30  appropriate school official. 
 57.31     (d) When the local welfare, local law enforcement agency, 
 57.32  or the agency responsible for assessing or investigating a 
 57.33  report of maltreatment determines that an interview should take 
 57.34  place on school property, written notification of intent to 
 57.35  interview the child on school property must be received by 
 57.36  school officials prior to the interview.  The notification shall 
 58.1   include the name of the child to be interviewed, the purpose of 
 58.2   the interview, and a reference to the statutory authority to 
 58.3   conduct an interview on school property.  For interviews 
 58.4   conducted by the local welfare agency, the notification shall be 
 58.5   signed by the chair of the local social services agency or the 
 58.6   chair's designee.  The notification shall be private data on 
 58.7   individuals subject to the provisions of this paragraph.  School 
 58.8   officials may not disclose to the parent, legal custodian, or 
 58.9   guardian the contents of the notification or any other related 
 58.10  information regarding the interview until notified in writing by 
 58.11  the local welfare or law enforcement agency that the 
 58.12  investigation or assessment has been concluded, unless a school 
 58.13  employee or agent is alleged to have maltreated the child.  
 58.14  Until that time, the local welfare or law enforcement agency or 
 58.15  the agency responsible for assessing or investigating a report 
 58.16  of maltreatment shall be solely responsible for any disclosures 
 58.17  regarding the nature of the assessment or investigation.  
 58.18     Except where the alleged offender is believed to be a 
 58.19  school official or employee, the time and place, and manner of 
 58.20  the interview on school premises shall be within the discretion 
 58.21  of school officials, but the local welfare or law enforcement 
 58.22  agency shall have the exclusive authority to determine who may 
 58.23  attend the interview.  The conditions as to time, place, and 
 58.24  manner of the interview set by the school officials shall be 
 58.25  reasonable and the interview shall be conducted not more than 24 
 58.26  hours after the receipt of the notification unless another time 
 58.27  is considered necessary by agreement between the school 
 58.28  officials and the local welfare or law enforcement agency.  
 58.29  Where the school fails to comply with the provisions of this 
 58.30  paragraph, the juvenile court may order the school to comply.  
 58.31  Every effort must be made to reduce the disruption of the 
 58.32  educational program of the child, other students, or school 
 58.33  staff when an interview is conducted on school premises.  
 58.34     (e) Where the alleged offender or a person responsible for 
 58.35  the care of the alleged victim or other minor prevents access to 
 58.36  the victim or other minor by the local welfare agency, the 
 59.1   juvenile court may order the parents, legal custodian, or 
 59.2   guardian to produce the alleged victim or other minor for 
 59.3   questioning by the local welfare agency or the local law 
 59.4   enforcement agency outside the presence of the alleged offender 
 59.5   or any person responsible for the child's care at reasonable 
 59.6   places and times as specified by court order.  
 59.7      (f) Before making an order under paragraph (e), the court 
 59.8   shall issue an order to show cause, either upon its own motion 
 59.9   or upon a verified petition, specifying the basis for the 
 59.10  requested interviews and fixing the time and place of the 
 59.11  hearing.  The order to show cause shall be served personally and 
 59.12  shall be heard in the same manner as provided in other cases in 
 59.13  the juvenile court.  The court shall consider the need for 
 59.14  appointment of a guardian ad litem to protect the best interests 
 59.15  of the child.  If appointed, the guardian ad litem shall be 
 59.16  present at the hearing on the order to show cause.  
 59.17     (g) The commissioner of human services, the ombudsman for 
 59.18  mental health and mental retardation, the local welfare agencies 
 59.19  responsible for investigating reports, the commissioner of 
 59.20  education, and the local law enforcement agencies have the right 
 59.21  to enter facilities as defined in subdivision 2 and to inspect 
 59.22  and copy the facility's records, including medical records, as 
 59.23  part of the investigation.  Notwithstanding the provisions of 
 59.24  chapter 13, they also have the right to inform the facility 
 59.25  under investigation that they are conducting an investigation, 
 59.26  to disclose to the facility the names of the individuals under 
 59.27  investigation for abusing or neglecting a child, and to provide 
 59.28  the facility with a copy of the report and the investigative 
 59.29  findings. 
 59.30     (h) The local welfare agency or the agency responsible for 
 59.31  assessing or investigating the report shall collect available 
 59.32  and relevant information to ascertain whether maltreatment 
 59.33  occurred and whether protective services are needed.  
 59.34  Information collected includes, when relevant, information with 
 59.35  regard to the person reporting the alleged maltreatment, 
 59.36  including the nature of the reporter's relationship to the child 
 60.1   and to the alleged offender, and the basis of the reporter's 
 60.2   knowledge for the report; the child allegedly being maltreated; 
 60.3   the alleged offender; the child's caretaker; and other 
 60.4   collateral sources having relevant information related to the 
 60.5   alleged maltreatment.  The local welfare agency or the agency 
 60.6   responsible for assessing or investigating the report may make a 
 60.7   determination of no maltreatment early in an assessment, and 
 60.8   close the case and retain immunity, if the collected information 
 60.9   shows no basis for a full assessment or investigation. 
 60.10     Information relevant to the assessment or investigation 
 60.11  must be asked for, and may include: 
 60.12     (1) the child's sex and age, prior reports of maltreatment, 
 60.13  information relating to developmental functioning, credibility 
 60.14  of the child's statement, and whether the information provided 
 60.15  under this clause is consistent with other information collected 
 60.16  during the course of the assessment or investigation; 
 60.17     (2) the alleged offender's age, a record check for prior 
 60.18  reports of maltreatment, and criminal charges and convictions.  
 60.19  The local welfare agency or the agency responsible for assessing 
 60.20  or investigating the report must provide the alleged offender 
 60.21  with an opportunity to make a statement.  The alleged offender 
 60.22  may submit supporting documentation relevant to the assessment 
 60.23  or investigation; 
 60.24     (3) collateral source information regarding the alleged 
 60.25  maltreatment and care of the child.  Collateral information 
 60.26  includes, when relevant:  (i) a medical examination of the 
 60.27  child; (ii) prior medical records relating to the alleged 
 60.28  maltreatment or the care of the child maintained by any 
 60.29  facility, clinic, or health care professional and an interview 
 60.30  with the treating professionals; and (iii) interviews with the 
 60.31  child's caretakers, including the child's parent, guardian, 
 60.32  foster parent, child care provider, teachers, counselors, family 
 60.33  members, relatives, and other persons who may have knowledge 
 60.34  regarding the alleged maltreatment and the care of the child; 
 60.35  and 
 60.36     (4) information on the existence of domestic abuse and 
 61.1   violence in the home of the child, and substance abuse. 
 61.2      Nothing in this paragraph precludes the local welfare 
 61.3   agency, the local law enforcement agency, or the agency 
 61.4   responsible for assessing or investigating the report from 
 61.5   collecting other relevant information necessary to conduct the 
 61.6   assessment or investigation.  Notwithstanding section 13.384 or 
 61.7   144.335, the local welfare agency has access to medical data and 
 61.8   records for purposes of clause (3).  Notwithstanding the data's 
 61.9   classification in the possession of any other agency, data 
 61.10  acquired by the local welfare agency or the agency responsible 
 61.11  for assessing or investigating the report during the course of 
 61.12  the assessment or investigation are private data on individuals 
 61.13  and must be maintained in accordance with subdivision 11.  Data 
 61.14  of the commissioner of education collected or maintained during 
 61.15  and for the purpose of an investigation of alleged maltreatment 
 61.16  in a school are governed by this section, notwithstanding the 
 61.17  data's classification as educational, licensing, or personnel 
 61.18  data under chapter 13. 
 61.19     In conducting an assessment or investigation involving a 
 61.20  school facility as defined in subdivision 2, paragraph (f), the 
 61.21  commissioner of education shall collect investigative reports 
 61.22  and data that are relevant to a report of maltreatment and are 
 61.23  from local law enforcement and the school facility.  
 61.24     (i) In the initial stages of an assessment or 
 61.25  investigation, the local welfare agency shall conduct a 
 61.26  face-to-face observation of the child reported to be maltreated 
 61.27  and a face-to-face interview of the alleged offender.  At the 
 61.28  initial contact, the local child welfare agency or the agency 
 61.29  responsible for assessing or investigating the report must 
 61.30  inform the alleged offender of the complaints or allegations 
 61.31  made against the individual in a manner consistent with laws 
 61.32  protecting the rights of the person who made the report.  The 
 61.33  interview with the alleged offender may be postponed if it would 
 61.34  jeopardize an active law enforcement investigation. 
 61.35     (j) The local welfare agency shall use a question and 
 61.36  answer interviewing format with questioning as nondirective as 
 62.1   possible to elicit spontaneous responses.  The following 
 62.2   interviewing methods and procedures must be used whenever 
 62.3   possible when collecting information: 
 62.4      (1) audio recordings of all interviews with witnesses and 
 62.5   collateral sources; and 
 62.6      (2) in cases of alleged sexual abuse, audio-video 
 62.7   recordings of each interview with the alleged victim and child 
 62.8   witnesses.  
 62.9      (k) In conducting an assessment or investigation involving 
 62.10  a school facility as defined in subdivision 2, paragraph (f), 
 62.11  the commissioner of education shall collect available and 
 62.12  relevant information and use the procedures in paragraphs (h), 
 62.13  (i), and (j), provided that the commissioner may also base the 
 62.14  assessment or investigation on investigative reports and data 
 62.15  received from the school facility and local law enforcement, to 
 62.16  the extent those investigations satisfy the requirements of 
 62.17  paragraphs (h), (i), and (j). 
 62.18     Sec. 26.  [REVISOR'S INSTRUCTION.] 
 62.19     In the next edition of Minnesota Statutes, the revisor of 
 62.20  statutes shall change "residential facility" to either "foster 
 62.21  care" or "foster care facility," whichever term is appropriate, 
 62.22  in chapter 260C. 
 62.23                             ARTICLE 3 
 62.24                           CHILD WELFARE 
 62.25     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 626.556, 
 62.26  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
 62.27     Subdivision 1.  [PUBLIC POLICY.] The legislature hereby 
 62.28  declares that the public policy of this state is to protect 
 62.29  children whose health or welfare may be jeopardized through 
 62.30  physical abuse, neglect, or sexual abuse.  While it is 
 62.31  recognized that most parents want to keep their children safe, 
 62.32  sometimes circumstances or conditions interfere with their 
 62.33  ability to do so.  When this occurs, families are best served by 
 62.34  interventions that engage their protective capacities and 
 62.35  address immediate safety concerns, ongoing risks of child 
 62.36  maltreatment, and threats to family well being.  In furtherance 
 63.1   of this public policy, it is the intent of the legislature under 
 63.2   this section to strengthen the family and make the home, school, 
 63.3   and community safe for children by promoting responsible child 
 63.4   care in all settings; and to provide, when necessary, a safe 
 63.5   temporary or permanent home environment for physically or 
 63.6   sexually abused or neglected children. 
 63.7      In addition, it is the policy of this state to require the 
 63.8   reporting of neglect, physical or sexual abuse of children in 
 63.9   the home, school, and community settings; to provide for the 
 63.10  voluntary reporting of abuse or neglect of children; to require 
 63.11  the a family assessment and, when appropriate, as the preferred 
 63.12  response to reports not alleging substantial child endangerment; 
 63.13  to require an investigation of the reports when the report 
 63.14  alleges substantial child endangerment; and to provide 
 63.15  protective and counseling, family support, and family 
 63.16  preservation services when needed in appropriate cases. 
 63.17     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 63.18  626.556, subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
 63.19     Subd. 2.  [DEFINITIONS.] As used in this section, the 
 63.20  following terms have the meanings given them unless the specific 
 63.21  content indicates otherwise: 
 63.22     (a) "Family assessment" means a comprehensive assessment of 
 63.23  child safety, risk of subsequent child maltreatment, and family 
 63.24  strengths and needs that is applied to a child maltreatment 
 63.25  report that does not allege substantial child endangerment.  
 63.26  Family assessment does not include a determination as to whether 
 63.27  child maltreatment occurred but does determine the need for 
 63.28  services to address the safety of family members, the risk of 
 63.29  subsequent maltreatment, and threats to family and child well 
 63.30  being. 
 63.31     (b) "Investigation" means fact gathering related to the 
 63.32  current safety of a child and the risk of subsequent 
 63.33  maltreatment that determines whether child maltreatment occurred 
 63.34  and whether child protective services are needed.  An 
 63.35  investigation must be used when reports involve substantial 
 63.36  child endangerment, and for reports of maltreatment in 
 64.1   facilities required to be licensed under chapter 245A or 245B; 
 64.2   under sections 144.50 to 144.58 and 241.021; in a school as 
 64.3   defined in sections 120A.05, subdivisions 9, 11, and 13, and 
 64.4   124D.10; or in a nonlicensed personal care provider association 
 64.5   as defined in sections 256B.04, subdivision 16, and 256B.0625, 
 64.6   subdivision 19a. 
 64.7      (c) "Substantial child endangerment" means a person 
 64.8   responsible for a child's care, a person who has a significant 
 64.9   relationship to the child as defined in section 609.341, or a 
 64.10  person in a position of authority as defined in section 609.341, 
 64.11  who by act or omission commits or attempts to commit an act 
 64.12  against a child under their care that constitutes any of the 
 64.13  following: 
 64.14     (1) egregious harm as defined in section 260C.007, 
 64.15  subdivision 14; 
 64.16     (2) sexual abuse as defined in paragraph (d); 
 64.17     (3) abandonment under section 260C.301, subdivision 2; 
 64.18     (4) neglect as defined in paragraph (f), clause (2), that 
 64.19  substantially endangers the child's physical or mental health, 
 64.20  including a growth delay, which may be referred to as failure to 
 64.21  thrive, that has been diagnosed by a physician and is due to 
 64.22  parental neglect; 
 64.23     (5) murder in the first, second, or third degree under 
 64.24  section 609.185, 609.19, or 609.195; 
 64.25     (6) manslaughter in the first or second degree under 
 64.26  section 609.20 or 609.205; 
 64.27     (7) assault in the first, second, or third degree under 
 64.28  section 609.221, 609.222, or 609.223; 
 64.29     (8) solicitation, inducement, and promotion of prostitution 
 64.30  under section 609.322; 
 64.31     (9) criminal sexual conduct under sections 609.342 to 
 64.32  609.3451; 
 64.33     (10) solicitation of children to engage in sexual conduct 
 64.34  under section 609.352; 
 64.35     (11) malicious punishment or neglect or endangerment of a 
 64.36  child under section 609.377 or 609.378; 
 65.1      (12) use of a minor in sexual performance under section 
 65.2   617.246; or 
 65.3      (13) parental behavior, status, or condition which mandates 
 65.4   that the county attorney file a termination of parental rights 
 65.5   petition under section 260C.301, subdivision 3, paragraph (a). 
 65.6      (d) "Sexual abuse" means the subjection of a child by a 
 65.7   person responsible for the child's care, by a person who has a 
 65.8   significant relationship to the child, as defined in section 
 65.9   609.341, or by a person in a position of authority, as defined 
 65.10  in section 609.341, subdivision 10, to any act which constitutes 
 65.11  a violation of section 609.342 (criminal sexual conduct in the 
 65.12  first degree), 609.343 (criminal sexual conduct in the second 
 65.13  degree), 609.344 (criminal sexual conduct in the third degree), 
 65.14  609.345 (criminal sexual conduct in the fourth degree), or 
 65.15  609.3451 (criminal sexual conduct in the fifth degree).  Sexual 
 65.16  abuse also includes any act which involves a minor which 
 65.17  constitutes a violation of prostitution offenses under sections 
 65.18  609.321 to 609.324 or 617.246.  Sexual abuse includes threatened 
 65.19  sexual abuse.  
 65.20     (b) (e) "Person responsible for the child's care" means (1) 
 65.21  an individual functioning within the family unit and having 
 65.22  responsibilities for the care of the child such as a parent, 
 65.23  guardian, or other person having similar care responsibilities, 
 65.24  or (2) an individual functioning outside the family unit and 
 65.25  having responsibilities for the care of the child such as a 
 65.26  teacher, school administrator, other school employees or agents, 
 65.27  or other lawful custodian of a child having either full-time or 
 65.28  short-term care responsibilities including, but not limited to, 
 65.29  day care, babysitting whether paid or unpaid, counseling, 
 65.30  teaching, and coaching.  
 65.31     (c) (f) "Neglect" means: 
 65.32     (1) failure by a person responsible for a child's care to 
 65.33  supply a child with necessary food, clothing, shelter, health, 
 65.34  medical, or other care required for the child's physical or 
 65.35  mental health when reasonably able to do so; 
 65.36     (2) failure to protect a child from conditions or actions 
 66.1   that seriously endanger the child's physical or mental health 
 66.2   when reasonably able to do so, including a growth delay, which 
 66.3   may be referred to as a failure to thrive, that has been 
 66.4   diagnosed by a physician and is due to parental neglect; 
 66.5      (3) failure to provide for necessary supervision or child 
 66.6   care arrangements appropriate for a child after considering 
 66.7   factors as the child's age, mental ability, physical condition, 
 66.8   length of absence, or environment, when the child is unable to 
 66.9   care for the child's own basic needs or safety, or the basic 
 66.10  needs or safety of another child in their care; 
 66.11     (4) failure to ensure that the child is educated as defined 
 66.12  in sections 120A.22 and 260C.163, subdivision 11, which does not 
 66.13  include a parent's refusal to provide the parent's child with 
 66.14  sympathomimetic medications, consistent with section 125A.09, 
 66.15  subdivision 3; 
 66.16     (5) nothing in this section shall be construed to mean that 
 66.17  a child is neglected solely because the child's parent, 
 66.18  guardian, or other person responsible for the child's care in 
 66.19  good faith selects and depends upon spiritual means or prayer 
 66.20  for treatment or care of disease or remedial care of the child 
 66.21  in lieu of medical care; except that a parent, guardian, or 
 66.22  caretaker, or a person mandated to report pursuant to 
 66.23  subdivision 3, has a duty to report if a lack of medical care 
 66.24  may cause serious danger to the child's health.  This section 
 66.25  does not impose upon persons, not otherwise legally responsible 
 66.26  for providing a child with necessary food, clothing, shelter, 
 66.27  education, or medical care, a duty to provide that care; 
 66.28     (6) prenatal exposure to a controlled substance, as defined 
 66.29  in section 253B.02, subdivision 2, used by the mother for a 
 66.30  nonmedical purpose, as evidenced by withdrawal symptoms in the 
 66.31  child at birth, results of a toxicology test performed on the 
 66.32  mother at delivery or the child at birth, or medical effects or 
 66.33  developmental delays during the child's first year of life that 
 66.34  medically indicate prenatal exposure to a controlled substance; 
 66.35     (7) "medical neglect" as defined in section 260C.007, 
 66.36  subdivision 6, clause (5); 
 67.1      (8) chronic and severe use of alcohol or a controlled 
 67.2   substance by a parent or person responsible for the care of the 
 67.3   child that adversely affects the child's basic needs and safety; 
 67.4   or 
 67.5      (9) emotional harm from a pattern of behavior which 
 67.6   contributes to impaired emotional functioning of the child which 
 67.7   may be demonstrated by a substantial and observable effect in 
 67.8   the child's behavior, emotional response, or cognition that is 
 67.9   not within the normal range for the child's age and stage of 
 67.10  development, with due regard to the child's culture. 
