CT HB06336

Commissioner of Children and Families must convene a working group by October 1, 2011 to examine Department practices and policies impacting kinship care, including regulatory criteria, cultural competence in recruitment, and family conferencing.

Working group must submit a report by January 1, 2012 to legislative committees proposing recommendations for increasing kinship care placements.

Allows unlicensed relatives, nonrelatives with sibling connections, and special study foster parents to care for children for up to 90 days without licensure if home visits and basic family assessments are completed and attestations regarding criminal history are obtained.

Commissioner may grant waivers from licensing standards on a case-by-case basis for relative placements, including waivers for bedroom or room-sharing arrangements, if placement is in the child's best interests, provided safety-related standards cannot be waived.

Court must order the Commissioner to investigate and report within 30 days on the appropriateness of placing children with identified relatives, including out-of-state relatives under the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children.