[Singlemom619]

In terms of children in foster care... If you could change or create a law that you think is in the BEST interest of the child what law would you change or create?

I would make a law that says if a child is in care for 18 months NO MATTER WHAT they are freed for adoption if there is someone that is willing to adopt them.

I think that 18 months is more than enough time for a Bparent or relatives to get their act together.

I think Relatives should HAVE to be found and contacted within 1 month of placement and they should have to have their background and fingerprints done within 2 months of that contact if they want the child.

I would also make it a law that Bparents are given a list of things they need to complete within 3 months, and another list of things that need to be completed within 6 months, and 9 months. If they do not complete those things then TPR should happen.

For example within 3 months the parents could be required to visit the child for 1 hour 3 times and to attend 3 counseling sessions. Obviously they should attend and visit WAY MORE than this if they really are trying to get their child back - BUT I think if they can't even do something that basic then the child should have the right to have permanency with a family that is willing to do what it takes.

Please don't take this as me saying a child should be taken and put up for adoption ASAP - I think parents should have a chance to fix things and get their child back, but I also think that when they disappear and don't comply or do ANYTHING it's not putting the child first.

[Singlemom619]

I thought of another one...

I think that there should be a very clear list of what relatives need to do to get a child in their custody. I've seen where relatives are told to do A, B, and C. They do it and then are told to do D and E. They do that and are told to do M and N... The back and forth drama just keeps going.

I think from day 1 there should be a list of what they need to do or get done so they can have the child in their custody and once it's done the child needs to be transitioned.

The list could include mental health evals, financial evals, whatever seems to be a disruption in placements or within families...

[Yash]

I like what you've written. Also I think there needs to be some consistency when it comes to visits. It's unfair to the children to have their parents bouncing in and out of their lives at whim.

I was told in LA County, the unwritten goal is all children should be in their permanent home by their 18 month in the system. Now this doesn't mean they are adopted or legal guardianship has taken place, but just that the children are in a stable and final home.

[Perfect7]

My law would be to standardize adoption training and placement nationwide. Get rid of ICPC completely by having each state sign a blanket contract that is uniform. Allow one month to collect homestudies, two weeks to review and decide. Then notifiy ALL families of the decision and transition the child after at least one month and "x" amount of visits. (Hey, we can dream).

[vernellinnj]

Originally Posted by Singlemom619

I would make a law that says if a child is in care for 18 months NO MATTER WHAT they are freed for adoption if there is someone that is willing to adopt them.

I think that 18 months is more than enough time for a Bparent or relatives to get their act together.

As the foster parent of a child who has been in my home for 2+ years I could not agree more. Sadly (for the child and me) the case is far from over and could go either way.

[potentialsinglemom]

Originally Posted by Singlemom619

I would make a law that says if a child is in care for 18 months NO MATTER WHAT they are freed for adoption if there is someone that is willing to adopt them.

I think that 18 months is more than enough time for a Bparent or relatives to get their act together.

I think Relatives should HAVE to be found and contacted within 1 month of placement and they should have to have their background and fingerprints done within 2 months of that contact if they want the child.

I would also make it a law that Bparents are given a list of things they need to complete within 3 months, and another list of things that need to be completed within 6 months, and 9 months. If they do not complete those things then TPR should happen.

For example within 3 months the parents could be required to visit the child for 1 hour 3 times and to attend 3 counseling sessions. Obviously they should attend and visit WAY MORE than this if they really are trying to get their child back - BUT I think if they can't even do something that basic then the child should have the right to have permanency with a family that is willing to do what it takes.

Please don't take this as me saying a child should be taken and put up for adoption ASAP - I think parents should have a chance to fix things and get their child back, but I also think that when they disappear and don't comply or do ANYTHING it's not putting the child first.

ITA. I would like to add to what you said to about BP completing their plans. BP should not be allowed to start their plans 11 months AFTER the children are placed in state care or a month before the TPR hearing.

[Singlemom619]

YES YES YES... I agree that we should have some set in stone national guidelines.... I guess I understand if some states want some minor differences (S. Carolina says if a person has a felony for ANY reason they're disqualified, VA says only if the felony is a violent crime or a crime against kids).... BUT it shouldn't be that hard or take that long to get those results in.

[Singlemom619]

Originally Posted by potentialsinglemom

ITA. I would like to add to what you said to about BP completing their plans. BP should not be allowed to start their plans 11 months AFTER the children are placed in state care or a month before the TPR hearing.

