Senate Bill 3056: Requires Social Services to Conduct Follow-up Visits

Authors:
Sen. Colleen Hanabusa

Summary:
Senate Bill 3056 requires “well child” follow-up home visits within one year of abuse or neglect investigations that have been unsubstantiated. While HSLDA supports the prevention of abuse or neglect of children, S.B. 3056 could create an additional intrusion into the private homes and lives of innocent families who have already been investigated and determined not to have abused or neglected their children.

Senate Bill 3056 appropriates up to $1 million for the Department of Human Services to conduct a pilot project to conduct these “well child” home visits only for those families that have been investigated for abuse and neglect but the report was determined to be unsubstantiated.

The stated purpose of this pilot project is to see if these follow-up visits will decrease the possibility of additional reports of abuse or neglect involving the same child and family. Only families who have had an investigation by Child Protective Services and the report has been determined to be false will be included in this pilot project.

Senate Bill 3056 will be heard in the Human Services and Public Housing Committee on February 5, so please call now.

Status:

1/31/2008		Scheduled for a hearing 2/5/08
1/25/2008		Referred to the Human Services and Ways and Means Committees.

HSLDA's Position:
HSLDA is opposed to S.B. 3056

Action Requested:
Please contact the Committee members listed below and respectfully give them this message in your own words:

“Please oppose Senate Bill 3056. It is a waste of taxpayer dollars to conduct follow-up visits of families who have already been investigated and have not abused or neglected their children.

Current regulations already require Child Protective Services to follow up if there is any evidence a child may be threatened or harmed in the future. Instead of following up on innocent families, a law should be passed to penalize individuals who make false and malicious reports of child abuse against innocent families.”

Do not identify yourself as a homeschooler; instead you can identify yourself as a concerned citizen and taxpayer.

Human Services and Public Housing Committee Members

Senator Suzanne Chun Oakland, Chairman
Phone: 808-586-6130
Email: senchunoakland@Capitol.hawaii.gov

Senator Les Ihara, Jr., Vice Chair
Phone: 808-586-6250
Email: senihara@Capitol.hawaii.gov

Senator Gary L. Hooser
Phone: 808-586-6030
Email: senhooser@Capitol.hawaii.gov

Senator Norman Sakamoto
Phone: 808-586-8585
Email: sensakamoto@Capitol.hawaii.gov

Senator Fred Hemmings
Phone: 808-587-8388
Email: senhemmings@Capitol.hawaii.gov

Background:
Under current regulations, the Department of Human Services, Child Protective Services, investigates allegations of abuse or neglect of children. The Department must make a clear decision whether abuse, neglect o exploitation did or will occur within 60 day for the date of the report.

When the Department does not confirm (or unsubstantiates a report of) abuse, neglect, or exploitation, the Department must make a clear decision of whether the child may be threatened or harmed in the future due to problems in the family.

If the Department finds the child may be threatened they must 1) refer the family to an outside agency for needed counseling or therapy; 2) help the parents voluntarily agree to accept protective case management services from the Department or other agency; or 3) petition the family court in order that protective case management service may be given by the department or other agency.

According to current regulations already in place, only when the Department finds no evidence of an unsafe home or family problems can protective services be terminated. S.B. 3056 is an unnecessary waste of money when follow up services are already required if there is any evidence of future harm in investigations that have determined there was no abuse or neglect.

Families in Hawaii would be much better served if Senate Bill 3056 was either defeated or amended to focus on follow up investigations of those reports where abuse or neglect was confirmed.

Other Resources

E-lert—January 31, 2008—Calls Needed to Stop Home Visits of Innocent Families!

Bill Text (html)