House Study Bill 146 - Introduced HOUSE FILE _____ BY (PROPOSED COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES BILL BY CHAIRPERSON NORDMAN) A BILL FOR An Act relating to child placements, including the 1 prioritization of certain persons for child placement and 2 the implementation of the 30 days to family model, and 3 making an appropriation. 4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 5 TLSB 2624YC (4) 91 dg/ko

H.F. _____ Section 1. Section 232.102, subsection 1, paragraphs a and 1 c, Code 2025, are amended to read as follows: 2 a. After a dispositional hearing, the court may enter an 3 order transferring the legal custody of the child to a parent 4 of the child. If the court finds that custody with either 5 of the child’s parents is not in the child’s best interests, 6 the child’s custody shall be transferred to the department for 7 placement of the child in any of the following categories in 8 the following order of priority: 9 (1) An individual licensee under chapter 237 who has 10 provided child foster care to the child for at least nine 11 months immediately preceding the date of the dispositional 12 hearing. 13 (1) (2) An adult relative of the child including but not 14 limited to adult siblings and parents of siblings. 15 (2) (3) A fictive kin. 16 (3) (4) Any other suitable placement identified by the 17 child’s relatives. 18 (4) (5) An individual licensed to provide foster care 19 pursuant to chapter 237 . If the child is placed with a 20 licensed foster care provider, the department shall assign 21 decision-making authority to the foster care provider for the 22 purpose of applying the reasonable and prudent parent standard 23 during the child’s placement. 24 (5) (6) A group care facility, shelter care facility, or 25 other residential treatment facility. 26 c. A court shall not order placement of a child in a 27 category identified listed in paragraph “a” , subparagraph (2), 28 (3), (4), or (5) , or (6), without a specific finding that 29 placement with an adult relative is not in the child’s best 30 interests and providing reasons for the court’s finding. 31 Sec. 2. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES —— CHILD 32 PROTECTIVE SERVICES —— 30 DAYS TO FAMILY. 33 1. There is appropriated from the general fund of the state 34 to the department of health and human services for the fiscal 35 -1- LSB 2624YC (4) 91 dg/ko 1/ 3

H.F. _____ year beginning July 1, 2025, and ending June 30, 2026, the 1 following amount, or so much thereof as is necessary, to be 2 used for the purposes designated: 3 To employ five individuals with the department to perform 4 child protective services duties: 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 275,000 6 2. The department of health and human services shall assign 7 each individual employed through the appropriation under 8 subsection 1 to a separate child protective services service 9 area. Each employee shall be responsible for performing the 10 identification and notice duties required under section 232.84 11 for the service area to which the employee was assigned. Each 12 employee shall implement practices described in the 30 days 13 to family model to the greatest extent practicable while 14 performing the employee’s duties. 15 EXPLANATION 16 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 17 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 18 This bill relates to child placements, including the 19 prioritization of certain persons for child placement and the 20 implementation of the 30 days to family model. 21 Under current law, after a dispositional hearing for a 22 child in need of assistance proceeding, if a court determines 23 that placing a child’s custody with either of the child’s 24 parents is not in the child’s best interests, the court must 25 transfer the child’s custody to the department of health and 26 human services (HHS) for placement with certain persons as 27 prioritized in Code section 232.102(1)(a) (transfer of legal 28 custody of child and placement). The bill requires a court to 29 prioritize an individual who provided child foster care to the 30 child for at least nine months immediately preceding the date 31 of the dispositional hearing higher than all other persons when 32 determining a child’s placement. 33 Currently, HHS divides the state into five separate child 34 protective services (CPS) service areas, and Code section 35 -2- LSB 2624YC (4) 91 dg/ko 2/ 3

H.F. _____ 232.84 (transfer of custody —— notice to adult relatives) 1 requires HHS, juvenile court services, or a private agency 2 to exercise due diligence to identify and provide notice to 3 certain adult relatives of a child if the child’s custody is 4 transferred from the child’s parents. The bill appropriates 5 $275,000 to HHS for FY 2025-2026 for the purpose of adding 6 five HHS employees to perform CPS duties. HHS must assign 7 each employee employed through the appropriation to a separate 8 CPS service area. Each employee shall be responsible for 9 performing the identification and notice duties required 10 under Code section 232.84 for the service area to which the 11 employee was assigned. The employees shall implement practices 12 described in the 30 days to family model to the greatest extent 13 practicable. 30 days to family is a short-term intervention 14 model that recommends best practices for placing a child with a 15 family member within 30 days of the child entering foster care. 16 -3- LSB 2624YC (4) 91 dg/ko 3/ 3