REPRESENTATIVES Metzger, Kearns, D. Miller, Calvert, Jerse, Schuring, Salerno, Williams, Beatty, Willamowski, Callender, Britton, Hollister, Barrett, Flowers, Coates, Womer Benjamin, Jones, Key, Wolpert
A BILL
To amend sections 5153.16 and 6301.07 of the Revised
Code and to enact sections 2151.81 to 2151.84 and
5111.0110 of the Revised Code to require the
provision of independent living services,
Medicaid, and work force development services and
activities for certain children and young adults
so they may become independent adults.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 5153.16 and 6301.07 be amended and
sections 2151.81, 2151.82, 2151.83, 2151.84, and 5111.0110 of the
Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:
Sec. 2151.81.
As used in sections 2151.282 to 2151.84 of
the Revised Code:
(A) "Independent living services" means services and other
forms of support designed to aid children and young adults to
successfully make the transition to independent adult living.
"Independent living services" include teaching skills to achieve
emotional and economic self-sufficiency and may also include the
provision of housing and other forms of support.
(B) "Young adult" means a person eighteen years of age or
older but under twenty-one years of age who was in the temporary
or permanent custody of, or was provided care in a planned
permanent living arrangement by, a public children services agency
or private child placing agency on the date the person attained
age eighteen.
Sec. 2151.82.
A public children services agency or private
child placing agency that has temporary or permanent custody of,
or is providing care in a planned permanent living arrangement to,
a child who is sixteen or seventeen years of age, shall provide
independent living services to the child. The services shall be
included as part of the case plan established for the child
pursuant to section 2151.412 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 2151.83.
(A) A young adult may request that a
public children services agency or private child placing agency
enter into a contract for the provision of independent living
services to the young adult. If the young adult does not appear
to be eligible for services from one or more of the entities
described in division (B) of this section, the agency shall enter
into a contract with the young adult that obligates the agency to
provide the services.
(B) If the young adult appears to be eligible for services
from one or more of the following entities, the agency must
contact the appropriate entity to determine eligibility:
(1) An entity, other than the agency, that is represented on
a county family and children first council established pursuant to
section 121.37 of the Revised Code;
(2) The rehabilitation services commission;
(3) A metropolitan housing authority established pursuant to
section 3735.27 of the Revised Code.
If the young adult qualifies for services from an entity
described in this division, that entity and the agency to which
the young adult made the request for independent living services
shall enter into a contract with the young adult obligating the
entity and the agency to provide services. The contract shall
allocate the service responsibilities among the entities and
agency that signed the contract. If the young adult does not
qualify for services from an entity described in this division,
the agency to which the young adult made the request for services
shall enter into a contract with the young adult as described in
division (A) of this section.
Sec. 2151.84.
The department of job and family services
shall establish model contracts to be used by public children
services agencies, private child placing agencies, and other
entities required to provide services under contract with a young
adult pursuant to section 2151.83 of the Revised Code. The model
contracts shall include provisions describing the specific
independent living services to be provided, the duration of the
services and the contract, duties of each party under the
contract, and grievance procedures regarding disputes that arise
regarding the contract or services provided under it.
To facilitate the provision of independent living services,
the department shall provide funds to meet the requirement of
state matching funds needed to qualify for federal funds under the
"Foster Care Independence Act of 1999," 113 Stat. 1822 (1999), 42
U.S.C. 677, as amended. The department shall seek controlling
board approval of any fund transfers necessary to meet this
requirement.
Sec. 5111.0110.
The director of job and family
services
shall submit
to the United States secretary of health and human
services
an amendment to the state medicaid plan to make an
individual receiving independent living services pursuant to
sections 2151.81 to 2151.84 of the Revised Code eligible for
medicaid. If approved by the United States secretary
of health and
human services, the director of job and
family services shall
implement
the medicaid plan amendment submitted under this
section.
