AZ SB1421

Amends Arizona Revised Statutes section 8-533 to modify the legal standard for terminating parent-child relationships by requiring courts to first determine parental unfitness before considering the best interests of the child.

Removes the phrase "but not limited to" when describing who may file termination petitions, clarifying that only specified parties (relatives, foster parents, physicians, the department, and licensed child welfare agencies) may initiate such proceedings.

Revises the evidentiary standard so courts must find evidence "sufficient to justify" termination based on one of the statutory grounds, rather than the previous language that termination "shall include" one of those grounds.

Maintains existing termination grounds including parental abandonment, neglect or abuse, inability to discharge parental duties due to mental illness or substance abuse, felony conviction, failure to establish paternity within required timeframes, and prolonged out-of-home placement circumstances.

Establishes that failure of an alleged parent to submit to genetic testing ordered by the court constitutes prima facie evidence of abandonment unless good cause is demonstrated.