Bill S.2804

FILED ON: 5/31/2024

SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2804

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)

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An Act enhancing child welfare protections.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1. Clause (22) of subsection (a) of section 172 of chapter 6 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2022 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 133, the words “2A of chapter 38” and inserting in place thereof the following words: “15 of chapter 18C.”

SECTION 2. Section 6A of chapter 18B of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the fifth paragraph.

SECTION 3. Section 7 of said chapter 18B, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out subsection (e).

SECTION 4. Chapter 18B of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after section 6A the following section:-

Section 6B.(a) The commissioner or a designee shall appoint an education director who shall establish an education unit within the department. The director shall appoint, subject to the approval of the commissioner or designee, the members of the unit called education specialists who shall be employees of the department and shall devote their full time exclusively to support the department’s goal of educational stability and success for all elementary and secondary school students under the care and custody of the department.(b)The education director’s duties shall include, but shall not be limited to: (i) developing, implementing and overseeing the department’s policies on education for children under the care and custody of the department, including policy development and practice guidance; (ii) monitoring state and federal laws, programs and resources that may impact the education of children under the care and custody of the department; (iii) advising the commissioner and all education specialists on all matters relating to education, strategic education initiatives, policy, and practice management matters; (iv) coordinating efforts of the education specialists to identify and address systemic barriers to accessing educational services for children under the care and custody of the department, including issues related to transportation for children in department care or custody to attend their school of origin; (v) coordinating with department area and regional offices on education related issues; and (vi) facilitating best practice training for education specialists. The education director shall perform such duties as are described in this chapter and such other duties as may be assigned by the commissioner.

(c)The focus of the education unit shall include, but shall not be limited to: (i) implementing and overseeing the regional and area office’s work on education for children receiving services from the department, consistent with the policies created by the department’s education director; (ii) monitoring student academic progress of children under the care and custody of the area office not less than once per academic quarter; (iii) providing support and assistance to department social workers regarding educational needs of children; (iv) providing detailed training to department social workers on the best practices to monitor a child’s education experiences, recognizing any unavailability of resources preventing a child from participating in school courses, and developing individual education plans or 504 plan; (v) ensuring the timeliness and accuracy of the transfer of education records detailing a child’s educational background and needs; and (vi) maintaining contact with appropriate local school districts and education organizations to facilitate enrollment, information sharing, and placement of children into school districts served by the area office.

(d) An education specialist may accompany social workers to meetings with school personnel, including but not limited to meetings relative to a child’s individual education plan or 504 plan.

SECTION 5. Section 20 of said chapter 18B, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the second sentence.

SECTION 6. Section 23 of said chapter 18B, inserted by section 45 of chapter 176 of the acts of 2008, is hereby repealed.

SECTION 7. Section 23 of said chapter 18B, inserted by section 8 of chapter 321 of the acts of 2008, is hereby amended by striking out the sixth sentence.

SECTION 8. Sections 24 and 25 of said chapter 18B are hereby repealed.

SECTION 9. Said chapter 18B is hereby further amended by adding the following 2 sections:-

Section 26. (a) For the purposes of this section, the term “legislatively mandated report” shall mean a report required by law of the department of children and families.

(b) (1) Annually, not later than October 31, the department shall issue a report that provides an overview of the department’s performance during the previous fiscal year. The commissioner or a designee shall file the report with the governor, the child advocate, the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities. The commissioner shall provide the recipients of the report with an opportunity to discuss its contents with the commissioner or designee. The report shall be made publicly available on the department’s website in accordance with section 19 of chapter 66.

