COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 451
(By Senators Kessler and Unger)
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[Originating in the Committee on the Judiciary;
reported February 19, 2010.]
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A BILL
to amend and reenact §49-2-17 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to the establishment of a system of
assistance from funds appropriated to the Department of Health
and Human Resources for facilitating the adoption or legal
guardianship of children who are dependents of the department
or a child welfare agency licensed to place children for
adoption.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §49-2-17 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
CHAPTER 49. CHILD WELFARE.
ARTICLE 2. STATE RESPONSIBILITIES FOR THE PROTECTION AND CARE OF
CHILDREN.
§49-2-17. Subsidized adoption and legal guardianship.
(a) The Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Resources shall establish an adoption subsidy and legal
guardianship subsidy to facilitate the adoption or legal
guardianship of children. The subsidies shall be from funds
appropriated to the department and available to children legally
free for adoption but who are dependents of the department or child
welfare agency licensed to place children for adoption. A subsidy
for legal guardianship shall not require surrender or termination
of parental rights.
(b) To be eligible for either the adoption subsidy or the
legal guardianship subsidy, adoption or legal guardianship
placement of the child must be more difficult due to:
(1)
The Physical physical or mental disability of the child;
(2)
The child has some An emotional disturbance
of the child;
(3) The
age of the child
is older;
(4) The child is part of a sibling group; or
(5) The
child is a member of a racial or ethnic minority race
or ethnicity of the child.
(c) An adoption or legal guardianship subsidy shall be granted
to parents who have been approved for either adoption or legal
guardianship of an eligible child as set forth in subsection (b) of
this section. An adoption subsidy or legal guardianship subsidy is
contingent upon the execution of a written agreement between the
department and the family
prior to the final decree of adoption or
order of legal guardianship is entered. The agreement shall
specify the terms of the subsidy and include the extent of the
subsidy based upon the child's needs and other available resources to meet the child's needs. The agreement shall also state whether
the subsidy is for special services or money payments, specify the
duration of the subsidy and set forth other necessary financial
terms. The
amount of the adoption or legal guardianship subsidy
payment shall not exceed the
allowable time amount the for a child
would have received under foster family care. If the agreement
specifies that the subsidy is for special services, it shall be
limited to a reasonable fee for such services.
No agreement shall
provide services or assistance in a value in excess of assistance
available to foster care families in similar situations. An
adoption or legal guardianship subsidy shall begin with the
placement of an eligible child for adoption or legal guardianship.
(d) The department shall provide services through the Bureau
for Medical Services or other health insurance coverage for any
child for which the department has determined that an agreement has
been executed as specified in subsection (c) of this section and
has determined that the child cannot be placed without medical
assistance due to special medical, mental health or rehabilitative
needs of the child.
(e) (1) After reasonable efforts have been made without the
use of a subsidy and no appropriate adoptive family or legal
guardian has been found for the child, the department shall certify
the child as eligible for a subsidy. Reasonable efforts to place
a child without a subsidy shall not be required if it is in the
best interest of the child to remain with the prospective adoptive
parent or legal guardian due to factors such as the existence of significant emotional ties between the child and the prospective
adoptive parent or legal guardian.
(2) If the child is the dependent of a voluntary licensed
child-placing agency, that agency shall present evidence to the
department of their inability to place the child for adoption or
legal guardianship without he use of a subsidy or present evidence
that such efforts would not be in the best interest of the child.
(f) All records regarding subsidized adoptions or legal
guardianships shall be confidential. Records regarding the payment
of public funds for subsidized adoptions or legal guardianships
shall be available for public inspection provided they do not
directly or indirectly identify any child or person receiving funds
for such child.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be striken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.
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