1996 SUMMARY OF LEGISLATION

CHILDREN AND YOUTH

CHILDREN AND YOUTH

SENATE FILE 2307 - Programs for Persons With Disabilities (full text of bill)

BY SZYMONIAK. This Act relates to the Comprehensive Family Support Program for individuals with a disability and their families and provides for coordination of programs available to individuals with disabilities with other programs administered by the Department of Human Services.
The changes to the Comprehensive Family Support Program include the addition of a definition of the term "family" to include the immediate family members of the person with a disability and persons providing noninstitutional placements of the person. The Act requires statewide implementation of the support program in a manner which enables individual choice of services and other provisions to individualize the manner in which the program is implemented.
The Act also requires that the application process be coordinated with the eligibility processes used by other programs, requires services and support to be provided in a timely manner with provision for emergency services, and requires the department to assist eligible families in locating services and in identifying the components of service plans.
The Act includes provisions for a children-at-home component of the program. Under this component, the department assists a family member of an eligible family in identifying services and support needed. The Act directs the department to develop a contract for direct payment utilizing vouchers for the services and other support provided to the family.
The Act amends the codified provisions of the Personal Assistance and Family Support Services Council to specify additional duties for the council under the Personal Assistance Services and Comprehensive Family Support Programs. The council is directed to consult with the department in overseeing the operations of the programs, coordinate with the Department of Education programs for individuals with a disability, work with the Department of Human Services and the counties in advocating the inclusion of the programs as services available under managed care provisions, and oversee evaluation, training and publicity efforts.
The Act directs the Department of Human Services to coordinate its juvenile justice and child welfare programs applicable to individuals with a disability. The department is to propose changes to policymakers to revise program eligibility requirements and time restrictions to accommodate the needs of individuals with a disability. In addition, the department is to coordinate its programs and funding with other state and local programs and funding applicable to individuals with a disability. The coordination requirement includes specific provision for compiling information and for training staff and eligible individuals and families. The department is also required to designate an individual to act as central coordinator of the Personal Assistance Services and Comprehensive Family Support Programs and to work with the council.

SENATE FILE 2399 - Child Protection System Provisions (full text of bill)

BY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES. This Act relates to child protection system provisions involving child abuse assessment pilot projects administered by the Department of Human Services and to other child protection provisions.
Under the Act, a report of child abuse in pilot project counties is responded to differently than in other counties. In the other counties, when a report is received, the department performs a child abuse investigation to determine whether child abuse occurred and to ensure the safety of the child. If the department determines child abuse occurred, the names of the alleged perpetrator and the child are placed on a central computerized child abuse registry. The registry is used as a tool for employment screening in child day care positions and other jobs involving dependent children and adults.
A statute enacted in 1995, implementing recommendations of a legislative interim committee on child protection, provided for testing of a different approach in five areas of the state. In the 19 pilot project counties, the focus of the response to a report is to perform an assessment of the child's safety and the functioning of the child's family. Only cases of significant abuse are placed on the registry.
The 1995 legislation included a statement of legislative intent to initiate the assessment-based approach statewide beginning July 1, 1996. This Act modifies this intent statement to instead consider statewide implementation beginning February 10, 1997.
In addition, the Act modifies the assessment-based pilot project statute as follows:

• The county attorney is to be notified of the receipt of a report of child abuse as is the practice in the investigation-based system.
• The department must commence the assessment within 24 hours instead of the 72 hours originally required.
• The written assessment must be completed within 20 business days instead of the 21 calendar days originally required.
• A copy of the written assessment pertaining to the child abuse report is to be provided to the county attorney and the juvenile court. Under the original enactment, the assessment was only provided if the assessment included a recommendation for a court action or petition.
• The department is required to work with representatives of local enforcement to develop a protocol for joint investigative processes.
• The criteria for placement on the child abuse registry is expanded to include sexual abuse by perpetrators who are ages 14 and older. The juvenile court is authorized to remove perpetrators from the registry who are ages 14 through 17 upon a finding of good cause. In addition, placement on the registry is directed if the department determines that the alleged perpetrator will continue to pose a danger to the child in the report or to any other child.
• A report concerning the assessment-based projects is to be submitted by the department in December 1996. The report is to include analysis of outcomes and other performance measures concerning the two methods of responding to a child abuse report.

