SB408 Summary

• Requires a written parenting plan in every child custody case involving separated or unmarried parents, with specific contents including residential schedules, holiday provisions, and decision-making authority.

• Establishes a rebuttable presumption that both parents are fit to make parenting decisions absent clear and convincing evidence to the contrary, with equal parenting time as the presumption in contested cases with two fit parents.

• Specifies factors courts must consider when determining parental fitness, including willful abandonment, substance abuse, abuse or maltreatment, felony convictions, and failure to maintain consistent contact with the child.

• Requires parents to submit proposed parenting plans within 30 days of filing a petition, with the court using the least restrictive means to ensure equal parenting time based on factual evidence.

• Mandates equal access to all child records (medical, dental, scholastic, athletic, law enforcement) for both parents and requires schools to provide requested information within 20 business days.