House File 873 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 873 BY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY (SUCCESSOR TO HF 86) A BILL FOR An Act relating to aid, processes, services, and reimbursement 1 for services associated with children in, adopted from, or 2 in need of foster care. 3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 4 TLSB 1324HV (3) 91 dg/ko

H.F. 873 Section 1. Section 232.96A, subsection 6, Code 2025, is 1 amended to read as follows: 2 6. The child is in need of treatment to cure or alleviate a 3 serious chemical dependency or mental illness or disorder, or 4 emotional damage as evidenced by severe anxiety, depression, 5 withdrawal, or behavioral health disorder that compromises the 6 child’s safety or causes untoward aggressive behavior toward 7 the child’s self or others in the household or the child’s 8 community, and the child’s parent, guardian, or custodian is 9 unwilling or unable to provide such treatment or the parent’s, 10 guardian’s, or custodian’s efforts to secure needed treatment 11 have been exhausted and unsuccessful . 12 Sec. 2. Section 232.96A, subsection 13, Code 2025, is 13 amended by striking the subsection. 14 Sec. 3. Section 234.38, Code 2025, is amended to read as 15 follows: 16 234.38 Foster care reimbursement rates. 17 The department shall make reimbursement payments directly 18 to foster parents for services provided to children pursuant 19 to section 234.6, subsection 1 , paragraph “e” , subparagraph 20 (2), or section 234.35 . In any fiscal year, the reimbursement 21 rate shall be based upon sixty-five percent of the United 22 States department of agriculture estimate of the cost to raise 23 a child in the calendar year immediately preceding the fiscal 24 year. The department may pay an additional stipend for a child 25 with special needs. The department shall review reimbursement 26 payment rates paid to foster parents under this section no less 27 than once every three years. The department shall adopt rules 28 pursuant to chapter 17A to administer this section. 29 Sec. 4. Section 600.8, subsection 3, Code 2025, is amended 30 to read as follows: 31 3. a. The department, an agency, or a certified adoption 32 investigator shall conduct all investigations and reports 33 required under subsection 2 . 34 b. The department shall pay the costs of the preplacement 35 -1- LSB 1324HV (3) 91 dg/ko 1/ 4

H.F. 873 investigation under subsection 2 and the postplacement 1 investigation under subsection 4, up to a maximum of two 2 thousand dollars for the preplacement investigation and up 3 to a maximum of two thousand dollars for the postplacement 4 investigation. 5 c. The department shall not pay the costs of the 6 preplacement investigation or the postplacement investigation 7 as required under paragraph “b” until a prospective adoption 8 petitioner has been approved under subsection 1, paragraph “a” , 9 subparagraph (3), by the person making the investigation. 10 Sec. 5. Section 600A.6B, subsections 1 and 2, Code 2025, are 11 amended to read as follows: 12 1. A person filing a petition for termination of parental 13 rights under this chapter shall be responsible for the payment 14 of reasonable attorney fees for services provided by counsel 15 appointed pursuant to section 600A.6A , in juvenile court or 16 in an appellate proceeding initiated by the person filing the 17 petition , unless the any of the following apply: 18 a. The person filing the petition is a private child-placing 19 agency licensed under chapter 238 or the . 20 b. The person filing the petition is a licensed attorney. 21 c. The court determines that the person filing the petition, 22 is indigent. 23 2. If the person filing the petition is a private 24 child-placing agency licensed under chapter 238 or if the 25 person filing the petition is indigent described in subsection 26 1, paragraph “a” , “b” , or “c” , the prospective parent on whose 27 behalf the petition is filed shall be responsible for the 28 payment of reasonable attorney fees for services provided in 29 juvenile court or an appellate proceeding for counsel appointed 30 pursuant to section 600A.6A unless the court determines that 31 the prospective parent on whose behalf the petition is filed 32 is indigent. 33 EXPLANATION 34 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 35 -2- LSB 1324HV (3) 91 dg/ko 2/ 4

H.F. 873 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 1 This bill relates to aid, processes, services, and 2 reimbursement for services associated with children in, adopted 3 from, or in need of foster care. 4 The bill allows a court to adjudicate a child in need of 5 assistance (CINA) when the child requires treatment to cure or 6 alleviate a serious chemical dependency or mental or behavioral 7 health disorder that compromises the child’s safety or causes 8 untoward aggressive behavior toward others in the household 9 or the child’s community, and the child’s parent, guardian, 10 or custodian (parent) is unwilling or unable to provide such 11 treatment, or the parent’s efforts to secure needed treatment 12 have been exhausted and unsuccessful. Under current law, to 13 be adjudicated a CINA, a child must need treatment to cure or 14 alleviate a serious mental illness or disorder, or emotional 15 damage as evidenced by severe anxiety, depression, withdrawal, 16 or untoward aggressive behavior toward the child’s self or 17 others and the child’s parent is unwilling to provide such 18 treatment. 19 The bill eliminates the requirement that certain 20 reimbursements to foster parents must be based on 65 percent 21 of the United States department of agriculture estimate of 22 the cost to raise a child in the calendar year immediately 23 preceding the fiscal year, and eliminates the additional 24 stipend for special needs children. Instead, the bill requires 25 the department of health and human services (HHS) to adopt 26 rules relating to the foster parent reimbursement rates (rates) 27 and to review the rates no less than once every three years. 28 The bill requires HHS to reimburse an adoption petitioner 29 for the costs of the preplacement and postplacement 30 investigations related to the adoption up to a maximum 31 amount of $2,000 per investigation. The bill prohibits HHS 32 from making such reimbursements until the person performing 33 the preplacement background check approves the adoption 34 petitioner’s initial required background checks. 35 -3- LSB 1324HV (3) 91 dg/ko 3/ 4

H.F. 873 Under current law, with some exceptions, a person who 1 petitions for the termination of parental rights will be 2 responsible for the reasonable attorney fees of an attorney 3 appointed by the court to represent a parent in the termination 4 of parental rights proceeding. The bill adds a licensed 5 attorney as a person who is excepted from the responsibility 6 of paying a parent’s reasonable attorney fees in a termination 7 of parental rights proceeding. 8 The bill makes a conforming change by striking Code section 9 232.96A(13). 10 -4- LSB 1324HV (3) 91 dg/ko 4/ 4