Report Title:

Foster Children; School Placement; School Transportation

 

Description:

Provides educational stability for foster children by requiring decisions made on where a child will be enrolled for school be based on the best interests of the child.  Requires that foster children, including those living outside the geographic area of the school district, receive services comparable to those for children living within the school district.  Appropriates funds for school transportation services for foster children.

 


HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

3432

TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2008

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

 

A BILL FOR AN ACT


 

 

RELATING TO EDUCATION.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 


     SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that stability is a serious issue facing Hawaii’s foster children.  It further finds that foster children suffer educational setbacks due to frequent changes in school placement.  Foster children may change schools many times during a single school year due to changing placements in foster homes.  Each time a child moves from one school to another, the child must adapt to new personnel, new subject matter, and new students, while having to adjust to a new home environment at the same time.

     The purpose of this Act is to remedy this situation by providing educational stability for foster children, regardless of situations within their biological or foster families.  Specifically, this Act:

     (1)  Requires decisions made on where a child will be enrolled for school be based on the best interests of the child;

     (2)  Requires that foster children, including those living outside the geographic area of the school district, receive services comparable to those for children living within the school district; and

     (3)  Appropriates funds for school transportation services for foster children.

     SECTION 2.  Section 302A-1143, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "§302A-1143  Attend school in what district.  (a)  All persons of school age shall be required to attend the school of the district in which they reside, unless enrolled in a Hawaiian language medium education program, or unless it appears to the department to be in the best interests of the child or otherwise desirable to allow the attendance of pupils at a school in some other district, in which case the department may grant this permission[.] in accordance with subsections (b) and (c).

     (b)  In making a determination of where a child should be enrolled, the department shall presume it is in the child's best interests to:

     (1)  Keep the child in the child's school of origin until the end of the school year or, for high school students, until completion of the twelfth grade, to the extent feasible; and

     (2)  Follow the wishes of the child, to the extent feasible.

     (c)  Foster children, including those living outside the geographic area of the school district, shall receive services comparable to those for children living within the school district, including:

     (1)  Transportation services, including supervised transportation to school from the child's foster home;

     (2)  Tutoring services;

     (3)  Counseling services; and

     (4)  Extracurricular activity opportunities.

     (d)  For the purposes of this section:

     "Foster child" means a child who has been removed from the care of the child's parents and has been placed into foster care or permanent custody by the department of human services pursuant to chapter 587.

     "School of origin" means the school that a child was attending when the child was removed from the care of the child's parents and placed into foster care or permanent custody by the department of human services; or the school that a child was attending when the child's foster placement was changed."

     SECTION 3.  There is appropriated or authorized from temporary assistance for needy families funds the sum of $      or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2008-2009 to provide foster children, even those living outside the geographic area of the school district, with school transportation services comparable to those for children living within the school district.

     The sum appropriated shall be expended by the department of education for the purposes of this Act.

     SECTION 4.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 5.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2008.

 

INTRODUCED BY:

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