(2) The report shall include, but not be limited to, narratives, information, data and analysis on: (i) counts, including but not limited to: (A) case counts; (B) consumer counts; (C) consumer demographic information, including age, race, ethnicity, primary language, birth sex, gender identity, sexual orientation and disability; (D) the number of consumers who have slept in temporary locations by region, the average length of stay, and any system wide challenges for finding placement (E) intersectional data; (F) rates of racial disproportionality and disparity at various decision points throughout the life of a case, including but not limited to; (1) protective intakes and responses: (2) consumer children 0-17 years of age with an open case as compared to the proportion of the child population in Massachusetts; (3) the number of children and youth in placement by placement type; (4) permanency plans for children and youth in placement, including plans meeting the federal permanency standard; (5) permanency outcome as compared to children in placement; (6) the median placement length of stay in days for children who exited care as well as for children who were in out-of-home care; (7) placement moves per 1,000 placement days for children who entered care during the specified fiscal year; (8) exits from care to reunification, adoption and guardianship as a rate of all exits from placement; (9) youth aging out as a rate of all exits from placement; (G) the approximate number of requests for reasonable accommodations; (H) the number of disability related complaints filed with the department; (I) reports filed pursuant to section 51A of chapter 119; (I) placement metrics including but not limited to (1) placement moves per 1,000 placement days for children who entered care during the specified fiscal year; (2) initial placement with kin; (3) the median number of placements between a home removal episode and an initial placement review; (J) infants brought into the department’s care pursuant to section 39½ of chapter 119; (K) siblings in placement; (ii) processes and outcomes including, but not limited to: (A) protective responses and safety outcomes; (B) the number of fatalities including the manner of death and fatalities by family history with the department; (C) permanency processes and outcomes, including, but not limited to, reunification, adoption, guardianship, kinship adoption, kinship guardianship and aging out; (D) well-being outcomes, including the rates and timeliness of the delivery of medical and behavioral health services; (E) educational well-being outcomes, including but not limited to: (1) school placement information; (2) the number of Individualized Education Plans; (3) attendance rates; (4) high school graduation rates and (5) school disciplinary actions; and (iii) operations, including but not limited to: (A) staffing trends; (B) caseloads; (C) the department’s budget, including funding levels; (D) service costs, including but not limited to, departmental foster care, contracted foster care, complex medical foster care, congregate care, adoption and guardianship subsidies, foster care support services, respite and support and stabilization; (E) medical services and advancements in providing medical services to children and young adults in the department’s care; (F) the number of children and young adults in the department’s care in emergency departments, inpatient units, psychiatric hospitals, or community-based acute treatment programs who are awaiting alternate placements and the average duration of days waiting; (G) cost resources and practices, to reduce overrepresentation of children and youth of minority populations in the child welfare system due to over reporting; and (J) any new or ongoing initiatives to improve practices, procedures and policy of the department. The department may provide additional narrative pursuant to health, mental health, disability and disproportionality related metrics where numerical metrics are not available. (K) The commissioner or designee, shall submit a report to the office of the child advocate, house and senate committees on ways and means, the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities, and the house and senate clerks’ offices on the number and types of complaints or alleged violation received pursuant to the Foster Child Bill of Rights, section 30 of this Act. This report shall follow the filing requirements of subsection (b).

The report shall also include comparative departmental information from prior fiscal years.

(c)(1) Quarterly, not more than 45 days after the end of each fiscal quarter, the department shall issue a quarterly profile on its website in accordance with section 19 of chapter 66 that shall include, but not be limited to, departmental, regional office and area office data on: (i) consumer counts; (ii) the number of reports filed pursuant to section 51A of chapter 119, including but not limited to counts of reports received, screened-in and screened-out in total and by reporter role; (iii) rates and recurrence of maltreatment; (iv) department case counts, including counts of clinical and adoption cases; (v) consumer demographic information, including age, race, ethnicity, primary language, birth sex, gender identity and sexual orientation and disability; (vi) counts of children and youth in placement by type of placement; (vii) counts of children and youth not in placement.

(2) The commissioner or designee shall notify the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities when data from a profile issued pursuant to paragraph (1) significantly departs from trends reported in previous profiles.

(d) The commissioner or designee shall notify the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities within one week of a consumer in the department’s custody sleeping in the department’s area office overnight by region including the average length of stay, the consumers’ ages, previous placement type and challenge for finding placement.

(e) Annually, not later than October 31, the department shall file a special report on services provided to young adults over the age of 18 with the child advocate, the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities. The report shall summarize the process by which a young adult may continue to receive services from the department upon reaching the legal adult age of 18. The report shall also include but not be limited to consumer demographic information detailing age, race, ethnicity, primary language, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability and rates of racial disproportionality and disparity but not be limited to: (i) the number of young adults who have elected to sustain or reestablish a connection with the department in the previous fiscal year; and (ii) the number of young adults who have elected not to remain with the department and have transitioned out of the child welfare system in the previous fiscal year, including young adults who had previously elected to sustain a connection with the department, if such numbers are available, (iii) the number of transition age youth aging out with: (1) stable and permanent housing; (2) employment (full or part-time) or military enlistment; (3) health insurance; (4) if sought, post-secondary education such as college, job training or certificate program within six (6) months. The department may satisfy the reporting requirements of this section by providing the requested information in an annual report filed under subsection (b) of this section.