 67.11     (d) (g) "Physical abuse" means any physical injury, mental 
 67.12  injury, or threatened injury, inflicted by a person responsible 
 67.13  for the child's care on a child other than by accidental means, 
 67.14  or any physical or mental injury that cannot reasonably be 
 67.15  explained by the child's history of injuries, or any aversive or 
 67.16  deprivation procedures, or regulated interventions, that have 
 67.17  not been authorized under section 121A.67 or 245.825.  Abuse 
 67.18  does not include reasonable and moderate physical discipline of 
 67.19  a child administered by a parent or legal guardian which does 
 67.20  not result in an injury.  Abuse does not include the use of 
 67.21  reasonable force by a teacher, principal, or school employee as 
 67.22  allowed by section 121A.582.  Actions which are not reasonable 
 67.23  and moderate include, but are not limited to, any of the 
 67.24  following that are done in anger or without regard to the safety 
 67.25  of the child: 
 67.26     (1) throwing, kicking, burning, biting, or cutting a child; 
 67.27     (2) striking a child with a closed fist; 
 67.28     (3) shaking a child under age three; 
 67.29     (4) striking or other actions which result in any 
 67.30  nonaccidental injury to a child under 18 months of age; 
 67.31     (5) unreasonable interference with a child's breathing; 
 67.32     (6) threatening a child with a weapon, as defined in 
 67.33  section 609.02, subdivision 6; 
 67.34     (7) striking a child under age one on the face or head; 
 67.35     (8) purposely giving a child poison, alcohol, or dangerous, 
 67.36  harmful, or controlled substances which were not prescribed for 
 68.1   the child by a practitioner, in order to control or punish the 
 68.2   child; or other substances that substantially affect the child's 
 68.3   behavior, motor coordination, or judgment or that results in 
 68.4   sickness or internal injury, or subjects the child to medical 
 68.5   procedures that would be unnecessary if the child were not 
 68.6   exposed to the substances; 
 68.7      (9) unreasonable physical confinement or restraint not 
 68.8   permitted under section 609.379, including but not limited to 
 68.9   tying, caging, or chaining; or 
 68.10     (10) in a school facility or school zone, an act by a 
 68.11  person responsible for the child's care that is a violation 
 68.12  under section 121A.58. 
 68.13     (e) (h) "Report" means any report received by the local 
 68.14  welfare agency, police department, county sheriff, or agency 
 68.15  responsible for assessing or investigating maltreatment pursuant 
 68.16  to this section. 
 68.17     (f) (i) "Facility" means a licensed or unlicensed day care 
 68.18  facility, residential facility, agency, hospital, sanitarium, or 
 68.19  other facility or institution required to be licensed under 
 68.20  sections 144.50 to 144.58, 241.021, or 245A.01 to 245A.16, or 
 68.21  chapter 245B; or a school as defined in sections 120A.05, 
 68.22  subdivisions 9, 11, and 13; and 124D.10; or a nonlicensed 
 68.23  personal care provider organization as defined in sections 
 68.24  256B.04, subdivision 16, and 256B.0625, subdivision 19a. 
 68.25     (g) (j) "Operator" means an operator or agency as defined 
 68.26  in section 245A.02.  
 68.27     (h) (k) "Commissioner" means the commissioner of human 
 68.28  services. 
 68.29     (i) "Assessment" includes authority to interview the child, 
 68.30  the person or persons responsible for the child's care, the 
 68.31  alleged perpetrator, and any other person with knowledge of the 
 68.32  abuse or neglect for the purpose of gathering the facts, 
 68.33  assessing the risk to the child, and formulating a plan.  
 68.34     (j) (l) "Practice of social services," for the purposes of 
 68.35  subdivision 3, includes but is not limited to employee 
 68.36  assistance counseling and the provision of guardian ad litem and 
 69.1   parenting time expeditor services.  
 69.2      (k) (m) "Mental injury" means an injury to the 
 69.3   psychological capacity or emotional stability of a child as 
 69.4   evidenced by an observable or substantial impairment in the 
 69.5   child's ability to function within a normal range of performance 
 69.6   and behavior with due regard to the child's culture. 
 69.7      (l) (n) "Threatened injury" means a statement, overt act, 
 69.8   condition, or status that represents a substantial risk of 
 69.9   physical or sexual abuse or mental injury.  Threatened injury 
 69.10  includes, but is not limited to, exposing a child to a person 
 69.11  responsible for the child's care, as defined in 
 69.12  paragraph (b) (e), clause (1), who has: 
 69.13     (1) subjected a child to, or failed to protect a child 
 69.14  from, an overt act or condition that constitutes egregious harm, 
 69.15  as defined in section 260C.007, subdivision 14, or a similar law 
 69.16  of another jurisdiction; 
 69.17     (2) been found to be palpably unfit under section 260C.301, 
 69.18  paragraph (b), clause (4), or a similar law of another 
 69.19  jurisdiction; 
 69.20     (3) committed an act that has resulted in an involuntary 
 69.21  termination of parental rights under section 260C.301, or a 
 69.22  similar law of another jurisdiction; or 
 69.23     (4) committed an act that has resulted in the involuntary 
 69.24  transfer of permanent legal and physical custody of a child to a 
 69.25  relative under section 260C.201, subdivision 11, paragraph (d), 
 69.26  clause (1), or a similar law of another jurisdiction. 
 69.27     (m) (o) Persons who conduct assessments or investigations 
 69.28  under this section shall take into account accepted 
 69.29  child-rearing practices of the culture in which a child 
 69.30  participates and accepted teacher discipline practices, which 
 69.31  are not injurious to the child's health, welfare, and safety. 
 69.32     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 69.33  626.556, subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
 69.34     Subd. 3.  [PERSONS MANDATED TO REPORT.] (a) A person who 
 69.35  knows or has reason to believe a child is being neglected or 
 69.36  physically or sexually abused, as defined in subdivision 2, or 
 70.1   has been neglected or physically or sexually abused within the 
 70.2   preceding three years, shall immediately report the information 
 70.3   to the local welfare agency, agency responsible for assessing or 
 70.4   investigating the report, police department, or the county 
 70.5   sheriff if the person is:  
 70.6      (1) a professional or professional's delegate who is 
 70.7   engaged in the practice of the healing arts, social services, 
 70.8   hospital administration, psychological or psychiatric treatment, 
 70.9   child care, education, or law enforcement; or 
 70.10     (2) employed as a member of the clergy and received the 
 70.11  information while engaged in ministerial duties, provided that a 
 70.12  member of the clergy is not required by this subdivision to 
 70.13  report information that is otherwise privileged under section 
 70.14  595.02, subdivision 1, paragraph (c).  
 70.15     The police department or the county sheriff, upon receiving 
 70.16  a report, shall immediately notify the local welfare agency or 
 70.17  agency responsible for assessing or investigating the report, 
 70.18  orally and in writing.  The local welfare agency, or agency 
 70.19  responsible for assessing or investigating the report, upon 
 70.20  receiving a report, shall immediately notify the local police 
 70.21  department or the county sheriff orally and in writing.  The 
 70.22  county sheriff and the head of every local welfare agency, 
 70.23  agency responsible for assessing or investigating reports, and 
 70.24  police department shall each designate a person within their 
 70.25  agency, department, or office who is responsible for ensuring 
 70.26  that the notification duties of this paragraph and paragraph (b) 
 70.27  are carried out.  Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed 
 70.28  to require more than one report from any institution, facility, 
 70.29  school, or agency. 
 70.30     (b) Any person may voluntarily report to the local welfare 
 70.31  agency, agency responsible for assessing or investigating the 
 70.32  report, police department, or the county sheriff if the person 
 70.33  knows, has reason to believe, or suspects a child is being or 
 70.34  has been neglected or subjected to physical or sexual abuse.  
 70.35  The police department or the county sheriff, upon receiving a 
 70.36  report, shall immediately notify the local welfare agency or 
 71.1   agency responsible for assessing or investigating the report, 
 71.2   orally and in writing.  The local welfare agency or agency 
 71.3   responsible for assessing or investigating the report, upon 
 71.4   receiving a report, shall immediately notify the local police 
 71.5   department or the county sheriff orally and in writing. 
 71.6      (c) A person mandated to report physical or sexual child 
 71.7   abuse or neglect occurring within a licensed facility shall 
 71.8   report the information to the agency responsible for licensing 
 71.9   the facility under sections 144.50 to 144.58; 241.021; 245A.01 
 71.10  to 245A.16; or chapter 245B; or a nonlicensed personal care 
 71.11  provider organization as defined in sections 256B.04, 
 71.12  subdivision 16; and 256B.0625, subdivision 19.  A health or 
 71.13  corrections agency receiving a report may request the local 
 71.14  welfare agency to provide assistance pursuant to subdivisions 
 71.15  10, 10a, and 10b.  A board or other entity whose licensees 
 71.16  perform work within a school facility, upon receiving a 
 71.17  complaint of alleged maltreatment, shall provide information 
 71.18  about the circumstances of the alleged maltreatment to the 
 71.19  commissioner of education.  Section 13.03, subdivision 4, 
 71.20  applies to data received by the commissioner of education from a 
 71.21  licensing entity.  
 71.22     (d) Any person mandated to report shall receive a summary 
 71.23  of the disposition of a family assessment or investigation 
 71.24  related to any report made by that reporter, including whether 
 71.25  the case has been opened for child protection or other services, 
 71.26  or if a referral has been made to a community organization, 
 71.27  unless release would be detrimental to the best interests of the 
 71.28  child.  Any person who is not mandated to report shall, upon 
 71.29  request to the local welfare agency, receive a concise summary 
 71.30  of the disposition of any report made by that reporter, unless 
 71.31  release would be detrimental to the best interests of the child. 
 71.32     (e) For purposes of this subdivision, "immediately" means 
 71.33  as soon as possible but in no event longer than 24 hours. 
 71.34     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 626.556, is 
 71.35  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
 71.36     Subd. 3d.  [AUTHORITY TO INTERVIEW.] The agency responsible 
 72.1   for assessing or investigating reports of child maltreatment has 
 72.2   the authority to interview the child, the person or persons 
 72.3   responsible for the child's care, the alleged perpetrator, and 
 72.4   any other person with knowledge of the abuse or neglect for the 
 72.5   purpose of gathering the facts, assessing safety and risk to the 
 72.6   child, and formulating a plan. 
 72.7      Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 72.8   626.556, subdivision 10, is amended to read: 
 72.9      Subd. 10.  [DUTIES OF LOCAL WELFARE AGENCY AND LOCAL LAW 
 72.10  ENFORCEMENT AGENCY UPON RECEIPT OF A REPORT.] (a) Upon receipt 
 72.11  of a report, the local welfare agency shall determine whether to 
 72.12  conduct a family assessment or an investigation as appropriate 
 72.13  to prevent or provide a remedy for child maltreatment.  The 
 72.14  local welfare agency: 
 72.15     (1) shall conduct an investigation on reports involving 
 72.16  substantial child endangerment; 
 72.17     (2) shall begin an immediate investigation if, at any time 
 72.18  when it is using a family assessment response, it determines 
 72.19  that there is reason to believe that substantial child 
 72.20  endangerment or a serious threat to the child's safety exists; 
 72.21     (3) may conduct a family assessment for reports that do not 
 72.22  allege substantial child endangerment.  In determining that a 
 72.23  family assessment is appropriate, the local welfare agency may 
 72.24  consider issues of child safety, parental cooperation, and the 
 72.25  need for an immediate response; and 
 72.26     (4) may conduct a family assessment on a report that was 
 72.27  initially screened and assigned for an investigation.  In 
 72.28  determining that a complete investigation is not required, the 
 72.29  local welfare agency must document the reason for terminating 
 72.30  the investigation and notify the local law enforcement agency if 
 72.31  the local law enforcement agency is conducting a joint 
 72.32  investigation. 
 72.33     If the report alleges neglect, physical abuse, or sexual 
 72.34  abuse by a parent, guardian, or individual functioning within 
 72.35  the family unit as a person responsible for the child's care, 
 72.36  the local welfare agency shall immediately conduct an a family 
 73.1   assessment including gathering or investigation as identified in 
 73.2   clauses (1) to (4).  In conducting a family assessment or 
 73.3   investigation, the local welfare agency shall gather information 
 73.4   on the existence of substance abuse and domestic violence and 
 73.5   offer protective social services for purposes of preventing 
 73.6   further abuses future child maltreatment, safeguarding and 
 73.7   enhancing the welfare of the abused or neglected minor, 
 73.8   and supporting and preserving family life whenever possible.  If 
 73.9   the report alleges a violation of a criminal statute involving 
 73.10  sexual abuse, physical abuse, or neglect or endangerment, under 
 73.11  section 609.378, the local law enforcement agency and local 
 73.12  welfare agency shall coordinate the planning and execution of 
 73.13  their respective investigation and assessment efforts to avoid a 
 73.14  duplication of fact-finding efforts and multiple interviews.  
 73.15  Each agency shall prepare a separate report of the results of 
 73.16  its investigation.  In cases of alleged child maltreatment 
 73.17  resulting in death, the local agency may rely on the 
 73.18  fact-finding efforts of a law enforcement investigation to make 
 73.19  a determination of whether or not maltreatment occurred.  When 
 73.20  necessary the local welfare agency shall seek authority to 
 73.21  remove the child from the custody of a parent, guardian, or 
 73.22  adult with whom the child is living.  In performing any of these 
 73.23  duties, the local welfare agency shall maintain appropriate 
 73.24  records.  
 73.25     If the family assessment or investigation indicates there 
 73.26  is a potential for abuse of alcohol or other drugs by the 
 73.27  parent, guardian, or person responsible for the child's care, 
 73.28  the local welfare agency shall conduct a chemical use assessment 
 73.29  pursuant to Minnesota Rules, part 9530.6615.  The local welfare 
 73.30  agency shall report the determination of the chemical use 
 73.31  assessment, and the recommendations and referrals for alcohol 
 73.32  and other drug treatment services to the state authority on 
 73.33  alcohol and drug abuse. 
 73.34     (b) When a local agency receives a report or otherwise has 
 73.35  information indicating that a child who is a client, as defined 
 73.36  in section 245.91, has been the subject of physical abuse, 
 74.1   sexual abuse, or neglect at an agency, facility, or program as 
 74.2   defined in section 245.91, it shall, in addition to its other 
 74.3   duties under this section, immediately inform the ombudsman 
 74.4   established under sections 245.91 to 245.97.  The commissioner 
 74.5   of education shall inform the ombudsman established under 
 74.6   sections 245.91 to 245.97 of reports regarding a child defined 
 74.7   as a client in section 245.91 that maltreatment occurred at a 
 74.8   school as defined in sections 120A.05, subdivisions 9, 11, and 
 74.9   13, and 124D.10. 
 74.10     (c) Authority of the local welfare agency responsible for 
 74.11  assessing or investigating the child abuse or neglect report, 
 74.12  the agency responsible for assessing or investigating the 
 74.13  report, and of the local law enforcement agency for 
 74.14  investigating the alleged abuse or neglect includes, but is not 
 74.15  limited to, authority to interview, without parental consent, 
 74.16  the alleged victim and any other minors who currently reside 
 74.17  with or who have resided with the alleged offender.  The 
 74.18  interview may take place at school or at any facility or other 
 74.19  place where the alleged victim or other minors might be found or 
 74.20  the child may be transported to, and the interview conducted at, 
 74.21  a place appropriate for the interview of a child designated by 
 74.22  the local welfare agency or law enforcement agency.  The 
 74.23  interview may take place outside the presence of the alleged 
 74.24  offender or parent, legal custodian, guardian, or school 
 74.25  official.  For family assessments, it is the preferred practice 
 74.26  to request a parent or guardian's permission to interview the 
 74.27  child prior to conducting the child interview, unless doing so 
 74.28  would compromise the safety assessment.  Except as provided in 
 74.29  this paragraph, the parent, legal custodian, or guardian shall 
 74.30  be notified by the responsible local welfare or law enforcement 
 74.31  agency no later than the conclusion of the investigation or 
 74.32  assessment that this interview has occurred.  Notwithstanding 
 74.33  rule 49.02 of the Minnesota Rules of Procedure for Juvenile 
 74.34  Courts, the juvenile court may, after hearing on an ex parte 
 74.35  motion by the local welfare agency, order that, where reasonable 
 74.36  cause exists, the agency withhold notification of this interview 
 75.1   from the parent, legal custodian, or guardian.  If the interview 
 75.2   took place or is to take place on school property, the order 
 75.3   shall specify that school officials may not disclose to the 
 75.4   parent, legal custodian, or guardian the contents of the 
 75.5   notification of intent to interview the child on school 
 75.6   property, as provided under this paragraph, and any other 
 75.7   related information regarding the interview that may be a part 
 75.8   of the child's school record.  A copy of the order shall be sent 
 75.9   by the local welfare or law enforcement agency to the 
 75.10  appropriate school official. 
 75.11     (d) When the local welfare, local law enforcement agency, 
 75.12  or the agency responsible for assessing or investigating a 
 75.13  report of maltreatment determines that an interview should take 
 75.14  place on school property, written notification of intent to 
 75.15  interview the child on school property must be received by 
 75.16  school officials prior to the interview.  The notification shall 
 75.17  include the name of the child to be interviewed, the purpose of 
 75.18  the interview, and a reference to the statutory authority to 
 75.19  conduct an interview on school property.  For interviews 
 75.20  conducted by the local welfare agency, the notification shall be 
 75.21  signed by the chair of the local social services agency or the 
 75.22  chair's designee.  The notification shall be private data on 
 75.23  individuals subject to the provisions of this paragraph.  School 
 75.24  officials may not disclose to the parent, legal custodian, or 
 75.25  guardian the contents of the notification or any other related 
 75.26  information regarding the interview until notified in writing by 
 75.27  the local welfare or law enforcement agency that the 
 75.28  investigation or assessment has been concluded, unless a school 
 75.29  employee or agent is alleged to have maltreated the child.  
 75.30  Until that time, the local welfare or law enforcement agency or 
 75.31  the agency responsible for assessing or investigating a report 
 75.32  of maltreatment shall be solely responsible for any disclosures 
 75.33  regarding the nature of the assessment or investigation.  
 75.34     Except where the alleged offender is believed to be a 
 75.35  school official or employee, the time and place, and manner of 
 75.36  the interview on school premises shall be within the discretion 
 76.1   of school officials, but the local welfare or law enforcement 
 76.2   agency shall have the exclusive authority to determine who may 
 76.3   attend the interview.  The conditions as to time, place, and 
 76.4   manner of the interview set by the school officials shall be 
 76.5   reasonable and the interview shall be conducted not more than 24 
 76.6   hours after the receipt of the notification unless another time 
 76.7   is considered necessary by agreement between the school 
 76.8   officials and the local welfare or law enforcement agency.  
 76.9   Where the school fails to comply with the provisions of this 
 76.10  paragraph, the juvenile court may order the school to comply.  
 76.11  Every effort must be made to reduce the disruption of the 
 76.12  educational program of the child, other students, or school 
 76.13  staff when an interview is conducted on school premises.  
 76.14     (e) Where the alleged offender or a person responsible for 
 76.15  the care of the alleged victim or other minor prevents access to 
 76.16  the victim or other minor by the local welfare agency, the 
 76.17  juvenile court may order the parents, legal custodian, or 
 76.18  guardian to produce the alleged victim or other minor for 
 76.19  questioning by the local welfare agency or the local law 
 76.20  enforcement agency outside the presence of the alleged offender 
 76.21  or any person responsible for the child's care at reasonable 
 76.22  places and times as specified by court order.  
