Snow in Washington prompts delay
TOPEKA — Blame it on the blizzard.
The chairman of the House Federal and State Affairs Committee said he had to reschedule a series of hearings on child welfare issues because he couldn’t reach the featured speakers, both of whom work in Washington, D.C.
“Oh, you know how it is in Washington,” said Rep. Melvin Neufeld, R-Ingalls. “They get two inches (of snow) and the whole place shuts down, so you can imagine what happens when they got two feet.”
Neufeld was referring to record-setting snowfall that crippled much of the East Coast earlier this month.
The hearings, originally planned for Feb. 24 and 25 and on March 1 and 2, have been rescheduled for March 2, 3, 4 and 8.
The hearings will begin at 1:30 p.m. in the Statehouse, Room 346-S.
Featured speakers for the March 2 hearing:
• Sheri Steisel, federal affairs counsel at the National Conference of State Legislatures.
• Nina Williams Mbenge, director of children and families programs at NCSL.
The committee plans to hear from judges, attorneys, and volunteers on March 2; parents, grandparents, and foster care contractors on March 3.
The March 8 hearing is reserved for unfinished testimony and committee discussion, which is expected focus on at least three bills:
• House Bill 2461 would block the state from renewing its foster care, adoption and family preservation contracts with private contractors.
• HB 2511 would allow SRS to pay grandparents to care for grandchildren who have been removed from their parents’ custody. Payment would be commensurate with what foster parents are paid.
• House Bill 2512 would order the courts to review Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services placement decisions affecting children in foster care. Without the court’s approval a child could not be moved.
Kansas privatized most of its child-welfare responsibilities in 1996. Today, SRS investigates reports of child abuse and neglect and monitors a child’s progress within the system. Direct services are provided by regional contractors.
Several legislators – conservative Republicans, mostly – have been critical of privatization, accusing SRS and the contractors of abusing the rights of parents and grandparents.
No comments:
Post a Comment