2023 Connecticut General Statutes › Title 17a - Social and Human Services and Resources › Chapter 319a - Child Welfare › Section 17a-111b. - Commissioner of Children and Families' duties re reunification of child with parent. Court determination on motion that reunification efforts are not required. Permanency plans.

(a) The Commissioner of Children and Families shall make reasonable efforts to reunify a parent with a child unless the court (1) determines that such efforts are not required pursuant to subsection (b) of this section or subsection (j) of section 17a-112, or (2) has approved a permanency plan other than reunification pursuant to subsection (k) of section 46b-129.
(b) The Commissioner of Children and Families or any other party may, at any time, file a motion with the court for a determination that reasonable efforts to reunify the parent with the child are not required. The court shall hold an evidentiary hearing on the motion not later than thirty days after the filing of the motion or may consolidate the hearing with a trial on a petition to terminate parental rights pursuant to section 17a-112. The court may determine that such efforts are not required if the court finds upon clear and convincing evidence that: (1) The parent has subjected the child to the following aggravated circumstances: (A) The child has been abandoned, as defined in subsection (j) of section 17a-112; or (B) the parent has inflicted or knowingly permitted another person to inflict sexual molestation or exploitation or severe physical abuse on the child or engaged in a pattern of abuse of the child; (2) the parent has killed, through deliberate, nonaccidental act, another child of the parent or a sibling of the child, or has requested, commanded, importuned, attempted, conspired or solicited to commit or knowingly permitted another person to commit the killing of the child, another child of the parent or sibling of the child, or has committed or knowingly permitted another person to commit an assault, through deliberate, nonaccidental act, that resulted in serious bodily injury of the child, another child of the parent or a sibling of the child; (3) the parental rights of the parent to a sibling have been terminated within three years of the filing of a petition pursuant to this section, provided the commissioner has made reasonable efforts to reunify the parent with the child during a period of at least ninety days; (4) the parent was convicted by a court of competent jurisdiction of sexual assault, except a conviction of a violation of section 53a-71 or 53a-73a resulting in the conception of the child; or (5) the child was placed in the care and control of the commissioner pursuant to the provisions of sections 17a-57 to 17a-60, inclusive, and section 17a-61.
(c) If the court determines that such efforts are not required, the court shall, at such hearing or at a hearing held not later than thirty days after such determination, approve a permanency plan for such child. The plan may include (1) adoption and a requirement that the commissioner file a petition to terminate parental rights, (2) transfer of guardianship, or (3) for a child sixteen years of age or older, such other planned permanent living arrangement as may be ordered by the court, provided the commissioner has documented a compelling reason why it would not be in the best interests of the child for the permanency plan to include one of the options set forth in subdivision (1) or (2) of this subsection. The child's health and safety shall be of paramount concern in formulating such plan. If the permanency plan for a child sixteen years of age or older includes such other planned permanent living arrangement pursuant to subdivision (3) of this subsection, the provisions of subdivisions (3) to (5), inclusive, of subsection (k) of section 46b-129 shall be applicable.
(d) If the court determines that reasonable efforts to reunify the parent with the child are not required, the Department of Children and Families shall use its best efforts to maintain the child in the initial out-of-home placement, provided the department determines that such placement is in the best interests of the child, until such time as a permanent home for the child is found or the child is placed for adoption. If the permanency plan calls for placing the child for adoption or in some other permanent home, good faith efforts shall be made to place the child for adoption or in some other permanent home.
(P.A. 98-241, S. 7, 18; P.A. 00-137, S. 14; P.A. 01-142, S. 3; P.A. 06-102, S. 6; P.A. 15-51, S. 2; 15-199, S. 2; 15-242, S. 48.)
History: P.A. 98-241 effective July 1, 1998; P.A. 00-137 amended Subsec. (a)(1)(A) to change reference from Sec. 17a-112 (c) to Sec. 17a-112 (j); P.A. 01-142 amended Subsec. (a) by permitting “any other party” to petition court for determination, requiring court to hold evidentiary hearing on petition within 30 days of filing of petition, requiring standard for court to determine that efforts to reunify parent with child are not appropriate to be upon clear and convincing evidence, adding “another child of the parent or” before “a sibling of the child”, and adding Subdiv. (5) re placement of child in care and control of commissioner pursuant to Secs. 17a-57 to 17a-61, inclusive; P.A. 06-102 inserted new Subsec. (a) re commissioner's duty to make reasonable efforts to reunify a parent with a child unless a court approves a permanency plan to the contrary or determines efforts are not required, redesignated existing Subsecs. (a) and (b) as Subsecs. (b) and (c), amended Subsec. (b) to substitute the filing of a motion for a petition and insert provisions re consolidated hearings, amended Subsecs. (b)(1)(B) and (b)(2) to insert “or knowingly permitted another person to inflict”, amended Subsec. (b)(3) to delete “involuntarily” re termination of parental rights to a sibling, amended Subsec. (c) to insert Subdiv. designators and rewrite provisions re adoption, amended Subsec. (c)(2) to permit long-term foster care with a licensed or certified relative and delete independent living as a placement option, inserted new Subsec. (c)(4) re other planned living arrangement as may be ordered by the court, added new Subsec. (d) re duties of department if the court determines that reasonable efforts to reunify the parent and child are not required, and made technical changes and substituted “required” for “appropriate” re reunification efforts throughout; P.A. 15-51 amended Subsec. (c)(2) by deleting “or certified as a relative caregiver”; P.A. 15-199 amended Subsec. (c) by deleting former Subdiv. (2) re long-term foster care with a relative, redesignating existing Subdiv. (3) re transfer of guardianship as Subdiv. (2), redesignating existing Subdiv. (4) as Subdiv. (3) and amending same to add reference to child age 16 or older, adding provision re permanency plan for child age 16 or older, and making a conforming change, effective July 1, 2015; P.A. 15-242 amended Subsec. (b) by replacing “17a-61, inclusive,” with “17a-60, inclusive, and section 17a-61”, effective July 1, 2015.
Finding of reunification efforts not required under this section and Sec. 17a-112(j)(1) is an independent basis on which to terminate parental rights. 322 C. 231. The department is required to make reasonable efforts to reunify a child with one parent and, if reunification is accomplished with one parent, further reunification efforts are not required. 325 C. 833.
The department's duty to make reasonable efforts to reunify the parent with the child arises only when the parent has a reasonable prospect for overcoming the particular statutory ground for termination and, thereafter, reassuming a responsible parental role in the child's life; in assessing the department's efforts to reunify a parent with a child, an important factor to be considered is the degree to which the department complied with all applicable court orders issued for that purpose. 170 CA 833.