(e) Section 28. Annually, not later than October 31, the department shall file a special report on its fair hearing processes and cases with the child advocate, the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities. The department may satisfy the reporting requirement of this section by providing the requested information in an annual report filed under section 26. The report shall be made available to the public electronically in accordance with section 19 of chapter 66. The report shall include, but not be limited to, information in a form that shall not include personally identifiable information on the fair hearing requests open at any time during the previous fiscal year and, for each hearing request, shall provide: (i) the subject matter of the appeal; (ii) the outcomes of cases resolved prior to a fair hearing decision; (iii) the number of days between the hearing request and the first day of the hearing; (iv) the number of days between the close of the evidence and the hearing officer’s decision; (v) the number of days of continuance granted at the appellant’s request; (vi) the number of days of continuance granted at the request of the department or the hearing officer, specifying which party made the request; and (vii) whether the department’s decision that was the subject of the appeal was affirmed or reversed.

The department shall maintain and make available to the public during regular business hours, a record of its fair hearings in a form that shall not include personally identifiable information and that shall include, for each hearing request: (i) the date of the request; (ii) the date of the hearing decision; (iii) the decision rendered by the hearing officer; and (iv) the final decision rendered upon the commissioner’s review. For fair hearing requests that are pending for more than 180 days at any time during the fiscal year, except for those requests which have been stayed at the request of the district attorney, the report shall provide the number of such cases, how many of those cases have been heard but not decided and how many have been decided by the hearing officer but not yet issued a final agency decision.

If there are more than 225 fair hearing requests open for more than 180 days at the close of any month during the first 6 months of a fiscal year, then an additional report of such requests shall be provided not later than April 30. The department shall make redacted copies of fair hearing decisions available not later than 30 days after a written request.

(f) Annually, not later than October 31, the department shall file a special report on the foster care review system and any recommendations for its improvement, with the child advocate, the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities. The report shall be made available to the public electronically in accordance with section 19 of chapter 66. The report shall include, but not be limited to: (1) the department served population, including but not limited to case counts, child/youth/young adult and parent/caregiver counts and children/youth/young adults in placement; (2) a foster care review overview, including but not limited to foster care review policy, numbers of children/youth/young adults in placement with a convened foster care review and foster care review considerations; (3) scheduling, including but not limited to scheduled and convened foster care review meetings, children/youth/young adults reviewed, duration of meetings and timeliness of foster care review report completion; (4) attendance, including but not limited to foster care review meeting panel composition and mandated participants invited and attended; (5) the review process, including but not limited to the department action plan; placement activities; social worker contact; parent-child visitation; health, education and well-being needs; information on youth/young adults and systemic barriers for children/youth/young adults and parents/caregivers; (6) foster care review determinations; (7) minority opinions, including but not limited to minority opinions by panel member and (8) foster care review follow-up activities. The department may satisfy the reporting requirements of this section by providing the requested information in an annual report filed under subsection (b) of this section.

(g) Annually, not later than October 31st, the department shall file a special report on the foster care review system and any recommendations for its improvement, with the child advocate, the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities. including but not limited to: (1) the department served population, including but not limited to case counts, child/youth/young adult and parent/caregiver counts and children/youth/young adults in placement; (2) a foster care review overview, including but not limited to foster care review policy, numbers of children/youth/young adults in placement with a convened foster care review and foster care review considerations; (3) scheduling, including but not limited to scheduled and convened foster care review meetings, children/youth/young adults reviewed, duration of meetings and timeliness of foster care review report completion; (4) attendance, including but not limited to foster care review meeting panel composition and mandated participants invited and attended; (5) the review process, including but not limited to the department action plan; placement activities; social worker contact; parent-child visitation; health, education and well-being needs; information on youth/young adults and systemic barriers for children/youth/young adults and parents/caregivers; (6) foster care review determinations; (7) minority opinions, including but not limited to minority opinions by panel member and (8) foster care review follow-up activities;

(h) The commissioner or designee shall notify the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities when draft regulations are made available by the department for public comment. Not more than 30 days after the promulgation of regulations or the effective date of adopted or revised departmental policies relative to services provided to children and families, the department shall provide copies of the regulations or departmental policies to the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities.

(i) If the department is unable to submit the report under subsection (b), issue the profile under subsection (i) or any other legislatively mandated reports by the respective deadlines, the commissioner or the commissioner’s legal counsel shall notify the governor, the child advocate, the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities in writing and provide an explanation for the delay.

(j) The department may satisfy the reporting requirements of this section by providing the requested information in an annual report as required under chapter 18B.

Section 27. The department, in consultation with the general court, other governmental and nongovernmental partners, shall establish a 5-year plan that shall include numerical targets for the department’s performance in each year and in each of its regions in the areas of safety, permanence and well-being. The plan shall include a description of how the department will measure its progress toward meeting the numerical targets and may include different targets for different regions. The department shall update the plan annually.

