House committee reviews substitute on DHR authority to enter homes and interview children

At a House committee meeting, members considered a substitute version of a bill that would change how the Department of Human Resources (DHR) may enter homes and interview children during child-abuse or neglect investigations. Lawmakers and staff debated language that separates a parent’s ability to withhold consent for investigators to enter a home from the ability to withhold consent to interview a child, and they discussed exceptions including court orders, allegations naming a parent or legal guardian, and exigent or extenuating circumstances.

Committee members said Representative Pasco provided a substitute that incorporates two earlier amendments; DHR attorneys had drafted a substitute but were not prepared to provide it to the committee at the meeting. Lawmakers asked staff to have the substitute reviewed by…