SB1159

SECTION 1. Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 52, S.D. 1 (2006), authorized the committees on human services of the senate and the house of representatives to convene interim hearings on the use of legal interventions available to the family court. During the course of the interim hearings, four committees were formed relating to family court models, family court sunshine and accountability, temporary restraining orders, and the best interests of the child. The family court models committee was comprised of individual members of the public and representatives of the department of health, department of human services, Legal Aid Society of Hawaii, Hawaii State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Breaking-the-Silence, American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii, Hawaii Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, and Children's Rights Council.

After hours of hard work and meetings, the family court models committee recommended that:

(1) A process, known as the family court parenting plan model, should exist to assist parents to develop a parenting plan without and prior to family court intervention;

(2) Child custody matters involving domestic violence should be exempt from the process and should be screened out at any time in addition to an initial screening before participation in the process;

(3) After the screening for domestic violence, parents should participate in an expanded version of Kids First that includes:

(A) Education about parenting after divorce;

(B) Education about parenting roles within one home and across homes;

(D) An opportunity for children to provide their activities schedules;

(E) An introduction to the concept of a parenting plan; and

(F) An overview of divorce and paternity procedures;

(4) If the parents are unable to develop a parenting plan after participation in the expanded version of Kids First, the parents should meet with a trained parenting plan facilitator for a series of facilitations, if necessary, to assist them to develop a parenting plan;

(5) The trained parenting plan facilitator should be able to make confidential recommendations for services to either parent at any time in the process;

(6) The process should be confidential, non-adversarial, without the presence of attorneys, and the parents should have the same trained parenting plan facilitator throughout the process; and

(7) If after participating in the process the parents still cannot develop a parenting plan, they should proceed to family court with any agreed upon issues standing and for resolution of the outstanding issues.

The family court models committee also recommended that parents have the same judge throughout their child custody proceedings. The goal is to help parents develop parenting plans in a non-adversarial way and to avoid contentious child custody litigation for the sake of the children.

The legislature finds that a pilot program should be implemented in the first circuit family court based on the family court parenting plan model developed by the family court models committee. The judiciary should contract with an external agency to pilot the program through a request for proposal. The legislature further finds that parents' participation in the pilot program should be voluntary, the initial number of participants in the pilot program should be limited, and the pilot program should be evaluated and modified, if necessary, before considering implementation on a mandatory basis.

SECTION 2. The judiciary shall contract the services of a health and human services provider to establish a family court parenting plan model pilot program in the first circuit family court. The contract shall be executed in accordance with chapter 103F, Hawaii Revised Statutes.

The agency contracted by the judiciary to establish the pilot program shall submit an interim report, including any proposed legislation, to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the 2008 regular session, and a final report, including any proposed legislation, to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the 2009 regular session.

SECTION 3. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $225,000, or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2007-2008, and the same sum, or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2008-2009, for the judiciary to implement a pilot program in the first circuit family court based on the family court parenting plan model developed by the family court models committee.

The sums appropriated shall be expended by the judiciary for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2007.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	1159
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2007
STATE OF HAWAII