Legislation Supported By League Members

CHINS Reform Legislation
(New Name = FACES [Familes & Children Engaged in Services])

There will be a hearing before the Joint Committee on Children & Families & Persons with Disabilities. (Tuesday, March 29th at 10:30 AM at the State House in Hearing Room B2)
 
Attached you will find two documents:  one that contrasts FACES with CHINS; the other a simple one pager on the legislation.  We are working with a coaltion convened by the Children's Mental Health Campaign to move this bill.
 
The bill itself is about 40 pages.  The legislation addresses three main things:
 
Where families, kids, schools, providers, etc can go for help with community based services before needing to engage in a legal process with the court
The court process itself
Truancy prevention in the schools
 
The House bill (H.1294) was filed by State Representative Paul Donato, who filed the original CHINS reform legislation at our behest.  The Senate bill (S.66) was filed by State Senator Karen Spilka who was Co-Chair of the Children & Families Committee when the bill was first filed and initiated the stakeholder process that resulted in the current legislation.