 76.23     (f) Before making an order under paragraph (e), the court 
 76.24  shall issue an order to show cause, either upon its own motion 
 76.25  or upon a verified petition, specifying the basis for the 
 76.26  requested interviews and fixing the time and place of the 
 76.27  hearing.  The order to show cause shall be served personally and 
 76.28  shall be heard in the same manner as provided in other cases in 
 76.29  the juvenile court.  The court shall consider the need for 
 76.30  appointment of a guardian ad litem to protect the best interests 
 76.31  of the child.  If appointed, the guardian ad litem shall be 
 76.32  present at the hearing on the order to show cause.  
 76.33     (g) The commissioner of human services, the ombudsman for 
 76.34  mental health and mental retardation, the local welfare agencies 
 76.35  responsible for investigating reports, the commissioner of 
 76.36  education, and the local law enforcement agencies have the right 
 77.1   to enter facilities as defined in subdivision 2 and to inspect 
 77.2   and copy the facility's records, including medical records, as 
 77.3   part of the investigation.  Notwithstanding the provisions of 
 77.4   chapter 13, they also have the right to inform the facility 
 77.5   under investigation that they are conducting an investigation, 
 77.6   to disclose to the facility the names of the individuals under 
 77.7   investigation for abusing or neglecting a child, and to provide 
 77.8   the facility with a copy of the report and the investigative 
 77.9   findings. 
 77.10     (h) The local welfare agency or the agency responsible for 
 77.11  assessing or conducting a family assessment shall collect 
 77.12  available and relevant information to determine child safety, 
 77.13  risk of subsequent child maltreatment, and family strengths and 
 77.14  needs.  The local welfare agency or the agency responsible for 
 77.15  investigating the report shall collect available and relevant 
 77.16  information to ascertain whether maltreatment occurred and 
 77.17  whether protective services are needed.  Information collected 
 77.18  includes, when relevant, information with regard to the person 
 77.19  reporting the alleged maltreatment, including the nature of the 
 77.20  reporter's relationship to the child and to the alleged 
 77.21  offender, and the basis of the reporter's knowledge for the 
 77.22  report; the child allegedly being maltreated; the alleged 
 77.23  offender; the child's caretaker; and other collateral sources 
 77.24  having relevant information related to the alleged 
 77.25  maltreatment.  The local welfare agency or the agency 
 77.26  responsible for assessing or investigating the report may make a 
 77.27  determination of no maltreatment early in an assessment, and 
 77.28  close the case and retain immunity, if the collected information 
 77.29  shows no basis for a full assessment or investigation. 
 77.30     Information relevant to the assessment or investigation 
 77.31  must be asked for, and may include: 
 77.32     (1) the child's sex and age, prior reports of maltreatment, 
 77.33  information relating to developmental functioning, credibility 
 77.34  of the child's statement, and whether the information provided 
 77.35  under this clause is consistent with other information collected 
 77.36  during the course of the assessment or investigation; 
 78.1      (2) the alleged offender's age, a record check for prior 
 78.2   reports of maltreatment, and criminal charges and convictions.  
 78.3   The local welfare agency or the agency responsible for assessing 
 78.4   or investigating the report must provide the alleged offender 
 78.5   with an opportunity to make a statement.  The alleged offender 
 78.6   may submit supporting documentation relevant to the assessment 
 78.7   or investigation; 
 78.8      (3) collateral source information regarding the alleged 
 78.9   maltreatment and care of the child.  Collateral information 
 78.10  includes, when relevant:  (i) a medical examination of the 
 78.11  child; (ii) prior medical records relating to the alleged 
 78.12  maltreatment or the care of the child maintained by any 
 78.13  facility, clinic, or health care professional and an interview 
 78.14  with the treating professionals; and (iii) interviews with the 
 78.15  child's caretakers, including the child's parent, guardian, 
 78.16  foster parent, child care provider, teachers, counselors, family 
 78.17  members, relatives, and other persons who may have knowledge 
 78.18  regarding the alleged maltreatment and the care of the child; 
 78.19  and 
 78.20     (4) information on the existence of domestic abuse and 
 78.21  violence in the home of the child, and substance abuse. 
 78.22     Nothing in this paragraph precludes the local welfare 
 78.23  agency, the local law enforcement agency, or the agency 
 78.24  responsible for assessing or investigating the report from 
 78.25  collecting other relevant information necessary to conduct the 
 78.26  assessment or investigation.  Notwithstanding section 13.384 or 
 78.27  144.335, the local welfare agency has access to medical data and 
 78.28  records for purposes of clause (3).  Notwithstanding the data's 
 78.29  classification in the possession of any other agency, data 
 78.30  acquired by the local welfare agency or the agency responsible 
 78.31  for assessing or investigating the report during the course of 
 78.32  the assessment or investigation are private data on individuals 
 78.33  and must be maintained in accordance with subdivision 11.  Data 
 78.34  of the commissioner of education collected or maintained during 
 78.35  and for the purpose of an investigation of alleged maltreatment 
 78.36  in a school are governed by this section, notwithstanding the 
 79.1   data's classification as educational, licensing, or personnel 
 79.2   data under chapter 13. 
 79.3      In conducting an assessment or investigation involving a 
 79.4   school facility as defined in subdivision 2, paragraph (f) (i), 
 79.5   the commissioner of education shall collect investigative 
 79.6   reports and data that are relevant to a report of maltreatment 
 79.7   and are from local law enforcement and the school facility.  
 79.8      (i) In the initial stages of an assessment or 
 79.9   investigation, the local welfare agency shall conduct a 
 79.10  face-to-face observation of the child reported to be maltreated 
 79.11  and a face-to-face interview of the alleged offender.  At the 
 79.12  initial contact, the local child welfare agency or the agency 
 79.13  responsible for assessing or investigating the report must 
 79.14  inform the alleged offender of the complaints or allegations 
 79.15  made against the individual in a manner consistent with laws 
 79.16  protecting the rights of the person who made the report.  The 
 79.17  interview with the alleged offender may be postponed if it would 
 79.18  jeopardize an active law enforcement investigation. 
 79.19     (j) When conducting an investigation, the local welfare 
 79.20  agency shall use a question and answer interviewing format with 
 79.21  questioning as nondirective as possible to elicit spontaneous 
 79.22  responses.  For investigations only, the following interviewing 
 79.23  methods and procedures must be used whenever possible when 
 79.24  collecting information: 
 79.25     (1) audio recordings of all interviews with witnesses and 
 79.26  collateral sources; and 
 79.27     (2) in cases of alleged sexual abuse, audio-video 
 79.28  recordings of each interview with the alleged victim and child 
 79.29  witnesses.  
 79.30     (k) In conducting an assessment or investigation involving 
 79.31  a school facility as defined in subdivision 2, 
 79.32  paragraph (f) (i), the commissioner of education shall collect 
 79.33  available and relevant information and use the procedures in 
 79.34  paragraphs (h), (i), (k), and (j) subdivision 3d, provided that 
 79.35  the commissioner may also base the assessment or investigation 
 79.36  on investigative reports and data received from the school 
 80.1   facility and local law enforcement, to the extent those 
 80.2   investigations satisfy the requirements of 
 80.3   paragraphs (h), (i), (k), and (j) subdivision 3d. 
 80.4      Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 80.5   626.556, subdivision 10b, is amended to read: 
 80.6      Subd. 10b.  [DUTIES OF COMMISSIONER; NEGLECT OR ABUSE IN 
 80.7   FACILITY.] (a) This section applies to the commissioners of 
 80.8   human services, health, and education.  The commissioner of the 
 80.9   agency responsible for assessing or investigating the report 
 80.10  shall immediately assess or investigate if the report alleges 
 80.11  that: 
 80.12     (1) a child who is in the care of a facility as defined in 
 80.13  subdivision 2 is neglected, physically abused, sexually abused, 
 80.14  or is the victim of maltreatment in a facility by an individual 
 80.15  in that facility, or has been so neglected or abused, or been 
 80.16  the victim of maltreatment in a facility by an individual in 
 80.17  that facility within the three years preceding the report; or 
 80.18     (2) a child was neglected, physically abused, sexually 
 80.19  abused, or is the victim of maltreatment in a facility by an 
 80.20  individual in a facility defined in subdivision 2, while in the 
 80.21  care of that facility within the three years preceding the 
 80.22  report.  
 80.23     The commissioner of the agency responsible for assessing or 
 80.24  investigating the report shall arrange for the transmittal to 
 80.25  the commissioner of reports received by local agencies and may 
 80.26  delegate to a local welfare agency the duty to investigate 
 80.27  reports.  In conducting an investigation under this section, the 
 80.28  commissioner has the powers and duties specified for local 
 80.29  welfare agencies under this section.  The commissioner of the 
 80.30  agency responsible for assessing or investigating the report or 
 80.31  local welfare agency may interview any children who are or have 
 80.32  been in the care of a facility under investigation and their 
 80.33  parents, guardians, or legal custodians. 
 80.34     (b) Prior to any interview, the commissioner of the agency 
 80.35  responsible for assessing or investigating the report or local 
 80.36  welfare agency shall notify the parent, guardian, or legal 
 81.1   custodian of a child who will be interviewed in the manner 
 81.2   provided for in subdivision 10d, paragraph (a).  If reasonable 
 81.3   efforts to reach the parent, guardian, or legal custodian of a 
 81.4   child in an out-of-home placement have failed, the child may be 
 81.5   interviewed if there is reason to believe the interview is 
 81.6   necessary to protect the child or other children in the 
 81.7   facility.  The commissioner of the agency responsible for 
 81.8   assessing or investigating the report or local agency must 
 81.9   provide the information required in this subdivision to the 
 81.10  parent, guardian, or legal custodian of a child interviewed 
 81.11  without parental notification as soon as possible after the 
 81.12  interview.  When the investigation is completed, any parent, 
 81.13  guardian, or legal custodian notified under this subdivision 
 81.14  shall receive the written memorandum provided for in subdivision 
 81.15  10d, paragraph (c). 
 81.16     (c) In conducting investigations under this subdivision the 
 81.17  commissioner or local welfare agency shall obtain access to 
 81.18  information consistent with subdivision 10, paragraphs (h), (i), 
 81.19  and (j).  In conducting assessments or investigations under this 
 81.20  subdivision, the commissioner of education shall obtain access 
 81.21  to reports and investigative data that are relevant to a report 
 81.22  of maltreatment and are in the possession of a school facility 
 81.23  as defined in subdivision 2, paragraph (f) (i), notwithstanding 
 81.24  the classification of the data as educational or personnel data 
 81.25  under chapter 13.  This includes, but is not limited to, school 
 81.26  investigative reports, information concerning the conduct of 
 81.27  school personnel alleged to have committed maltreatment of 
 81.28  students, information about witnesses, and any protective or 
 81.29  corrective action taken by the school facility regarding the 
 81.30  school personnel alleged to have committed maltreatment. 
 81.31     (d) The commissioner may request assistance from the local 
 81.32  social services agency. 
 81.33     Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 81.34  626.556, subdivision 10e, is amended to read: 
 81.35     Subd. 10e.  [DETERMINATIONS.] Upon the conclusion of every 
 81.36  assessment or investigation it conducts, (a) After conducting a 
 82.1   family assessment, the local welfare agency shall determine 
 82.2   whether services are needed to address the safety of the child 
 82.3   and other family members, the risk of subsequent maltreatment, 
 82.4   and threats to family and child well being.  
 82.5      (b) After conducting an investigation, the local welfare 
 82.6   agency shall make two determinations:  first, whether 
 82.7   maltreatment has occurred; and second, whether child protective 
 82.8   services are needed.  Upon the conclusion of 
 82.9      (c) If the commissioner of education conducts an assessment 
 82.10  or investigation by, the commissioner of education, the 
 82.11  commissioner shall determine whether maltreatment occurred and 
 82.12  what corrective or protective action was taken by the school 
 82.13  facility.  If a determination is made that maltreatment has 
 82.14  occurred, the commissioner shall report to the employer, the 
 82.15  school board, and any appropriate licensing entity the 
 82.16  determination that maltreatment occurred and what corrective or 
 82.17  protective action was taken by the school facility.  In all 
 82.18  other cases, the commissioner shall inform the school board or 
 82.19  employer that a report was received, the subject of the report, 
 82.20  the date of the initial report, the category of maltreatment 
 82.21  alleged as defined in paragraph (a) (d), the fact that 
 82.22  maltreatment was not determined, and a summary of the specific 
 82.23  reasons for the determination.  
 82.24     (d) When maltreatment is determined in an investigation 
 82.25  involving a facility, the investigating agency shall also 
 82.26  determine whether the facility or individual was responsible, or 
 82.27  whether both the facility and the individual were responsible 
 82.28  for the maltreatment using the mitigating factors in 
 82.29  paragraph (d) (h).  Determinations under this subdivision must 
 82.30  be made based on a preponderance of the evidence and are private 
 82.31  data on individuals or nonpublic data as maintained by the 
 82.32  commissioner of education.  
 82.33     (a) (e) For the purposes of this subdivision, "maltreatment"
 82.34  means any of the following acts or omissions: 
 82.35     (1) physical abuse as defined in subdivision 2, paragraph 
 82.36  (d) (g); 
 83.1      (2) neglect as defined in subdivision 2, paragraph (c) (f); 
 83.2      (3) sexual abuse as defined in subdivision 2, paragraph 
 83.3   (a) (d); 
 83.4      (4) mental injury as defined in subdivision 2, paragraph 
 83.5   (k) (m); or 
 83.6      (5) maltreatment of a child in a facility as defined in 
 83.7   subdivision 2, paragraph (f) (i). 
 83.8      (b) (f) For the purposes of this subdivision, a 
 83.9   determination that child protective services are needed means 
 83.10  that the local welfare agency has documented conditions during 
 83.11  the assessment or investigation sufficient to cause a child 
 83.12  protection worker, as defined in section 626.559, subdivision 1, 
 83.13  to conclude that a child is at significant risk of maltreatment 
 83.14  if protective intervention is not provided and that the 
 83.15  individuals responsible for the child's care have not taken or 
 83.16  are not likely to take actions to protect the child from 
 83.17  maltreatment or risk of maltreatment. 
 83.18     (c) (g) This subdivision does not mean that maltreatment 
 83.19  has occurred solely because the child's parent, guardian, or 
 83.20  other person responsible for the child's care in good faith 
 83.21  selects and depends upon spiritual means or prayer for treatment 
 83.22  or care of disease or remedial care of the child, in lieu of 
 83.23  medical care.  However, if lack of medical care may result in 
 83.24  serious danger to the child's health, the local welfare agency 
 83.25  may ensure that necessary medical services are provided to the 
 83.26  child. 
 83.27     (d) (h) When determining whether the facility or individual 
 83.28  is the responsible party for determined maltreatment in a 
 83.29  facility, the investigating agency shall consider at least the 
 83.30  following mitigating factors: 
 83.31     (1) whether the actions of the facility or the individual 
 83.32  caregivers were according to, and followed the terms of, an 
 83.33  erroneous physician order, prescription, individual care plan, 
 83.34  or directive; however, this is not a mitigating factor when the 
 83.35  facility or caregiver was responsible for the issuance of the 
 83.36  erroneous order, prescription, individual care plan, or 
 84.1   directive or knew or should have known of the errors and took no 
 84.2   reasonable measures to correct the defect before administering 
 84.3   care; 
 84.4      (2) comparative responsibility between the facility, other 
 84.5   caregivers, and requirements placed upon an employee, including 
 84.6   the facility's compliance with related regulatory standards and 
 84.7   the adequacy of facility policies and procedures, facility 
 84.8   training, an individual's participation in the training, the 
 84.9   caregiver's supervision, and facility staffing levels and the 
 84.10  scope of the individual employee's authority and discretion; and 
 84.11     (3) whether the facility or individual followed 
 84.12  professional standards in exercising professional judgment. 
 84.13     (i) Individual counties may implement more detailed 
 84.14  definitions or criteria that indicate which allegations to 
 84.15  investigate, as long as a county's policies are consistent with 
 84.16  the definitions in the statutes and rules and are approved by 
 84.17  the county board.  Each local welfare agency shall periodically 
 84.18  inform mandated reporters under subdivision 3 who work in the 
 84.19  county of the definitions of maltreatment in the statutes and 
 84.20  rules and any additional definitions or criteria that have been 
 84.21  approved by the county board. 
 84.22     Sec. 8.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 626.556, 
 84.23  subdivision 10f, is amended to read: 
 84.24     Subd. 10f.  [NOTICE OF DETERMINATIONS.] Within ten working 
 84.25  days of the conclusion of a family assessment, the local welfare 
 84.26  agency shall notify the parent or guardian of the child of the 
 84.27  need for services to address child safety concerns or 
 84.28  significant risk of subsequent child maltreatment.  The local 
 84.29  welfare agency and the family may also jointly agree that family 
 84.30  support and family preservation services are needed.  Within ten 
 84.31  working days of the conclusion of an assessment investigation, 
 84.32  the local welfare agency or agency responsible for assessing or 
 84.33  investigating the report shall notify the parent or guardian of 
 84.34  the child, the person determined to be maltreating the child, 
 84.35  and if applicable, the director of the facility, of the 
 84.36  determination and a summary of the specific reasons for the 
 85.1   determination.  The notice must also include a certification 
 85.2   that the information collection procedures under subdivision 10, 
 85.3   paragraphs (h), (i), and (j), were followed and a notice of the 
 85.4   right of a data subject to obtain access to other private data 
 85.5   on the subject collected, created, or maintained under this 
 85.6   section.  In addition, the notice shall include the length of 
 85.7   time that the records will be kept under subdivision 11c.  The 
 85.8   investigating agency shall notify the parent or guardian of the 
 85.9   child who is the subject of the report, and any person or 
 85.10  facility determined to have maltreated a child, of their appeal 
 85.11  or review rights under this section or section 256.022. 
 85.12     Sec. 9.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 85.13  626.556, subdivision 10i, is amended to read: 
 85.14     Subd. 10i.  [ADMINISTRATIVE RECONSIDERATION OF FINAL 
 85.15  DETERMINATION OF MALTREATMENT AND DISQUALIFICATION BASED ON 
 85.16  SERIOUS OR RECURRING MALTREATMENT; REVIEW PANEL.] 
 85.17  (a) Administrative reconsideration is not applicable in family 
 85.18  assessments since no determination concerning maltreatment is 
 85.19  made.  For investigations, except as provided under paragraph 
 85.20  (e), an individual or facility that the commissioner of human 
 85.21  services, a local social service agency, or the commissioner of 
 85.22  education determines has maltreated a child, an interested 
 85.23  person acting on behalf of the child, regardless of the 
 85.24  determination, who contests the investigating agency's final 
 85.25  determination regarding maltreatment, may request the 
 85.26  investigating agency to reconsider its final determination 
 85.27  regarding maltreatment.  The request for reconsideration must be 
 85.28  submitted in writing to the investigating agency within 15 
 85.29  calendar days after receipt of notice of the final determination 
 85.30  regarding maltreatment or, if the request is made by an 
 85.31  interested person who is not entitled to notice, within 15 days 
 85.32  after receipt of the notice by the parent or guardian of the 
 85.33  child.  Effective January 1, 2002, an individual who was 
 85.34  determined to have maltreated a child under this section and who 
 85.35  was disqualified on the basis of serious or recurring 
 85.36  maltreatment under sections 245C.14 and 245C.15, may request 
 86.1   reconsideration of the maltreatment determination and the 
 86.2   disqualification.  The request for reconsideration of the 
 86.3   maltreatment determination and the disqualification must be 
 86.4   submitted within 30 calendar days of the individual's receipt of 
 86.5   the notice of disqualification under sections 245C.16 and 
 86.6   245C.17. 
