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Committee advances bill allowing courts to limit in-person visits after substantiated abuse
Summary
Senate Bill 12-57 would codify that courts may pause mandatory in-person visitation when abuse is substantiated and clarifies factors courts may consider in termination decisions; the Judiciary & Rules Committee advanced the bill after lengthy testimony from survivors, foster parents, child-welfare professionals, and opponents raising reunification concerns.
Senator Melissa Wintrow (District 19) introduced Senate Bill 12-57, saying it translates existing child-welfare rules into statute to give courts clearer guidance that mandatory in-person visitation need not be required when there is a substantiated finding of severe abuse or sexual abuse. "What we here before I get to the bill...; we already have in rule, what we're gonna put in statute," Wintrow said, framing the change as guidance for courts while preserving judicial discretion.
Jean Fisher, Division Administrator for Youth Safety and Permanency at the Department of Health and Welfare, described how substantiation is reached (adjudicatory findings, corroborating medical evidence, confession, or preponderance of evidence through investigation) and said the measure would allow courts to pause in-person visits without penalizing the department in federal audits. Fisher emphasized appeals and administrative review processes remain available. "The department's mission with child welfare is the safety of the child," Fisher said.
The committee heard extended public testimony. Child psychologists and foster parents described severe retraumatization when children were required to attend in-person visits with substantiated abusers, while at least one opponent warned that statutory emphasis could shift case posture and reduce reunification opportunities for families already disadvantaged by systemic disparities. After deliberation, the committee voted by voice to send SB12-57 to the floor with a due-pass recommendation.
