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Senate panel backs expanding Safe Baby Courts to children up to age 5
Summary
Sen. Hale said S.B. 16-05 would raise eligibility for Safe Baby Courts to children up to age five to serve more families; he cited program outcomes — 754 cases and 1,315 children in 2025 with seven reentries to custody within six months — and the committee voted 8-0 to advance the bill.
Senator Hale presented S.B. 16-05, proposing to extend eligibility for the state's Safe Baby Court program from children up to 3 years old to children up to 5. Hale said expansion would allow under-capacity counties to enroll more families and maximize state funds while still prioritizing children under age 3.
Hale cited program data for 2025 to support the bill's effectiveness: "'25, there have been 754 cases go through the safe baby courts, 1,315 children. Out of those 1,315 children, only 7 have reentered custody within 6 months of the case closure.'" Committee members thanked the sponsor and, with no objections, recorded an 8-0 vote to place the bill on the committee calendar.
