Date: 2001-09-20
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Speaker. I thank my colleague for yielding me this time. And I rise in strong support of H.R. 2657. the District of Columbia Family Court Act of 2001. which will create structural and management reforms so the Family Court can better serve the needs of the citys vulnerable children. The bill addresses the recruitment and retention of family court judges and mandates longer judicial terms of service in the Family Court to ensure continuity in the handling of cases. Additionally. it imposes the critically important "one family. one judge"- requirement for the Family Court. After the tragic death of 23monthold Brianna Blackmond in January of 2000. the Subcommittee on the District of Columbia held two hearings to review the status of the Child and Family Services Administration and to determine how we could prevent further tragedies. It was clear from those hearings that reforming CFSA alone would be insufficient. The court plays an integral role in the D.C.s child welfare system and has to be overhauled as well. Anyone.who has been following The Washington Posts coverage of the Districts most vulnerable residents understands this is very complex and challenging. and will require a comprehensive response. It is imperative that the Family Court judges have the knowledge. the training. and the administrative processes in place so that the best interests of the children in the Citys child welfare system can be served. This bill puts the court on the right track. It provides strategic management tools the court needs to accomplish key reform objectives. . Decisions the Family Court judges make often have a lasting impact on childrens lives. We do not want judges to feel burdened by service in the Family Court.. This assignment should never be a form of punishment. That is why this bill encourages volunteerism and appoints the Family Court judges who have committed themselves to the practice of family law. To ensure greater continuity. judges need to serve on the Family Court longer than the 1 year they have typically served now. Therefore. the term of service on the Family Court for new judicial appointees for D.C. Superior Court is 5 years. Additionally. the "one family. one judge" requirement will allow Family Court judges to handle cases from intake through final disposition. They will then have a full history of the childs family dynamics to help them make better informed decisions regarding the safety and the welfare of the child. H.R. 2657 mandates the immediate return of all family law cases to the Family Court. The court must eliminate the backlog and manage cases within the time frame established by the adoption of the Safe Families Act. To facilitate case management. the bill directs the court to integrate its computer system so that judges. magistrate judges. and nonjudicial personnel will have access to all pending cases related to a child and his or her family. The bill requires the D.C. government to integrate the computer systems with those of the Superior Court to improve communication in the sharing of information about families served by the court. In addition to the training requirement for judges. it is important that they are well informed about critical social services available to the children and the families they serve. By requiring a social services liaison and representatives from D.C. agencies to be on site. our bill gives judges the tools to help children and families access muchneeded programs and services. I would like to thank the gentleman from Texas . the gentlewoman from Maryland . and the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia for their leadership and dedication on this issue. H.R. 2657 mandates critical and long overdue reforms to the current family division of the D.C. Superior Court. and I urge all my colleagues to support this legislation.