SENATE FILE _____

BY  (PROPOSED COMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES BILL BY CHAIRPERSON RAGAN)

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to the renewal period for foster care licensing.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 237.5, subsection 1, Code 2011, is amended to read as follows:
   1.  An individual or an agency shall apply for a license by completing an application to the administrator upon forms furnished by the administrator. The administrator shall issue or reissue a license if the administrator determines that the applicant or licensee is or upon commencing operation will provide child foster care in compliance with this chapter. A license for an individual is valid for one year
 
two years from the date of issuance. A license for an agency is valid for up to three years from the date of issuance for the period determined by the administrator in accordance with administrative rules providing criteria for making the determination. The license shall state on its face the name of the licensee, the type of facility, the particular premises for which the license is issued, and the number of children who may be cared for by the facility on the premises at one time. The license shall be posted in a conspicuous place in the physical plant of the facility, except that if the facility is in a single-family home the license may be kept where it is readily available for examination upon request.
    Sec. 2.  Section 237.5A, Code 2011, is amended to read as follows:
   237.5A  Foster parent training.
   1.  As a condition for initial licensure, each individual licensee shall complete thirty hours of foster parent training offered or approved by the department. However, if the licensee has completed relevant training or has a combination of completed relevant training and experience, and the department deems such training or combination to be an acceptable equivalent to all or a portion of the initial licensure training requirement, or based upon the circumstances of the child and the licensee the department finds there is other good cause, the department may waive all or a portion of the training requirement. Prior to annual renewal of licensure, each individual licensee shall also complete six hours of foster parent training. The training shall include but is not limited to physical care, education, learning disabilities, referral to and receipt of necessary professional services, behavioral assessment and modification, self-assessment, self-living skills, and biological parent contact. An individual licensee may complete the training as part of an approved training program offered by a public or private agency with expertise in the provision of child foster care or in related subject areas. The department shall adopt rules to implement and enforce this training requirement.
   2.  A licensee who is unable to complete six hours of foster parent training prior to annual licensure renewal because the licensee is engaged in active duty in the military service shall be considered to be in compliance with the training requirement for annual licensure renewal.
EXPLANATION
   This bill relates to the renewal period for foster care licensing. The bill amends Code section 237.5 to increase the time period a foster care license for an individual is valid from one year to two years. The bill provides that an individual licensee shall complete six hours of foster parent training prior to licensure renewal rather than completing six hours of training prior to the annual licensure renewal.