The Act includes additional provisions relating to child protection. Access to child abuse registry information is provided for a person to determine whether an individual is named in a founded child abuse report as having abused a child, if the individual provides written authorization for the access. Provisions allowing multidisciplinary prosecution teams in child abuse cases are expanded to permit consultation with a variety of professionals. The Department of Human Services is directed to convene a group of legislators, persons involved with the child protection system, and others to consult with national experts in child protection.
The Act takes effect April 30, 1996.

SENATE FILE 2410 - Illegal Drugs in Parents and Children (full text of bill)

BY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES. This Act amends Juvenile Justice Code provisions involving the presence of illegal drugs in a child or a parent.
Much of the Act reverses provisions enacted in 1995 Iowa Acts, Chapter 182. "Child in need of assistance" and "child abuse" definitions are changed to include the presence of an illegal drug in a child as a direct and foreseeable consequence of the acts or omissions of the child's parent, guardian or custodian. In 1995, the definition utilized a reasonable and prudent person standard in applying child in need of assistance and child abuse definitions to the presence of an illegal drug in a child.
The Act strikes provisions directing the Iowa Department of Public Health to adopt rules specifying minimum standards for reliable results for medically relevant tests to minimize the incidence of false positive tests and to identify qualified laboratories. The Act includes a provision voiding the adopted rules.
The Act amends Juvenile Justice Code language containing requirements for medically relevant tests of parents, guardians or custodians. The amendment strikes language authorizing a parent to select the laboratory to perform a medically relevant test from among laboratories identified in rules adopted by the Iowa Department of Public Health. The Act also strikes language that prohibits the use of a positive test result in the criminal prosecution of the parent.
The Act modifies a provision in law prior to the 1995 Legislative Session that prohibits the use of a positive medically relevant test in the criminal prosecution of a parent for acts and omissions resulting in intrauterine exposure of a child to an illegal drug. The modification limits the prosecution prohibition to tests obtained prior to the birth of the child.
The Act provides that if a child is removed from the child's home under a court order due to the presence of an illegal drug in the child's body, the court is to allow reasonable or supervised visitation with the child's parent unless the court determines the visitation would cause an imminent risk to the child's life or health.
The Director of Public Health is directed to utilize the Commission on Substance Abuse to study the effects of fetal alcohol syndrome on children and the issues associated with removal of a child based on the parent's substance abuse. The study process is to utilize statewide hearings and consultation with various public officials. The study findings are to be submitted to the Legislative Council and to the General Assembly.
The Act takes effect April 15, 1996.

SENATE FILE 2420 - Juvenile and Criminal Justice -- Miscellaneous Provisions (full text of bill)

BY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY. This Act contains several provisions relating to juvenile justice, including new dispositional alternatives for juveniles adjudicated delinquent, requirements for registering with the sex offender registry, associate juvenile judge jurisdiction, and criminal gang offenses.
The Act provides that, with regard to a child age 16 or older who is charged with an offense excluded from the jurisdiction of the juvenile court under Section 232.8, the court may accept a plea to a lesser included offense or may provide jury instructions to a lesser included offense. The Act also provides that the chief juvenile court officer or the officer's designee may order a child placed in a community treatment program to be placed in group foster care for failure to comply with the conditions of placement in the community treatment program. The placement shall be for not more than 72 hours unless the court is notified and a hearing on the placement is held within 10 days of the placement.
The Act provides that a person who is otherwise required to register with the sex offender registry shall register when released from foster care or residential treatment.
The Act provides that associate juvenile judges may issue warrants and certain other orders in juvenile court proceedings to the same extent as a district court judge sitting in juvenile court. The Act also makes the penalty for contempt of court before an associate juvenile court judge the same as the penalty for contempt before a district associate judge. In addition, the Act requires juvenile court protective orders to be enforced in the same manner as domestic abuse protective orders, and provides that violation of such an order may be punished as a simple misdemeanor or as an act of contempt.
The Act makes brandishing a dangerous weapon with the intent to use, intimidate or threaten another person without justification, or the use, without justification, of a dangerous weapon in a manner which is intended to or does cause injury or death, a criminal law offense under Section 723A.1. The Act also defines what constitutes a "dangerous weapon" for purposes of the new "brandishing" offense.

