Washington HB 1397: Maintaining the safety of children who have been removed from a parent based on abuse, neglect, or abandonment.

Bill Text

AN ACT Relating to maintaining the safety of children who have 1
been removed from a parent based on abuse, neglect, or abandonment; 2
amending RCW 13.34.145; reenacting and amending RCW 13.34.138; adding 3
a new section to chapter 13.34 RCW; and creating new sections.4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:5
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. This act may be known and cited as the 6
Oakley Carlson act.7
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. (1) The tragic disappearance of six year 8
old Oakley Carlson has captured the attention of people from all 9
corners of Washington state, the United States, and the world. The 10
fact that this vibrant little girl vanished after being removed from 11
loving foster parents and returned to troubled birth parents raises 12
serious questions about the effectiveness of our state's child 13
welfare policies and bureaucracies.14
(2) The legislature intends to:15
(a) Improve the operations and oversight of Washington's child 16
welfare system; and17
(b) Create positive change from the sadness and sorrow of young 18
Oakley's disappearance.19
H-0389.1
HOUSE BILL 1397
State of Washington 68th Legislature 2023 Regular Session
By Representatives Walsh, Robertson, Dent, and Eslick
Read first time 01/18/23. Referred to Committee on Human Services,
Youth, & Early Learning.
p. 1 HB 1397

(3) For these reasons, the legislature finds that clear and 1
specific standards for returning young children to birth parents who 2
have lost custody of those children will help reduce the risk of harm 3
befalling those children. While reunification of birth families is a 4
good and necessary goal, it must be realized in a careful and 5
comprehensive manner. Reunification must be realized in a manner that 6
protects the children above all other interests.7
Sec. 3. RCW 13.34.138 and 2021 c 208 s 3 and 2021 c 67 s 5 are 8
each reenacted and amended to read as follows:9
(1) The status of all children found to be dependent shall be 10
reviewed by the court at least every six months from the beginning 11
date of the placement episode or the date dependency is established, 12
whichever is first. The purpose of the hearing shall be to review the 13
progress of the parties and determine whether court supervision 14
should continue.15
(a) The initial review hearing shall be an in-court review and 16
shall be set six months from the beginning date of the placement 17
episode or no more than 90 days from the entry of the disposition 18
order, whichever comes first. The requirements for the initial review 19
hearing, including the in-court review requirement, shall be 20
accomplished within existing resources.21
(b) The initial review hearing may be a permanency planning 22
hearing when necessary to meet the time frames set forth in RCW 23
13.34.145(1)(a) or 13.34.134.24
(2)(a) A child shall not be returned home at the review hearing 25
unless the court finds that a reason for removal as set forth in RCW 26
13.34.130 no longer exists. The parents, guardian, or legal custodian 27
shall report to the court the efforts they have made to correct the 28
conditions which led to removal. If a child is returned, casework 29
supervision by the department shall continue for a period of ((six 30
months)) time determined under RCW 13.34.145, at which time there 31
shall be a hearing on the need for continued intervention.32
(b) Prior to the child returning home, the department must 33
complete the following:34
(i) Identify all adults residing in the home and conduct 35
background checks on those persons;36
(ii) Identify any persons who may act as a caregiver for the 37
child in addition to the parent with whom the child is being placed 38
and determine whether such persons are in need of any services in 39
p. 2 HB 1397

order to ensure the safety of the child, regardless of whether such 1
persons are a party to the dependency. The department may recommend 2
to the court and the court may order that placement of the child in 3
the parent's home be contingent on or delayed based on the need for 4
such persons to engage in or complete services to ensure the safety 5
of the child prior to placement. If services are recommended for the 6
caregiver, and the caregiver fails to engage in or follow through 7
with the recommended services, the department must promptly notify 8
the court; ((and))9
(iii) Notify the parent with whom the child is being placed that 10
he or she has an ongoing duty to notify the department of all persons 11
who reside in the home or who may act as a caregiver for the child 12
both prior to the placement of the child in the home and subsequent 13
to the placement of the child in the home as long as the court 14
retains jurisdiction of the dependency proceeding or the department 15
is providing or monitoring either remedial services to the parent or 16
services to ensure the safety of the child to any caregivers; and17
(iv) In cases where substance use disorder on the part of the 18
parent was a primary or contributin