SECTION 1. Chapter 71 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2018 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting at the end there of the following section: -

Section 98: (a) As used in this section, the following terms shall, unless the context requires otherwise, have the following meanings: -

"Department”, shall mean the department of children and families.

“Free youth”, mean a child under the care or custody of the department of children and families or a young adult who has signed a voluntary placement agreement with the department of children and families.

“Electronic backpack”, shall mean an electronic repository of a foster youth’s educational records.

(b) Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the commissioner of the department, in consultation with the office of the child advocate and the secretary of education, shall develop and implement an electronic backpack program for the educational stability of foster youth.

(c) The department shall create an electronic backpack for each foster youth. The department, in conjunction with the department of education, shall determine the format of the electronic backpack. Each electronic backpack must contain the educational records of the foster youth, including the names and addresses of educational providers, the foster youth’s grade-level performance, and any other educational information that the department requires. The department shall maintain the electronic backpack as part of the department’s records for the foster youth as long as the foster youth remains in foster care.

(d) The department shall make the electronic backpack available to:

(i) Any person authorized by law to make educational decisions for the foster youth;

(ii) Any person authorized to consent to medical care for the foster youth; and

(iii) Any provider of medical care to the foster youth if access to the foster youth’s educational information is necessary for the provision of medical care and is not prohibited by law.

(e) The department shall collaborate with the department of education to develop policies and procedures to ensure that the needs of foster youths are met in every school district.

SECTION 2. Notwithstanding any general or special laws to the contrary within 9 months of the implementation of this act, the Massachusetts department of children and families shall conduct a comprehensive review of the department’s practices related to individuals with disabilities and develop a policy that promotes the following:

(1) workforce development and training;

(2) evidenced-based best practices for effective case management and safety and risk assessment and planning; and

(3) requirements for case documentation about an individual’s disability.

SECTION 3. Notwithstanding any general or special laws to the contrary within 6 months of the implementation of this act, the Massachusetts department of children and families shall develop a reunification policy that includes, at a minimum:

(1) an assessment of safety and risk using a research or analytical based or actuarial tool that is used prior to a child’s return and as a support in DCF’s reunification decision-making.

(2) area office management administrative case record review prior to any internal case review meeting;

(3) area office management consultations with the department case management team, educational provider, probation officer, relevant service providers and subject matter experts prior to any internal case review meeting;

(4) area office management discussions with the caregiver(s) to elicit their input and participation in formulating a reunification transition plan that takes into considerations their strengths and needs; and

(5) a documented family-centered transition plan that takes into consideration the individual needs of the child and caregiver, outlines the pre- and post-reunification caregiver expectations, and the department oversight and monitoring of the family to ensure child safety.

SECTION 4. Notwithstanding any general or special laws to the contrary within 6 months of the implementation of this act, the Massachusetts department of children and families shall review its current processes for safety assessment and develop an evidenced-based process for assessing safety that includes at a minimum the following:

(1) a structured framework for examining the potential safety of a child within a family unit;

(2) the actions that should be taken because of the safety assessment;

(3) how the findings will be communicated to the family; and

(4) how and when safety assessment should be used as a tool for monitoring.

SECTION 5. Notwithstanding any general or special laws to the contrary within 9 months of the implementation of this act, the Massachusetts department of children and families shall develop guidance and training for the department’s workforce that sets written standards and policies of the following:

(1) which families are appropriate for virtual home visits;

(2) when a family previously approved for virtual home visits must be transferred to in-person visitation only;

(3) how to recognize warning signs and assess safety and well-being of a child during virtual home visits; and

(4) indicators of child abuse and neglect during virtual home visits.

SECTION 6. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary in implementing this act, the Massachusetts department of children and families shall provide their findings in writing and make them accessible to the general public. In addition, the Massachusetts department of children and families shall hold at least 1 hearing open to the public with respect to the sections of this act, as well as engage with the following specialists including but not limited to: Members of the Department of Early and Secondary Education; The Attorney General’s office; Members of the Department of Early Education; The office of the child advocate; The office of child services; psychologists with specializations in youth psychology and safety; and educators.

SECTION 7. Section 1 of this act shall be implemented within one year of the passage of the act.