Sec. 5153.16. (A) Except as provided in section 2151.422 of
the Revised
Code, in accordance with rules of the department of
job and family
services, and on
behalf of children in the county
whom the
public children services agency considers to be in need
of public care
or protective services, the public children
services agency shall do all of
the following:
(1) Make an investigation concerning any child alleged to be
an abused,
neglected, or dependent child;
(2) Enter into agreements with the parent, guardian, or
other person having legal custody of any child, or with the
department of job and family services, department of mental
health,
department of mental retardation and developmental
disabilities,
other department, any certified organization within
or outside
the county, or any agency or institution outside the
state,
having legal custody of any child, with respect to the
custody,
care, or placement of any child, or with respect to any
matter, in the interests of the child, provided the permanent
custody of a child shall not be transferred by a parent to the
public children services agency
without the consent of the
juvenile court;
(3) Accept custody of children committed to the public
children services
agency by a court
exercising juvenile
jurisdiction;
(4) Provide such care as the
public children services agency
considers to be in the best interests
of any child adjudicated to
be an abused, neglected, or dependent child
the agency
finds to be
in need of public care or service;
(5) Provide social services to any unmarried girl
adjudicated to be
an abused, neglected, or dependent child who is
pregnant with or has been
delivered of a child;
(6) Make available to the bureau for children with medical
handicaps of the department of health at its request any
information concerning a crippled child found to be in need of
treatment under sections 3701.021 to 3701.028 of the Revised Code
who is receiving services from the public
children services
agency;
(7) Provide temporary emergency care for any child
considered by the public children
services agency to be in need of
such care, without agreement or
commitment;
(8) Find certified foster homes, within or outside the
county, for the care of children, including handicapped children
from other counties attending special schools in the county;
(9) Subject to the approval of the board of county
commissioners and the state department of job and family services,
establish and operate a training school or enter into an
agreement
with any municipal corporation or other political
subdivision of
the county respecting the operation, acquisition,
or maintenance
of any children's home, training school, or other
institution for
the care of children maintained by such municipal
corporation or
political subdivision;
(10) Acquire and operate a county children's home,
establish, maintain, and operate a receiving home for the
temporary care of children, or procure certified foster
homes for
this purpose;
(11) Enter into an agreement with the trustees of any
district children's home, respecting the operation of the
district
children's home in cooperation with the other county
boards in the
district;
(12) Cooperate with, make its services available to, and
act
as the agent of persons, courts, the department of job and family
services, the department of health, and other organizations
within
and outside the state, in matters relating to the welfare
of
children, except that the public children services agency shall
not be required to provide supervision of or other services
related to the
exercise of companionship or visitation rights
granted pursuant to section
3109.051, 3109.11, or 3109.12 of the
Revised Code unless a
juvenile court, pursuant to Chapter 2151. of
the Revised
Code, or a common pleas court, pursuant to division
(E)(6)
of section 3113.31 of the Revised Code, requires the
provision of
supervision or other
services related
to the exercise
of the companionship or visitation rights;
(13) Make investigations at the request of any
superintendent of schools in the county or the principal of any
school concerning the application of any child adjudicated to be
an abused,
neglected, or dependent child for release from school,
where such service
is not provided through a school attendance
department;
(14) Administer funds provided under Title IV-E of the
"Social Security Act," 94 Stat. 501 (1980), 42 U.S.C.A. 671, as
amended, in accordance with rules adopted under section 5101.141
of the Revised
Code;
(15) In addition to administering Title IV-E adoption
assistance funds, enter into agreements to make adoption
assistance payments under section 5153.163 of the Revised Code;
(16) Implement a system of risk assessment, in accordance
with
rules adopted by the director of
job and family
services, to
assist the public
children services agency in determining the risk
of abuse or neglect to a
child;
(17) Enter into a plan of cooperation with the board of
county commissioners under section 307.983 of the Revised Code and
comply with
the partnership agreement the board enters into under
section 307.98 of the
Revised Code and contracts the board enters
into under sections 307.981 and
307.982 of the Revised Code that
affect the public children services
agency;
(18) Make reasonable efforts to prevent the removal of an
alleged or
adjudicated abused, neglected, or dependent child from
the child's home,
eliminate the continued removal of the child
from the child's home, or make it
possible for the child to return
home safely, except that reasonable
efforts of that nature are not
required when a court has made a determination
under
division
(A)(2) of section 2151.419 of the Revised Code;
(19) Make reasonable efforts to place the child in a
timely
manner in accordance with the permanency plan approved
under
division (E) of section
2151.417 of the Revised Code and to
complete whatever
steps are necessary to finalize the permanent
placement of the
child;
(20) Provide independent living services pursuant to
sections 2151.81 to 2151.84 of the Revised Code.
(B) The public children services agency shall use the system
implemented pursuant to division (B)(16) of this section in
connection with an investigation undertaken pursuant to division
(F)(1) of section 2151.421 of the Revised Code and
may use the
system at any other time the agency is involved with any child
when the agency determines that risk assessment is necessary.
(C) Except as provided in section 2151.422 of the Revised
Code,
in accordance with rules of the director of
job and family
services, and on
behalf of children in the county whom the public
children services agency
considers to be in need of public care or
protective services, the public
children services agency may do
the following:
(1) Provide or find, with other
child serving systems,
specialized foster care for the care of children in a
specialized
foster home, as defined in section 5103.02 of the Revised
Code,
certified under section 5103.03 of the Revised Code;
(2)(a) Except as limited by divisions (C)(2)(b) and
(c) of
this section, contract with the following for the purpose of
assisting
the agency with its duties:
(i) County departments of job and family services;
(ii) Boards of alcohol, drug addiction, and mental
health
services;
(iii) County boards of mental retardation and
developmental
disabilities;
(iv) Regional councils of political subdivisions
established
under Chapter 167. of the Revised Code;
(v) Private and government providers of services;
(vi) Managed care organizations and prepaid health plans.
(b) A public children services agency contract
under
division (C)(2)(a) of this section regarding the agency's duties
under
section 2151.421 of the Revised Code may not provide for the
entity under contract with the agency to perform any service not
authorized by the department's rules.
(c) Only a county children services board
appointed under
section 5153.03 of the Revised Code that is a public children
services agency may contract under division (C)(2)(a) of this
section. If an
entity specified in division (B) or (C) of section
5153.02 of the Revised Code
is the public children services agency
for a county, the board of county
commissioners may enter into
contracts pursuant to section 307.982 of the
Revised Code
regarding the agency's duties.
Sec. 6301.07. (A) Every workforce policy board, with the
agreement of the chief elected officials of the local area, and
after holding
public hearings that allow public comment and
testimony, shall prepare
a workforce development plan
and
incorporate that plan into and attach that plan to the
partnership
agreement required under section 6301.05 of the
Revised Code. The
plan shall accomplish all of the
following:
(1) Identify the workforce investment needs of businesses in
the
local area, identify projected employment opportunities, and
identify
the job skills necessary to obtain those opportunities;
(2) Identify the local area's workforce development needs
for
youth, dislocated workers, adults, displaced homemakers,
incumbent
workers, and any other group of workers identified by
the workforce
policy board;
(3) Determine the distribution of workforce development
resources
and funding to be distributed for each workforce
development activity to meet the identified needs,
utilizing
the
funds allocated pursuant to the "Workforce Investment
Act of
1998," 112 Stat. 936, 29
U.S.C.A. 2801, as amended;
(4)
Give priority to youth receiving independent living
services pursuant to sections 2151.81 to 2151.84 of the Revised
Code when determining distribution of workforce development
resources and workforce development activity funding;
(5) Review the minimum curriculum required by the state
workforce
policy board for certifying training providers and
identify any
additional curriculum requirements to include in
contracts between the
training providers and the chief elected
officials of the local area;
(5)(6) Establish performance standards for service providers
that
reflect local workforce development needs;
(6)(7) Describe any other information the chief elected
officials of
the local area require.
(B) A workforce policy board may provide policy guidance and
recommendations to the chief elected officials of a local area for
any
workforce development activities.
(C) Nothing in this section prohibits the chief elected
officials
of a local area from assigning, through a partnership
agreement,
any duties in addition to the duties under this section
to a
workforce policy board, except that a workforce policy board
cannot contract with itself for the direct provision of services
in its local area. A workforce policy board may consult with the
chief elected officials of its local area and make recommendations
regarding the workforce development activities provided in its
local area at any time.
Section 2. That existing sections 5153.16 and 6301.07 of
the Revised Code are hereby repealed.
Section 3. Section 5153.16 of the Revised Code is presented
in this act
as a composite of the section as amended by both
Sub.
H.B. 332 and Sub. H.B. 448 of the 123rd General Assembly.
This is
in recognition of the principle stated in division (B) of section
1.52 of the Revised Code that such amendments are to be
harmonized
where not substantively irreconcilable and constitutes
a
legislative finding that such is the resulting version in
effect
on January 1, 2001.