House of Representatives

HB 2259

children in foster care

Sponsors: Representative Johnson

DPA S/E	Committee on Human Services
X	Caucus and COW
	Third Read
	As Passed the House

HB 2259 requires a child welfare agency or case manager to furnish a caregiver, foster parent or birth parent with access to all information kept in a child’s file if requested and assigns a Class two misdemeanor for any employee who changes information within the file.

Current Status

The Human Services Committee adopted the strike-everything amendment to HB 2259 along with an amendment that contains clarifying language and a delayed effective date of December 31, 2002.

Proposed Strike-everything Amendment to HB 2259

The proposed strike-everything amendment to HB 2259 strikes language that authorizes the court to determine custody of a child in divorce proceedings and replaces it with the requirement of the court to adopt a parenting plan that emphasizes mutual cooperation of parents in raising a child.

Provisions

· Requires the court, in a divorce proceeding, to adopt a parenting plan or if the parents cannot agree on one plan, permits each parent to submit separate plans.

· Stipulates the parenting plan must include the following:

Ø Each parent’s responsibility for the child’s personal care and decision making areas of education, health care, and religious training.

Ø Schedule of child’s physical residence, including vacations and holidays and provisions for communication between each parent and the child.

Ø Procedure for parents to resolve disputes about proposed changes.

Ø Procedure for periodic review of the plan by the parents.

· Clarifies the court shall adopt the plan originally or modified according to the best interests of the child and prohibits the court from preferring one parent to another because of gender.

· Outlines plan factors similar to those in existing child custody statute in which the court shall consider with the addition of the following provisions:

Ø Parental discouragement for contact with the other parent is contrary to the best interests of the child.

Ø Which parent is more likely to promote a civil and accommodating relationship with the other parent to protect the child from parental conflict effects.

Ø Which parent is likely to refrain from speaking derogatorily about the other parent.

Ø Willingness and ability of each parent to provide for the child’s care.

· Establishes rebuttable presumptions for deciding the best interests of a child on contested provisions of a plan.

· Requires Legislative Council to prepare proposed legislation to conform statutes to this act for the next regular session.

· Makes technical and conforming changes.

Amendments

The strike-everything amendment was adopted in the Human Services Committee with the following changes:

· Clarifies that a parenting plan constitutes a child custody order.

· Allows the court to consider the changing developmental needs of a child as a change of circumstances.

· Clarifies that the parenting model is published by the Arizona Supreme Court and not adopted.

· Adds a delayed effective date from and after December 31, 2002.

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· 45th Legislature

· Second Regular Session 2 March 27, 2002

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