Placement Transition Plans for Children

Beginning July 1, 2026, absent an emergency placement change, the act requires a county or district department of human or social services (county department) child welfare caseworker (caseworker) to create an individualized placement transition plan (plan) for a child any time the child is moved from one placement in a foster care home, kinship foster care home, or non-certified kinship care home (placement) to another or back to the child's home. The plan must prioritize the mental, emotional, and physical needs of the child while considering the needs of the parents, current providers, and future providers as the needs of the parents, current providers, and future providers relate to the care of the child.

If a sibling group is moved from a placement together, the caseworker may develop a single plan for the sibling group, as long as the plan takes into account the individualized needs of each child.

The plan, at a minimum, must include:

• A determination of pre-transition logistics to adequately prepare for the child's new placement;
• A plan for pre- and post-transition communications between individuals who have relevant information for the transition;
• A timeline to transition the child to a new placement;
• A plan to physically move the child to the new placement; and
• A framework for a caseworker's post-transition communications.

The department of human services (state department), within existing resources, shall create a training on the importance of plans that is recorded and made available on a training system that can be accessed statewide. The training must focus on plans and individuals who have lived experience with placement transitions, including an emphasis on individuals who experienced placement transitions.

Newly employed caseworkers must complete the training within the first year of employment as a caseworker. All caseworkers may complete this training every 3 years. A foster care, kinship foster care, or non-certified kinship care provider (provider) may complete the training and may receive support from the state department or the county department to improve the provider's skills in transitioning a child in the provider's care from one placement to another.

The state department may adopt rules for purposes of the plans.

(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)