It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows

SECTION 1. Section 42-72-5 of the General Laws in Chapter 42-72 entitled "Department of Children, Youth and Families" is hereby amended to read as follows:

42-72-5. Powers and scope of activities. -- (a) The department shall be the principal agency of the state to mobilize the human, physical and financial resources available to plan, develop, and evaluate a comprehensive and integrated statewide program of services designed to ensure the opportunity for children to reach their full potential. The services shall include prevention, early intervention, out-reach, placement, care and treatment, and after-care programs. The department shall also serve as an advocate for the needs of children.

(b) To accomplish the purposes and duties hereinbefore set forth, the director is hereby authorized and empowered:

(1) To establish such administrative and operational divisions of the department as the director determines is in the best interests of fulfilling the purposes and duties of this chapter;

(2) To assign different tasks to staff members as the director shall determine best suit the purposes of this chapter;

(3) To establish plans and facilities for emergency treatment, relocation and physical custody of abused or neglected children which may include but are not limited to homemaker/educator child case aides, specialized foster family programs, day care facilities, crisis teams, emergency parents, group homes for teenage parents, family centers within existing community agencies, and counselling services;

(4) To establish, monitor, and evaluate protective services for children including, but not limited to, purchase of services from private agencies and establishment of a policy and procedure manual to standardize protective services;

(5) To plan and initiate primary and secondary treatment programs for abused and neglected children;

(6) To evaluate the services of the department and to conduct periodic comprehensive needs assessment;

(7) To license, approve, monitor, and evaluate all residential and non-residential child care institutions, group homes, foster homes, and programs;

(8) To recruit and coordinate community resources, public and private;

(9) To promulgate rules and regulations concerning the confidentiality, disclosure and expungement of case records pertaining to matters under the jurisdiction of the department;

(10) To establish a minimum mandatory level of twenty (20) hours of training per year and provide ongoing staff development for all staff; provided, however, all social workers hired after June 15, 1991 within the department shall have a minimum of a bachelor's degree in social work or a closely related field, and must be appointed from a valid civil service list;

(11) To establish procedures for reporting suspected child abuse and neglect pursuant to chapter 11 of title 40;

(12) To promulgate all rules and regulations necessary for the execution of departmental powers pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act, title 42, chapter 35;

(13) To provide and act as a clearinghouse for information, data and other materials relative to children;

(14) To initiate and carry out studies and analysis which will aid in solving local, regional and statewide problems concerning children;

(15) To represent and act on behalf of the state in connection with federal grant programs applicable to programs for children in the functional areas described in this chapter;

(16) To seek, accept, and otherwise take advantage of all federal aid available to the department, and to assist other agencies of the state, local agencies, and community groups in taking advantage of all federal grants and subventions available for children;

(17) To review and coordinate those activities of agencies of the state and of any political subdivision of the state which affect the full and fair utilization of community resources for programs for children, and initiate programs that will help assure such utilization;

(18) To administer the pilot juvenile restitution program including the overseeing and coordinating of all local community based restitution programs, and the establishment of procedures for the processing of payments to children performing community service;

(19) To adopt rules and regulations which:

(A) for the twelve (12) month period beginning on October 1, 1983, and for each subsequent twelve (12) month period, establish specific goals as to the maximum number of children who will remain in foster care for a period in excess of two (2) years; and (B) are reasonably necessary to implement the child welfare services and foster care programs;

(20) May establish and conduct seminars for the purpose of educating children regarding sexual abuse;

(21) To establish fee schedules by regulation for the processing of requests from adoption placement agencies for adoption studies, adoption study updates, and supervision related to interstate and international adoptions. The fee shall equal the actual cost of the service(s) rendered but in no event shall the fee exceed two thousand dollars ($2,000.);

(22) To be responsible for the education of all children who are placed, assigned, or otherwise accommodated for residence by the department in a state operated or supported community residence licensed by a Rhode Island state agency. In fulfilling this responsibility the department is authorized to enroll and pay for the education of students in the public schools or, when necessary and appropriates, to itself provide education in accordance with the regulations of the board of regents for elementary and secondary education either directly or through contract;

(23) To develop multidisciplinary service plans, in conjunction with the department of health, at hospitals prior to the discharge of any drug exposed babies. The plan shall require development of a plan using all health care professionals.

(c) In order to assist in the discharge of his or her duties, the director may request from any agency of the state information pertinent to the affairs and problems of children.

