| R 348 |
| 2015 -- S 0553 SUBSTITUTE A Enacted 06/04/2015 |
| S E N A T E R E S O L U T I O N |
| RESPECTFULLY REQUESTING THE SECRETARY OF THE EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES AND THE CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE RHODE ISLAND FAMILY COURT CONVENE A TASK FORCE WITH THE GOAL OF FOCUSING ON IMPROVING COMMUNICATIONS, COORDINATION, COURT SCHEDULING, PLACEMENT DECISION-MAKING, AND INFORMATION SHARING FOR CHILDREN IN STATE CARE |
| Introduced By: Senators DiPalma, Goldin, Ottiano, and Miller |
| Date Introduced: March 03, 2015 |
| WHEREAS, Responsibility for the well-being of the state’s most vulnerable children is |
| shared across multiple state agencies in Rhode Island, including the Department of Children, |
| Youth, and Families (DCYF); the Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental |
| Disabilities, and Hospitals (BHDDH); the Department of Education; and the Family Court; and |
| WHEREAS, Coordinating the care of children served by the state’s child welfare system |
| can be challenging. Children’s needs vary, different information may be required for decision- |
| making, and communication systems and timelines can fluctuate. When unaddressed, these |
| differences can get in the way of children receiving the support they need in their most desperate |
| hour; and |
| WHEREAS, The Senate Task Force on DCYF and the Family Care Networks Contracts |
| included in its January 2015 final report a recommendation that a task force be established |
| specifically to focus on the interrelationship among DCYF, the Family Court, and provider |
| agencies, including health care and education; now, therefore be it |
| RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations |
| hereby respectfully requests that the Secretary of the Executive Office of Health and Human |
| Services and the Chief Justice of the Rhode Island Family Court convene a task force whose goal |
| focuses on improving communications, coordination, court scheduling, placement decision- |
| making, and information sharing for children in state care; and be it further |
| RESOLVED, That this Senate hereby respectfully requests that the task force includes |
| representatives from BHDDH, the Rhode Island Department of Elementary and Secondary |
| Education, the Office of the Child Advocate, and provider organizations; and be it further |
| RESOLVED, That this Senate hereby respectfully requests that the task force identifies |
| policies, processes, and practices that stand in the way of communications, coordination, and the |
| effective and efficient use of time in placement and care decisions for children in state care; and |
| be it further |
| RESOLVED, That this Senate hereby respectfully requests that the Secretary of the |
| Executive Office of Health and Human Services submits a report from said task force to the |
| Rhode Island General Assembly on or before January 7, 2016, that details the actions that will be |
| taken by DCYF and each organization represented on the task force to improve communication, |
| coordination, and the effective and efficient use of time in placement and care decisions for |
| children in state care; and be it further |
| RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to |
| transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to the Governor, the Secretary of the Executive |
| Office of Health and Human Services, the Chief Judge of the Family Court, the Acting Director |
| of the Department of Children, Youth, and Families, the Director of the Department of |
| Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities, and Hospitals, the Commissioner of |
| Education, and the Child Advocate. |
| ======== |
| LC001312/SUB A |
| ======== |