Authorizing establishment of city or county child death review boards and permitting disclosure of records and information related to child deaths.
Impact
The bill introduces a significant legislative shift aiming to improve accountability in cases of child deaths by forming local review boards. These boards are expected to provide informed recommendations that can help address potential public health and safety issues. One of the key effects of SB181 is the establishment of confidentiality norms surrounding the information these boards handle, which protects the privacy of families involved while ensuring that data analysis can inform systemic changes to child welfare policies.
Summary
Senate Bill 181 focuses on the establishment of city and county child death review boards in Kansas, allowing for local entities to review child deaths occurring within their jurisdiction. The intent of this bill is to enhance oversight and support for child welfare by enabling detailed examinations of circumstances surrounding child fatalities. These local review boards will have access to a range of sensitive records, including law enforcement investigations, medical records, and social service documents pertinent to the child and their family.
Contention
Points of contention surrounding the bill primarily involve the balance between transparency and confidentiality. While supporters advocate that local boards will lead to better outcomes in child welfare through focused attention and community engagement, critics are concerned that the strict confidentiality provisions might impede necessary transparency in cases of suspected abuse or prevent important insights from being shared with the public or relevant authorities. Furthermore, as the bill establishes a review process that could lead to recommendations affecting broader child welfare laws, there are debates about how those recommendations will be implemented and the potential bureaucratic complexities that may arise.
Implementation
Should SB181 pass, it will require the establishment of protocols for operation within the state review board and participating localities, broadening the scope of child welfare oversight in Kansas. Local governing bodies will need to create ordinances in line with the new regulations, ensuring that the necessary frameworks for child death investigations are established. Importantly, these changes must be assessed periodically, as specific provisions in the bill include a sunset clause set for review by July 2028, which mandates legislative oversight on its continued viability.
Requiring the secretary for health and environment to provide a death certificate of a child to the state child death review board, increasing the number of board members, allowing for compensation and providing for the disclosure of certain records to certain persons for securing grants.
Authorizing parents of a child who is the subject of an investigation of abuse or neglect or a child in need of care proceeding and victims of childhood abuse or neglect to access records related to such investigation or proceeding.
Authorizing victims of childhood abuse to access records related to substantiated reports or investigations of abuse or neglect and extending the time to file civil actions for recovery of damages caused by childhood sexual abuse.
Children: protection; certain child death review records; allow disclosure to parents under certain conditions. Amends sec. 7b of 1975 PA 238 (MCL 722.627b).
Requiring the secretary for children and families to release certain information related to a child fatality when criminal charges are filed alleging that a person caused such fatality.
Clarifying the identifying information in mandatory reports of abuse or neglect of children and increasing the penalty for failing to report such abuse or neglect.
Senate Substitute for HB 2070 by Committee on Judiciary - Establishing the office of the child advocate as an independent state agency, making orders granting custody for adoption subject to the federal Indian child welfare act, directing the secretary for children and families to consider foster parents as prospective adoptive parents in certain circumstances and authorizing appeal of any order of placement of a child.
Relating to the procedures following a child fatality or near fatality and the relating investigation by the Department of Family and Protective Services.