STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3966

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: H.B. No. 2424

H.D. 1

S.D. 2

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2022

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Ways and Means and Judiciary, to which was referred H.B. No. 2424, H.D. 1, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CHILD WELFARE SERVICES,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to strengthen the State's oversight of children who were previously in the foster care system and were subsequently adopted.

More specifically, the measure:

(1) Expands the investigative powers of the Department of Human Services to include the review and investigation of families that receive benefits from the State's adoption assistance program and against whom a complaint has been lodged;

(2) Appropriates moneys to hire additional case workers and support staff; and

(3) Appropriates moneys to increase compensation to fill vacancies and retain employees in existing Child Welfare Services Branch case worker positions; provided that any increase in compensation shall be subject to collective bargaining with the objective of expeditiously filling all vacancies.

Your Committees received written comments in support of this measure from the Waimanalo Neighborhood Board, CountryTalkStory.com, and fourteen individuals.

Your Committees received written comments in opposition to this measure from the Hawaii Family Advocacy Team.

Your Committees received written comments on this measure from the Department of Human Services, Department of the Attorney General, and Department of Budget and Finance.

Your Committees find that the expanded oversight authority provided to the Department of Human Services by this measure will help to ensure a greater degree of safety for children formerly in the foster care system who have been permanently placed with adoptive families.

Your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Clarifying that the authority of the Department of Human Services to review or investigate families receiving benefits from the State's adoption assistance program against whom a complaint has been made is limited to post-adoption complaints, and deleting language that made these families subject to review or investigation at any time;

(2) Changing the subject matter of the report required to be submitted by the Department of Human Services to address the impact of expanding post-permanency services to families receiving benefits from the adoption assistance program, rather than the impact of expanding home visits;

(3) Advancing the report deadline by three years, to no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the 2024 Regular Session;

(4) Changing the purpose of the first of two appropriations to the Department of Human Services, for the procurement of contracted services to provide additional support, resources, and monitoring of families receiving benefits from the adoption assistance program, rather than for the hiring of additional case workers and support staff;

(5) Deleting the second appropriation to the Department of Human Services for increased compensation to fill vacancies and retain employees in existing Child Welfare Services Branch case worker positions;

(6) Amending section 1 to reflect the measure's amended purpose; and

(7) Making technical nonsubstantive amendments for purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Ways and Means and Judiciary that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2424, H.D. 1, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2424, H.D. 1, S.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Ways and Means and Judiciary,

________________________________ KARL RHOADS, Chair

________________________________ DONOVAN M. DELA CRUZ, Chair