General Assembly Raised Bill No. 223
February Session, 2010 LCO No. 1092
*01092_______JUD*
Referred to Committee on Judiciary
Introduced by:
(JUD)
General Assembly
Raised Bill No. 223
February Session, 2010
LCO No. 1092
*01092_______JUD*
Referred to Committee on Judiciary
Introduced by:
(JUD)
AN ACT REQUIRING NONCUSTODIAL PARENTS TO PROVIDE EMERGENCY CONTACT INFORMATION.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 46b-56 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2010):
(a) In any controversy before the Superior Court as to the custody or care of minor children, and at any time after the return day of any complaint under section 46b-45, the court may make or modify any proper order regarding the custody, care, education, visitation and support of the children if it has jurisdiction under the provisions of chapter 815p. Subject to the provisions of section 46b-56a, the court may assign parental responsibility for raising the child to the parents jointly, or may award custody to either parent or to a third party, according to its best judgment upon the facts of the case and subject to such conditions and limitations as it deems equitable. The court may also make any order granting the right of visitation of any child to a third party to the action, including, but not limited to, grandparents.
(b) In making or modifying any order as provided in subsection (a) of this section, the rights and responsibilities of both parents shall be considered and the court shall enter orders accordingly that serve the best interests of the child and provide the child with the active and consistent involvement of both parents commensurate with their abilities and interests. Such orders may include, but shall not be limited to: (1) Approval of a parental responsibility plan agreed to by the parents pursuant to section 46b-56a; (2) the award of joint parental responsibility of a minor child to both parents, which shall include (A) provisions for residential arrangements with each parent in accordance with the needs of the child and the parents, and (B) provisions for consultation between the parents and for the making of major decisions regarding the child's health, education and religious upbringing; (3) the award of sole custody to one parent with appropriate parenting time for the noncustodial parent where sole custody is in the best interests of the child; or (4) any other custody arrangements as the court may determine to be in the best interests of the child.
(c) In making or modifying any order as provided in subsections (a) and (b) of this section, the court shall consider the best interests of the child, and in doing so may consider, but shall not be limited to, one or more of the following factors: (1) The temperament and developmental needs of the child; (2) the capacity and the disposition of the parents to understand and meet the needs of the child; (3) any relevant and material information obtained from the child, including the informed preferences of the child; (4) the wishes of the child's parents as to custody; (5) the past and current interaction and relationship of the child with each parent, the child's siblings and any other person who may significantly affect the best interests of the child; (6) the willingness and ability of each parent to facilitate and encourage such continuing parent-child relationship between the child and the other parent as is appropriate, including compliance with any court orders; (7) any manipulation by or coercive behavior of the parents in an effort to involve the child in the parents' dispute; (8) the ability of each parent to be actively involved in the life of the child; (9) the child's adjustment to his or her home, school and community environments; (10) the length of time that the child has lived in a stable and satisfactory environment and the desirability of maintaining continuity in such environment, provided the court may consider favorably a parent who voluntarily leaves the child's family home pendente lite in order to alleviate stress in the household; (11) the stability of the child's existing or proposed residences, or both; (12) the mental and physical health of all individuals involved, except that a disability of a proposed custodial parent or other party, in and of itself, shall not be determinative of custody unless the proposed custodial arrangement is not in the best interests of the child; (13) the child's cultural background; (14) the effect on the child of the actions of an abuser, if any domestic violence has occurred between the parents or between a parent and another individual or the child; (15) whether the child or a sibling of the child has been abused or neglected, as defined respectively in section 46b-120; and (16) whether the party satisfactorily completed participation in a parenting education program established pursuant to section 46b-69b. The court is not required to assign any weight to any of the factors that it considers.
(d) (1) In making or modifying any order as provided in subsections (a) and (b) of this section, the court shall order any parent not awarded sole custody of the child to provide the other parent with emergency notification contact information, including the parent's address and telephone number, for use in the event of an emergency with respect to the child, except that the court may decline to enter such order if the court finds (A) the parent objects to providing such contact information and has shown good cause to refuse to disclose such contact information, or (B) the parent is ineligible for visitation pursuant to section 46b-59b or any other provision of law. Such good cause may include, but need not be limited to, the existence of a restraining order or protective order against the other parent.
