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Advocates Urge Expanded Data, Office of the Child Advocate Authority and Education Coordination in Child Welfare Bill
Summary
Witnesses broadly supported H.262 / S.148 to enhance child welfare protections but flagged specific concerns and changes, including expanded reporting on disproportionality, clearer roles for the Office of the Child Advocate (OCA), child fatality review adjustments, and improved enrollment and records transfers for students in DCF custody.
The Joint Committee heard testimony from a range of child-welfare advocates and state officials on H.262 / S.148, an omnibus bill intended to strengthen protections and data transparency across child-serving systems.
Maria Masaitis, director of the Office of the Child Advocate (OCA), urged passage of the bill to codify practices the office currently performs by agreement, including incident reporting requirements, training for mandated reporters, and a shared chair model for the state child fatality review team. "As I near the end of my tenure, I'm proud of the OCA's work to…
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