Arkansas 2023 Regular Session

Arkansas House Bill HB1144 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
2		-	Act 61 of the Regular Session
3	2		LHR014 01-31-2023 10:00:28 LHR014
4	3
5	4		State of Arkansas As Engrossed: H1/31/23 1
6	5		94th General Assembly A Bill 2
7	6		Regular Session, 2023 HOUSE BILL 1144 3
8	7		4
9	8		By: Representatives Dalby, Cavenaugh 5
10	9		By: Senators G. Stubblefield, J. Dotson, B. Johnson 6
11	10		7
12	11		For An Act To Be Entitled 8
13	12		AN ACT TO CREATE THE ARKANSAS FAMILY TREA TMENT 9
14	13		SPECIALTY COURT ACT; TO CREATE A SPECIALT Y COURT 10
15	14		PROGRAM FOR FAMILIES INVOLVED IN A DEPEND ENCY-NEGLECT 11
16	15		PROCEEDING THAT ARE AFFECTED BY SUBSTANC E USE 12
17	16		DISORDERS OR MENTAL HEALTH DISORDERS; AN D FOR OTHER 13
18	17		PURPOSES. 14
19	18		15
20	19		16
21	20		Subtitle 17
22	21		TO CREATE A SPECIALTY COURT PROGRAM FOR 18
23	22		FAMILIES INVOLVED IN A DEPENDENCY -NEGLECT 19
24	23		PROCEEDING THAT ARE AFFECTED BY SUBSTANCE 20
25	24		USE DISORDERS OR MENTAL HEALTH DISORDERS. 21
26	25		22
27	26		23
28	27		BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 24
29	28		25
30	29		SECTION 1. Arkansas Code Title 9, Chapter 27, is amended to add an 26
31	30		additional subchapter to read as follows: 27
32	31		9-27-801. Title. 28
33	32		This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Arkansas Family 29
34	33		Treatment Specialty Court Act". 30
35	34		31
36	35		9-27-802. Purpose and intent. 32
37	36		(a) There is a critical need for judicial intervention and support for 33
38	37		effective treatment programs that reduce the incidence of family separation 34
39	38		due to substance use disorders and mental health disorders. 35
40	39		(b) Family treatment specialty c ourts shall: 36 As Engrossed: H1/31/23 HB1144
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45	44		(1) Use a multidisciplinary, collaborative approach to serve 1
46	45		families affected by substance use disorders and mental health disorders who 2
47	46		are involved with the child welfare system; 3
48	47		(2) Ensure that: 4
49	48		(A) A participant is fully support ed in his or her 5
50	49		parenting roles and 6
51	50		(B) A child receives the necessary services and support to 7
52	51		return to or remain with his or her parent, guardian, or custodian during the 8
53	52		treatment and recovery process; 9
54	53		(3) Provide: 10
55	54		(A) A comprehensive array of clinical treatment and 11
56	55		related support services that meet the needs of each member of the family 12
57	56		rather than only the individual receiving care for a substance use disorder 13
58	57		or mental health disorder; and 14
59	58		(B) Services that address recovery, trauma, s ocial, 15
60	59		emotional, and development challenges; 16
61	60		(4) Apply therapeutic responses to: 17
62	61		(A) Improve parent, child, and family functioning; 18
63	62		(B) Ensure children’s safety, permanency, and well -being; 19
64	63		(C) Support participant behavior change; and 20
65	64		(D) Promote participant accountability; and 21
66	65		(5) Include the following components: 22
67	66		(A) Use of a non-adversarial, family-centered approach to 23
68	67		improve family recovery, safety, and stability; 24
69	68		(B) Protection of a participant’s right to due process; 25
70	69		(C) Reduction in the amount of time a child spends in an 26
71	70		out-of-home placement; 27
72	71		(D) Achievement of permanency more quickly; and 28
73	72		(E) Reunification of families. 29
74	73		30
75	74		9-27-803. Family treatment specialty court — Program authorized — 31
76	75		Evaluation — Restriction on services and treatment. 32
77	76		(a) A family treatment specialty court is a specialized court within 33
78	77		the existing structure of the court system. 34
79	78		(b) A circuit court may establish a family treatment specialty court 35
80	79		program for families inv olved in a dependency -neglect proceeding in the 36 As Engrossed: H1/31/23 HB1144
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85	84		juvenile division of circuit court subject to approval by the Supreme Court 1
86	85		in the administrative plan submitted under Supreme Court Administrative Order 2
87	86		No. 14. 3
88	87		(c) The goals of the family treatment specia lty court program should 4
89	88		be consistent with the Family Treatment Court Best Practice Standards as 5
90	89		adopted by the Center for Children and Family Futures and the National 6
91	90		Association of Drug Court Professionals, as they existed on January 1, 2023, 7
92	91		with the exception that all team members shall have input on the procedures, 8
93	92		policies, and goals of each family treatment court matter depending on the 9
94	93		resources available. 10
95	94		(d) A family treatment specialty court program authorized under this 11
96	95		chapter is subject to evaluation by the Specialty Court Program Advisory 12
97	96		Committee under § 16 -10-139. 13
98	97		(e)(1) Services ordered by a family treatment specialty court program 14
99	98		shall be supplemental to the services provided by the Department of Human 15
100	99		Services, including without li mitation: 16
101	100		(A) Cash assistance and family services authorized under § 17
102	101		9-27-303; and 18
103	102		(B) Other dispositions authorized under § 9-27-334. 19
104	103		(2) A family treatment specialty court must comply with § 9 -27-20
105	104		335 before ordering services. 21
106	105		(3) Notwithstanding subdivision (e)(2) of this section, a family 22
107	106		treatment specialty court may still order services if: 23
108	107		(A) The provider waives payment; 24
109	108		(B) The family treatment specialty court program 25
110	109		participant has private insurance that will pay fo r the services; 26
111	110		(C) An administrative and programmatic appropriation has 27
112	111		been made for the services; or 28
113	112		(D) Administrative and programmatic funding is available 29
114	113		for the services. 30
115	114		(4) The department shall not be ordered to arrange or pay for 31