(2) If the court finds that the objecting parent has shown good cause to refuse to disclose such contact information, the court shall order the parent to provide such contact information to the Commissioner of Children and Families, who shall maintain such information as confidential, except that the commissioner may release such information to school or medical personnel or law enforcement officials if the commissioner finds that such disclosure is necessary for the welfare of the child, provided such contact information shall not be disclosed further without the consent of the parent.
(3) With respect to any order issued under this subsection that requires a parent to provide contact information, the court shall include a requirement that the parent provide updated contact information not later than five calendar days after any change in the contact information.
[(d)] (e) Upon the issuance of any order assigning custody of the child to the Commissioner of Children and Families, or not later than sixty days after the issuance of such order, the court shall make a determination whether the Department of Children and Families made reasonable efforts to keep the child with his or her parents prior to the issuance of such order and, if such efforts were not made, whether such reasonable efforts were not possible, taking into consideration the best interests of the child, including the child's health and safety.
[(e)] (f) In determining whether a child is in need of support and, if in need, the respective abilities of the parents to provide support, the court shall take into consideration all the factors enumerated in section 46b-84.
[(f)] (g) When the court is not sitting, any judge of the court may make any order in the cause which the court might make under this section, including orders of injunction, prior to any action in the cause by the court.
[(g)] (h) A parent not granted custody of a minor child shall not be denied the right of access to the academic, medical, hospital or other health records of such minor child, unless otherwise ordered by the court for good cause shown.
[(h)] (i) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (b) and (c) of this section, when a motion for modification of custody or visitation is pending before the court or has been decided by the court and the investigation ordered by the court pursuant to section 46b-6 recommends psychiatric or psychological therapy for a child, and such therapy would, in the court's opinion, be in the best interests of the child and aid the child's response to a modification, the court may order such therapy and reserve judgment on the motion for modification.
[(i)] (j) As part of a decision concerning custody or visitation, the court may order either parent or both of the parents and any child of such parents to participate in counseling and drug or alcohol screening, provided such participation is in the best interests of the child.
Sec. 2. Section 46b-61 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2010):
(a) In all cases in which the parents of a minor child live separately, the superior court for the judicial district where the parties or one of them resides may, on the application of either party and after notice is given to the other, make any order as to the custody, care, education, visitation and support of any minor child of the parties, subject to the provisions of sections 46b-54, 46b-56, as amended by this act, 46b-57 and 46b-66. Proceedings to obtain such orders shall be commenced by service of an application, a summons and an order to show cause.
(b) (1) In all cases in which the parents of a minor child live separately, the superior court for the judicial district where the parties or one of them resides shall, on the application of either party and after notice is given to the other, order a parent to provide the other parent with emergency notification contact information, including the parent's address and telephone number, for use in the event of an emergency with respect to the child, except that the court shall decline to enter such order if the court finds (A) the parent objects to providing such contact information and has shown good cause to refuse to disclose such contact information, or (B) the parent is ineligible for visitation pursuant to section 46b-59b or any other provision of law. Such good cause may include, but need not be limited to, the existence of a restraining order or protective order against the other parent.
(2) If the court finds that the objecting parent has shown good cause to refuse to disclose such contact information, the court shall order the parent to provide such contact information to the Commissioner of Children and Families, who shall maintain such information as confidential, except that the commissioner may release such information to school or medical personnel or law enforcement officials if the commissioner finds that such disclosure is necessary for the welfare of the child, provided such contact information shall not be disclosed further without the consent of the parent.
(3) With respect to any order issued under this subsection that requires a parent to provide contact information, the court shall include a requirement that the parent provide updated contact information not later than five calendar days after any change in the contact information.
(4) Proceedings to obtain such orders shall be commenced by service of an application, a summons and an order to show cause.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1 October 1, 2010 46b-56
Sec. 2 October 1, 2010 46b-61
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1
October 1, 2010
46b-56
Sec. 2
October 1, 2010
46b-61
Statement of Purpose:
To require a noncustodial parent to provide emergency contact information to the custodial parent, or to the Department of Children and Families when appropriate, unless exempted by the court, in the event of an emergency with respect to the parents' child.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]