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S.F. No. 2240 - Modifying Provisions Relating to Children and Family Services (First Engrossment)
 
Author: Senator John A. Hoffman
 
Prepared By: Joan White, Senate Counsel (651/296-3814)
 
Date: March 18, 2014



 

Article 1: Northstar Care for Children

Budget sections according to DHS include sections 1-4, 9, 11, 14, 16-20, 24, 26

Sections 1 to 4 (245C.05, subd. 5; 245C.08, subd. 1; 245C.33, subd. 1; 245C.33, subd. 4) modify the Department of Human Services background study chapter of law.  Section 2 requires the commissioner to review information from the child abuse and neglect registry and from the national crime information databases for cases involving a transfer of permanent legal and physical custody.

Section 1 (245C.05, subd. 5) requires that background studies conducted for cases involving a transfer of permanent legal and physical custody of a child, the subject of the background study must provide fingerprints.

Section 3 (245C.33, subd. 1) adds a reference to the adoption statute, and specifies that under certain circumstances, a new background study is not required when a child is being placed in a home.

Section 4 (245C.33, subd. 4) requires the commissioner to review previous background studies of adoptive parents under section 3.

Section 5 (256B.055, subd. 1) inserts a cross-reference in the medical assistance statute to the Northstar Care for Children chapter of law.

Section 6 (256N.02, subd. 14a) defines the term “licensed child foster parent.”

Section 7 (256N.21, subd. 2) clarifies the eligibility criteria for foster care benefits.

Section 8 (256N.21, subd. 7) adds a new subdivision in the foster care benefits section of law, providing that the background checks for purposes of child foster care licensing must meet the requirements in state law under Minnesota Statutes, chapter 245C, and applicable federal law.

Sections 9 and 10 (256N.22, subd. 1; 256N.22, subd. 2) modify guardianship assistance provisions.  Section 9 adds language regarding the requirements for guardian assistance. Section 10 requires the legally responsible agency to document the determinations the eligibility requirements in the federal adoption and guardianship assistance law in the kinship placement agreement.

Section 11 (256N.22, subd. 4) provides that a background study completed under section 245C.33 meets the federal requirements. Specifies when a previous study is sufficient under this section.

Section 12 (256N.22, subd. 6) clarifies that the commissioner shall not enter into a guardianship assistance agreement with a stepparent.

Section 13 (256N.23, subd. 1) clarifies the general eligibility requirements for adoption assistance related to American Indian children, and adds a new paragraph providing that a child receiving Northstar kinship assistance is eligible for adoption assistance under certain circumstances.           

Section 14 (256N.23, subd. 4) requires a background study on all adults in a prospective adoptive parent’s home, and allows a previously completed study to meet this requirement, under certain circumstances.

Section 15 (256N.24, subd. 9) clarifies when reassessments for a child in continuous foster care must be completed.

Section 16 (256N.24, subd. 10) strikes language allowing a foster parent to request a reassessment due to a significant change in the child’s needs, and adds a new paragraph stating that no reassessment can be requested or conducted if the agreement has been signed by all parties, but has not been approved by the court.

Sections 17-19 (256N.25, subds. 2 and 3; 256N.26, subd. 1) eliminate the at-risk benefit level for children eligible for guardianship (kinship) assistance and eliminate the special at-risk monthly payment for adoption assistance.

Section 20 (256N.27, subd. 4clarifies the federal, state, and local shares, aligning this subdivision with subdivision 5 so that the local share is consistent with what the county or tribe would have spent had Northstar Care for Children not been enacted.

Section 21 (257.85, subd. 11) provides that payments to counties for relative custody assistance after January 1, 2015, when Northstar becomes effective, are reimbursed under the fiscal reconciliation process under the Northstar chapter of law

Sections 22 to 24 amend the child protection chapter of law.

Section 22 (260C.212, subd. 1) modifies the out-of-home placement plan to require documentation of steps to finalize the permanency plan for a child who cannot return to or be in the care of either parent. 

Section 23 (260C.515, subd. 4) relates to the court ordering custody to a relative, by adding that the relative must be “fit and willing,” and modifies the best interests of the child requirements under this section.

Section 24 (260C.611) amends adoption study requirements, providing that a foster home study may suffice if it meets the requirements in this section. 

Section 25 is a revisor instruction to change all “guardian assistance” references to “Northstar kinship assistance” in chapter 256N.

Section 26 repeals Minnesota Statutes, section 256N.26, subd. 7. Special at-risk monthly payment for at-risk children in guardianship assistance and adoption assistance. 

 Article 2: Other Children and Family Services Provisions

Section 1 (256D.44, subd. 5) strikes the provision that restricts the number of units in a multifamily building that can be occupied by Minnesota supplemental aid recipients who are eligible for shelter needy assistance.

Section 2 (256I.04, subd. 2a) modifies the group residential housing (GRH) chapter of law, allowing the county agency to enter into a GRH agreement with community residential settings under chapter 245D.

 

 
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