YES YES YES - that's why I say there should be requirements at 3, 6, and 9 months... SO tired of them getting to wait 1-3 years.

My son's Bmom didn't do jack for 3 years but they weren't doing TPR until I went to court and said I wanted to adopt.

[Scrapsathome]

It should be a national law that foster parents are allowed to home school as long as they keep a portfolio showing monthly work and progress for the child.

It should also be illegal to threaten a foster parent with removal of a child if they are unable/unwilling to provide transportation that is a burden to the rest of the family. The county should either change their plan or provide transportation. We're currently required to load up all our younger children in the van twice a day to drop off and pick up our 4 year old FS from a bus stop that's a mile away from our house four days a week. Why? So that the pre-K center can provide him with less than four minutes per day of speech therapy. That's all the pre-K center believes he needs despite the fact that he speaks in grunts and vowel sounds. I spoke to his GAL today and I'm hopeful that we won't have to continue this stupidity throughout the winter.

Jess

[dac_cincy]

I would also like to see changes to the homestudy process.

I started out as an Adopt only parent- have a state license/homestudy for adoption only
I switched to international (adoption complete), but I have valid homestudy for another 6 months
I now would like to do legal risk fostering- I have to take all the classes again (sames ones I took for the adoption only license from teh same instructors), redo my entire homestudy- nothing can be reused according to the county.

This is beyond stupid as far as I am concerned- I will have 3 valid homestudies when all is said and done. I will have 2 seperate social workers from the county and 2 seperate files.

The change to add fostering should be an update to the homestudy just like it with families who start as foster parents and become adoptive parents.

There has to be a more streamlined approach and an approcah that does not the resources to the county and state.

[spicedmama]

As a Relative who was a part of an ICPC, I don't wish to see 18 months be the limit for requesting/completing the process or the child will be otherwise adopted, and not be me. Especially since one of my little people has been in 4, (yes, count them), 4 Foster homes in the last 2 years. All the while, I have been bothering, pestering, badgering, anyone and everyone I could to get her out of that system and into my home. If we put an 18 month limit on it then I think the child should have to be with 1 family, and not moved all around from here to there. (Only talking about the 18 months as someone else mentioned it.)

I would like to see the ICPC process go a wee bit faster. What with losing paperwork, changing social workers, contract foster care agencies, state agencies, judges, lawyers, GAL's, CASA, and etc. It's a maze, and it is a mess.

Perfect world for me would have been the moment I said that you can fingerprint me, run whatever checks, look at my home, follow up any which way you want, and as soon as you know that there are no cooties here, give me my little relative within 3 months,..., 6 at the most, (and I am being lenient, but I realize they need to do their checks).

[Heather5458]

How about in this perfect world when the birth parents get their to do list we also give one to the social worker to include looking for family/father the first month, running criminal histories of these people and supervising a visit once in the first month. While I am dreaming how about they keep the same social worker for the first year or even six months!

[fredalina]

i'm not fostering or fost/adopting babies, but i still think this should be changed. In my state, when TPR happens, the current foster parent is only the "first in line" to adopt the child if the child has been in their care for at least the last year. Sometimes (yes, rarely, but in the case of relinquishment especially) TPR can take less than a year. Think how long a year is in the life of an 18 month old; it's the only thing they've ever known. But because they were only in the foster parents' home for 10 or 11 months, they could be moved to a totally different home. This cannot be in the best interests of that baby!

i think in most cases the foster parent does end up chosen to adopt the baby, but technically they are only put into a pool of qualified candidates and considered without regards to how long they've fostered the child. If there are racial or cultural differences especially, the child very well may be placed into yet another home. i don't personally think that's right.

[MamaKnkids]

I think the whole process should be streamlined for teens who are already TPR'd. They are not getting younger as these months go by. We inquired on our soon to be daughter in July. She'll be moving in Dec. 19. There is no reason that it should take so long when she is 16..! It took 2 months to schedule a BIP and then another month for the Full Disclosure, and then 3 weeks for the transition calendar. Sorry, but that's ridiculous.

The law should make them go faster for teens!!! Our daughter didn't even know that we were interested in her, and there she was in foster care limbo, thinking no one wanted her. She could have started school here and not had to deal with a mid year transfer, had they gone a bit faster. ACK!

[mommytoEli]

i think the process should be nationwide, not statewide, so that when you move states, you just have to have your actual home recertified, not start all over from scratch like your last state was crazy to certify you in the first place.

ps....i posted before i read, and someone already said this....glad to know i'm not the only one who thinks it is a good idea lol.