Annually, the department shall measure its performance in meeting the targets established in the 5-year plan for the commonwealth as a whole and for each of its regions consistent with the methodology described in the plan. The department shall publish and maintain on its website the current plan, the targets for previous years and the department’s performance in meeting those targets.

If in a fiscal year the department is unable to develop or update the 5-year plan or measure its performance, the department shall notify the clerks of the house or representatives and senate, the house and senate committees on ways and means, the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities and the child advocate.

SECTION 10. Section 1 of chapter 18C of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the definition of “Advisory council”.

SECTION 11. Section 2 of said chapter 18C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 2 and 3, the words “shall be independent of any supervision or control by any executive agency” and inserting in place thereof the following words:- shall be an independent state agency not subject to the supervision and control of any other executive office, department, commission, board, bureau, agency or political subdivision of the commonwealth.

SECTION 12. Said section 2 of said chapter 18C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 17, the second time it appears, the word “and”.

SECTION 13. Said section 2 of said chapter 18C is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 20, the word “services.” and inserting in place thereof the following words:- “services; and”.

SECTION 14. Said section 2 of said chapter 18C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following subsection:-

(f) examine disproportionality related to topics including, but not limited to, race, ethnicity, disability status, transgender status, sexual orientation or gender identity within child state systems, services and agencies.

SECTION 15. Said section 2 of said chapter 18C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following 5 paragraphs:-

The office shall create and maintain a website that makes available mandated reporter trainings, guidance, statutory reference and best practices materials in 1 online location to all mandated reporters in the commonwealth. The website shall also contain a list of available resources for families who need support and guidance on how mandated reporters can connect individuals or families to those resources. The office shall consult with, or partner with, any public or private entity that the child advocate deems relevant to create and maintain this website. The office shall be responsible for ensuring that information on the website remains current. The office shall collect data on how many individuals access the website. The website shall be made available to the public within one year of the effective date of this legislation.

The office shall create and make available to the public, on the website created in this section, evidence-based mandated reporter training for all mandated reporters in the commonwealth. The training shall include, but is not limited to, training in child abuse and neglect reporting, implicit bias training, technical instruction on how to file a 51A report and details on the department’s process regarding the filing and treatment of 51A reports, and should address bias in mandated reporting. Training shall aim to improve the quality of reporting and discourage reports that do not rise to the relevant statutory standard, including, but not limited to, information on how to address concerns with families and children when those concerns do not rise to the level of requiring a maltreatment report, information about connecting families with needed supports and resources and how to understand what qualifies as neglect.

The office may, as appropriate, expand, update or amend mandated reporter training. The office may create additional evidence-based mandated reporter trainings for specific groups of individuals such as educators, childcare workers, social workers and foster parents. The office of the child advocate may consult, or partner with, any public or private entity that the child advocate deems relevant to create, update, expand, implement or amend any mandated reporter trainings the office creates. As needed, the office shall solicit feedback on mandated reporter training from mandated reporters who have participated in the training created by the office.

The office must include on their website a method that is accessible after the training has been completed by which members of the public can submit feedback on the training at any point in time. Further, the office must include in its annual report data on the use and effectiveness of the training and the feedback that was collected from the individuals who took the training.

SECTION 16. Section 3 of said chapter 18C, as appearing in the 2020 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “health”, in line 10, the following words:- “; the speaker of the house of representatives, or designee; the senate president, or designee; the house minority leader, or designee; the senate minority leader, or designee; a person with experience in the child welfare system to be designated by the Massachusetts Network of Foster Care Alumni; a person with experience as a foster parent to be designated by the Massachusetts Alliance for Families”.

SECTION 17 The fourth paragraph of said section 3 of said chapter 18C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following sentence:- “The child advocate’s annual salary shall be 80 percent of the salary of the chief justice of the supreme judicial court.”

SECTION 18. Said chapter 18C is hereby further amended by striking out section 4 and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

“Section 4. The child advocate shall meet with the governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, the senate president, the attorney general, the state auditor and the chief justice of the juvenile court at least annually and shall present the annual goals of the office and its plans for monitoring the work, including the continuous quality improvement, of the child service agencies and the identification of any critical gaps and issues relating to interagency collaboration.”

SECTION 19. Section 5 of said chapter 18C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following subsection:-

“(i) The child advocate shall notify the governor, the attorney general, the auditor, the speaker of the house of representatives and the senate president when conducting an investigation which the Child Advocate plans to release publicly due to a reasonable belief that an executive agency or constituent agency failed in its duty to protect a child. In order to ensure the integrity and independence of the office, the governor, the attorney general, the auditor, the speaker of the house of representatives and the senate president shall receive the final full report of such an investigation before any executive office, agency or program that is the subject of said investigation.”

