An Act to Support At-risk Families by Establishing the Community
Maine Legislature, Session 132, LD 1261
Committee: Health and Human Services
Sponsors: BRENNAN, INGWERSEN
Amends: 22 MRSA §3877

Legislative Document
No. 1261
H.P. 836
House of Representatives, March 25, 2025
An Act to Support At-risk Families by Establishing the Community 
Navigator Pilot Program
Reference to the Committee on Health and Human Services suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative BRENNAN of Portland.
Cosponsored by Senator INGWERSEN of York and
Representatives: CLOUTIER of Lewiston, GRAMLICH of Old Orchard Beach, MEYER of 
Eliot, MOONEN of Portland, SARGENT of York, SHAGOURY of Hallowell, Senator: 
PIERCE of Cumberland.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  22 MRSA §3877 is enacted to read:
§3877.  Community Navigator Pilot Program
The Community Navigator Pilot Program, referred to in this section as "the pilot 
program," is established within the department as a 2-year pilot program to award contracts 
through the department to 4 child abuse and neglect prevention councils selected by the 
department for 4 community navigators. 
1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context indicates otherwise, the 
following terms have the following meanings.
A.  "Community services" means services that provide assistance to individuals or 
families, including but not limited to the following services: physical and mental health 
care; housing assistance; food access assistance; fuel assistance; child care; 
transportation; employment training; and substance use disorder treatment. 
B. "Mandated reporter" means an adult person required pursuant to section 4011-A, 
subsection 1 to report or cause a report to be made to the department when the person 
knows or has reasonable cause to suspect that a child has been or is likely to be abused 
or neglected or that a suspicious child death has occurred.
C.  "Screened out," with respect to a report of suspected child abuse or neglect, means 
the department has determined that the report does not meet the department's criteria 
to open a child protective services investigation.
2. Community navigator; service population. A community navigator under the pilot 
program shall work with the following populations:
A.  Families that have been reported to the department for suspected child abuse or 
neglect, and the report was screened out, but the families would likely benefit from 
available community services for support and to prevent the need for intervention by 
child protective services in the future; 
B.  Mandated reporters that reported to the department a family described in paragraph 
A; and
C.  Mandated reporters generally, including, but not limited to, teachers, social workers 
and medical professionals. 
3. Services provided by community navigator. This subsection governs the services 
provided by a community navigator under the pilot program. 
A.  A community navigator shall work with a family described in subsection 2, 
paragraph A to connect that family with appropriate community services. When 
appropriate, the community navigator may involve in this process the mandated 
reporter that reported the suspected child abuse or neglect, including, but not limited 
to, the child's teacher or social worker.  
B.  A community navigator shall engage in outreach activities to provide education and 
guidance to mandated reporters designed to:
(1)  Improve mandated reporters' knowledge of available community services and 
other resources; 
(2)  Instruct mandated reporters how to refer a family to community services in the 
area where the family resides; and 
(3)  Provide mandated reporters with guidelines for working directly with families 
in need to help shift the role of mandated reporters from just reporting suspected 
child abuse or neglect to actively supporting families in need. 
4. Contracts awarded; funding. Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter to the 
contrary, the department shall award a contract to 4 child abuse and neglect prevention 
councils for a community navigator under the pilot program in accordance with this 
subsection. The department shall determine to which child abuse and neglect prevention 
councils the contracts are awarded based on which child abuse and neglect prevention 
councils are most prepared to participate in the pilot program. The department shall provide 
funding for each community navigator in the amount of $90,000 per community navigator, 
per year, for both year one and year 2 of the pilot program.  The department shall award 
the contracts pursuant to this subsection no later than December 1, 2025.
5.  Repeal.  This section is repealed January 30, 2028.
SUMMARY
This bill establishes a 2-year pilot program in the Department of Health and Human 
Services to award contracts to 4 child abuse and neglect prevention councils in this State 
for a community navigator position within each council. The bill requires community 
navigators to work with families who have been reported to the department for suspected 
child abuse or neglect but have been determined by the department to not meet the criteria 
for a child protective services investigation. Community navigators are required to help 
connect these families with community services as needed. 
Under the bill, community navigators are required to provide outreach and education 
to mandated reporters of suspected child abuse or neglect to enhance their knowledge of 
available community services for families and how to connect families with those services. 
The educational outreach must also provide mandated reporters with guidelines for 
working directly with families in need to help shift the role of mandated reporters from just 
reporting suspected child abuse or neglect to actively supporting families in need.
The bill requires the department to provide funding for the community navigators in 
the amount of $90,000 per position, per year, for both year one and year 2 of the pilot 
program. The department must determine to which child abuse and neglect councils the 
contracts are awarded based on which child abuse and neglect prevention councils are most 
prepared to participate in the pilot program.