 86.7      (b) Except as provided under paragraphs (e) and (f), if the 
 86.8   investigating agency denies the request or fails to act upon the 
 86.9   request within 15 calendar days after receiving the request for 
 86.10  reconsideration, the person or facility entitled to a fair 
 86.11  hearing under section 256.045 may submit to the commissioner of 
 86.12  human services or the commissioner of education a written 
 86.13  request for a hearing under that section.  Section 256.045 also 
 86.14  governs hearings requested to contest a final determination of 
 86.15  the commissioner of education.  For reports involving 
 86.16  maltreatment of a child in a facility, an interested person 
 86.17  acting on behalf of the child may request a review by the Child 
 86.18  Maltreatment Review Panel under section 256.022 if the 
 86.19  investigating agency denies the request or fails to act upon the 
 86.20  request or if the interested person contests a reconsidered 
 86.21  determination.  The investigating agency shall notify persons 
 86.22  who request reconsideration of their rights under this 
 86.23  paragraph.  The request must be submitted in writing to the 
 86.24  review panel and a copy sent to the investigating agency within 
 86.25  30 calendar days of receipt of notice of a denial of a request 
 86.26  for reconsideration or of a reconsidered determination.  The 
 86.27  request must specifically identify the aspects of the agency 
 86.28  determination with which the person is dissatisfied. 
 86.29     (c) If, as a result of a reconsideration or review, the 
 86.30  investigating agency changes the final determination of 
 86.31  maltreatment, that agency shall notify the parties specified in 
 86.32  subdivisions 10b, 10d, and 10f. 
 86.33     (d) Except as provided under paragraph (f), if an 
 86.34  individual or facility contests the investigating agency's final 
 86.35  determination regarding maltreatment by requesting a fair 
 86.36  hearing under section 256.045, the commissioner of human 
 87.1   services shall assure that the hearing is conducted and a 
 87.2   decision is reached within 90 days of receipt of the request for 
 87.3   a hearing.  The time for action on the decision may be extended 
 87.4   for as many days as the hearing is postponed or the record is 
 87.5   held open for the benefit of either party. 
 87.6      (e) Effective January 1, 2002, if an individual was 
 87.7   disqualified under sections 245C.14 and 245C.15, on the basis of 
 87.8   a determination of maltreatment, which was serious or recurring, 
 87.9   and the individual has requested reconsideration of the 
 87.10  maltreatment determination under paragraph (a) and requested 
 87.11  reconsideration of the disqualification under sections 245C.21 
 87.12  to 245C.27, reconsideration of the maltreatment determination 
 87.13  and reconsideration of the disqualification shall be 
 87.14  consolidated into a single reconsideration.  If reconsideration 
 87.15  of the maltreatment determination is denied or the 
 87.16  disqualification is not set aside or rescinded under sections 
 87.17  245C.21 to 245C.27, the individual may request a fair hearing 
 87.18  under section 256.045.  If an individual requests a fair hearing 
 87.19  on the maltreatment determination and the disqualification, the 
 87.20  scope of the fair hearing shall include both the maltreatment 
 87.21  determination and the disqualification. 
 87.22     (f) Effective January 1, 2002, if a maltreatment 
 87.23  determination or a disqualification based on serious or 
 87.24  recurring maltreatment is the basis for a denial of a license 
 87.25  under section 245A.05 or a licensing sanction under section 
 87.26  245A.07, the license holder has the right to a contested case 
 87.27  hearing under chapter 14 and Minnesota Rules, parts 1400.8510 to 
 87.28  1400.8612 and successor rules.  As provided for under section 
 87.29  245A.08, subdivision 2a, the scope of the contested case hearing 
 87.30  shall include the maltreatment determination, disqualification, 
 87.31  and licensing sanction or denial of a license.  In such cases, a 
 87.32  fair hearing regarding the maltreatment determination shall not 
 87.33  be conducted under paragraph (b).  If the disqualified subject 
 87.34  is an individual other than the license holder and upon whom a 
 87.35  background study must be conducted under chapter 245C, the 
 87.36  hearings of all parties may be consolidated into a single 
 88.1   contested case hearing upon consent of all parties and the 
 88.2   administrative law judge. 
 88.3      (g) For purposes of this subdivision, "interested person 
 88.4   acting on behalf of the child" means a parent or legal guardian; 
 88.5   stepparent; grandparent; guardian ad litem; adult stepbrother, 
 88.6   stepsister, or sibling; or adult aunt or uncle; unless the 
 88.7   person has been determined to be the perpetrator of the 
 88.8   maltreatment. 
 88.9      Sec. 10.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 626.556, is 
 88.10  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
 88.11     Subd. 10l.  [DOCUMENTATION.] When a case is closed that has 
 88.12  been open for services, the local welfare agency shall document 
 88.13  the outcome of the family assessment or investigation, including 
 88.14  a description of services provided and the removal or reduction 
 88.15  of risk to the child, if it existed. 
 88.16     Sec. 11.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 88.17  626.556, subdivision 11, is amended to read: 
 88.18     Subd. 11.  [RECORDS.] (a) Except as provided in paragraph 
 88.19  (b) or (d) and subdivisions 10b, 10d, 10g, and 11b, all records 
 88.20  concerning individuals maintained by a local welfare agency or 
 88.21  agency responsible for assessing or investigating the report 
 88.22  under this section, including any written reports filed under 
 88.23  subdivision 7, shall be private data on individuals, except 
 88.24  insofar as copies of reports are required by subdivision 7 to be 
 88.25  sent to the local police department or the county sheriff.  All 
 88.26  records concerning determinations of maltreatment by a facility 
 88.27  are nonpublic data as maintained by the Department of Education, 
 88.28  except insofar as copies of reports are required by subdivision 
 88.29  7 to be sent to the local police department or the county 
 88.30  sheriff.  Reports maintained by any police department or the 
 88.31  county sheriff shall be private data on individuals except the 
 88.32  reports shall be made available to the investigating, 
 88.33  petitioning, or prosecuting authority, including county medical 
 88.34  examiners or county coroners.  Section 13.82, subdivisions 8, 9, 
 88.35  and 14, apply to law enforcement data other than the reports.  
 88.36  The local social services agency or agency responsible for 
 89.1   assessing or investigating the report shall make available to 
 89.2   the investigating, petitioning, or prosecuting authority, 
 89.3   including county medical examiners or county coroners or their 
 89.4   professional delegates, any records which contain information 
 89.5   relating to a specific incident of neglect or abuse which is 
 89.6   under investigation, petition, or prosecution and information 
 89.7   relating to any prior incidents of neglect or abuse involving 
 89.8   any of the same persons.  The records shall be collected and 
 89.9   maintained in accordance with the provisions of chapter 13.  In 
 89.10  conducting investigations and assessments pursuant to this 
 89.11  section, the notice required by section 13.04, subdivision 2, 
 89.12  need not be provided to a minor under the age of ten who is the 
 89.13  alleged victim of abuse or neglect.  An individual subject of a 
 89.14  record shall have access to the record in accordance with those 
 89.15  sections, except that the name of the reporter shall be 
 89.16  confidential while the report is under assessment or 
 89.17  investigation except as otherwise permitted by this 
 89.18  subdivision.  Any person conducting an investigation or 
 89.19  assessment under this section who intentionally discloses the 
 89.20  identity of a reporter prior to the completion of the 
 89.21  investigation or assessment is guilty of a misdemeanor.  After 
 89.22  the assessment or investigation is completed, the name of the 
 89.23  reporter shall be confidential.  The subject of the report may 
 89.24  compel disclosure of the name of the reporter only with the 
 89.25  consent of the reporter or upon a written finding by the court 
 89.26  that the report was false and that there is evidence that the 
 89.27  report was made in bad faith.  This subdivision does not alter 
 89.28  disclosure responsibilities or obligations under the Rules of 
 89.29  Criminal Procedure. 
 89.30     (b) Upon request of the legislative auditor, data on 
 89.31  individuals maintained under this section must be released to 
 89.32  the legislative auditor in order for the auditor to fulfill the 
 89.33  auditor's duties under section 3.971.  The auditor shall 
 89.34  maintain the data in accordance with chapter 13.  
 89.35     (c) The commissioner of education must be provided with all 
 89.36  requested data that are relevant to a report of maltreatment and 
 90.1   are in possession of a school facility as defined in subdivision 
 90.2   2, paragraph (f) (i), when the data is requested pursuant to an 
 90.3   assessment or investigation of a maltreatment report of a 
 90.4   student in a school.  If the commissioner of education makes a 
 90.5   determination of maltreatment involving an individual performing 
 90.6   work within a school facility who is licensed by a board or 
 90.7   other agency, the commissioner shall provide necessary and 
 90.8   relevant information to the licensing entity to enable the 
 90.9   entity to fulfill its statutory duties.  Notwithstanding section 
 90.10  13.03, subdivision 4, data received by a licensing entity under 
 90.11  this paragraph are governed by section 13.41 or other applicable 
 90.12  law governing data of the receiving entity, except that this 
 90.13  section applies to the classification of and access to data on 
 90.14  the reporter of the maltreatment. 
 90.15     (d) The investigating agency shall exchange not public data 
 90.16  with the Child Maltreatment Review Panel under section 256.022 
 90.17  if the data are pertinent and necessary for a review requested 
 90.18  under section 256.022.  Upon completion of the review, the not 
 90.19  public data received by the review panel must be returned to the 
 90.20  investigating agency. 
 90.21     Sec. 12.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 626.556, 
 90.22  subdivision 11c, is amended to read: 
 90.23     Subd. 11c.  [WELFARE, COURT SERVICES AGENCY, AND SCHOOL 
 90.24  RECORDS MAINTAINED.] Notwithstanding sections 138.163 and 
 90.25  138.17, records maintained or records derived from reports of 
 90.26  abuse by local welfare agencies, agencies responsible for 
 90.27  assessing or investigating the report, court services agencies, 
 90.28  or schools under this section shall be destroyed as provided in 
 90.29  paragraphs (a) to (d) by the responsible authority. 
 90.30     (a) If upon For family assessment or cases and cases where 
 90.31  an investigation there is results in no determination of 
 90.32  maltreatment or the need for child protective services, 
 90.33  the assessment or investigation records must be maintained for a 
 90.34  period of four years.  Records under this paragraph may not be 
 90.35  used for employment, background checks, or purposes other than 
 90.36  to assist in future risk and safety assessments. 
 91.1      (b) All records relating to reports which, upon assessment 
 91.2   or investigation, indicate either maltreatment or a need for 
 91.3   child protective services shall be maintained for at least ten 
 91.4   years after the date of the final entry in the case record. 
 91.5      (c) All records regarding a report of maltreatment, 
 91.6   including any notification of intent to interview which was 
 91.7   received by a school under subdivision 10, paragraph (d), shall 
 91.8   be destroyed by the school when ordered to do so by the agency 
 91.9   conducting the assessment or investigation.  The agency shall 
 91.10  order the destruction of the notification when other records 
 91.11  relating to the report under investigation or assessment are 
 91.12  destroyed under this subdivision. 
 91.13     (d) Private or confidential data released to a court 
 91.14  services agency under subdivision 10h must be destroyed by the 
 91.15  court services agency when ordered to do so by the local welfare 
 91.16  agency that released the data.  The local welfare agency or 
 91.17  agency responsible for assessing or investigating the report 
 91.18  shall order destruction of the data when other records relating 
 91.19  to the assessment or investigation are destroyed under this 
 91.20  subdivision. 
 91.21     Sec. 13.  [REPEALER.] 
 91.22     (a) Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 626.5551, subdivisions 
 91.23  1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, are repealed. 
 91.24     (b) Minnesota Rules, part 9560.0220, subpart 6, item B, is 
 91.25  repealed. 
 91.26                             ARTICLE 4 
 91.27                         ECONOMIC SUPPORTS 
 91.28     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 256D.06, 
 91.29  subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
 91.30     Subd. 5.  [ELIGIBILITY; REQUIREMENTS.] (a) Any applicant, 
 91.31  otherwise eligible for general assistance and possibly eligible 
 91.32  for maintenance benefits from any other source shall (a) (1) 
 91.33  make application for those benefits within 30 days of the 
 91.34  general assistance application; and (b) (2) execute an interim 
 91.35  assistance authorization agreement on a form as directed by the 
 91.36  commissioner.  
 92.1      (b) The commissioner shall review a denial of an 
 92.2   application for other maintenance benefits and may require a 
 92.3   recipient of general assistance to file an appeal of the denial 
 92.4   if appropriate.  If found eligible for benefits from other 
 92.5   sources, and a payment received from another source relates to 
 92.6   the period during which general assistance was also being 
 92.7   received, the recipient shall be required to reimburse the 
 92.8   county agency for the interim assistance paid.  Reimbursement 
 92.9   shall not exceed the amount of general assistance paid during 
 92.10  the time period to which the other maintenance benefits apply 
 92.11  and shall not exceed the state standard applicable to that time 
 92.12  period.  The commissioner shall adopt rules authorizing county 
 92.13  agencies or other client representatives to retain from the 
 92.14  amount recovered under an interim assistance agreement 25 
 92.15  percent plus actual reasonable fees, costs, and disbursements of 
 92.16  appeals and litigation, of providing special assistance to the 
 92.17  recipient in processing the recipient's claim for maintenance 
 92.18  benefits from another source.  The money retained under this 
 92.19  section shall be from the state share of the recovery.  The 
 92.20  commissioner or the county agency may contract with qualified 
 92.21  persons to provide the special assistance.  
 92.22     (c) The commissioner may contract with qualified agencies, 
 92.23  organizations, or persons to provide advocacy and support 
 92.24  services to process claims for federal disability benefits for 
 92.25  recipients of services or benefits supervised by the 
 92.26  commissioner. 
 92.27     (1) For interim assistance recipients, the commissioner may 
 92.28  contract with county agencies or other client representatives to 
 92.29  retain from the amount recovered under an interim assistance 
 92.30  agreement 25 percent plus actual reasonable fees, costs, and 
 92.31  disbursements of appeals and litigation, and for providing 
 92.32  advocacy and support services.  The money retained under this 
 92.33  clause shall be from the state's share of the recovery. 
 92.34     (2) For other recipients, to the extent funds are 
 92.35  available, the commissioner may reimburse client representatives 
 92.36  for actual reasonable fees, costs, and disbursements of appeals 
 93.1   and litigation, and for providing advocacy and support services. 
 93.2      (d) The rules adopted by the commissioner shall include the 
 93.3   may provide methods by which for county agencies shall to 
 93.4   identify, refer, and assist recipients who may be eligible for 
 93.5   benefits under federal programs for the disabled.  This 
 93.6   subdivision does not require repayment of per diem payments made 
 93.7   to shelters for battered women pursuant to section 256D.05, 
 93.8   subdivision 3. 
 93.9      Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 93.10  256J.40, is amended to read: 
 93.11     256J.40 [FAIR HEARINGS.] 
 93.12     Caregivers receiving a notice of intent to sanction or a 
 93.13  notice of adverse action that includes a sanction, reduction in 
 93.14  benefits, suspension of benefits, denial of benefits, or 
 93.15  termination of benefits may request a fair hearing.  A request 
 93.16  for a fair hearing must be submitted in writing to the county 
 93.17  agency or to the commissioner and must be mailed within 30 days 
 93.18  after a participant or former participant receives written 
 93.19  notice of the agency's action or within 90 days when a 
 93.20  participant or former participant shows good cause for not 
 93.21  submitting the request within 30 days.  A former participant who 
 93.22  receives a notice of adverse action due to an overpayment may 
 93.23  appeal the adverse action according to the requirements in this 
 93.24  section.  Issues that may be appealed are: 
 93.25     (1) the amount of the assistance payment; 
 93.26     (2) a suspension, reduction, denial, or termination of 
 93.27  assistance; 
 93.28     (3) the basis for an overpayment, the calculated amount of 
 93.29  an overpayment, and the level of recoupment; 
 93.30     (4) the eligibility for an assistance payment; and 
 93.31     (5) the use of protective or vendor payments under section 
 93.32  256J.39, subdivision 2, clauses (1) to (3). 
 93.33     Except for benefits issued under section 256J.95, a county 
 93.34  agency must not reduce, suspend, or terminate payment when an 
 93.35  aggrieved participant requests a fair hearing prior to the 
 93.36  effective date of the adverse action or within ten days of the 
 94.1   mailing of the notice of adverse action, whichever is later, 
 94.2   unless the participant requests in writing not to receive 
 94.3   continued assistance pending a hearing decision.  An appeal 
 94.4   request cannot extend benefits for the diversionary work program 
 94.5   under section 256J.95 beyond the four-month time limit.  
 94.6   Assistance issued pending a fair hearing is subject to recovery 
 94.7   under section 256J.38 when as a result of the fair hearing 
 94.8   decision the participant is determined ineligible for assistance 
 94.9   or the amount of the assistance received.  A county agency may 
 94.10  increase or reduce an assistance payment while an appeal is 
 94.11  pending when the circumstances of the participant change and are 
 94.12  not related to the issue on appeal.  The commissioner's order is 
 94.13  binding on a county agency.  No additional notice is required to 
 94.14  enforce the commissioner's order. 
 94.15     A county agency shall reimburse appellants for reasonable 
 94.16  and necessary expenses of attendance at the hearing, such as 
 94.17  child care and transportation costs and for the transportation 
 94.18  expenses of the appellant's witnesses and representatives to and 
 94.19  from the hearing.  Reasonable and necessary expenses do not 
 94.20  include legal fees.  Fair hearings must be conducted at a 
 94.21  reasonable time and date by an impartial referee employed by the 
 94.22  department.  The hearing may be conducted by telephone or at a 
 94.23  site that is readily accessible to persons with disabilities. 
 94.24     The appellant may introduce new or additional evidence 
 94.25  relevant to the issues on appeal.  Recommendations of the 
 94.26  appeals referee and decisions of the commissioner must be based 
 94.27  on evidence in the hearing record and are not limited to a 
 94.28  review of the county agency action. 
 94.29     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 94.30  256J.425, subdivision 7, is amended to read: 
 94.31     Subd. 7.  [STATUS OF DISQUALIFIED PARTICIPANTS.] (a) An 
 94.32  assistance unit that is disqualified under subdivision 6, 
 94.33  paragraph (a), may be approved for MFIP if the participant 
 94.34  complies with MFIP program requirements and demonstrates 
 94.35  compliance for up to one month.  No assistance shall be paid 
 94.36  during this period. 
 95.1      (b) An assistance unit that is disqualified under 
 95.2   subdivision 6, paragraph (a), and that reapplies under paragraph 
 95.3   (a) is subject to sanction under section 256J.46, subdivision 1, 
 95.4   paragraph (c), clause (1) (2), for a first occurrence of 
 95.5   noncompliance.  A subsequent occurrence of noncompliance results 
 95.6   in a permanent disqualification. 
