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Regular Session, 2012
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTI ON NO. 129
BY REPRESENTATIVE LEGER
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTI ON
To urge and request the Louisiana Supreme Court, the Department of Children and Family
Services, the Department of Health and Hospitals, the Department of Education, the
Governor's Children's Cabinet, and the office of juvenile justice within the
Department of Public Safety and Corrections, to implement the recommendations
related to the Informal Families in Need of Services (FINS) process made by the
Families in Need of Services Commission in its report issued February 10, 2012, and
as set forth in this Resolution and to report to the legislature and the Juvenile Justice
Reform Act Implementation Commission on the accomplishments and status of
implementation of the recommendations no later than March 1, 2013.
WHEREAS, in Louisiana, young people who are designated as "Families in Need
of Services" (FINS) youth for committing acts that are deemed legal offenses only when
committed by children, such as truancy, repeatedly violating school rules, running away,
ungovernable behavior, or other "status offenses", which are not criminal acts, can be
petitioned to court, and processed in the juvenile justice system under Title VII of the
Children's Code; and
WHEREAS, an "informal process" is included in Title VII which requires each court
to appoint an intake officer to facilitate the establishment of a voluntary informal family
services plan between the family and providers of needed services; and
WHEREAS, a body of research, practice, and legislation demonstrates the benefits
and successes associated with treating status offenders in immediate, voluntary, and
community-based services outside of the juvenile justice system; and
WHEREAS, Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 44 of the 2011 Regular Session of
the Legislature requested the chief justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court to create a FINS
Commission to study and issue recommendations regarding the FINS system; and ENROLLEDHCR NO. 129
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WHEREAS, the chief justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court created the FINS
Commission, and the commission issued its report on February 10, 2012; and
WHEREAS, the FINS Commission made numerous recommendations, many of
which may be implemented by policy and procedure changes initiated by the Louisiana
Supreme Court, the Department of Children and Family Services, the Department of Health
and Hospitals, the Department of Education, the Governor's Children's Cabinet, and the
office of juvenile justice within the Department of Public Safety and Corrections.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
urge and request the Louisiana Supreme Court Families in Need of Services Assistance
Program (FINSAP) and the Governor's Children's Cabinet to enter into a memorandum of
understanding for the purpose of sharing information related to status offending youth and
their families, to include all relevant data, resource mapping of all current resources or
services offered, and the related fiscal costs of serving status offending youth and their
families.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that FINSAP and the Governor's Children's Cabinet
should execute a memorandum of understanding prior to August 1, 2012, for the purpose of
sharing information related to status offending youth and their families.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the FINSAP and the Louisiana Behavioral
Health Partnership (LBHP) should work jointly to develop clear linkages for referral for
assessment and treatment.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the FINSAP should develop a clear and
consistent set of written criteria and protocols to be used in every office in the state to
determine whether a referred child or family is eligible for Informal FINS services or should
be referred to another agency, including a determination that the presenting behavior rises
to the level of status offending behavior, a determination that a referring entity has taken
appropriate steps to provide services prior to referral and can provide documentation that
these steps have been taken, and that children or families currently being served by the
juvenile justice or child welfare system are not accepted for Informal FINS.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the FINSAP should develop a clinical screening
and, when needed, assessment process to identify needs. ENROLLEDHCR NO. 129
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BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the FINSAP and Governor's Children's Cabinet
should facilitate coordination of local Informal FINS offices with local children and youth
planning boards to conduct resource mapping, including services available through the
LBHP and other sources.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the FINSAP should, in collaboration with the
Governor's Children's Cabinet, ensure the development of an array of basic services most
youth who engage in status offending behavior and their family's need, including brief
strategic problem-solving interventions, crisis response, and respite services.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the FINSAP should develop the ability to refer
youth who have committed a status offense to agencies for specialized services when
needed, including shelter care, mental health, substance abuse, and family therapies.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the FINSAP should establish timeliness and
quality outcome thresholds, as set forth in the FINS Commission report issued on February
10, 2012.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the FINSAP should develop a required referral
form, for use in all offices, documenting that all referring entities have utilized all
appropriate and available resources prior to referring a child or family to Informal FINS.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the FINSAP should, in collaboration with the
Governor's Children's Cabinet make, enhancements to its data collection system in order to
provide relevant referral data that can better ensure future FINS activities.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the FINSAP should require data collection and
reporting by all local offices that adequately describes the Informal FINS population and
adequately evaluates the effectiveness of Informal FINS in meeting its stated objectives.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the FINSAP should develop a basic set of
required youth Informal FINS outcomes that will be tracked through the program's enhanced
data collection system.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the FINSAP should annually document and
report information related to the Informal FINS process to the Governor's Children's Cabinet
and the Juvenile Justice Reform Act Implementation Commission, including statewide and
parish specific data on the number of referrals, the number of intakes, type of risk areas
identified, number of cases open beyond ninety days, number of youth afforded respite care ENROLLEDHCR NO. 129
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or runaway shelter (including length of stay), number of youth and families not petitioned
to formal FINS, number of youth not adjudicated delinquent within six months of the FINS
closure, number of status offenses only youth placed in detention, and the number of youth
not expelled from school.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Louisiana Supreme Court, the Department
of Children and Family Services, the Department of Health and Hospitals, the Department
of Education, the Governor's Children's Cabinet, and the Department of Public Safety and
Corrections, office of juvenile justice, shall submit a report to the Legislature of Louisiana
and the Juvenile Justice Reform Act Implementation Commission on the accomplishments
and status of implementation of the recommendations as applicable to each agency as tasked
in the FINS Commission report no later than March 1, 2013.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
Louisiana Supreme Court, the Department of Children and Family Services, the Department
of Health and Hospitals, the Department of Education, the Governor's Children’s Cabinet
and the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, office of juvenile justice.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATI VES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE