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Committee agrees to print RS31804C1 to restore pre‑opinion juvenile hearing practice, sponsor says it shortens time to permanency
Summary
Jared Larson of DHW presented RS31804C1 to reverse a Supreme Court interpretation that added an additional hearing for youth in Department custody; committee voted to send the request to print.
Jared Larson, Legislative and Regulatory Affairs Chief with the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, presented RS31804C1 addressing juvenile proceedings in Idaho Code section 16‑20005(8). Larson told the committee the Idaho Supreme Court had interpreted that subsection to require an additional hearing for youth in the Department’s custody, and the proposed change would “restore the status quo ante” so that the additional hearing would not be required.
Larson said the department’s objective is to reduce the time children spend in state custody and to reach permanency more quickly; he cited an average time in custody of about 24 months in Idaho compared with a national figure he referenced of 19 months and said the additional hearing can add two to four months to a case depending on court calendars. He said the department has seen the requirement apply even when parents had stipulated to termination of parental rights, and described the hearing as “entirely superfluous.”
Sen. Wintrow spoke in support of sending the RS to print and asked the department to bring experts for a full hearing to explain the legal and child‑welfare impacts; Larson said the department would do so and acknowledged Senator Shippey’s assistance on the draft. A motion by Sen. Wintrow, seconded by Sen. Harris, to send RS31804C1 to print was approved by voice vote. The sponsor committed to presenting expert testimony at a hearing to help the committee weigh parental rights against permanency for children.