 95.7      (c) If one participant in a two-parent assistance unit 
 95.8   receiving assistance under a hardship extension under 
 95.9   subdivision 3 or 4 is determined to be out of compliance with 
 95.10  the employment and training services requirements under sections 
 95.11  256J.521 to 256J.57, the county shall give the assistance unit 
 95.12  the option of disqualifying the noncompliant participant from 
 95.13  MFIP.  In that case, the assistance unit shall be treated as a 
 95.14  one-parent assistance unit for the purposes of meeting the work 
 95.15  requirements under subdivision 4 and the assistance unit's MFIP 
 95.16  grant shall be calculated using the shared household standard 
 95.17  under section 256J.08, subdivision 82a.  An applicant who is 
 95.18  disqualified from receiving assistance under this paragraph may 
 95.19  reapply under paragraph (a).  If a participant is disqualified 
 95.20  from MFIP under this subdivision a second time, the participant 
 95.21  is permanently disqualified from MFIP. 
 95.22     (d) Prior to a disqualification under this subdivision, a 
 95.23  county agency must review the participant's case to determine if 
 95.24  the employment plan is still appropriate and attempt to meet 
 95.25  with the participant face-to-face.  If a face-to-face meeting is 
 95.26  not conducted, the county agency must send the participant a 
 95.27  notice of adverse action as provided in section 256J.31.  During 
 95.28  the face-to-face meeting, the county agency must: 
 95.29     (1) determine whether the continued noncompliance can be 
 95.30  explained and mitigated by providing a needed preemployment 
 95.31  activity, as defined in section 256J.49, subdivision 13, clause 
 95.32  (9); 
 95.33     (2) determine whether the participant qualifies for a good 
 95.34  cause exception under section 256J.57; 
 95.35     (3) inform the participant of the family violence waiver 
 95.36  criteria and make appropriate referrals if the waiver is 
 96.1   requested; 
 96.2      (4) inform the participant of the participant's sanction 
 96.3   status and explain the consequences of continuing noncompliance; 
 96.4      (5) identify other resources that may be available to the 
 96.5   participant to meet the needs of the family; and 
 96.6      (6) inform the participant of the right to appeal under 
 96.7   section 256J.40. 
 96.8      Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 96.9   256J.46, subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
 96.10     Subdivision 1.  [PARTICIPANTS NOT COMPLYING WITH PROGRAM 
 96.11  REQUIREMENTS.] (a) A participant who fails without good cause 
 96.12  under section 256J.57 to comply with the requirements of this 
 96.13  chapter, and who is not subject to a sanction under subdivision 
 96.14  2, shall be subject to a sanction as provided in this 
 96.15  subdivision.  Prior to the imposition of a sanction, a county 
 96.16  agency shall provide a notice of intent to sanction under 
 96.17  section 256J.57, subdivision 2, and, when applicable, a notice 
 96.18  of adverse action as provided in section 256J.31. 
 96.19     (b) A sanction under this subdivision becomes effective the 
 96.20  month following the month in which a required notice is given.  
 96.21  A sanction must not be imposed when a participant comes into 
 96.22  compliance with the requirements for orientation under section 
 96.23  256J.45 prior to the effective date of the sanction.  A sanction 
 96.24  must not be imposed when a participant comes into compliance 
 96.25  with the requirements for employment and training services under 
 96.26  sections 256J.515 to 256J.57 ten days prior to the effective 
 96.27  date of the sanction.  For purposes of this subdivision, each 
 96.28  month that a participant fails to comply with a requirement of 
 96.29  this chapter shall be considered a separate occurrence of 
 96.30  noncompliance.  If both participants in a two-parent assistance 
 96.31  unit are out of compliance at the same time, it is considered 
 96.32  one occurrence of noncompliance.  
 96.33     (c) Sanctions for noncompliance shall be imposed as follows:
 96.34     (1) For the first occurrence of noncompliance by a 
 96.35  participant in an assistance unit, the assistance unit's grant 
 96.36  shall be reduced by ten percent of the MFIP standard of need for 
 97.1   an assistance unit of the same size with the residual grant paid 
 97.2   to the participant.  The reduction in the grant amount must be 
 97.3   in effect for a minimum of one month and shall be removed in the 
 97.4   month following the month that the participant returns to 
 97.5   compliance.  
 97.6      (2) For a second, third, fourth, fifth, or sixth occurrence 
 97.7   of noncompliance by a participant in an assistance unit, the 
 97.8   assistance unit's shelter costs shall be vendor paid up to the 
 97.9   amount of the cash portion of the MFIP grant for which the 
 97.10  assistance unit is eligible.  At county option, the assistance 
 97.11  unit's utilities may also be vendor paid up to the amount of the 
 97.12  cash portion of the MFIP grant remaining after vendor payment of 
 97.13  the assistance unit's shelter costs.  The residual amount of the 
 97.14  grant after vendor payment, if any, must be reduced by an amount 
 97.15  equal to 30 percent of the MFIP standard of need for an 
 97.16  assistance unit of the same size before the residual grant is 
 97.17  paid to the assistance unit.  The reduction in the grant amount 
 97.18  must be in effect for a minimum of one month and shall be 
 97.19  removed in the month following the month that the participant in 
 97.20  a one-parent assistance unit returns to compliance.  In a 
 97.21  two-parent assistance unit, the grant reduction must be in 
 97.22  effect for a minimum of one month and shall be removed in the 
 97.23  month following the month both participants return to 
 97.24  compliance.  The vendor payment of shelter costs and, if 
 97.25  applicable, utilities shall be removed six months after the 
 97.26  month in which the participant or participants return to 
 97.27  compliance.  If an assistance unit is sanctioned under this 
 97.28  clause, the participant's case file must be reviewed to 
 97.29  determine if the employment plan is still appropriate. 
 97.30     (d) For a seventh occurrence of noncompliance by a 
 97.31  participant in an assistance unit, or when the participants in a 
 97.32  two-parent assistance unit have a total of seven occurrences of 
 97.33  noncompliance, the county agency shall close the MFIP assistance 
 97.34  unit's financial assistance case, both the cash and food 
 97.35  portions.  The case must remain closed for a minimum of one full 
 97.36  month.  Closure under this paragraph does not make a participant 
 98.1   automatically ineligible for food support, if otherwise eligible.
 98.2   Before the case is closed, the county agency must review the 
 98.3   participant's case to determine if the employment plan is still 
 98.4   appropriate and attempt to meet with the participant 
 98.5   face-to-face.  The participant may bring an advocate to the 
 98.6   face-to-face meeting.  If a face-to-face meeting is not 
 98.7   conducted, the county agency must send the participant a written 
 98.8   notice that includes the information required under clause (1). 
 98.9      (1) During the face-to-face meeting, the county agency must:
 98.10     (i) determine whether the continued noncompliance can be 
 98.11  explained and mitigated by providing a needed preemployment 
 98.12  activity, as defined in section 256J.49, subdivision 13, clause 
 98.13  (9); 
 98.14     (ii) determine whether the participant qualifies for a good 
 98.15  cause exception under section 256J.57, or if the sanction is for 
 98.16  noncooperation with child support requirements, determine if the 
 98.17  participant qualifies for a good cause exemption under section 
 98.18  256.741, subdivision 10; 
 98.19     (iii) determine whether the participant qualifies qualified 
 98.20  for an exemption under section 256J.56 or the work activities in 
 98.21  the employment plan are appropriate based on the criteria in 
 98.22  section 256J.521, subdivision 2 or 3; 
 98.23     (iv) determine whether the participant qualifies for the 
 98.24  family violence waiver; 
 98.25     (v) inform the participant of the participant's sanction 
 98.26  status and explain the consequences of continuing noncompliance; 
 98.27     (vi) identify other resources that may be available to the 
 98.28  participant to meet the needs of the family; and 
 98.29     (vii) inform the participant of the right to appeal under 
 98.30  section 256J.40. 
 98.31     (2) If the lack of an identified activity or service can 
 98.32  explain the noncompliance, the county must work with the 
 98.33  participant to provide the identified activity. 
 98.34     (3) The grant must be restored to the full amount for which 
 98.35  the assistance unit is eligible retroactively to the first day 
 98.36  of the month in which the participant was found to lack 
 99.1   preemployment activities or to qualify have qualified for an 
 99.2   exemption under section 256J.56, a family violence waiver, or 
 99.3   for a good cause exemption under section 256.741, subdivision 
 99.4   10, or 256J.57. 
 99.5      (e) For the purpose of applying sanctions under this 
 99.6   section, only occurrences of noncompliance that occur after July 
 99.7   1, 2003, shall be considered.  If the participant is in 30 
 99.8   percent sanction in the month this section takes effect, that 
 99.9   month counts as the first occurrence for purposes of applying 
 99.10  the sanctions under this section, but the sanction shall remain 
 99.11  at 30 percent for that month. 
 99.12     (f) An assistance unit whose case is closed under paragraph 
 99.13  (d) or (g), may reapply for MFIP and shall be eligible if the 
 99.14  participant complies with MFIP program requirements and 
 99.15  demonstrates compliance for up to one month.  No assistance 
 99.16  shall be paid during this period. 
 99.17     (g) An assistance unit whose case has been closed for 
 99.18  noncompliance, that reapplies under paragraph (f), is subject to 
 99.19  sanction under paragraph (c), clause (2), for a first occurrence 
 99.20  of noncompliance.  Any subsequent occurrence of noncompliance 
 99.21  shall result in case closure under paragraph (d). 
 99.22     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 99.23  256J.521, subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
 99.24     Subd. 2.  [EMPLOYMENT PLAN; CONTENTS.] (a) Based on the 
 99.25  assessment under subdivision 1, the job counselor and the 
 99.26  participant must develop an employment plan that includes 
 99.27  participation in activities and hours that meet the requirements 
 99.28  of section 256J.55, subdivision 1.  The purpose of the 
 99.29  employment plan is to identify for each participant the most 
 99.30  direct path to unsubsidized employment and any subsequent steps 
 99.31  that support long-term economic stability.  The employment plan 
 99.32  should be developed using the highest level of activity 
 99.33  appropriate for the participant.  Activities must be chosen from 
 99.34  clauses (1) to (6), which are listed in order of preference.  
 99.35  The employment plan must also list the specific steps the 
 99.36  participant will take to obtain employment, including steps 
100.1   necessary for the participant to progress from one level of 
100.2   activity to another, and a timetable for completion of each 
100.3   step.  Levels of activity include: 
100.4      (1) unsubsidized employment; 
100.5      (2) job search; 
100.6      (3) subsidized employment or unpaid work experience; 
100.7      (4) unsubsidized employment and job readiness education or 
100.8   job skills training; 
100.9      (5) unsubsidized employment or unpaid work experience and 
100.10  activities related to a family violence waiver or preemployment 
100.11  needs; and 
100.12     (6) activities related to a family violence waiver or 
100.13  preemployment needs. 
100.14     (b) Participants who are determined to possess sufficient 
100.15  skills such that the participant is likely to succeed in 
100.16  obtaining unsubsidized employment must job search at least 30 
100.17  hours per week for up to six weeks and accept any offer of 
100.18  suitable employment.  The remaining hours necessary to meet the 
100.19  requirements of section 256J.55, subdivision 1, may be met 
100.20  through participation in other work activities under section 
100.21  256J.49, subdivision 13.  The participant's employment plan must 
100.22  specify, at a minimum:  (1) whether the job search is supervised 
100.23  or unsupervised; (2) support services that will be provided; and 
100.24  (3) how frequently the participant must report to the job 
100.25  counselor.  Participants who are unable to find suitable 
100.26  employment after six weeks must meet with the job counselor to 
100.27  determine whether other activities in paragraph (a) should be 
100.28  incorporated into the employment plan. 
100.29     (c) All job search activities which are continued after six 
100.30  weeks must be structured and supervised. 
100.31     (c) (d) Beginning July 1, 2004, activities and hourly 
100.32  requirements in the employment plan may be adjusted as necessary 
100.33  to accommodate the personal and family circumstances of 
100.34  participants identified under section 256J.561, subdivision 2, 
100.35  paragraph (d).  Participants who no longer meet the provisions 
100.36  of section 256J.561, subdivision 2, paragraph (d), must meet 
101.1   with the job counselor within ten days of the determination to 
101.2   revise the employment plan. 
101.3      (d) (e) Participants who are determined to have barriers to 
101.4   obtaining or retaining employment that will not be overcome 
101.5   during six weeks of job search under paragraph (b) must work 
101.6   with the job counselor to develop an employment plan that 
101.7   addresses those barriers by incorporating appropriate activities 
101.8   from paragraph (a), clauses (1) to (6).  The employment plan 
101.9   must include enough hours to meet the participation requirements 
101.10  in section 256J.55, subdivision 1, unless a compelling reason to 
101.11  require fewer hours is noted in the participant's file. 
101.12     (e) (f) The job counselor and the participant must sign the 
101.13  employment plan to indicate agreement on the contents.  Failure 
101.14  to develop or comply with activities in the plan, or voluntarily 
101.15  quitting suitable employment without good cause, will result in 
101.16  the imposition of a sanction under section 256J.46. 
101.17     (f) (g) Employment plans must be reviewed at least every 
101.18  three months to determine whether activities and hourly 
101.19  requirements should be revised. 
101.20     Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
101.21  256J.626, subdivision 6, is amended to read: 
101.22     Subd. 6.  [BASE ALLOCATION TO COUNTIES AND TRIBES.] (a) For 
101.23  purposes of this section, the following terms have the meanings 
101.24  given them: 
101.25     (1) "2002 historic spending base" means the commissioner's 
101.26  determination of the sum of the reimbursement related to fiscal 
101.27  year 2002 of county or tribal agency expenditures for the base 
101.28  programs listed in clause (4) (5), items (i) through (iv), and 
101.29  earnings related to calendar year 2002 in the base program 
101.30  listed in clause (4) (5), item (v), and the amount of spending 
101.31  in fiscal year 2002 in the base program listed in 
101.32  clause (4) (5), item (vi), issued to or on behalf of persons 
101.33  residing in the county or tribal service delivery area. 
101.34     (2) "Caseload factor" means a factor weighted 47 percent on 
101.35  the MFIP cases in each county at four points in time in the 
101.36  previous state fiscal year and 53 percent on the count of adults 
102.1   on MFIP in each county and tribe at four points in time in the 
102.2   previous state fiscal year. 
102.3      (3) "Initial allocation" means the amount potentially 
102.4   available to each county or tribe based on the formula in 
102.5   paragraphs (b) through (d) (f). 
102.6      (3) (4) "Final allocation" means the amount available to 
102.7   each county or tribe based on the formula in paragraphs (b) 
102.8   through (d) (e), after adjustment by subdivision 7. 
102.9      (4) (5) "Base programs" means the: 
102.10     (i) MFIP employment and training services under Minnesota 
102.11  Statutes 2002, section 256J.62, subdivision 1, in effect June 
102.12  30, 2002; 
102.13     (ii) bilingual employment and training services to refugees 
102.14  under Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 256J.62, subdivision 6, 
102.15  in effect June 30, 2002; 
102.16     (iii) work literacy language programs under Minnesota 
102.17  Statutes 2002, section 256J.62, subdivision 7, in effect June 
102.18  30, 2002; 
102.19     (iv) supported work program authorized in Laws 2001, First 
102.20  Special Session chapter 9, article 17, section 2, in effect June 
102.21  30, 2002; 
102.22     (v) administrative aid program under section 256J.76 in 
102.23  effect December 31, 2002; and 
102.24     (vi) emergency assistance program under Minnesota Statutes 
102.25  2002, section 256J.48, in effect June 30, 2002. 
102.26     (b)(1) Beginning July 1, 2003, the commissioner shall 
102.27  determine the initial allocation of funds available under this 
102.28  section according to clause (2). 
102.29     (2) All of the funds available for the period beginning 
102.30  July 1, 2003, and ending December 31, 2004, shall be allocated 
102.31  to each county or tribe in proportion to the county's or tribe's 
102.32  share of the statewide 2002 historic spending base. 
102.33     (c) For calendar year 2005, the commissioner shall 
102.34  determine the initial allocation of funds to be made available 
102.35  under this section in proportion to the county or tribe's 
102.36  initial allocation for the period of July 1, 2003, to December 
103.1   31, 2004. 
103.2      (d) The formula under this subdivision sunsets December 31, 
103.3   2005.  For calendar year 2006, the commissioner shall determine 
103.4   the initial allocation of funds to be made available under this 
103.5   section based 90 percent on the proportion of the county or 
103.6   tribe's share of the statewide 2002 historic spending base and 
103.7   based ten percent on the proportion of the county or tribe's 
103.8   share of the caseload factor. 
103.9      (e) For calendar year 2007, the commissioner shall 
103.10  determine the initial allocation of funds to be made available 
103.11  under this section based 70 percent on the proportion of the 
103.12  county or tribe's share of the statewide 2002 historic spending 
103.13  base and based 30 percent on the proportion of the county or 
103.14  tribe's share of the caseload factor. 
103.15     (f) For calendar year 2008 and subsequent years, the 
103.16  commissioner shall determine the initial allocation of funds to 
103.17  be made available under this section based 50 percent on the 
103.18  proportion of the county or tribe's share of the statewide 2002 
103.19  historic spending base and based 50 percent on the proportion of 
103.20  the county or tribe's share of the caseload factor. 
103.21     (e) Before November 30, 2003, a county or tribe may ask for 
103.22  a review of the commissioner's determination of the historic 
103.23  base spending when the county or tribe believes the 2002 
103.24  information was inaccurate or incomplete.  By January 1, 2004, 
103.25  the commissioner must adjust that county's or tribe's base when 
103.26  the commissioner has determined that inaccurate or incomplete 
103.27  information was used to develop that base.  The commissioner 
103.28  shall adjust each county's or tribe's initial allocation under 
103.29  paragraph (c) and final allocation under subdivision 7 to 
103.30  reflect the base change. 
103.31     (g) With the commencement of a new or expanded tribal TANF 
103.32  program or an agreement under section 256.01, subdivision 2, 
103.33  paragraph (g), in which some or all of the responsibilities of 
103.34  particular counties under this section are transferred to a 
103.35  tribe, the commissioner shall: 
103.36     (1) in the case where all responsibilities under this 
104.1   section are transferred to a tribal program, determine the 
104.2   percentage of the county's current caseload that is transferring 
104.3   to a tribal program and adjust the affected county's allocation 
104.4   accordingly; and 
104.5      (2) in the case where a portion of the responsibilities 
104.6   under this section are transferred to a tribal program, the 
104.7   commissioner shall consult with the affected county or counties 
104.8   to determine an appropriate adjustment to the allocation. 
104.9      (f) (h) Effective January 1, 2005, counties and tribes will 
104.10  have their final allocations adjusted based on the performance 
104.11  provisions of subdivision 7. 
