Senate leaders are giving strong backing to a bill allowing struggling parents to give a friend temporary custody of a child.
Sponsor Sen. Renee Unterman, R-Buford, said that SB 3 would let families avoid involvement with the Division of Families and Children’s Services. Children in the DFACS system have told her of being sent to 20 different foster families by age 18, she said at a press conference this week to announce the Senate Majority Caucus’ legislative agenda. Legislation last year allowed a grandparent to receive temporary child custody, and the new bill broadens the scope to trusted friends.
Unterman told InsiderAdvantage Georgia Tuesday that the bill has been assigned to the Senate’s Health and Human Services Committee, which she chairs. She has not decided when to schedule the committee’s hearing on the bill.
The legislation allows a family to transfer custody and give power of attorney to a friend for a year. President Pro-tem David Shafer, R-Duluth; Majority Leader Bill Cowsert, R-Athens; Majority Caucus Chair William T. Ligon Jr., R-Brunswick; Majority Whip Steve Gooch, R-Dahlonega; and State and Local Governmental Operations committee chair John Albers, R-Roswell, are co-sponsors.
Unterman described the legislation to InsiderAdvantage Georgia as a “preliminary intervention” measure to prevent a worsening family crisis. She gave the example of a single mom with two or three children holding a couple of jobs. If she loses one of the jobs, she would able to turn to a close friend to take one of the children until she could recover.
The legislation also allows members of the military to transfer custody and power of attorney for longer than a year, while they are on active duty. Unterman said at the press conference that this would allow a child to “stay in the same school system until those veterans return home.”
For example, a soldier stationed at Fort Benning sent to active duty overseas for nine months could transfer a child’s custody to a friend so that the child could remain with his or her pediatrician or school rather than be sent to a grandmother in another state.
Georgia’s troubled child welfare agency is also receiving attention in Gov. Nathan Deal’s proposed FY 2016 budget, with $35.4 million recommended, including $7.5 million in state funds for 175 additional new case workers to manage increasing child abuse and neglect caseloads. The budget also includes $12.7 million in new state funds for improvements in the delivery of child welfare services. Deal’s amended budget for FY 2015, expected to reach the House floor this week, gives an additional $15 million for child welfare services.
A Majority Caucus’ statement in support of its agenda said it would support funding to increase the number of DFACS caseworkers and reduce red tape for potential foster families, along with steps to smooth the adoption process. The statement also said it “will explore options for private-sector participation or expansion of the private-sector’s involvement in each of these areas.”
Hawks visit: An appearance by Atlanta Hawks legend Dominique Wilkins and team CEO Steve Koonin thrilled legislators and Gov. Nathan Deal Tuesday. The House and Senate commended the NBA team for its current 16-game winning streak, the longest in Atlanta pro sports history, and Eastern Conference-leading 37-8 record. Coach Mike Budenholzer was cited for being named the Eastern coach in the NBA All-Star game.
Wilkins, a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame who also starred at the University of Georgia, said that although he grew up in North Carolina, “I am from Georgia from this day on.” Known as “the human highlight film,” Wilkins is the color announcer for Hawks TV broadcasts.