SECTION 20. Section 6 of said chapter 18C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following sentence:- “The child advocate is entitled to obtain from the clerks of the juvenile court or probate and family court information on the dates and the title or summary of what occurred on these dates showing the progression of an active court case to which the department is a party.”

SECTION 21. Section 10 of said chapter 18C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the number “5” in line 7 the following words:- “, data described in section 2 of this chapter related to the mandated reporter training and website”.

SECTION 22. Section 11 of said chapter 18C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 1 and 2, the words “, in consultation with the advisory council,”.

SECTION 23. Section 12 of said chapter 18C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting, in line 36, after the word “personnel,” the following words:- the speaker of the house of representatives, the senate president.

SECTION 24. Chapter 18C of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after section 14 the following section:

Section 15: (a) As used in this section the following words shall, unless the context clearly requires otherwise, have the following meanings:

“Child”, a person under the age of 18.

“Fatality”, a death of a child.

“Local team”, a local child fatality review team established in subsection (c).

“Near fatality”, an act that, as certified by a physician, places a child in serious or critical condition.

“State team”, the state child fatality review team established in subsection (b).

“Team”, the state or a local team.

“Office”, the office of the child advocate.

(b) There shall be a state child fatality review team within the office. Notwithstanding section 172 of chapter 6, members of the state team shall be subject to criminal offender record checks to be conducted by the colonel of state police on behalf of the child advocate. All members shall serve without compensation for their duties associated with membership on the state team.

The state team shall consist of not less than: (i) the child advocate, or designee, who shall serve as co-chair; (ii) the commissioner of public health, or designee, who shall serve as co-chair; (iii) the chief medical examiner, or designee; (iv) the attorney general, or designee; (v) the commissioner of children and families, or designee; (vi) the commissioner of elementary and secondary education, or designee; (vii) a representative selected by the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association; (viii) the colonel of state police, or designee; (ix) the commissioner of mental health, or designee; (x) the commissioner of developmental services, or designee; (xi) the director of the Massachusetts Center for Unexpected Infant and Child Death at Boston Medical Center, or designee; (xii) the commissioner of youth services, or designee; (xiii) the commissioner of early education and care, or designee; (xiv) a representative selected by the Massachusetts chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics who has experience in diagnosing or treating child abuse and neglect; (xv) a representative selected by the Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association, Inc.; (xvi) the president of the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association Incorporated, or designee; and (xvii) any other person, selected by the co-chairs or by majority vote of the members of the state team, with expertise or information relevant to an individual case. The purpose of the state team shall be to decrease the incidence of preventable child fatalities and near fatalities by: (1) developing an understanding of the causes and incidence of child fatalities and near fatalities; and (2) advising the governor, the general court and the public by recommending changes in law, policy and practice to prevent child fatalities and near fatalities. The state team may consult with the chief justice of the juvenile court department of the trial court of the commonwealth on issues with a direct bearing upon the business of the Massachusetts courts.

To achieve its purpose, the state team shall: (i) develop model investigative and data collection protocols for local teams; (ii) provide information to local teams and law enforcement agencies for the purpose of protecting children; (iii) provide training and written materials to local teams to assist them in carrying out their duties; (iv) review reports from local teams; (v) study the incidence and causes of child fatalities and near fatalities in the commonwealth; (vi) analyze community, public and private agency involvement with the children and their families prior to and subsequent to fatalities or near fatalities; (vii) develop a protocol for the collection of data regarding fatalities and near fatalities and provide training to local teams on the protocol; (viii) develop and implement rules and procedures necessary for its own operation; and (ix) provide the governor, the general court and the public with annual written reports, subject to confidentiality restrictions, that shall include, but not be limited to, the state team’s findings and recommendations.

(c) There shall be a local child fatality review team in each district established under section 13 of chapter 12. Notwithstanding section 172 of chapter 6, members of a local team shall be subject to criminal offender record checks to be conducted by the district attorney. All members shall serve without compensation for their duties associated with membership on a local team.

