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HOUSE BILL 211
56
TH LEGISLATURE
-
STATE
OF
NEW
MEXICO
-
FIRST SESSION
,
2023
INTRODUCED BY
John Block and D. Wonda Johnson
AN ACT
RELATING TO CHILDREN; REQUIRING THE CHILDREN, YOUTH AND
FAMILIES DEPARTMENT TO RECRUIT, SUPPORT AND RETAIN INDIAN
FOSTER FAMILIES; PROVIDING REPORTING REQUIREMENTS; PROVIDING
TECHNICAL CLEANUP.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
SECTION 1. A new section of the Children's Code is
enacted to read:
"[NEW MATERIAL] DEPARTMENT RECRUITING EFFORTS--INDIAN
FOSTER FAMILIES.--The department shall make active and
continual efforts to recruit, support and retain Indian foster
families. As used in this section, an "Indian foster family"
means a department-licensed foster family in which at least one
parent is Indian."
SECTION 2. A new section of the Indian Family Protection
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Act is enacted to read:
"[NEW MATERIAL] ANNUAL REPORT--CONTENTS.--
A. The department shall provide a report by no
later than October 1 of each year to the legislature through
appropriate interim committees and to the governor.
B. The report shall contain the following
information:
(1) the active efforts the department has made
to increase Indian foster families, specifying the county and
Indian nation, tribe or pueblo represented;
(2) how many current foster homes licensed by
the department have one or more foster parents who are an
Indian;
(3) the active number of foster placements
each Indian foster family has, and:
(a) if an Indian foster family has more
than six foster placements, a detailed explanation shall
accompany the report; and
(b) if the Indian child being placed and
the Indian foster family are not from the same tribe, an
explanation shall accompany the report;
(4) how many Indian foster families are
currently accepting new placements;
(5) how many Indian children are in foster
care through the department and the permanency goals the
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department has for those children;
(6) how many Indian children were removed in a
twelve-month period for a forty-eight-hour hold;
(7) how many Indian children were victims of
repeated maltreatment in a twelve-month period;
(8) how many Indian children are not in
preferred placements or with an Indian foster family and an
explanation of why those children are in non-preferred
placements, including any active efforts made by the department
to place the children in preferred placement settings;
(9) the number of non-relative foster families
with an Indian child and length of each placement; and
(10) if there are any Indian child sibling
groups in department care and if they are placed together or
separately, and if they are separated, an explanation of why
they were separated.
C. A copy of the report shall be provided to the
legislature and maintained in the legislative council service
library. The report shall be posted on the department's
website.
D. As used in this section, "Indian foster family"
means a department-licensed foster family in which at least one
parent is Indian."
SECTION 3. Section 32A-28-1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2022,
Chapter 41, Section 1) is amended to read:
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"32A-28-1. SHORT TITLE.--[Sections 1 through 42 of this
act] Chapter 32A, Article 28 NMSA 1978 may be cited as the
"Indian Family Protection Act"."
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