Providing permanency plan and comments to out-of-home care providers in advance of a permanency plan review or hearing. (FE)
By including out-of-home care providers in the review process, AB83 seeks to improve the transparency and collaboration between agencies responsible for the welfare of children and the families that are caring for them outside of their biological families. This change aims to ensure that foster parents and other guardians are better informed and can participate more effectively during permanency hearings, potentially leading to better outcomes for children involved in the welfare system.
Assembly Bill 83 aims to enhance the engagement of out-of-home care providers in the permanency planning process for children and juveniles. Current regulations require that during Child in Need of Protection or Services (CHIPS) proceedings, an agency must prepare a permanency plan for each child, which is subject to review every six months. This bill would allow agencies to provide a copy of the permanency plan and any accompanying comments directly to the child's out-of-home care provider before a permanency review or hearing takes place.
The introduction of this bill reflects a growing recognition of the importance of including the perspectives of out-of-home care providers in the child welfare decision-making process. Advocates argue that empowering those who are directly caring for children to have access to permanency plans will enhance the child's stability and security. Opponents, however, may express concerns regarding the potential for information sharing to conflict with privacy requirements, balancing the needs for confidentiality against the need for informed participation.
One notable point of contention surrounding AB83 relates to the handling of confidential information. The bill mandates that any information that is deemed confidential under federal or state law must be redacted before being shared with out-of-home care providers. While this measure protects sensitive information, it raises questions about whether a sufficient amount of pertinent information can be shared to ensure effective participation by out-of-home care providers in the decision-making process.