116	115		supplemental services without the consent of the department. 32
117	116		33
118	117		9-27-804. Administration. 34
119	118		(a) A family treatment specialty court shall serve as an available 35
120	119		means of disposition within a dependency -neglect matter and shall differ from 36 As Engrossed: H1/31/23 HB1144
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125	124		the traditional adversa rial trial system. 1
126	125		(b) Each family treatment specialty court shall develop a policy and 2
127	126		procedure manual for the family treatment specialty court program with the 3
128	127		assistance of the Administrative Office of the Courts. 4
129	128		(c) The family treatment specialty court program shall offer judicial 5
130	129		monitoring with strict supervision and intensive treatment of participants 6
131	130		with substance use disorders or mental health disorders, as determined by a 7
132	131		validated clinical assessment tool. 8
133	132		(d)(1) A family treatment spec ialty court program team shall be 9
134	133		designated by the circuit court judge assigned to manage the family treatment 10
135	134		specialty court program docket. 11
136	135		(2) Family treatment specialty court program team members may 12
137	136		include: 13
138	137		(A) A circuit judge; 14
139	138		(B) A program coordinator, if appointed by the circuit 15
140	139		judge; 16
141	140		(C) A child welfare agency attorney; 17
142	141		(D) An attorney from the Commission for Parent Counsel, if 18
143	142		the juvenile has been removed from the home; 19
144	143		(E) Any other attorney acting as counsel for a parent, 20
145	144		guardian, or custodian participant; 21
146	145		(F) An attorney ad litem; 22
147	146		(G) A court-appointed special advocate, if appointed by 23
148	147		the circuit judge, even if the juvenile remains in the home; 24
149	148		(H) A family service worker; 25
150	149		(I) One (1) or more trea tment providers with experience in 26
151	150		the fields of substance use disorders or mental health disorders, or both; 27
152	151		and 28
153	152		(J) Any other individuals determined necessary by the 29
154	153		family treatment specialty court program judge. 30
155	154		(e) If the family treatment speci alty court utilizes a case management 31
156	155		system that allows for the collection and processing of data, the family 32
157	156		treatment specialty court shall collect and provide monthly data on program 33
158	157		applicants and program participants as required by the Specialty Cour t 34
159	158		Program Advisory Committee in accordance with the rules promulgated under § 35
160	159		10-3-2901. 36 As Engrossed: H1/31/23 HB1144
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165	164		1
166	165		9-27-805. Eligibility and participation. 2
167	166		(a) Participation in a family treatment specialty court is voluntary. 3
168	167		(b) A person is eligible for participation in a family treatment 4
169	168		specialty court program if: 5
170	169		(1) The person is a parent, guardian, custodian, or other 6
171	170		caretaker of a juvenile found by the court to be dependent or dependent -7
172	171		neglected; and 8
173	172		(2) The person agrees to comply with the policies and proce dures 9
174	173		developed by the family treatment specialty court program, as well as the 10
175	174		Arkansas Juvenile Code of 1989, § 9 -27-301 et seq. 11
176	175		(c) If a child has more than one (1) parent, guardian, or custodian 12
177	176		and at least one (1) but not all parents, guardians, or custodians objects to 13
178	177		participation in a family treatment specialty court, participation in the 14
179	178		family treatment specialty court is conditioned upon providing notice and the 15
180	179		opportunity to attend all family treatment specialty court staffings and 16
181	180		hearings involving the objecting party to: 17
182	181		(1) The objecting party; or 18
183	182		(2) The attorney for an objecting party. 19
184	183		9-27-806. Family Treatment Specialty Court Program Fund. 20
185	184		(a) Each approved family treatment specialty court shall establish a 21
186	185		fund known as the "Family Treatment Specialty Court Program Fund". 22
187	186		(b) Approval of the judge presiding over the family treatment 23
188	187		specialty court program is required for all expenditures from the fund. 24
189	188		(c) Expenditures from the fund shall be used solely for the support, 25
190	189		benefit, and administration of the family treatment specialty court program. 26
191	190		(d) Expenditures may be made for indirect expenses related to the 27
192	191		family treatment specialty court program, including: 28
193	192		(1) Training and travel expenses; 29
194	193		(2) Family treatment specialty court program user incentives; 30
195	194		(3) Graduation costs; and 31
196	195		(4) Supplies. 32
197	196		(e) The quorum court shall appropriate all fees and pay for all 33
198	197		approved expenditures of the family treatment specialty court program. 34
199	198		(f) A grant awarded to a family treatment specialty court program, as 35
200	199		well as all memorials, honorariums, and other monetary gifts to the family 36 As Engrossed: H1/31/23 HB1144
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204	203
205	204		treatment specialty court program, shall be deposited into the fund. 1
206	205		2
207	206		SECTION 2. Arkansas Code § 9 -27-334(a), concerning dispositions a 3
208	207		circuit court may enter an order for when a juvenile is found to be 4
209	208		dependent-neglected under the Arkansas Juvenile Code of 1989, is amended to 5
210	209		add an additional subdivision to read as follows: 6
211	210		(5) Order that the parent, both parents, or the guardian or 7
212	211		custodian of the juvenile participate in a family treatment specialty court 8
213	212		program under § 9-27-801 et seq., if available. 9
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215	214		/s/Dalby 11
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218		-	~~APPROVED: 2/13/23~~ 14
	217	+	14
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