S.141 / H.265 (Sen. Kennedy; Rep. Mendes)
Expands the role and function of Family Resource Centers to support more children and families outside of the court process; changes the Juvenile Court Child Requiring Assistance (CRA) filing process to ensure the court is a true “last resort”; and raises the lower age of Juvenile Court jurisdiction for CRA filings from 6 to 12. (Leads include CMHC). OCA Fact Sheet.
Why is this bill important?:
- Currently, the CRA process provides an opportunity to bring together professionals from multiple state agencies, service providers, and/or advocates to identify needed supports for a child.
- While valuable, there is no reason it has to happen in a court room, after a petition has been filed. This bill would move this process to the FRCs and ensure that it occurs prior to court involvement. There are 33 FRCs across the state, and they have been found to be extremely effective at supporting families and children with their concerns and helping them to address challenges.
- Families are frequently referred to the CRA court process - before a family has had the opportunity to engage with an FRC or other community services - by educators, therapists, social workers, and doctors who are often unaware of the limited response options available to the Juvenile Court or even what the CRA process entails –including the fact that a family may lose custody of their child through this process.
- This bill would require that a probation officer help the family connect to community services, including a local FRC, and determine that all community-based options have been exhausted by the petitioner prior to the filing of a CRA petition - ensuring that the court process is reserved as a true last resort.
- Further, the bill requires school districts to refer a family to an FRC at least 45 days prior to filing a CRA petition and clarifies that schools shall not initiate a CRA petition to address responsibilities that fall within the schools’ legal responsibility under federal and state law.
- Raising the age of Juvenile Court jurisdiction from 6 to 12 is more developmentally appropriate, better aligned with our delinquency system, and not a heavy lift, as about 5-6% of CRA filings annually are for youth under the age of 12.
Referred to Joint Committee on Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities