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Committee adopts substitute clarifying CASA volunteer duties and restricting access to certain records
Summary
Senators adopted a negotiated substitute to SP296 that narrows CASA volunteer duties to minimum tasks, preserves judicial discretion to appoint volunteers, and explicitly excludes prosecutorial, law‑enforcement and forensic interview recordings from volunteer access.
Senator Baroot introduced SP296 and asked Bob Maddox of the Alabama CASA Network and the Administrative Office of Courts to explain a substitute negotiated with prosecutors, the Department of Human Resources and children's advocacy centers. Maddox said the substitute narrows volunteer duties to minimum tasks, maintains judicial discretion over appointment and duties, and tightens language to limit access to sensitive records.
Maddox said the substitute expressly excludes prosecutorial records, law-enforcement records and forensic interview recordings from volunteer access and clarified that CASA volunteers are not parties to dependency or parental-rights termination cases, although judges may authorize court reports and testimony when appropriate.
Senator Figures asked for a statutory definition of "trained volunteer." Maddox said local programs follow National CASA Association standards (background checks, screening, and about 30 hours of pre-service training) and offered to work with the senator to add a definition on the floor. The substitute was adopted and the bill received a favorable report.
Pam Sidler, introduced by the chair as the state executive director of the Alabama CASA Network, was acknowledged in the hearing. Committee members described the substitute as the result of collaboration among stakeholders and said the changes preserve judicial discretion while providing clearer baseline standards for volunteer roles and records access.