104.12     Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
104.13  256J.626, subdivision 7, is amended to read: 
104.14     Subd. 7.  [PERFORMANCE BASE FUNDS.] (a) Beginning calendar 
104.15  year 2005, each county and tribe will be allocated 95 percent of 
104.16  their initial calendar year 2005 allocation.  Counties and 
104.17  tribes will be allocated additional funds based on performance 
104.18  as follows: 
104.19     (1) for calendar year 2005, a county or tribe that achieves 
104.20  a 50 40 percent rate or higher on the MFIP participation rate 
104.21  under section 256J.751, subdivision 2, clause (8), as averaged 
104.22  across the four quarterly measurements for the most recent year 
104.23  for which the measurements are available, will receive an 
104.24  additional allocation equal to 2.5 percent of its initial 
104.25  allocation; and 
104.26     (2) for calendar year 2006, a county or tribe that achieves 
104.27  a 40 percent rate or a five percentage point improvement over 
104.28  the previous year's MFIP participation rate under section 
104.29  256J.751, subdivision 2, clause (8), as averaged across the four 
104.30  quarterly measurements for the most recent year for which the 
104.31  measurements are available, will receive an additional 
104.32  allocation equal to 2.5 percent of its initial allocation; and 
104.33     (3) for calendar year 2007, a county or tribe that achieves 
104.34  a 50 percent rate or a five percentage point improvement over 
104.35  the previous year's MFIP participation rate under section 
104.36  256J.751, subdivision 2, clause (8), as averaged across the four 
105.1   quarterly measurements for the most recent year for which the 
105.2   measurements are available, will receive an additional 
105.3   allocation equal to 2.5 percent of its initial allocation; and 
105.4      (4) for calendar year 2008 and yearly thereafter, a county 
105.5   or tribe that achieves a 50 percent MFIP participation rate 
105.6   under section 256J.751, subdivision 2, clause (8), as averaged 
105.7   across the four quarterly measurements for the most recent year 
105.8   for which the measurements are available, will receive an 
105.9   additional allocation equal to 2.5 percent of its initial 
105.10  allocation; and 
105.11     (5) for calendar years 2005 and thereafter, a county or 
105.12  tribe that performs above the top of its range of expected 
105.13  performance on the three-year self-support index under section 
105.14  256J.751, subdivision 2, clause (7), in both measurements in the 
105.15  preceding year will receive an additional allocation equal to 
105.16  five percent of its initial allocation; or 
105.17     (3) (6) for calendar years 2005 and thereafter, a county or 
105.18  tribe that performs within its range of expected performance on 
105.19  the three-year self-support index under section 256J.751, 
105.20  subdivision 2, clause (7), in both measurements in the preceding 
105.21  year, or above the top of its range of expected performance in 
105.22  one measurement and within its expected range of performance in 
105.23  the other measurement, will receive an additional allocation 
105.24  equal to 2.5 percent of its initial allocation. 
105.25     (b) Funds remaining unallocated after the performance-based 
105.26  allocations in paragraph (a) are available to the commissioner 
105.27  for innovation projects under subdivision 5. 
105.28     (c)(1) If available funds are insufficient to meet county 
105.29  and tribal allocations under paragraph (a), the commissioner may 
105.30  make available for allocation funds that are unobligated and 
105.31  available from the innovation projects through the end of the 
105.32  current biennium. 
105.33     (2) If after the application of clause (1) funds remain 
105.34  insufficient to meet county and tribal allocations under 
105.35  paragraph (a), the commissioner must proportionally reduce the 
105.36  allocation of each county and tribe with respect to their 
106.1   maximum allocation available under paragraph (a). 
106.2      Sec. 8.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 256J.67, 
106.3   subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
106.4      Subdivision 1.  [ESTABLISHING THE COMMUNITY WORK EXPERIENCE 
106.5   PROGRAM.] To the extent of available resources, each county 
106.6   agency may establish and operate a work experience component for 
106.7   MFIP caregivers who are participating in employment and training 
106.8   services.  This option for county agencies supersedes the 
106.9   requirement in section 402(a)(1)(B)(iv) of the Social Security 
106.10  Act that caregivers who have received assistance for two months 
106.11  and who are not exempt from work requirements must participate 
106.12  in a work experience program.  The purpose of the work 
106.13  experience component is to enhance the caregiver's employability 
106.14  and self-sufficiency and to provide meaningful, productive work 
106.15  activities.  The county shall use this program for an individual 
106.16  after exhausting all other employment opportunities.  The county 
106.17  agency shall not require a caregiver to participate in the 
106.18  community work experience program unless the caregiver has been 
106.19  given an opportunity to participate in other work activities.  
106.20     Sec. 9.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 256J.67, 
106.21  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
106.22     Subd. 3.  [EMPLOYMENT OPTIONS.] (a) Work sites developed 
106.23  under this section are limited to projects that serve a useful 
106.24  public service such as:  health, social service, environmental 
106.25  protection, education, urban and rural development and 
106.26  redevelopment, welfare, recreation, public facilities, public 
106.27  safety, community service, services to aged or disabled 
106.28  citizens, and child care.  To the extent possible, the prior 
106.29  training, skills, and experience of a caregiver must be 
106.30  considered in making appropriate work experience assignments. 
106.31     (b) Structured, supervised volunteer work with an agency or 
106.32  organization, which is monitored by the county service provider, 
106.33  may, with the approval of the county agency, be used as a work 
106.34  experience placement. 
106.35     (c) As a condition of placing a caregiver in a program 
106.36  under this section, the county agency shall first provide the 
107.1   caregiver the opportunity: 
107.2      (1) for placement in suitable subsidized or unsubsidized 
107.3   employment through participation in a job search; or 
107.4      (2) for placement in suitable employment through 
107.5   participation in on-the-job training, if such employment is 
107.6   available. 
107.7      Sec. 10.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
107.8   256J.95, subdivision 10, is amended to read: 
107.9      Subd. 10.  [DIVERSIONARY WORK PROGRAM GRANT.] (a) The 
107.10  amount of cash benefits that a family unit is eligible for under 
107.11  the diversionary work program is based on the number of persons 
107.12  in the family unit, the family maintenance needs, personal needs 
107.13  allowance, and countable income.  The county agency shall 
107.14  evaluate the income of the family unit that is requesting 
107.15  payments under the diversionary work program.  Countable income 
107.16  means gross earned and unearned income not excluded or 
107.17  disregarded under MFIP.  The same disregards for earned income 
107.18  that are allowed under MFIP are allowed for the diversionary 
107.19  work program. 
107.20     (b) The DWP grant is based on the family maintenance needs 
107.21  for which the DWP family unit is responsible plus a personal 
107.22  needs allowance.  Housing and utilities, except for telephone 
107.23  service, shall be vendor paid.  Unless otherwise stated in this 
107.24  section, actual housing and utility expenses shall be used when 
107.25  determining the amount of the DWP grant. 
107.26     (c) The maximum monthly benefit amount available under the 
107.27  diversionary work program is the difference between the family 
107.28  unit's needs under paragraph (b) and the family unit's countable 
107.29  income not to exceed the cash portion of the MFIP standard of 
107.30  need as defined in section 256J.08, subdivision 55a, for the 
107.31  family unit's size.  
107.32     (d) Once A DWP family unit's benefits, including any 
107.33  changes, shall be budgeted prospectively.  When the county has 
107.34  determined a grant amount, the DWP grant amount will not be 
107.35  decreased if the determination is based on the best information 
107.36  available at the time of approval and shall not be decreased 
108.1   because of any additional income to the family unit, the DWP 
108.2   grant amount must not be decreased because of an increase in 
108.3   family household income, unless a new member is added to the 
108.4   household.  The grant amount must be increased if a participant 
108.5   later verifies an increase recalculated if there is a decrease 
108.6   in family household income, a change in family size, or a change 
108.7   in family maintenance needs or family unit size. 
108.8      (e) The minimum cash benefit amount, if income and asset 
108.9   tests are met, is $10.  Benefits of $10 shall not be vendor paid.
108.10     (e) (f) When all criteria are met, including the 
108.11  development of an employment plan as described in subdivision 14 
108.12  and eligibility exists for the month of application, the amount 
108.13  of benefits for the diversionary work program retroactive to the 
108.14  date of application is as specified in section 256J.35, 
108.15  paragraph (a). 
108.16     (f) (g) Any month during the four-month DWP period that a 
108.17  person receives a DWP benefit directly or through a vendor 
108.18  payment made on the person's behalf, that person is ineligible 
108.19  for MFIP or any other TANF cash assistance program except for 
108.20  benefits defined in section 256J.626, subdivision 2, clause (1). 
108.21     If during the four-month period a family unit that receives 
108.22  DWP benefits moves to a county that has not established a 
108.23  diversionary work program, the family unit may be eligible for 
108.24  MFIP the month following the last month of the issuance of the 
108.25  DWP benefit. 
108.26     Sec. 11.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
108.27  256J.95, subdivision 12, is amended to read: 
108.28     Subd. 12.  [CONVERSION OR REFERRAL TO MFIP.] (a) If at any 
108.29  time during the DWP application process or during the four-month 
108.30  DWP eligibility period, it is determined that a participant is 
108.31  unlikely to benefit from the diversionary work program, the 
108.32  county shall convert or refer the participant to MFIP as 
108.33  specified in paragraph (d).  Participants who are determined to 
108.34  be unlikely to benefit from the diversionary work program must 
108.35  develop and sign an employment plan.  Participants who meet any 
108.36  one of the criteria in paragraph (b) shall be considered to be 
109.1   unlikely to benefit from DWP, provided the necessary 
109.2   documentation is available to support the determination. 
109.3      (b) A participant who: 
109.4      (1) has been determined by a qualified professional as 
109.5   being unable to obtain or retain employment due to an illness, 
109.6   injury, or incapacity that is expected to last at least 60 days; 
109.7      (2) is required in the home as a caregiver because of the 
109.8   illness, injury, or incapacity, of a family member, or a 
109.9   relative in the household, or a foster child, and the illness, 
109.10  injury, or incapacity and the need for a person to provide 
109.11  assistance in the home has been certified by a qualified 
109.12  professional and is expected to continue more than 60 days; 
109.13     (3) is determined by a qualified professional as being 
109.14  needed in the home to care for a child or adult meeting the 
109.15  special medical criteria in section 256J.425 256J.561, 
109.16  subdivision 2, paragraph (d), clause (3); 
109.17     (4) is pregnant and is determined by a qualified 
109.18  professional as being unable to obtain or retain employment due 
109.19  to the pregnancy; or 
109.20     (5) has applied for SSI or RSDI SSDI because the 
109.21  participant has an illness, injury, or incapacity certified by a 
109.22  qualified professional that makes the participant unable to 
109.23  obtain or retain employment. 
109.24     (c) In a two-parent family unit, both parents must be 
109.25  determined to be unlikely to benefit from the diversionary work 
109.26  program before the family unit can be converted or referred to 
109.27  MFIP. 
109.28     (d) A participant who is determined to be unlikely to 
109.29  benefit from the diversionary work program shall be converted to 
109.30  MFIP and, if the determination was made within 30 days of the 
109.31  initial application for benefits, no additional application form 
109.32  is required.  A participant who is determined to be unlikely to 
109.33  benefit from the diversionary work program shall be referred to 
109.34  MFIP and, if the determination is made more than 30 days after 
109.35  the initial application, the participant must submit a program 
109.36  change request form.  The county agency shall process the 
110.1   program change request form by the first of the following month 
110.2   to ensure that no gap in benefits is due to delayed action by 
110.3   the county agency.  In processing the program change request 
110.4   form, the county must follow section 256J.32, subdivision 1, 
110.5   except that the county agency shall not require additional 
110.6   verification of the information in the case file from the DWP 
110.7   application unless the information in the case file is 
110.8   inaccurate, questionable, or no longer current. 
110.9      (e) The county shall not request a combined application 
110.10  form for a participant who has exhausted the four months of the 
110.11  diversionary work program, has continued need for cash and food 
110.12  assistance, and has completed, signed, and submitted a program 
110.13  change request form within 30 days of the fourth month of the 
110.14  diversionary work program.  The county must process the program 
110.15  change request according to section 256J.32, subdivision 1, 
110.16  except that the county agency shall not require additional 
110.17  verification of information in the case file unless the 
110.18  information is inaccurate, questionable, or no longer current.  
110.19  When a participant does not request MFIP within 30 days of the 
110.20  diversionary work program benefits being exhausted, a new 
110.21  combined application form must be completed for any subsequent 
110.22  request for MFIP. 
110.23                             ARTICLE 5 
110.24                           MENTAL HEALTH 
110.25     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 245.462, 
110.26  subdivision 18, is amended to read: 
110.27     Subd. 18.  [MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONAL.] "Mental health 
110.28  professional" means a person providing clinical services in the 
110.29  treatment of mental illness who is qualified in at least one of 
110.30  the following ways:  
110.31     (1) in psychiatric nursing:  a registered nurse who is 
110.32  licensed under sections 148.171 to 148.285, and (i) who is 
110.33  certified as a clinical specialist or as a nurse practitioner in 
110.34  adult or family psychiatric and mental health nursing by a 
110.35  national nurse certification organization; or (ii) who has a 
110.36  master's degree in nursing or one of the behavioral sciences or 
111.1   related fields from an accredited college or university or its 
111.2   equivalent, with at least 4,000 hours of post-master's 
111.3   supervised experience in the delivery of clinical services in 
111.4   the treatment of mental illness; 
111.5      (2) in clinical social work:  a person licensed as an 
111.6   independent clinical social worker under section 148B.21, 
111.7   subdivision 6, or a person with a master's degree in social work 
111.8   from an accredited college or university, with at least 4,000 
111.9   hours of post-master's supervised experience in the delivery of 
111.10  clinical services in the treatment of mental illness; 
111.11     (3) in psychology:  an individual licensed by the board of 
111.12  psychology under sections 148.88 to 148.98 who has stated to the 
111.13  board of psychology competencies in the diagnosis and treatment 
111.14  of mental illness; 
111.15     (4) in psychiatry:  a physician licensed under chapter 147 
111.16  and certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology 
111.17  or eligible for board certification in psychiatry; 
111.18     (5) in marriage and family therapy:  the mental health 
111.19  professional must be a marriage and family therapist licensed 
111.20  under sections 148B.29 to 148B.39 with at least two years of 
111.21  post-master's supervised experience in the delivery of clinical 
111.22  services in the treatment of mental illness; or 
111.23     (6) in allied fields:  a person with a master's degree from 
111.24  an accredited college or university in one of the behavioral 
111.25  sciences or related fields, with at least 4,000 hours of 
111.26  post-master's supervised experience in the delivery of clinical 
111.27  services in the treatment of mental illness.  
111.28     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 245.464, is 
111.29  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
111.30     Subd. 3.  [PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS.] The commissioner 
111.31  may establish a mechanism by which counties, the Department of 
111.32  Human Services, hospitals, health plans, consumers, and others 
111.33  may enter into agreements that allow for capacity building and 
111.34  oversight of any agreed-upon entity that is developed through 
111.35  these partnerships.  The purpose of these partnerships is the 
111.36  development and provision of mental health services which would 
112.1   be more effective, efficient, and accessible than services that 
112.2   might be provided separately by each partner. 
112.3      Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
112.4   245.4874, is amended to read: 
112.5      245.4874 [DUTIES OF COUNTY BOARD.] 
112.6      The county board in each county shall use its share of 
112.7   mental health and Community Social Services Act funds allocated 
112.8   by the commissioner according to a biennial children's mental 
112.9   health component of the community social services plan that is 
112.10  approved by the commissioner.  The county board must: 
112.11     (1) develop a system of affordable and locally available 
112.12  children's mental health services according to sections 245.487 
112.13  to 245.4887; 
112.14     (2) establish a mechanism providing for interagency 
112.15  coordination as specified in section 245.4875, subdivision 6; 
112.16     (3) develop a biennial children's mental health component 
112.17  of the community social services plan which considers the 
112.18  assessment of unmet needs in the county as reported by the local 
112.19  children's mental health advisory council under section 
112.20  245.4875, subdivision 5, paragraph (b), clause (3).  The county 
112.21  shall provide, upon request of the local children's mental 
112.22  health advisory council, readily available data to assist in the 
112.23  determination of unmet needs; 
112.24     (4) assure that parents and providers in the county receive 
112.25  information about how to gain access to services provided 
112.26  according to sections 245.487 to 245.4887; 
112.27     (5) coordinate the delivery of children's mental health 
112.28  services with services provided by social services, education, 
112.29  corrections, health, and vocational agencies to improve the 
112.30  availability of mental health services to children and the 
112.31  cost-effectiveness of their delivery; 
112.32     (6) assure that mental health services delivered according 
112.33  to sections 245.487 to 245.4887 are delivered expeditiously and 
112.34  are appropriate to the child's diagnostic assessment and 
112.35  individual treatment plan; 
112.36     (7) provide the community with information about predictors 
113.1   and symptoms of emotional disturbances and how to access 
113.2   children's mental health services according to sections 245.4877 
113.3   and 245.4878; 
113.4      (8) provide for case management services to each child with 
113.5   severe emotional disturbance according to sections 245.486; 
113.6   245.4871, subdivisions 3 and 4; and 245.4881, subdivisions 1, 3, 
113.7   and 5; 
113.8      (9) provide for screening of each child under section 
113.9   245.4885 upon admission to a residential treatment facility, 
113.10  acute care hospital inpatient treatment, or informal admission 
113.11  to a regional treatment center; 
113.12     (10) prudently administer grants and purchase-of-service 
113.13  contracts that the county board determines are necessary to 
113.14  fulfill its responsibilities under sections 245.487 to 245.4887; 
113.15     (11) assure that mental health professionals, mental health 
113.16  practitioners, and case managers employed by or under contract 
113.17  to the county to provide mental health services are qualified 
113.18  under section 245.4871; 
113.19     (12) assure that children's mental health services are 
113.20  coordinated with adult mental health services specified in 
113.21  sections 245.461 to 245.486 so that a continuum of mental health 
113.22  services is available to serve persons with mental illness, 
113.23  regardless of the person's age; 
113.24     (13) assure that culturally informed mental health 
113.25  consultants are used as necessary to assist the county board in 
113.26  assessing and providing appropriate treatment for children of 
113.27  cultural or racial minority heritage; and 
113.28     (14) consistent with section 245.486, arrange for or 
113.29  provide a children's mental health screening to a child 
113.30  receiving child protective services or a child in out-of-home 
113.31  placement, a child for whom parental rights have been 
113.32  terminated, a child found to be delinquent, and a child found to 
113.33  have committed a juvenile petty offense for the third or 
113.34  subsequent time, unless a screening has been performed within 
113.35  the previous 180 days, or the child is currently under the care 
113.36  of a mental health professional.  The court or county agency 
114.1   must notify a parent or guardian whose parental rights have not 
114.2   been terminated of the potential mental health screening and the 
114.3   option to prevent the screening by notifying the court or county 
114.4   agency in writing.  The screening shall be conducted with a 
114.5   screening instrument approved by the commissioner of human 
114.6   services according to criteria that are updated and issued 
114.7   annually to ensure that approved screening instruments are valid 
114.8   and useful for child welfare and juvenile justice populations, 
114.9   and shall be conducted by a mental health practitioner as 
114.10  defined in section 245.4871, subdivision 26, or a probation 
114.11  officer or local social services agency staff person who is 
114.12  trained in the use of the screening instrument.  Training in the 
114.13  use of the instrument shall include training in the 
114.14  administration of the instrument, the interpretation of its 
114.15  validity given the child's current circumstances, the state and 
114.16  federal data practices laws and confidentiality standards, the 
114.17  parental consent requirement, and providing respect for families 
114.18  and cultural values.  If the screen indicates a need for 
114.19  assessment, the child's family, or if the family lacks mental 
114.20  health insurance, the local social services agency, in 
114.21  consultation with the child's family, shall have conducted a 
114.22  diagnostic assessment, including a functional assessment, as 
114.23  defined in section 245.4871.  The administration of the 
114.24  screening shall safeguard the privacy of children receiving the 
114.25  screening and their families and shall comply with the Minnesota 
114.26  Government Data Practices Act, chapter 13, and the federal 
114.27  Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, 
114.28  Public Law 104-191.  Screening results shall be considered 
114.29  private data and the commissioner shall not collect individual 
114.30  screening results. 
114.31     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
114.32  256B.0622, subdivision 8, is amended to read: 
114.33     Subd. 8.  [MEDICAL ASSISTANCE PAYMENT FOR INTENSIVE 
114.34  REHABILITATIVE MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES.] (a) Payment for 
114.35  residential and nonresidential services in this section shall be 
114.36  based on one daily rate per provider inclusive of the following 
115.1   services received by an eligible recipient in a given calendar 
115.2   day:  all rehabilitative services under this section, staff 
115.3   travel time to provide rehabilitative services under this 
115.4   section, and nonresidential crisis stabilization services under 
115.5   section 256B.0624. 
115.6      (b) Except as indicated in paragraph (c), payment will not 
115.7   be made to more than one entity for each recipient for services 
115.8   provided under this section on a given day.  If services under 
115.9   this section are provided by a team that includes staff from 
115.10  more than one entity, the team must determine how to distribute 
115.11  the payment among the members. 
115.12     (c) The host county shall recommend to the commissioner one 
115.13  rate for each entity that will bill medical assistance for 
115.14  residential services under this section and two rates for each 
115.15  nonresidential provider.  The first nonresidential rate is for 
115.16  recipients who are not receiving residential services.  The 
115.17  second nonresidential rate is for recipients who are temporarily 
115.18  receiving residential services and need continued contact with 
115.19  the nonresidential team to assure timely discharge from 
115.20  residential services.  In developing these rates, the host 
115.21  county shall consider and document: 
115.22     (1) the cost for similar services in the local trade area; 
115.23     (2) actual costs incurred by entities providing the 
115.24  services; 
115.25     (3) the intensity and frequency of services to be provided 
115.26  to each recipient; 
115.27     (4) the degree to which recipients will receive services 
115.28  other than services under this section; 
115.29     (5) the costs of other services, such as case management, 
115.30  that will be separately reimbursed; and 
115.31     (6) input from the local planning process authorized by the 
115.32  adult mental health initiative under section 245.4661, regarding 
115.33  recipients' service needs. 
115.34     (d) The rate for intensive rehabilitative mental health 
115.35  services must exclude room and board, as defined in section 
115.36  256I.03, subdivision 6, and services not covered under this 
116.1   section, such as case management, partial hospitalization, home 
116.2   care, and inpatient services.  Physician services that are not 
116.3   separately billed may be included in the rate to the extent that 
116.4   a psychiatrist is a member of the treatment team.  The county's 
116.5   recommendation shall specify the period for which the rate will 
116.6   be applicable, not to exceed two years. 
116.7      (e) When services under this section are provided by an 
116.8   assertive community team, case management functions must be an 
116.9   integral part of the team.  The county must allocate costs which 
116.10  are reimbursable under this section versus costs which are 
116.11  reimbursable through case management or other reimbursement, so 
116.12  that payment is not duplicated. 
116.13     (f) The rate for a provider must not exceed the rate 
116.14  charged by that provider for the same service to other payors. 
116.15     (g) The commissioner shall approve or reject the county's 
116.16  rate recommendation, based on the commissioner's own analysis of 
116.17  the criteria in paragraph (c). 
116.18     Sec. 5.  [REPEALER.] 
116.19     Laws 2001, First Special Session chapter 9, article 9, 
116.20  section 52, is repealed effective the day following final 
116.21  enactment of this section. 
116.22                             ARTICLE 6 
116.23                  CONTINUING CARE FOR THE ELDERLY 
116.24     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 144A.071, 
116.25  subdivision 1a, is amended to read: 
116.26     Subd. 1a.  [DEFINITIONS.] For purposes of sections 144A.071 
116.27  to 144A.073, the following terms have the meanings given them: 
116.28     (a) "Attached fixtures" has the meaning given in Minnesota 
116.29  Rules, part 9549.0020, subpart 6. 
116.30     (b) "Buildings" has the meaning given in Minnesota Rules, 
116.31  part 9549.0020, subpart 7. 
116.32     (c) "Capital assets" has the meaning given in section 
116.33  256B.421, subdivision 16. 
116.34     (d) "Commenced construction" means that all of the 
116.35  following conditions were met:  the final working drawings and 
116.36  specifications were approved by the commissioner of health; the 
117.1   construction contracts were let; a timely construction schedule 
117.2   was developed, stipulating dates for beginning, achieving 
117.3   various stages, and completing construction; and all zoning and 
117.4   building permits were applied for. 
117.5      (e) "Completion date" means the date on which a certificate 
117.6   of occupancy is issued for a construction project, or if a 
117.7   certificate of occupancy is not required, the date on which the 
117.8   construction project is available for facility use. 
117.9      (f) "Construction" means any erection, building, 
117.10  alteration, reconstruction, modernization, or improvement 
117.11  necessary to comply with the nursing home licensure rules. 
117.12     (g) "Construction project" means: 
117.13     (1) a capital asset addition to, or replacement of a 
117.14  nursing home or certified boarding care home that results in new 
117.15  space or the remodeling of or renovations to existing facility 
117.16  space; and 
117.17     (2) the remodeling or renovation of existing facility space 
117.18  the use of which is modified as a result of the project 
117.19  described in clause (1).  This existing space and the project 
117.20  described in clause (1) must be used for the functions as 
117.21  designated on the construction plans on completion of the 
117.22  project described in clause (1) for a period of not less than 24 
117.23  months; or 
117.24     (3) capital asset additions or replacements that are 
117.25  completed within 12 months before or after the completion date 
117.26  of the project described in clause (1). 
117.27     (h) "Depreciation guidelines" means the most recent 
117.28  publication of "The Estimated Useful Lives of Depreciable 
117.29  Hospital Assets," issued by the American Hospital Association, 
117.30  840 North Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, Illinois, 60611. 
117.31     (i) "New licensed" or "new certified beds" means: 
117.32     (1) newly constructed beds in a facility or the 
117.33  construction of a new facility that would increase the total 
117.34  number of licensed nursing home beds or certified boarding care 
117.35  or nursing home beds in the state; or 
117.36     (2) newly licensed nursing home beds or newly certified 
118.1   boarding care or nursing home beds that result from remodeling 
118.2   of the facility that involves relocation of beds but does not 
118.3   result in an increase in the total number of beds, except when 
118.4   the project involves the upgrade of boarding care beds to 
118.5   nursing home beds, as defined in section 144A.073, subdivision 
118.6   1.  "Remodeling" includes any of the type of conversion, 
118.7   renovation, replacement, or upgrading projects as defined in 
118.8   section 144A.073, subdivision 1. 
118.9      (i) (j) "Project construction costs" means the cost of the 
118.10  following items that have a completion date within 12 months 
118.11  before or after the completion date of the project described in 
118.12  item (g), clause (1): 
118.13     (1) facility capital asset additions,; 
118.14     (2) replacements,; 
118.15     (3) renovations, or; 
118.16     (4) remodeling projects,; 
118.17     (5) construction site preparation costs, and; 
118.18     (6) related soft costs.  Project construction costs include 
118.19  the cost of any remodeling or renovation of existing facility 
118.20  space which is modified as a result of the construction 
118.21  project.  Project construction costs also includes the cost of 
118.22  new technology implemented as part of the construction project.  
118.23  Project construction costs also include; and 
118.24     (7) the cost of new technology implemented as part of the 
118.25  construction project and depreciable equipment directly 
118.26  identified to the project, if the construction costs for clauses 
118.27  (1) to (6) exceed the threshold for additions and replacements 
118.28  stated in section 256B.431, subdivision 16.  Any new Technology 
118.29  and depreciable equipment shall be included in the project 
118.30  construction costs shall, at the unless a written election of is 
118.31  made by the facility, be included to not include it in the 
118.32  facility's appraised value for purposes of Minnesota Rules, part 
118.33  9549.0020, subpart 5, and.  Debt incurred for its purchase of 
118.34  technology and depreciable equipment shall be included as 
118.35  allowable debt for purposes of Minnesota Rules, part 9549.0060, 
118.36  subpart 5, items A and C, unless the written election is to not 
119.1   include it.  Any new technology and depreciable equipment 
119.2   included in the project construction costs that the facility 
119.3   elects not to include in its appraised value and allowable debt 
119.4   shall be treated as provided in section 256B.431, subdivision 
119.5   17, paragraph (b).  Written election under this paragraph must 
119.6   be included in the facility's request for the rate change 
119.7   related to the project, and this election may not be changed. 
119.8      (j) (k) "Technology" means information systems or devices 
119.9   that make documentation, charting, and staff time more efficient 
119.10  or encourage and allow for care through alternative settings 
119.11  including, but not limited to, touch screens, monitors, 
119.12  hand-helds, swipe cards, motion detectors, pagers, telemedicine, 
119.13  medication dispensers, and equipment to monitor vital signs and 
119.14  self-injections, and to observe skin and other conditions. 
119.15     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
119.16  256.01, subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
119.17     Subd. 2.  [SPECIFIC POWERS.] Subject to the provisions of 
119.18  section 241.021, subdivision 2, the commissioner of human 
119.19  services shall: carry out the specific duties in paragraphs (a) 
119.20  to (aa). 
119.21     (1) (a) Administer and supervise all forms of public 
119.22  assistance provided for by state law and other welfare 
119.23  activities or services as are vested in the commissioner.  
119.24  Administration and supervision of human services activities or 
119.25  services includes, but is not limited to, assuring timely and 
119.26  accurate distribution of benefits, completeness of service, and 
119.27  quality program management.  In addition to administering and 
119.28  supervising human services activities vested by law in the 
119.29  department, the commissioner shall have the authority to: 
119.30     (a) (1) require county agency participation in training and 
119.31  technical assistance programs to promote compliance with 
119.32  statutes, rules, federal laws, regulations, and policies 
119.33  governing human services; 
119.34     (b) (2) monitor, on an ongoing basis, the performance of 
119.35  county agencies in the operation and administration of human 
119.36  services, enforce compliance with statutes, rules, federal laws, 
120.1   regulations, and policies governing welfare services and promote 
120.2   excellence of administration and program operation; 
120.3      (c) (3) develop a quality control program or other 
120.4   monitoring program to review county performance and accuracy of 
120.5   benefit determinations; 
120.6      (d) (4) require county agencies to make an adjustment to 
120.7   the public assistance benefits issued to any individual 
120.8   consistent with federal law and regulation and state law and 
120.9   rule and to issue or recover benefits as appropriate; 
120.10     (e) (5) delay or deny payment of all or part of the state 
120.11  and federal share of benefits and administrative reimbursement 
120.12  according to the procedures set forth in section 256.017; 
120.13     (f) (6) make contracts with and grants to public and 
120.14  private agencies and organizations, both profit and nonprofit, 
120.15  and individuals, using appropriated funds; and 
120.16     (g) (7) enter into contractual agreements with federally 
120.17  recognized Indian tribes with a reservation in Minnesota to the 
120.18  extent necessary for the tribe to operate a federally approved 
120.19  family assistance program or any other program under the 
120.20  supervision of the commissioner.  The commissioner shall consult 
120.21  with the affected county or counties in the contractual 
120.22  agreement negotiations, if the county or counties wish to be 
120.23  included, in order to avoid the duplication of county and tribal 
120.24  assistance program services.  The commissioner may establish 
120.25  necessary accounts for the purposes of receiving and disbursing 
120.26  funds as necessary for the operation of the programs. 
120.27     (2) (b) Inform county agencies, on a timely basis, of 
120.28  changes in statute, rule, federal law, regulation, and policy 
120.29  necessary to county agency administration of the programs. 
120.30     (3) (c) Administer and supervise all child welfare 
120.31  activities; promote the enforcement of laws protecting 
120.32  handicapped, dependent, neglected and delinquent children, and 
120.33  children born to mothers who were not married to the children's 
120.34  fathers at the times of the conception nor at the births of the 
120.35  children; license and supervise child-caring and child-placing 
120.36  agencies and institutions; supervise the care of children in 
121.1   boarding and foster homes or in private institutions; and 
121.2   generally perform all functions relating to the field of child 
121.3   welfare now vested in the State Board of Control. 
121.4      (4) (d) Administer and supervise all noninstitutional 
121.5   service to handicapped persons, including those who are visually 
121.6   impaired, hearing impaired, or physically impaired or otherwise 
121.7   handicapped.  The commissioner may provide and contract for the 
121.8   care and treatment of qualified indigent children in facilities 
121.9   other than those located and available at state hospitals when 
121.10  it is not feasible to provide the service in state hospitals. 
121.11     (5) (e) Assist and actively cooperate with other 
121.12  departments, agencies and institutions, local, state, and 
121.13  federal, by performing services in conformity with the purposes 
121.14  of Laws 1939, chapter 431. 
121.15     (6) (f) Act as the agent of and cooperate with the federal 
121.16  government in matters of mutual concern relative to and in 
121.17  conformity with the provisions of Laws 1939, chapter 431, 
121.18  including the administration of any federal funds granted to the 
121.19  state to aid in the performance of any functions of the 
121.20  commissioner as specified in Laws 1939, chapter 431, and 
121.21  including the promulgation of rules making uniformly available 
121.22  medical care benefits to all recipients of public assistance, at 
121.23  such times as the federal government increases its participation 
121.24  in assistance expenditures for medical care to recipients of 
121.25  public assistance, the cost thereof to be borne in the same 
121.26  proportion as are grants of aid to said recipients. 
121.27     (7) (g) Establish and maintain any administrative units 
121.28  reasonably necessary for the performance of administrative 
121.29  functions common to all divisions of the department. 
121.30     (8) (h) Act as designated guardian of both the estate and 
121.31  the person of all the wards of the state of Minnesota, whether 
121.32  by operation of law or by an order of court, without any further 
121.33  act or proceeding whatever, except as to persons committed as 
121.34  mentally retarded.  For children under the guardianship of the 
121.35  commissioner whose interests would be best served by adoptive 
121.36  placement, the commissioner may contract with a licensed 
122.1   child-placing agency or a Minnesota tribal social services 
122.2   agency to provide adoption services.  A contract with a licensed 
122.3   child-placing agency must be designed to supplement existing 
122.4   county efforts and may not replace existing county programs, 
122.5   unless the replacement is agreed to by the county board and the 
122.6   appropriate exclusive bargaining representative or the 
122.7   commissioner has evidence that child placements of the county 
122.8   continue to be substantially below that of other counties.  
122.9   Funds encumbered and obligated under an agreement for a specific 
122.10  child shall remain available until the terms of the agreement 
122.11  are fulfilled or the agreement is terminated. 
122.12     (9) (i) Act as coordinating referral and informational 
122.13  center on requests for service for newly arrived immigrants 
122.14  coming to Minnesota. 
122.15     (10) (j) The specific enumeration of powers and duties as 
122.16  hereinabove set forth shall in no way be construed to be a 
122.17  limitation upon the general transfer of powers herein contained. 
122.18     (11) (k) Establish county, regional, or statewide schedules 
122.19  of maximum fees and charges which may be paid by county agencies 
122.20  for medical, dental, surgical, hospital, nursing and nursing 
122.21  home care and medicine and medical supplies under all programs 
122.22  of medical care provided by the state and for congregate living 
122.23  care under the income maintenance programs. 
122.24     (12) (l) Have the authority to conduct and administer 
122.25  experimental projects to test methods and procedures of 
122.26  administering assistance and services to recipients or potential 
122.27  recipients of public welfare.  To carry out such experimental 
122.28  projects, it is further provided that the commissioner of human 
122.29  services is authorized to waive the enforcement of existing 
122.30  specific statutory program requirements, rules, and standards in 
122.31  one or more counties.  The order establishing the waiver shall 
122.32  provide alternative methods and procedures of administration, 
122.33  shall not be in conflict with the basic purposes, coverage, or 
122.34  benefits provided by law, and in no event shall the duration of 
122.35  a project exceed four years.  It is further provided that no 
122.36  order establishing an experimental project as authorized by the 
123.1   provisions of this section shall become effective until the 
123.2   following conditions have been met: 
123.3      (a) (1) the secretary of health and human services of the 
123.4   United States has agreed, for the same project, to waive state 
123.5   plan requirements relative to statewide uniformity.; and 
123.6      (b) (2) a comprehensive plan, including estimated project 
123.7   costs, shall be approved by the Legislative Advisory Commission 
123.8   and filed with the commissioner of administration.  
123.9      (13) (m) According to federal requirements, establish 
123.10  procedures to be followed by local welfare boards in creating 
123.11  citizen advisory committees, including procedures for selection 
123.12  of committee members. 
123.13     (14) (n) Allocate federal fiscal disallowances or sanctions 
123.14  which are based on quality control error rates for the aid to 
123.15  families with dependent children program formerly codified in 
123.16  sections 256.72 to 256.87, medical assistance, or food stamp 
123.17  program in the following manner:  
123.18     (a) (1) one-half of the total amount of the disallowance 
123.19  shall be borne by the county boards responsible for 
123.20  administering the programs.  For the medical assistance and the 
123.21  AFDC program formerly codified in sections 256.72 to 256.87, 
123.22  disallowances shall be shared by each county board in the same 
123.23  proportion as that county's expenditures for the sanctioned 
123.24  program are to the total of all counties' expenditures for the 
123.25  AFDC program formerly codified in sections 256.72 to 256.87, and 
123.26  medical assistance programs.  For the food stamp program, 
123.27  sanctions shall be shared by each county board, with 50 percent 
123.28  of the sanction being distributed to each county in the same 
123.29  proportion as that county's administrative costs for food stamps 
123.30  are to the total of all food stamp administrative costs for all 
123.31  counties, and 50 percent of the sanctions being distributed to 
123.32  each county in the same proportion as that county's value of 
123.33  food stamp benefits issued are to the total of all benefits 
123.34  issued for all counties.  Each county shall pay its share of the 
123.35  disallowance to the state of Minnesota.  When a county fails to 
123.36  pay the amount due hereunder, the commissioner may deduct the 
124.1   amount from reimbursement otherwise due the county, or the 
124.2   attorney general, upon the request of the commissioner, may 
124.3   institute civil action to recover the amount due.; and 
124.4      (b) (2) notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 
124.5   (a) clause (1), if the disallowance results from knowing 
124.6   noncompliance by one or more counties with a specific program 
124.7   instruction, and that knowing noncompliance is a matter of 
124.8   official county board record, the commissioner may require 
124.9   payment or recover from the county or counties, in the manner 
124.10  prescribed in paragraph (a) clause (1), an amount equal to the 
124.11  portion of the total disallowance which resulted from the 
124.12  noncompliance, and may distribute the balance of the 
124.13  disallowance according to paragraph (a) clause (1).  
124.14     (15) (o) Develop and implement special projects that 
124.15  maximize reimbursements and result in the recovery of money to 
124.16  the state.  For the purpose of recovering state money, the 
124.17  commissioner may enter into contracts with third parties.  Any 
124.18  recoveries that result from projects or contracts entered into 
124.19  under this paragraph shall be deposited in the state treasury 
124.20  and credited to a special account until the balance in the 
124.21  account reaches $1,000,000.  When the balance in the account 
124.22  exceeds $1,000,000, the excess shall be transferred and credited 
124.23  to the general fund.  All money in the account is appropriated 
124.24  to the commissioner for the purposes of this paragraph. 
