SB 14-062 Summary

• Establishes a legal process for reinstating parent-child relationships for children whose parental rights were previously terminated, if the former parent has remediated the issues that led to termination.

• Requires the child to be at least 12 years old (or younger if part of a sibling group with an older child), and mandates that both the child and former parent consent to reinstatement with at least three years elapsed since termination.

• Prohibits reinstatement if the original case involved substantiated sexual abuse, egregious abuse or neglect, near fatality, or suspicious fatality.

• Creates a court process including an initial hearing within 63 days to determine threshold conditions, followed by a trial period of up to six months with visitation or placement, and a final hearing to decide reinstatement based on clear and convincing evidence.

• Restores all parental rights and duties upon reinstatement, but does not require the parent to repay child support or service costs from the termination period, and does not affect the validity of the original termination order.