Each local team shall include, but not be limited to: (i) the district attorney of the county, who shall serve as chair; (ii) the chief medical examiner or, designee; (iii) the commissioner of children and families or, designee; (iv) a pediatrician with experience in diagnosing or treating child abuse and neglect, appointed by the state team; (v) a local police officer from a municipality where a child fatality or near fatality occurred, appointed by the chief of police of the municipality; (vi) a state law enforcement officer, appointed by the colonel of state police; (vii) the director of the Massachusetts Center for Unexpected Infant and Child Death located at Boston Medical Center or a designee; (viii) at least 1 representative from the department of public health (ix) at least one representative from the office of the child advocate; and (x) any other person with expertise or information relevant to an individual case who may attend meetings, on an ad hoc basis, by agreement of the permanent members of each local team; provided that such person may include, but shall not be limited to, a local or state law enforcement officer, a hospital representative, a medical specialist or subspecialist, or a designee of the commissioners of developmental services, mental health, youth services, education and early education and care.

The purpose of each local team shall be to decrease the incidence of preventable child fatalities and near fatalities by: (i) coordinating the collection of information on fatalities and near fatalities; (ii) promoting cooperation and coordination between agencies responding to fatalities and near fatalities and in providing services to family members; (iii) developing an understanding of the causes and incidence of child fatalities and near fatalities in the county; and (iv) advising the state team on changes in law, policy or practice that may affect child fatalities and near fatalities.

To achieve its purpose, each local team shall: (i) review, establish and implement model protocols from the state team; (ii) review, subject to the approval of the local district attorney, all individual fatalities and near fatalities in accordance with the established protocols; (iii) meet periodically, not less than 2 times per calendar year, to review the status of fatality and near fatality cases and recommend methods of improving coordination of services between member agencies; (iv) collect, maintain and provide confidential data as required by the state team; and (v) provide law enforcement or other agencies with information to protect children.

At the request of the local district attorney, the local team shall be immediately provided with: (i) information and records relevant to the cause of the fatality or near fatality maintained by providers of medical or other care, treatment or services, including dental and mental health care; (ii) information and records relevant to the cause of the fatality or near fatality maintained by any state, county or local government agency including, but not limited to, birth certificates, medical examiner investigative data, parole and probation information records and law enforcement data post-disposition, except that certain law enforcement records may be exempted by the local district attorney; (iii) information and records of any provider of social services, including the department of children and families, relevant to the child or the child's family, that the local team deems relevant to the review; and (iv) demographic information relevant to the child and the child's immediate family, including, but not limited to, address, age, race, gender and economic status. The district attorney may enforce this paragraph by seeking an order of the superior court.

(d) Any privilege or restriction on disclosure established pursuant to chapter 66A, section 70 of chapter 111, section 11 of chapter 111B, section 18 of chapter 111E, chapter 112, chapter 123, section 20B, section 20J or section 20K of chapter 233 or any other law relating to confidential communications shall not prohibit the disclosure of this information to the chair of the state team or a local team. Any information considered to be confidential pursuant to the aforementioned statutes may be submitted for a team’s review upon the determination of that team’s chair that the review of this information is necessary. The chair shall ensure that no information submitted for a team’s review is disseminated to parties outside the team. No member of a team shall violate the confidentiality provisions set forth in the aforementioned statutes.

Except as necessary to carry out a team’s purpose and duties, members of a team and persons attending a team meeting shall not disclose any information relating to the team’s business.

Team meetings shall be closed to the public. Information and records acquired by the state team or by a local team pursuant to this chapter shall be confidential, exempt from disclosure under chapter 66 and may only be disclosed as necessary to carry out a team’s duties and purposes.

Statistical compilations of data that do not contain any information that would permit the identification of any person may be disclosed to the public.

(e) Members of a team, persons attending a team meeting and persons who present information to a team shall not be questioned in any civil or criminal proceeding regarding information presented in or opinions formed as a result of a team meeting.

(f) Information, documents and records of the state team or of a local team shall not be subject to subpoena, discovery or introduction into evidence in any civil or criminal proceeding; provided, however, that information, documents and records otherwise available from any other source shall not be immune from subpoena, discovery or introduction into evidence through these sources solely because they were presented during proceedings of a team or are maintained by a team.

(g) Nothing in this section shall limit the powers and duties of the child advocate or district attorneys.

SECTION 25. Section 2A of chapter 38 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby repealed.

SECTION 26. Said chapter 18C, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following section:-

Section 16. The office shall, every three years, oversee the review of child welfare data reporting and make recommendations for improvements to the report and profile required under subsections (b) and (c) of section 26 of chapter 18B and any other legislatively mandated reports, or the data measures, progress measures, and outcome measures pursuant to section 128 of chapter 47 of the acts of 2017. Following the release of the department’s annual report, the office shall seek input from the public, advocates and diverse stakeholders from across the commonwealth. The office shall consult with other individuals with relevant expertise, including academics, researchers and service providers. Annually, the office shall post a report on its recommendations, together with drafts of any legislation necessary to carry its recommendations into effect and an aggregate response to the comments raised during the comment period on the Office of the Child Advocate’s website.

