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                                  S.C.R. NO.            S.D. 1
                                                        
                                                        

 

  REQUESTING CONTINUED DISCUSSION FOR A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF
    CURRENT CHILD PROTECTION LAWS.


 1        WHEREAS, the Child Protection Legislative Roundtable
 2   (Roundtable) is an ad hoc group of service providers and
 3   medical specialists in child protection; and
 4   
 5        WHEREAS, the Roundtable has been instrumental in improving
 6   the Child Protective Services (CPS) system, including the
 7   enactment of its recommendations in Act 134, Session Laws of
 8   Hawaii (SLH) 1998, and Act 271, SLH 1999; and
 9   
10        WHEREAS, the Roundtable is continuing to meet and to
11   discuss issues relating to child protection, in the recognition
12   that the CPS system is not perfect and that ongoing
13   communication on a daily basis in detecting, preventing, and
14   treating child abuse benefits all participants in their work;
15   and
16   
17        WHEREAS, although improvements in the CPS system are
18   continually being made, either formally through statutory
19   amendments or informally through collaboration and cooperation
20   among the parties involved in child protection, there still
21   remains specific issues that need to be examined and may need
22   legislation; and
23   
24        WHEREAS, the Hawaii Appleseed Public Interest Law
25   Foundation (Hawaii Appleseed) is a participating member of the
26   Roundtable and has provided the kind of assistance necessary in
27   reviewing, analyzing, and making recommendations for statutory
28   revisions relating to child protection laws; and
29   
30        WHEREAS, pursuant to S.C.R. No. 77 (1999) that requested
31   Hawaii Appleseed to conduct a comprehensive assessment of state
32   child protection statutes, Hawaii Appleseed had distributed to
33   the Roundtable during the 1999 legislative interim a discussion
34   draft of a proposed new Child Protective Act; and
35   
36        WHEREAS, the discussion draft incorporates in one,
37   comprehensive statute provisions drawn from state and federal
38   laws and portions of the Department of Human Services'
39   regulations and policies; and
40   
41        WHEREAS, the discussion draft, that was broadly circulated
42   to governmental and private groups interested in the child
43   protection statutory framework, was intended to be a work in
44   progress, and to be later refined and modified into a final
45   product that will receive broad agency, judicial, and community
46   support; and
47   
48        WHEREAS, there lacked sufficient time during the 1999
49   legislative interim to craft a final product reflective of the
50   Roundtable and community's current values and intentions; now,
51   therefore,
52   
53        BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twentieth Legislature
54   of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2000, the House of
55   Representatives concurring, that Hawaii Appleseed is requested
56   to continue discussion and seek input in its comprehensive
57   assessment of reviewing and conforming current state child
58   protection statutes; and
59   
60        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the discussion drafts of the
61   proposed new Child Protective Act, distributed to the
62   Roundtable and the broader community during the 1999
63   legislative interim, be used as the foundation for Hawaii
64   Appleseed's efforts; and
65   
66        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Hawaii Appleseed, in
67   cooperation with the Roundtable, organize a conference and
68   working groups on child protection reform that brings together
69   stakeholders and other interested parties, including the
70   Departments of Health, Human Services, Education, Attorney
71   General, and the Judiciary, for the purpose of massaging the
72   discussion draft into a final product; and
73   
74        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Hawaii Appleseed, with the
75   assistance of the Roundtable, report the findings,
76   recommendations, and any statutory changes to the Legislature
77   no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular
78   Session of 2001; and
79   
 
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                                  S.C.R. NO.            S.D. 1
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this
 2   Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Executive Director
 3   of Hawaii Appleseed, the Roundtable, Director of Human
 4   Services, Director of Health, Superintendent of Education,
 5   Attorney General, and Chief Justice.