{ADD (24) To be responsible for the delivery of appropriate mental health services to seriously emotionally disturbed children. Appropriate mental health services may include hospitalization, placement in a residential treatment facility, or treatment in a community based setting. The department is charged with the responsibility for developing the public policy and programs related to the needs of seriously emotionally disturbed children. ADD}

{ADD In fulfilling its responsibilities the department shall:

"Seriously emotionally disturbed child" means any person under the age of eighteen (18) years or any person under the age of twenty-one (21) years who began to receive services from the department prior to attaining eighteen (18) years of age and has continuously received such services thereafter who has been diagnosed as having an emotional, behavioral or mental disorder under the current edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual and said disability has been on-going for one year or more or has the potential of being ongoing for one year or more, and said child is in need of multi-agency intervention, and said child is in an out-of-home placement or is at risk of such placement because of said disability. ADD}

SECTION 2. Chapter 40.1-7 of the General Laws entitled "Services for Emotionally Disturbed Children" is hereby repealed in its entirety.

{DEL40.1-7-1.Short title. -- DEL} {DEL This chapter shall be known as the "Services for Emotionally Disturbed Children Law". DEL}

{DEL40.1-7-2. State program created. -- DEL} {DEL There is hereby established within the department for children and their families a program to be known as "services for emotionally disturbed children". DEL}

{DEL40.1-7-3.Responsibility of department. -- DEL} {DEL The department is charged with the responsibility to promote the development of specialized services for the care and treatment of emotionally disturbed children and to cooperate to this end with all reputable agencies of a public or private character serving emotionally disturbed children, and to take the initiative in all matters involving the interests of the children where adequate legal provision therefor has not already been made. DEL}

{DEL40.1-7-4. Definitions. -- DEL} {DEL Whenever used in this chapter, or in any order, rule, or regulation made or promulgated pursuant to this chapter, or in the printed forms prepared by the department or the director, unless otherwise expressly stated, or unless the context or subject matter otherwise requires, the term: DEL}

{DEL (1) "Care and treatment" means medical and psychiatric care, medical attention, nursing, and medications, as well as food, clothing and maintenance, psychological, social work and recreational services, and those educational services furnished to a child other than those regular or special education programs under the jurisdiction of the board of regents for elementary and secondary education.

(6) "Qualified Child Mental Health Professional" means a psychiatrist, psychologist, or a social worker with a masters or further advanced degree from a school of social work which is accredited by the council of social work education. DEL}

{DEL40.1-7-5. General powers and duties of department . -- DEL} {DEL (1) Under the direction of the state director for children and their families the department shall have the responsibility for developing the public policy and programs related to the needs of emotionally disturbed children, and shall be charged with the responsibility of executing the provisions of this chapter. In fulfilling its responsibilities the department, among other things, shall:

(2) The director may adopt such rules and regulations relative to the implementation and administration of the general duties and powers of the department as he or she may deem necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter. DEL}

{DEL40.1-7-6. Delegation of authority by director. -- DEL} {DEL Unless otherwise herein expressly provided, whenever any duty devolves upon the director he or she may in writing delegate the performance of the duty to a deputy or agent and the delegated action by the deputy or agent, shall be deemed to be the action of the director. However, the director shall expressly ratify the action within fourteen (14) days, and failure so to ratify the delegated action shall be deemed nonaction or nonperformance of the duty of the director. DEL}

{DEL40.1-7-7. Contributions from communities. -- DEL} {DEL Each community, as defined in chapter 7 of title 16 , shall contribute to the department, in accordance with regulations to be promulgated by the director, its average per pupil cost for special education for the second school year preceding as its share of the cost of the educational services furnished to emotionally disturbed children in programs other than those regular class or special education programs under the control and management of the school committee. DEL}

{DEL40.1-7-8.Contributions from parents. -- DEL} {DEL The parents of children in the program, shall be obligated to reimburse the costs of the care and treatment of their children in accordance with regulations to be promulgated by the director, which among other factors shall take into account the income and other resources of the parents including reimbursement by a third-party insurer.

(b) Prior to proceeding in accordance with subsection (a) hereof, the department shall comply with the provisions of section 15-9-1 and 15-9-5. DEL

{DEL40.1-7-9. Appropriations for children and their families. -- DEL} {DEL There is appropriated to the department for children and their families out of any money in the treasury not otherwise appropriated for the fiscal year 1979-1980, the sum of four million, two hundred forty-six thousand and sixteen dollars ($4,246,016) to carry out the purposes of this chapter . Thereafter the general assembly shall annually appropriate such sum as it may deem necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter , and the state controller is hereby authorized and directed to draw his or her order upon the general treasurer for the payment of such sum, or so much thereof as may be required from time to time, upon receipt by him or her of properly authenticated vouchers. DEL}

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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