Draft Bill to Compel DHS to Prioritize Cases
THE OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY - 2005 REGULAR SESSION
NOTE: Matter within { + braces and plus signs + } in an amended section is new. Matter within { - braces and minus signs - } is existing law to be omitted. New sections are within { + braces and plus signs + }
Senate/House Bill _______
Relating to Department of Human Services taking custody of children, and creating new provisions regarding Chapters 418, 419A and 419B.
WHEREAS, despite the best efforts of the Department of Human Services and its Children's Services Division, Oregon children continue to suffer abandonment, neglect, physical and sexual abuse, kidnap and even murder; and
WHEREAS, across the state there are parents who assert that the Department and/or CSD took custody of their children and/or brought charges against the parents for alleged abuse when, the parents assert, the only acts they took were reasonable and ordinary forms of punishment such as spanking; and
WEREAS it is in the interests of the state and of Oregon's children and parents that the resources of the Department and of CSD are focused on cases of children believed, on the basis of mandatory reporter, law enforcement, neighbor, other witnesses or other reports, information or other evidence, to be at the greatest risk of the most severe harms and are not focused on cases of children believed to be at lesser threat, NOW THEREFORE it is enacted by the People of Oregon that:
{ + ORS 418.007. CATEGORIZATION OF SEVERITY OF RISK OF CASES
(1) For all existing cases and files as of the date of effect of this bill, and for all cases and files opened or begun thereafter. The Department of Human Services' Children's Services Division (and any successor division or agency thereto) (hereinafter, for this section ORS 418.007, "DHS") shall require of all case workers, their managers and all other staff or agents (hereinafter, for this section ORS 418.007, "DHS staff") that the case be identified as a risk severity category A, B, C, D or E, and that the risk severity code be placed prominently on the front of every such file for every case managed or overseen by DHS. The risk severity code shall reflect two factors: the believed degree of possible harm possible and the likelihood that such harm will occur, as follows:
(A) Category A shall refer to cases where the DHS staff person believes the child is :
- at a high risk of severe harm,
(B) Category B shall refer to cases where the DHS staff person believes the child is:
- at a medium risk of severe harm;
- at a low risk of severe harm;
- or is at high risk of medium harm;
(C) Category C shall refer to cases where the DHS staff person believes the child is:
- at a medium risk of medium harm;
(D) Category D shall refer to cases where the DHS staff person believes the child is:
- at a low risk of medium harm
- at a high risk of low harm
(E) Category E shall refer to cases where the DHS staff person believes the child is:
- at medium risk of low harm
- at a low risk of low harm
(2) "Severe harm" is defined for this section 418.007 as murder, abandonment, severe injury, persistent or extreme sexual abuse, and long-lasting psychological or emotional trauma. "Medium harm" is defined for this section as persistent neglect, less than severe injury, occasional less-than extreme sexual abuse, or temporary but significant psychological or emotional trauma.
(3) This act shall apply to all files and all cases of DHS Children's Services Division (and any successor division or agency) whether opened or maintained under ORS Chapter 418, Chapter 419A, Chapter 419B or any other statute in Oregon law or any administrative rule implementing Chapter 418, 419A, 419B or any other statute in Oregon law, and under any successor or successors thereto.
(4) DHS staff shall be able to change the risk category of a case for any child at any time based upon information received by the DHS staff person.
(5) All initial identifications of risk severity and all subsequent changes in risk category for all cases for all children shall be briefly explained in writing, in the file (which writing may simply be a reference to specific new information received that has been added to the file) signed by the DHS staff person making the risk severity identification or change in risk severity identification.
(6) (A) DHS staff persons shall apply DHS human, professional, financial and all other resources available to the DHS staff person, including his or her own time and expertise (hereinafter for this section 418.007, "DHS child resources"), first and foremost to Category A cases, and
(B) DHS staff persons shall not allocate DHS child resources to category B cases unless and until the DHS staff person has time and resources left to do so after timely completing all work at the time needed on the staff person's Category A cases.
(C) DHS staff persons shall not allocate DHS child resources to Category C cases unless and until the DHS staff person has time and resources left to do so after timely completing all work at the time needed on Category A and B cases.
(D) DHS staff persons shall not allocate DHS child resources to Category D cases unless and until the DHS staff person has time and resources left to do so after timely completing all work at the time needed on Category A, B and C cases.
(E) DHS staff persons shall not allocate DHS child resources to Category E cases unless and until the DHS staff person has time and resources left to do so after timely completing all work at the time needed on Category A, B, C and D cases.
(7) Any other laws or rules about confidentiality of DHS Children's Services Division files notwithstanding, any state legislator or aide thereto may review, inspect, and copy any case, any file and any information therein of DHS Children's Services Division for purposes of ascertaining if its risk severity categorization has been accurate or reasonable. However, no legislator or legislative aide may publicly name or identify, in writing or orally, a particular person, adult or minor, about whom a case or file is opened or created or was opened or created but it closed, without the permission of either the parents (or if one parent is out of the state, the in-state custodial parent) or of the child.