SECTION 27. Chapter 71 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting at the end thereof the following section: -

Section 100. (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 elementary and secondary education.

“Foster child or youth”, shall 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 child or 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 commissioner of the department of children and families, shall develop and implement an electronic backpack system to improve coordination between school districts, the department of children and families, and other organizations or partners supporting children in foster care.

(c) The department shall create an electronic backpack for each foster child or youth. The department, in conjunction with the department of children and families, shall promulgate regulations on the format and function of the electronic backpack system. Each electronic backpack shall contain, but is not limited to, the educational records of the foster child or youth, including the names and addresses of educational providers, the name and contact of the child’s DCF case worker, the foster child or youth’s grade-level performance, transcript, the foster child or youth’s school attendance records, individual education plan if applicable, the name and contact information of the individual or individuals who are designated as the child’s educational decision makers, the names of the legal guardian with signing rights to release the child from school, visit notes from the school nurse, guidance counselor, or other administrators, detailed notes on best interest determination meetings, if applicable, and any allergy information, if applicable, 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 child or youth as long as the foster child or 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 child or youth; (ii) The teacher/teachers, school and school district that the child or youth is enrolled in; (iii) The child or youth’s department of children and families social worker and placement provider (iv) The foster parent, kinship, or other placement provider (iv) Any provider of medical care to the foster child or youth if access to the foster child or 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 children and families to develop policies and procedures to ensure that the needs of foster child or youths are met in every school district.

Section 101. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the commissioner of the department of elementary and secondary education, in consultation with the office of the child advocate and the commissioner of the department of children and families, shall promulgate regulations pertaining to the access of school district portals and student information systems for social workers, foster parents and other placement caregivers of foster children and youth in the department of children and families care and custody.

SECTION 28. The department shall implement the electronic backpack program within one year of the passage of this act.

SECTION 29. Subsection (f) of section 23 of chapter 119 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the sixth sentence.

SECTION 30. Subsection (h) of said section 23 of said chapter 119, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out the second paragraph.

SECTION 31. Subsection (c) of section 26 of said chapter 119, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “custody”, in line 90, the following words:- “, the child advocate”.

SECTION 32. Section 29 of chapter 119 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the second paragraph the following paragraphs:

No later than the first business days after, or until the departments attorney portal with automated notifications is finalized, any non-emergency change in a child’s or a young adult’s placement or any non-emergency hospitalization, and no later than one business day after any emergency change in a child’s or a young adult’s placement or any emergency hospitalization, the department shall provide notice of the change in placement or hospitalization to the child’s or the young adult’s attorney.

No later than the first business day thereafter, or until the departments attorney portal with automated notifications is finalized, the department shall provide notice to a child’s attorney if it receives a report under section 51A and the child is the subject of the report. No later than the first business day thereafter, the department shall provide notice to a child’s attorney or a young adult’s attorney if it receives a report under section 51A that raises substantial questions regarding the suitability of the child’s or young adult’s current placement or any of the child’s or young adult’s service providers.

No later than three business days thereafter, the department shall provide notice to a child’s or young adult’s attorney whenever it becomes aware of: (1) the child or young adult being arrested; (2) the child’s or young adult’s involvement in any proceeding under this chapter or any criminal investigation or proceeding; (3) the child or young adult being suspended from school; or (4) the child or young adult being the subject of any proceeding regarding his or her suspension or expulsion from school.

SECTION 33. Section 39½ of said chapter 119, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the eighth paragraph.

SECTION 34. Section 51D of said chapter 119, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the eighth paragraph.

SECTION 35. Section 51E of said chapter 119, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 2, the figure “51D” and inserting place thereof the following figure:- “51C”.

SECTION 36. Section 5E of chapter 210 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020 Official Edition is hereby repealed.

