Working to Enhance Courts for At-Risk and Endangered Kids Act of 2005

Bill: 109-s-1679
Sponsor: Sen. DeWine, Mike [R-OH]
Introduced: 2005-09-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Social Welfare
Subjects: Administration of justice
Adoption
Child abuse
Child health
Child safety
Child welfare
Congress
Congressional reporting requirements
Crime and Law Enforcement
Day care
Economics and Public Finance
Education
Elementary and secondary education
Employee training
Evaluation research (Social action programs)
Families
Family courts
Federal aid to education
Foster home care
Government Operations and Politics
Grants-in-aid
Guardian and ward
Health
Higher education
Housing and Community Development
Interstate compacts
Interstate relations
Judges
Judicial ethics
Judicial officers
Law
Lawyers
Legal education
Legal ethics
Medical records
Mental health services
Performance measurement
Social work
State courts
Student loan funds
Student records
Urban affairs
Urban areas

Summary:
action_date: 2005-09-12
text: 
Working to Enhance Courts for At-Risk and Endangered Kids Act of 2005 - Amends part E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA) with respect to courts for at-risk children.
 
Provides or revises requirements for: (1) collaboration among state IV-B (Child and Family Services) and IV-E agencies; (2) outcome performance standards for abuse and neglect courts; (3) court model standards; (4) state flexibility for public access to courts; (5) orderly and timely processing for interstate placement of children; (6) complete background checks, including child abuse registries, before approval of any foster or adoptive placement; (7) health and education records; (8) the right to be heard in foster care proceedings; (9) court improvement; and (10) use of interjurisdictional resources.
 
Amends SSA title IV part D (Child Support and Establishment of Paternity) to allow courts access to the Federal Parent Locator Service to locate parents in foster care or adoptive placement cases.
 
Amends SSA title XI part A (General Provisions) to require each state administering a program under SSA title IV part B or part E to establish a permanent, multidisciplinary, broad-based commission on state child welfare programs.
 
Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for loan forgiveness for: (1) family law, juvenile law, and domestic relations attorneys who work in the defense of low-income families, individuals, or children; and (2) child welfare workers.
 
Amends the Victims of Child Abuse Act of 1990 to reauthorize at increased levels the Court Appointed Special Advocate Program, including such programs in rural and underserved urban areas.
 
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the Chief Justice for each state and other state court leadership should take the lead in providing for the health, safety, and permanency of children before state abuse and neglect courts.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2005-09-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. (text of measure as introduced: CR S9933-9939)
action_date: 2005-09-12
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S9932-9933)
action_date: 2005-09-12
text: Introduced in Senate