(8) Any issue as to the accuracy or reasonableness of the risk severity categorization of any case or file relating to any person hereunder shall be subject to court review under the Administrative Procedures Act. + }
NOTE: Matter within { + braces and plus signs + } in an amended section is new. Matter within { - braces and minus signs - } is existing law to be omitted. New sections are within { + braces and plus signs + }
Senate/House Bill _______
Relating to Department of Human Services taking custody of children, and creating new provisions regarding Chapters 418, 419A and 419B.
WHEREAS, despite the best efforts of the Department of Human Services and its Children's Services Division, Oregon children continue to suffer abandonment, neglect, physical and sexual abuse, kidnap and even murder; and
WHEREAS, across the state there are parents who assert that the Department and/or CSD took custody of their children and/or brought charges against the parents for alleged abuse when, the parents assert, the only acts they took were reasonable and ordinary forms of punishment such as spanking; and
WEREAS it is in the interests of the state and of Oregon's children and parents that the resources of the Department and of CSD are focused on cases of children believed, on the basis of mandatory reporter, law enforcement, neighbor, other witnesses or other reports, information or other evidence, to be at the greatest risk of the most severe harms and are not focused on cases of children believed to be at lesser threat, NOW THEREFORE it is enacted by the People of Oregon that:
{ + ORS 418.007. CATEGORIZATION OF SEVERITY OF RISK OF CASES
(1) For all existing cases and files as of the date of effect of this bill, and for all cases and files opened or begun thereafter. The Department of Human Services' Children's Services Division (and any successor division or agency thereto) (hereinafter, for this section ORS 418.007, "DHS") shall require of all case workers, their managers and all other staff or agents (hereinafter, for this section ORS 418.007, "DHS staff") that the case be identified as a risk severity category A, B, C, D or E, and that the risk severity code be placed prominently on the front of every such file for every case managed or overseen by DHS. The risk severity code shall reflect two factors: the believed degree of possible harm possible and the likelihood that such harm will occur, as follows:
(A) Category A shall refer to cases where the DHS staff person believes the child is :
- at a high risk of severe harm,
(B) Category B shall refer to cases where the DHS staff person believes the child is:
- at a medium risk of severe harm;
- at a low risk of severe harm;
- or is at high risk of medium harm;
(C) Category C shall refer to cases where the DHS staff person believes the child is:
- at a medium risk of medium harm;
(D) Category D shall refer to cases where the DHS staff person believes the child is:
- at a low risk of medium harm
- at a high risk of low harm
(E) Category E shall refer to cases where the DHS staff person believes the child is:
- at medium risk of low harm
- at a low risk of low harm
(2) "Severe harm" is defined for this section 418.007 as murder, abandonment, severe injury, persistent or extreme sexual abuse, and long-lasting psychological or emotional trauma. "Medium harm" is defined for this section as persistent neglect, less than severe injury, occasional less-than extreme sexual abuse, or temporary but significant psychological or emotional trauma.
(3) This act shall apply to all files and all cases of DHS Children's Services Division (and any successor division or agency) whether opened or maintained under ORS Chapter 418, Chapter 419A, Chapter 419B or any other statute in Oregon law or any administrative rule implementing Chapter 418, 419A, 419B or any other statute in Oregon law, and under any successor or successors thereto.
(4) DHS staff shall be able to change the risk category of a case for any child at any time based upon information received by the DHS staff person.
(5) All initial identifications of risk severity and all subsequent changes in risk category for all cases for all children shall be briefly explained in writing, in the file (which writing may simply be a reference to specific new information received that has been added to the file) signed by the DHS staff person making the risk severity identification or change in risk severity identification.
(6) (A) DHS staff persons shall apply DHS human, professional, financial and all other resources available to the DHS staff person, including his or her own time and expertise (hereinafter for this section 418.007, "DHS child resources"), first and foremost to Category A cases, and
(B) DHS staff persons shall not allocate DHS child resources to category B cases unless and until the DHS staff person has time and resources left to do so after timely completing all work at the time needed on the staff person's Category A cases.
(C) DHS staff persons shall not allocate DHS child resources to Category C cases unless and until the DHS staff person has time and resources left to do so after timely completing all work at the time needed on Category A and B cases.
(D) DHS staff persons shall not allocate DHS child resources to Category D cases unless and until the DHS staff person has time and resources left to do so after timely completing all work at the time needed on Category A, B and C cases.
(E) DHS staff persons shall not allocate DHS child resources to Category E cases unless and until the DHS staff person has time and resources left to do so after timely completing all work at the time needed on Category A, B, C and D cases.
(7) Any other laws or rules about confidentiality of DHS Children's Services Division files notwithstanding, any state legislator or aide thereto may review, inspect, and copy any case, any file and any information therein of DHS Children's Services Division for purposes of ascertaining if its risk severity categorization has been accurate or reasonable. However, no legislator or legislative aide may publicly name or identify, in writing or orally, a particular person, adult or minor, about whom a case or file is opened or created or was opened or created but it closed, without the permission of either the parents (or if one parent is out of the state, the in-state custodial parent) or of the child.
(8) Any issue as to the accuracy or reasonableness of the risk severity categorization of any case or file relating to any person hereunder shall be subject to court review under the Administrative Procedures Act. + }
posted by oregontrackers | 10:21 PM
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