House approves pilot citizen-review boards for foster-care reviews after amendment requiring parent representation

The Utah House approved Senate Bill 246 to establish a pilot citizen-review process for foster-care case reviews, with a sunset provision in 1995, and adopted an amendment specifying that five members of the panel must be parents.

Sponsor remarks noted the pilot aims to speed placement decisions, involve judges and parents in reviews now handled by the Division of Family Services, and reduce average time children spend in foster care. Representative Mortimer proposed an amendment to require a majority of the panel (five members) be parents; the amendment was presented as a friendly change and passed on the floor.

Members debated fiscal implications. Some expressed concern that ongoing staffing costs (a reported $67,000 for staff support during the pilot and larger ongoing costs if the pilot continued) might not have been fully captured in the fiscal note, and that the pilot would require reshuffling or additional funds if expanded beyond the sunset. Supporters argued the Senate had included seed funding and the pilot should be evaluated for efficacy before any permanent expansion.

The House then voted to pass the bill (as amended) and referred it back to the Senate for consideration of House amendments. The clerk’s floor-record reading of the vote tally appears in the transcript.

What happens next: The pilot will be implemented as written if the Senate concurs with the House amendment; legislative oversight and the sunset date will determine whether the citizen-review model is continued or modified.