CAFCA BRIEF UPDATE
APRIL 15, 2003
UPDATE ON CAFCA
PRIORITY BILLS
The
last scheduled day of the 2003 Legislative Session is May 7th.
CAFCA is still reviewing and testifying on the many late bills and budget
bills being introduced.
HB 1024 Child Care & Child Placement
Agencies
This bill
would bring county child placement operations under the same statutes and
regulations as CPAs, among other provisions.
It is still in House Appropriations.
HB 1081 Limitations on Foster Care Abuses
This bill
addresses several of the conflict-of-interest issues raised in the Foster Care
Audit Report, using a broad definition of “relative.” Has been amended (1) to require a county or CPA to refer a “relative”
to another county or CPA for licensing and supervision as a family foster care
home and (2) to require an appeal procedure to be established when counties or
the state allege “misuse” of funds and seek recovery or withhold payment on
that basis. Has
been signed by the Governor.
HB 1151 Regulation of Out-of-Home Placement
Provider Consortia
This bill
defines the term and allows CDHS to adopt rules to regulate consortia. Has been signed by the Governor.
HB 1004 Child Abuse Crime/Meth Labs & HB 1169
HB 1004 adds the
manufacture or attempt to manufacture methamphetamine in the presence of a child
as a class 3 felony (child abuse) in the criminal code. It is in House
Appropriations. HB 1169 expands the definition of child abuse in the
Children’s Code (civil) to include manufacturing or possessing or precursors
of controlled substances on the premises in the presence of a child and has been
signed by the Governor.
HB 1286 Expedited Voluntary Relinquishment
This
CAFCA bill permits voluntary relinquishment of parental rights through a
paperwork process and permits the court to enter an order of termination without
a court hearing. Has
been signed by the Governor. Ceremonial signing to be scheduled.
HB 1211 Central Registry
This bill
repeals the Central Registry effective January 2004 and replaces it with TRAILS.
Has been sent to the Governor.
SB
083 Intermediate Care for Children (Amends HB 1116/Child Mental Health Treatment
Act)
This bill
expands the use of Medicaid eligibility to step-down services for children
discharged from RTCs and extends the Child Mental Health Treatment Act to July
2008. Although Senator Keller has secured tobacco settlement funds to extend
the program beyond its July 2003 sunset date, there is opposition. Health Care Policy and Financing objects to the expansion of this program
when they are cutting existing Medicaid programs. The House would like to place all of the tobacco settlement money in the
trust fund rather than use it to fund specific programs. Senator Keller is willing to eliminate the step-down services in order to
retain the RTC portion of the Act. This one may go down to the wire.
Thanks go to all of you who called JBC members and encouraged parents to
contact JBC members urging support for this bill.
CAFCA
COMMITTEE REPORTS
Adoption
Representatives from CDHS Licensing
Division attended the committee meeting in April to discuss potential rules
revisions and forms needed to implement the voluntary relinquishment bill (HB
1286). A
subcommittee will develop the new forms and submit them to Dana Andrews and
state Judicial for review and approval. A training for judges may also be offered.
Foster
Care
The committee is planning a May
potluck with various counties to “foster” communications between CPAs and
the counties. This luncheon will
focus on county placement needs. The
committee is also getting ready for Foster Care Month (May) by helping with the
rally on May 1st at Civic Center Park. Megan Aldritt has been attending the CPA Network’s Legislative
Committee. She or another committee
member will also participate in the CPA Network’s Best Practice group to
develop standards for foster care that will assist the 24-hour monitoring team.
CTS
The licensing fee increases were
reduced from 64% to 32%. The cost
of Central Registry background checks has been increased to $26 per check due to
the fact that the JBC moved the Registry FTE out of General Fund into a cash
account. The April 4th
meeting with Michael Gallegos and Pam Hinish regarding the 24-hour monitoring
team process was positive with a good information exchange. The group agreed to continue working together to improve the monitoring
process. RTCs have been invited to
attend the RTC Waiver information session for counties on April 22rd
2:30-4:30 at VOA, 2660 Larimer. David
Gilliland Mallo is also hosting a meeting on April 23rd with just
RTCs to discuss the waiver and RTC utilization. There are concerns regarding statewide RTC utilization and
the impact on rates. The committee
will continue to monitor both rate setting and utilization. The attorney letter
requesting a moratorium and meeting on the Medicaid audits was sent to Karen
Reinertson, Director of Health Care Policy & Financing, and Marva Hammons,
Director of CDHS. Ms. Hammons will
speak with her staff and Ms. Reinertson and will get back to Peg. A formal response has not been received from Director Reinertson as of
this date.
Public
Policy
Bills noted above have been signed by
the governor. The JBC generated 44
budget bills. All needed to pass
for the entire budget to balance, but that has not happened. This means that other cuts will have to be done and agreed
upon by both chambers. We are still
hopeful that the tobacco settlement funds will be available to some extent to
fill in the gaps. It appears that
the judgment against Phillip Morris will not jeopardize the company’s tobacco
settlement payments to states. Pat
Steadman indicated that PPOR will likely increase this year, but he’s waiting
until the state average figures are released to verify the amount of the
increase. We are actively following
a new late bill (SB314) that creates a rebuttable presumption that siblings
should be placed together. Concerns
include the burden of proof required to overcome the presumption and placing the
best interests of the sibling group above that of an individual sibling. CAFCA is working to amend the bill and will then support it.
Membership/Communications
The
committee is seeking additional support from the membership as a whole. As
the committee takes on greater responsibilities, e.g., the Annual Membership
Meeting, it will need more active participants. The committee is also
looking at ways to enhance member benefits and communicate the value of
membership. The committee may also approach groups with aligned missions,
such as CASA. A joint board-membership committee meeting will be held on
June 9th following the board meeting to focus on membership committee activities
and needs.
IMPORTANT
DATES/EVENTS/INFORMATION
Friday
April 18th – 9:00-10:30 a.m. General membership meeting featuring Jim
Gerhardt of the Rocky Mountain Drug Task Force speaking on methamphetamines and
their impact on children
May
1st, 12:00 – 1:15
at Lincoln Park
(across from the Capitol) –
Celebrate Foster Care Month.
A
rally! Bring a picnic lunch and
enjoy speakers, music and balloons and honor Colorado’s foster care parents.
May
16th
CAFCA’s annual spring conference “Staying on Track” will
be held on the campus of Regis University. Register before May 2nd for the discounted member fee ($45).
Conference brochure and registration forms can be downloaded from www.cafca.net.
NOTE:
There is no CAFCA General Membership meeting in May due to the conference.
“Between
Teens” is a
free workshop focusing on youth whose functioning is below most of their peers
but above those youth diagnosed with a developmental disability. Presenter Jane Berdie will identify the needs and human services that are
available to assist these youth in the transition process. Time: 8:30-4:30.
Dates &
Locations: June 2, 2003 at Four Points Sheraton on S. Colorado Blvd., Denver;
July 17, 2003 at the Holiday Inn on N. Elizabeth in Pueblo. Register online at: www.ifduonline.org.
“Hidden
Trauma, Tools for Success: A Collaborative Conference on Traumatic Brain
Injury” is
scheduled for September 20-21, 2003 at the Inverness Hotel Conference Center in
Englewood, CO. Featured speakers
include: Dr. Greta Wilkenning and Dr. Jeanne Dise-Lewis of Children’s
Hospital. Early registration fee
(by 6/15) is $175. For more
information contact Sharon Thorson at (303) 805-2502, or: thorfam@rmi.net