SENATE FILE 2430 - Rights of Victims of Delinquent Acts (full text of bill)

BY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY. This Act requires the juvenile court to provide a victim of a delinquent act with notification of various rights and services connected with the delinquent act.
The Juvenile Justice Code and the Victim and Witness Protection Act are amended to allow a victim of an alleged delinquent act for which a complaint is filed to file a victim impact statement with the juvenile court. The statement is to be considered by the court and the juvenile court officer handling the complaint in any proceeding or informal adjustment associated with the complaint.
The Act provides that if a complaint is filed alleging that a child has committed a delinquent act, the victim of the delinquent act has a right to be notified of the following information: the names and addresses of the child and the child's custodial parent, the charges filed in any petition resulting from the complaint, the informal or formal disposition of the complaint, the person's right to restitution, the person's right to offer a victim impact statement, and assistance available to the victim under Chapter 912, the Crime Victim Compensation chapter. Notification of the person shall be made by a juvenile court officer. The juvenile court and the county attorney are to coordinate efforts to prevent duplication with the county attorney's notification of a victim of certain information under Chapter 910A, the Victim and Witness Protection chapter.
The provision relating to the confidentiality of juvenile court records is amended to provide for the release of information in juvenile court records to the victim of a delinquent act as provided in the Act.

HOUSE FILE 2050 - Adoption

BY DODERER AND BODDICKER. This Act includes provisions relating to adoption. The Act requires the Department of Human Services to adopt rules to establish that the overriding factor in the selection of an adoptive parent for placement of a child through the department is that the child be placed in a stable family environment as expeditiously as possible.
The Act also amends provisions enacted in S.F. 13 (see Courts, Civil & Procedure, & Probate) to remove the required notification of a parent of a pregnant minor prior to the adoption of the minor's child. The Act replaces the notification requirement with a requirement that following the filing of a petition for the termination of parental rights of a pregnant minor or a minor who has given birth, a custodial parent or legal guardian or custodian of the pregnant minor or minor who has given birth is to be served with notice of the filing of the petition. The requirement may be waived by the court if it determines that the minor is capable of providing consent to the termination of parental rights, if the provision of notice is not in the best interest of the minor or of the minor child, or for other good cause. The Act provides that failure to provide the notice does not constitute good cause for revocation of a release of custody and is not grounds for denial, modification, vacation, or appeal of a termination of parental rights order or of an interlocutory or final adoption decree.

RELATED LEGISLATION

SENATE FILE 13 - Notification Requirements and Decision-Making Assistance Program Regarding Pregnant Minors (Complete summary under COURTS, CIVIL LAW & PROCEDURE, & PROBATE.)

This Act establishes a Prospective Minor Parents Decision-Making Assistance Program and includes requirements relating to the notification of a parent of a pregnant minor prior to the performance of an abortion on a pregnant minor. The Act specifies the components of the program, establishes an advisory committee for the program, specifies the procedure for notification of a parent and the alternative and exemptions to notification, establishes penalties for various violations of the Act, and provides effective dates for the various provisions of the Act. The Act was amended by H. F. 2050 with regard to termination of parental rights of a pregnant minor and placement of a child for adoption.

SENATE FILE 2030 - Mental Health and Developmental Disability Funding and Related Provisions (Complete summary under LOCAL GOVERNMENT.

This Act relates to state and county mental health and developmental disability funding provisions by amending provisions associated with the base year used for determining maximum county expenditures and state funding levels. The Act amends provisions initially enacted in 1995 Iowa Acts, Chapter 206, S. F. 69, and includes a state appropriation for Medical Assistance services provided to minors with mental retardation.

SENATE FILE 2186 - Miscellaneous Transportation-Related Sanctions (Complete summary under TRANSPORTATION.)

This Act amends provisions relating to the issuance of a temporary restricted license for a person under the age of 21, whose motor vehicle license has been revoked or suspended for operating while intoxicated. The Act provides that if a defendant has been convicted of or has received a deferred judgment for operating while intoxicated at an alcohol concentration level of 0.1 or greater, the defendant will be eligible for a temporary restricted license no sooner than 60 days from the date of revocation.

SENATE FILE 2265 - Domestic Relations -- Miscellaneous Provisions (Complete summary under COURTS, CIVIL LAW & PROCEDURE, & PROBATE.)

This Act provides for a determination by the court in every domestic relations proceeding as to the participation of the parties in mediation to resolve differences between the parties and for the mandatory participation of the parties, to any action involving the issues of child custody or visitation in a court-approved course to educate and sensitize the parties to the needs of any child or party to the action.

SENATE FILE 2294 - Multidisciplinary Community Services Teams (Complete summary under HUMAN SERVICES.)

This Act creates multidisciplinary community services teams in the county home rule chapter of the Iowa Code, Chapter 331. The members of a team are expressly authorized to disclose confidential information to one another concerning an individual or a family.

SENATE FILE 2324 - Miscellaneous Public Assistance Provisions and Related Matters (Complete summary under HUMAN SERVICES.)

This Act relates to public assistance and includes associated state tax provisions involving the Family Investment Program, Family Development and Self-Sufficiency Council, individual development accounts, fraudulent practices involving the food stamp program, immunization requirements, and child support.

SENATE FILE 2344 - Child Support Enforcement (Complete summary under HUMAN SERVICES.)

This Act includes a number of provisions relating to child support enforcement, including those relating to administrative review and adjustment proceedings, suspension of a child support order based upon reconciliation of the parents, the test used in administrative determination of paternity, disestablishment of paternity, notice provisions for income withholding, full faith and credit of child support orders, and accrual of interest on late payment of orders.

SENATE FILE 2423 - Lascivious Acts With a Child -- Solicitation (Complete summary under CORRECTIONS, CRIMINAL LAW & PROCEDURE.)

This Act prohibits a person from soliciting another person to arrange a sex act with a child. A person violating this prohibition commits a class "D" felony.

SENATE FILE 2442 - Appropriations -- Human Services (Complete summary under APPROPRIATIONS.)

This Act makes appropriations to the Department of Human Services (DHS) and to the Prevention of Disabilities Policy Council for FY 1997, and includes provisions relating to human services and health.

SENATE FILE 2448 - Appropriations -- Health and Human Rights (Complete summary under APPROPRIATIONS.)

This Act appropriates funds for a number of programs and purposes in the Family and Community Health Division of the Iowa Department of Public Health, including the Birth Defects and Genetics Counseling Program, mobile and regional child health specialty clinics, muscular dystrophy and related genetic disease programs, the Statewide Perinatal Care Program, maternal and child health services, sudden infant death syndrome autopsies, the Physician Care for Children Program, and for primary and preventive health care for children.

SENATE FILE 2470 - Miscellaneous Appropriations and Related Matters -- Economic Development Appropriations (Complete summary under APPROPRIATIONS.)

This Act relates to public levy, expenditure and regulatory matters by making standing, economic development and other appropriations, and includes provisions relating to creation of innovation zones in local areas to improve outcomes for children and families, applying a penalty against a person who harbors a runaway child, and providing for nonreversion of an FY 1996 supplemental appropriation for child day care.

HOUSE FILE 2114 - Miscellaneous Supplemental Appropriations (Complete summary under APPROPRIATIONS.)

This Act includes an FY 1996 supplemental appropriation from the General Fund of the State to the Department of Human Services for state child care assistance for low-income persons.

HOUSE FILE 2150 - Grandparent Visitation Rights (Complete summary under COURTS, CIVIL LAW & PROCEDURE, & PROBATE.)

This Act provides for the granting of visitation to the grandparents of a child for whom a parent of the child unreasonably refuses to allow visitation or who unreasonably restricts visitation by the grandparent.

HOUSE FILE 2316 - Sexually Predatory Offenses -- Enticing Away a Child (Complete summary under CORRECTIONS, CRIMINAL LAW & PROCEDURE.)

This Act establishes enhanced sentences for persons who commit multiple sexually predatory offenses; repeals Chapter 709C, which addresses certain sexual predators; provides that a conviction for a sexually predatory offense is to be reported to the Department of Public Safety for inclusion in the criminal history records maintained by the department; and allows a court or jury to infer intent to commit an illegal act upon a child when the individual attempts to entice away the child and the individual does not have permission to contact the child.

HOUSE FILE 2399 - Eligibility for County General Assistance (Complete summary under LOCAL GOVERNMENT.)

This Act amends Chapter 252 provisions relating to eligibility for county general assistance by requiring a person to be in the county, lawfully, as a condition of eligibility for the assistance.

HOUSE FILE 2427 - Mental Health, Mental Retardation, and Developmental Disability Services (Complete summary under LOCAL GOVERNMENT.)

This Act amends numerous provisions involving voluntary and involuntary placements of individuals for mental health or mental retardation evaluation, care and treatment services, and provides for child abuse registry checks of employees of service providers operating under a county management plan.

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Last update: Mon August 26, 1996
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