HB 2704 Summary

• Establishes a foster youth permanency pilot project team within the Department of Child Safety to identify children at risk of aging out of the system without a permanent placement and to remove barriers to permanency.

• Team membership includes social workers, child welfare attorneys, guardians ad litem, court appointed special advocates, case-familiar members, and representatives from national permanency planning organizations.

• Team duties include reviewing case files, convening meetings with children and caregivers to identify permanency barriers, reviewing permanency plans, and identifying specific placement options with willing families or individuals.

• Team may contract with child psychiatrists, attorneys with expertise in benefits and immigration law, and private investigators to locate relatives or kin as potential placement options.

• Department of Child Safety must submit a report by July 1, 2026, to the governor and legislative leadership on the pilot project's outcomes and recommendations for improvement.