124.25     (16) (p) Have the authority to make direct payments to 
124.26  facilities providing shelter to women and their children 
124.27  according to section 256D.05, subdivision 3.  Upon the written 
124.28  request of a shelter facility that has been denied payments 
124.29  under section 256D.05, subdivision 3, the commissioner shall 
124.30  review all relevant evidence and make a determination within 30 
124.31  days of the request for review regarding issuance of direct 
124.32  payments to the shelter facility.  Failure to act within 30 days 
124.33  shall be considered a determination not to issue direct payments.
124.34     (17) (q) Have the authority to establish and enforce the 
124.35  following county reporting requirements:  
124.36     (a) (1) the commissioner shall establish fiscal and 
125.1   statistical reporting requirements necessary to account for the 
125.2   expenditure of funds allocated to counties for human services 
125.3   programs.  When establishing financial and statistical reporting 
125.4   requirements, the commissioner shall evaluate all reports, in 
125.5   consultation with the counties, to determine if the reports can 
125.6   be simplified or the number of reports can be reduced.; 
125.7      (b) (2) the county board shall submit monthly or quarterly 
125.8   reports to the department as required by the commissioner.  
125.9   Monthly reports are due no later than 15 working days after the 
125.10  end of the month.  Quarterly reports are due no later than 30 
125.11  calendar days after the end of the quarter, unless the 
125.12  commissioner determines that the deadline must be shortened to 
125.13  20 calendar days to avoid jeopardizing compliance with federal 
125.14  deadlines or risking a loss of federal funding.  Only reports 
125.15  that are complete, legible, and in the required format shall be 
125.16  accepted by the commissioner.; 
125.17     (c) (3) if the required reports are not received by the 
125.18  deadlines established in clause (b) (2), the commissioner may 
125.19  delay payments and withhold funds from the county board until 
125.20  the next reporting period.  When the report is needed to account 
125.21  for the use of federal funds and the late report results in a 
125.22  reduction in federal funding, the commissioner shall withhold 
125.23  from the county boards with late reports an amount equal to the 
125.24  reduction in federal funding until full federal funding is 
125.25  received.; 
125.26     (d) (4) a county board that submits reports that are late, 
125.27  illegible, incomplete, or not in the required format for two out 
125.28  of three consecutive reporting periods is considered 
125.29  noncompliant.  When a county board is found to be noncompliant, 
125.30  the commissioner shall notify the county board of the reason the 
125.31  county board is considered noncompliant and request that the 
125.32  county board develop a corrective action plan stating how the 
125.33  county board plans to correct the problem.  The corrective 
125.34  action plan must be submitted to the commissioner within 45 days 
125.35  after the date the county board received notice of 
125.36  noncompliance.; 
126.1      (e) (5) the final deadline for fiscal reports or amendments 
126.2   to fiscal reports is one year after the date the report was 
126.3   originally due.  If the commissioner does not receive a report 
126.4   by the final deadline, the county board forfeits the funding 
126.5   associated with the report for that reporting period and the 
126.6   county board must repay any funds associated with the report 
126.7   received for that reporting period.; 
126.8      (f) (6) the commissioner may not delay payments, withhold 
126.9   funds, or require repayment under paragraph (c) clause (3) or 
126.10  (e) (5) if the county demonstrates that the commissioner failed 
126.11  to provide appropriate forms, guidelines, and technical 
126.12  assistance to enable the county to comply with the 
126.13  requirements.  If the county board disagrees with an action 
126.14  taken by the commissioner under paragraph (c) clause (3) or 
126.15  (e) (5), the county board may appeal the action according to 
126.16  sections 14.57 to 14.69.; and 
126.17     (g) (7) counties subject to withholding of funds under 
126.18  paragraph (c) clause (3) or forfeiture or repayment of funds 
126.19  under paragraph (e) clause (5) shall not reduce or withhold 
126.20  benefits or services to clients to cover costs incurred due to 
126.21  actions taken by the commissioner under paragraph (c) clause (3) 
126.22  or (e) (5). 
126.23     (18) (r) Allocate federal fiscal disallowances or sanctions 
126.24  for audit exceptions when federal fiscal disallowances or 
126.25  sanctions are based on a statewide random sample for the foster 
126.26  care program under title IV-E of the Social Security Act, United 
126.27  States Code, title 42, in direct proportion to each county's 
126.28  title IV-E foster care maintenance claim for that period. 
126.29     (19) (s) Be responsible for ensuring the detection, 
126.30  prevention, investigation, and resolution of fraudulent 
126.31  activities or behavior by applicants, recipients, and other 
126.32  participants in the human services programs administered by the 
126.33  department. 
126.34     (20) (t) Require county agencies to identify overpayments, 
126.35  establish claims, and utilize all available and cost-beneficial 
126.36  methodologies to collect and recover these overpayments in the 
127.1   human services programs administered by the department. 
127.2      (21) (u) Have the authority to administer a drug rebate 
127.3   program for drugs purchased pursuant to the prescription drug 
127.4   program established under section 256.955 after the 
127.5   beneficiary's satisfaction of any deductible established in the 
127.6   program.  The commissioner shall require a rebate agreement from 
127.7   all manufacturers of covered drugs as defined in section 
127.8   256B.0625, subdivision 13.  Rebate agreements for prescription 
127.9   drugs delivered on or after July 1, 2002, must include rebates 
127.10  for individuals covered under the prescription drug program who 
127.11  are under 65 years of age.  For each drug, the amount of the 
127.12  rebate shall be equal to the rebate as defined for purposes of 
127.13  the federal rebate program in United States Code, title 42, 
127.14  section 1396r-8(c)(1).  The manufacturers must provide full 
127.15  payment within 30 days of receipt of the state invoice for the 
127.16  rebate within the terms and conditions used for the federal 
127.17  rebate program established pursuant to section 1927 of title XIX 
127.18  of the Social Security Act.  The manufacturers must provide the 
127.19  commissioner with any information necessary to verify the rebate 
127.20  determined per drug.  The rebate program shall utilize the terms 
127.21  and conditions used for the federal rebate program established 
127.22  pursuant to section 1927 of title XIX of the Social Security Act.
127.23     (22) (v) Have the authority to administer the federal drug 
127.24  rebate program for drugs purchased under the medical assistance 
127.25  program as allowed by section 1927 of title XIX of the Social 
127.26  Security Act and according to the terms and conditions of 
127.27  section 1927.  Rebates shall be collected for all drugs that 
127.28  have been dispensed or administered in an outpatient setting and 
127.29  that are from manufacturers who have signed a rebate agreement 
127.30  with the United States Department of Health and Human Services. 
127.31     (23) (w) Have the authority to administer a supplemental 
127.32  drug rebate program for drugs purchased under the medical 
127.33  assistance program.  The commissioner may enter into 
127.34  supplemental rebate contracts with pharmaceutical manufacturers 
127.35  and may require prior authorization for drugs that are from 
127.36  manufacturers that have not signed a supplemental rebate 
128.1   contract.  Prior authorization of drugs shall be subject to the 
128.2   provisions of section 256B.0625, subdivision 13. 
128.3      (24) (x) Operate the department's communication systems 
128.4   account established in Laws 1993, First Special Session chapter 
128.5   1, article 1, section 2, subdivision 2, to manage shared 
128.6   communication costs necessary for the operation of the programs 
128.7   the commissioner supervises.  A communications account may also 
128.8   be established for each regional treatment center which operates 
128.9   communications systems.  Each account must be used to manage 
128.10  shared communication costs necessary for the operations of the 
128.11  programs the commissioner supervises.  The commissioner may 
128.12  distribute the costs of operating and maintaining communication 
128.13  systems to participants in a manner that reflects actual usage. 
128.14  Costs may include acquisition, licensing, insurance, 
128.15  maintenance, repair, staff time and other costs as determined by 
128.16  the commissioner.  Nonprofit organizations and state, county, 
128.17  and local government agencies involved in the operation of 
128.18  programs the commissioner supervises may participate in the use 
128.19  of the department's communications technology and share in the 
128.20  cost of operation.  The commissioner may accept on behalf of the 
128.21  state any gift, bequest, devise or personal property of any 
128.22  kind, or money tendered to the state for any lawful purpose 
128.23  pertaining to the communication activities of the department.  
128.24  Any money received for this purpose must be deposited in the 
128.25  department's communication systems accounts.  Money collected by 
128.26  the commissioner for the use of communication systems must be 
128.27  deposited in the state communication systems account and is 
128.28  appropriated to the commissioner for purposes of this section. 
128.29     (25) (y) Receive any federal matching money that is made 
128.30  available through the medical assistance program for the 
128.31  consumer satisfaction survey.  Any federal money received for 
128.32  the survey is appropriated to the commissioner for this 
128.33  purpose.  The commissioner may expend the federal money received 
128.34  for the consumer satisfaction survey in either year of the 
128.35  biennium. 
128.36     (26) (z) Designate community information and referral call 
129.1   centers and incorporate cost reimbursement claims from First 
129.2   Call Minnesota and Greater Twin Cities United Way the designated 
129.3   community information and referral call centers into the federal 
129.4   cost reimbursement claiming processes of the department 
129.5   according to federal law, rule, and regulations.  Existing 2-1-1 
129.6   information and referral centers provided by Greater Twin Cities 
129.7   United Way or existing call centers for which Greater Twin 
129.8   Cities United Way has legal authority to represent, shall be 
129.9   included in these designations upon review by the commissioner 
129.10  and assurance that these services are accredited and in 
129.11  compliance with national standards.  Any reimbursement received 
129.12  is appropriated to the commissioner and all designated 
129.13  information and referral centers shall be disbursed to First 
129.14  Call Minnesota and Greater Twin Cities United Way receive 
129.15  payments according to normal department payment 
129.16  schedules established by the commissioner upon final approval of 
129.17  allocation methodologies from the United States Department of 
129.18  Health and Human Services Division of Cost Allocation or other 
129.19  appropriate authorities. 
129.20     (27) (aa) Develop recommended standards for foster care 
129.21  homes that address the components of specialized therapeutic 
129.22  services to be provided by foster care homes with those services.
129.23     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 256.01, is 
129.24  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
129.25     Subd. 21.  [HOMELESS SERVICES.] The commissioner of human 
129.26  services may contract directly with nonprofit organizations 
129.27  providing homeless services in two or more counties. 
129.28     <b>[EFFECTIVE DATE.]</b> This section is effective immediately 
129.29  following final enactment. 
129.30     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 256B.431, 
129.31  subdivision 37, is amended to read: 
129.32     Subd. 37.  [NURSING HOME RATE INCREASES EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 
129.33  2002.] For rate years beginning on or after July 1, 2002, the 
129.34  commissioner shall provide to each nursing home reimbursed under 
129.35  this section or section 256B.434 an increase in each case mix 
129.36  payment rate equal to the increase in the per-bed surcharge paid 
130.1   under section 256.9657, subdivision 1, paragraph (c), divided by 
130.2   365 and further divided by .80.  The increase under this 
130.3   subdivision shall be added following the determination of the 
130.4   payment rate for the home under this chapter.  The increase 
130.5   shall not be subject to any annual percentage increase.  If a 
130.6   facility has beds licensed for nursing home care and also has 
130.7   beds licensed for boarding care, the increase will be prorated 
130.8   by the ratio of beds licensed for nursing home care to the total 
130.9   number of licensed beds in the facility.  If the number of 
130.10  licensed beds in facilities that have both types of licensure 
130.11  changes during the year, the proration of the increase will be 
130.12  changed effective the first of the month following the change in 
130.13  the number of beds. 
130.14     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
130.15  256B.431, subdivision 38, is amended to read: 
130.16     Subd. 38.  [NURSING HOME RATE INCREASES EFFECTIVE IN FISCAL 
130.17  YEAR 2003.] Effective June 1, 2003, the commissioner shall 
130.18  provide to each nursing home reimbursed under this section or 
130.19  section 256B.434, an increase in each case mix payment rate 
130.20  equal to the increase in the per-bed surcharge paid under 
130.21  section 256.9657, subdivision 1, paragraph (d), divided by 365 
130.22  and further divided by .90.  The increase shall not be subject 
130.23  to any annual percentage increase.  The 30-day advance notice 
130.24  requirement in section 256B.47, subdivision 2, shall not apply 
130.25  to rate increases resulting from this section.  If a facility 
130.26  has beds licensed for nursing home care and also has beds 
130.27  licensed for boarding care, the increase will be prorated by the 
130.28  ratio of beds licensed for nursing home care to the total number 
130.29  of licensed beds in the facility.  If the number of licensed 
130.30  beds in facilities that have both types of licensure changes 
130.31  during the year, the proration of the increase will be changed 
130.32  effective the first of the month following the change in the 
130.33  number of beds.  The commissioner shall not adjust the rate 
130.34  increase under this subdivision unless the adjustment is greater 
130.35  than 1.5 percent of the monthly surcharge payment amount under 
130.36  section 256.9657, subdivision 4. 
131.1      Sec. 6.  [REPEALER.] 
131.2      Laws 2003, First Special Session chapter 14, article 3, 
131.3   section 56, is repealed effective immediately following final 
131.4   enactment. 
131.5                              ARTICLE 7 
131.6                             HEALTH CARE 
131.7      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 256B.02, 
131.8   subdivision 12, is amended to read: 
131.9      Subd. 12.  "Third-party payer" means a person, entity, or 
131.10  agency or government program that has a probable obligation to 
131.11  pay all or part of the costs of a medical assistance recipient's 
131.12  health services.  Third-party payer includes an entity under 
131.13  contract with the recipient to cover all or part of the 
131.14  recipient's medical costs. 
131.15     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 256B.056, is 
131.16  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
131.17     Subd. 8a.  [NOTICE.] The state agency must be given notice 
131.18  of monetary claims against a person, entity, or corporation that 
131.19  may be liable to pay all or part of all of the cost of medical 
131.20  care when the state agency has paid or becomes liable for the 
131.21  cost of that care.  Notice must be given as follows: 
131.22     (a) An applicant for medical assistance shall notify the 
131.23  state or local agency of any possible claims when the applicant 
131.24  submits the application.  A recipient of medical assistance 
131.25  shall notify the state or local agency of any possible claims 
131.26  when those claims arise. 
131.27     (b) A person providing medical care services to a recipient 
131.28  of medical assistance shall notify the state agency when the 
131.29  person has reason to believe that a third party may be liable 
131.30  for payment of the cost of medical care. 
131.31     (c) A party to a claim that may be assigned to the state 
131.32  agency under this section shall notify the state agency of its 
131.33  potential assignment claim in writing at each of the following 
131.34  stages of a claim: 
131.35     (1) when a claim is filed; 
131.36     (2) when an action is commenced; and 
132.1      (3) when a claim is concluded by payment, award, judgment, 
132.2   settlement, or otherwise. 
132.3      Every party involved in any stage of a claim under this 
132.4   subdivision is required to provide notice to the state agency at 
132.5   that stage of the claim.  However, when one of the parties to 
132.6   the claim provides notice at that stage, every other party to 
132.7   the claim is deemed to have provided the required notice for 
132.8   that stage of the claim.  If the required notice under this 
132.9   paragraph is not provided to the state agency, all parties to 
132.10  the claim are deemed to have failed to provide the required 
132.11  notice.  A party to the claim includes the injured person or the 
132.12  person's legal representative, the plaintiff, the defendants, or 
132.13  persons alleged to be responsible for compensating the injured 
132.14  person or plaintiff, and any other party to the cause of action 
132.15  or claim, regardless of whether the party knows the state agency 
132.16  has a potential or actual assignment claim. 
132.17     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 256B.056, is 
132.18  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
132.19     Subd. 8b.  [JOINDER OF STATE IN ACTIONS AGAINST THIRD 
132.20  PARTIES.] Any medical assistance recipient or the recipient's 
132.21  legal representative asserting a claim against a third party 
132.22  potentially liable for all or part of the recipient's medical 
132.23  costs shall join the state agency as a party to the claim. 
132.24     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 256B.056, is 
132.25  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
132.26     Subd. 8c.  [SETTLEMENT.] Pursuant to United States Code, 
132.27  title 42, section 1396k(b), no judgment, award, or settlement of 
132.28  any action or claim by or on behalf of a medical assistance 
132.29  recipient to recover damages from a third party potentially 
132.30  liable for all or part of the recipient's medical costs shall be 
132.31  acceded to or satisfied by the recipient or the recipient's 
132.32  legal representative or approved by the court without granting 
132.33  the state agency first recovery from the liable third party to 
132.34  the full extent of its medical expenditures, minus pro rata 
132.35  costs and attorney fees, regardless of whether the recipient has 
132.36  been fully compensated. 
133.1      Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 256L.04, 
133.2   subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
133.3      Subd. 2.  [COOPERATION IN ESTABLISHING THIRD-PARTY 
133.4   LIABILITY, PATERNITY, AND OTHER MEDICAL SUPPORT.] (a) To be 
133.5   eligible for MinnesotaCare, individuals and families must 
133.6   cooperate with the state agency to identify potentially liable 
133.7   third-party payers and assist the state in obtaining third-party 
133.8   payments.  "Cooperation" includes, but is not limited to, 
133.9   complying with the notice and settlement requirements in section 
133.10  256B.056, subdivisions 8a and 8c, identifying any third party 
133.11  who may be liable for care and services provided under 
133.12  MinnesotaCare to the enrollee, providing relevant information to 
133.13  assist the state in pursuing a potentially liable third party, 
133.14  and completing forms necessary to recover third-party payments. 
133.15     (b) A parent, guardian, relative caretaker, or child 
133.16  enrolled in the MinnesotaCare program must cooperate with the 
133.17  Department of Human Services and the local agency in 
133.18  establishing the paternity of an enrolled child and in obtaining 
133.19  medical care support and payments for the child and any other 
133.20  person for whom the person can legally assign rights, in 
133.21  accordance with applicable laws and rules governing the medical 
133.22  assistance program.  A child shall not be ineligible for or 
133.23  disenrolled from the MinnesotaCare program solely because the 
133.24  child's parent, relative caretaker, or guardian fails to 
133.25  cooperate in establishing paternity or obtaining medical support.
133.26     Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 549.02, is 
133.27  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
133.28     Subd. 3.  [LIMITATION.] Notwithstanding subdivisions 1 and 
133.29  2, where the state agency is joined as a party according to 
133.30  section 256B.056, subdivision 8b, or brings an independent 
133.31  action to enforce its rights under section 256B.056, it shall 
133.32  not be liable for costs to any prevailing defendant. 
133.33     Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 549.04, is 
133.34  amended to read: 
133.35     549.04 [DISBURSEMENTS; TAXATION AND ALLOWANCE.] 
133.36     Subdivision 1.  [GENERALLY.] In every action in a district 
134.1   court, the prevailing party, including any public employee who 
134.2   prevails in an action for wrongfully denied or withheld 
134.3   employment benefits or rights, shall be allowed reasonable 
134.4   disbursements paid or incurred, including fees and mileage paid 
134.5   for service of process by the sheriff or by a private person.  
134.6      Subd. 2.  [LIMITATION.] Notwithstanding subdivision 1, 
134.7   where the state agency is joined as a party according to section 
134.8   256B.056, subdivision 8b, or brings an independent action to 
134.9   enforce its rights under section 256B.056, it shall not be 
134.10  liable for disbursements to any prevailing defendant.