SECTION 37. Item 4800-0015 of section 2 of chapter 28 of the acts of 2023 is hereby amended by striking out the words “provided further, that on December 1, 2022, and March 1, 2023, the department shall report to the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities on: (i) the fair hearing requests filed in fiscal year 2023, using nonidentifying information which shall state, for each hearing request: (a) the subject matter of the appeal; (b) the number of days between the hearing request and the first day of the hearing; (c) the number of days between the first day of the hearing and the hearing officer’s decision; (d) the number of days between the hearing officer’s decision and the agency’s final decision; (e) the number of days of continuance granted at the appellant’s request; (f) the number of days of continuance granted at the request of the department of children and families or the hearing officer’s request, specifying which party made the request; and (g) whether the department’s decision that was the subject of the appeal was affirmed or reversed; and (ii) the fair hearing requests filed before fiscal year 2023, which have been pending for more than 180 days, stating the number of those cases, how many of those cases have been heard but not decided and how many have been decided by the hearing officer but not yet issued as a final agency decision; provided further, that the department shall maintain and make available to the public, during regular business hours, a record of its fair hearings, with identifying information removed, including for each hearing request: the date of the request, the date of the hearing decision, the decision rendered by the hearing officer and the final decision rendered upon the commissioner’s review; provided further, that the department shall make redacted copies of fair hearing decisions available within 30 days of a written request; provided further, that the department shall not make available any information in violation of federal privacy regulations; provided further, that not later than March 1, 2023, the department shall submit a report to the house and senate committees on ways and means and joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities that shall include, but not be limited to, the: (1) number of medical and psychiatric personnel and their level of training currently employed by or under contract with the department; (2) number of foster care reviews conducted by the department and the average length of time in which each review is completed; (3) the number of social workers and supervisors who have earned a bachelor’s or master’s degree in social work; (4) the total number of social workers and the total number of social workers holding licensure, by level; (5) number of the department’s contracts reviewed by the state auditor and the number of corrective action plans issued; and (6) number of corrective action plans entered into by the department; provided further, that on the first business day of each quarter, the department shall file a report with the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities on the caseload of the department; provided further, that the report shall include, but not be limited to: (A) the caseloads of residential placements, congregate care, foster care, therapeutic foster care, adoption, guardianship, 51A reports, substantiated 51A reports, the number of children who die in the care and custody of the department, the number of children currently eligible for supportive child care, the number of children presently receiving supportive child care and the number of medical and psychiatric consultation requests made by the department’s social workers; (B) the number of approved foster care placements; (C) the number of children in psychiatric hospitals and community-based acute treatment programs who remain hospitalized beyond their medically-necessary stay while awaiting placement and the number of days each case remains in placement beyond that which is medically necessary; (D) the number of children under the department of children and families’ care and custody who are being served in medical or psychiatric care provided through other publicly-funded sources; (E) the number of children served by supervised visitation centers and the number of those children who are reunified with their families; (F) the total number of children served, their ages, the number of children served in each service plan, the number of children in out-of-home placements and the number of placements each child has had before receiving an out-of-home placement; (G) for each area office, the number of kinship guardianship subsidies provided in the quarters covered by the report and the number of kinship guardianship subsidies provided in that quarter for which federal reimbursement was received; (H) for each area office, the total spending on services other than case management services provided to families to keep a child with the child’s parents or reunifying the child with the child’s parents, spending by the type of service including, but not limited to, the number of children and a breakdown of spending for respite care, intensive in-home services, client financial assistance and flexible funding, community-based after-school social and recreation program services, family navigation services and parent aide services and the unduplicated number of families that receive the services; (I) for each area office, the total number of families residing in shelters paid for by the department, a list of where the families are sheltered, the total cost and average cost per family at those shelters and a description of how the department determines who qualifies or does not qualify for a shelter; (J) for each area office, the number of requests for voluntary services, broken down by type of service requested, whether the request was approved or denied, the number of families that were denied voluntary services and received a 51A report, the reasons for denying the service and what, if any, referrals were made for services by other agencies or entities; (K) the number of families receiving multiple 51A reports within a 10-month period, the number of cases reopened within 6 months of being closed and the number of children who return home and then reenter an out-of-home placement within 6 months; (L) the number of children and families served by the family resource centers by area; and (M) the number of children within the care and custody of the department whose whereabouts are unknown; provided further, that not later than January 31, 2023, the department shall submit a report to the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities that details any changes to said rules, regulations or guidelines established by the department in the previous fiscal year to carry out its duties under chapter 119 of the General Laws including, but not limited to: (I) criteria used to determine whether a child has been abused or neglected; (II) guidelines for removal of a child from the home; and (III) standards to determine what reasonable efforts are being made to keep a child in the home; provided further, that on a monthly basis, the department shall provide the caseload forecasting office with data on children receiving services and other pertinent data related to items 4800-0038 and 4800-0041 that is requested by the office; provided further, that the report shall also contain the number of children and families served by the family resource centers, by area, and an evaluation of the services provided and their effectiveness.”

SECTION 38. Section 36 shall take effect as of July 1st, 2023.

SECTION 39. The department shall complete the attorney portal referenced in Section 32 within 2 years of this act’s passage.