The Senate Family and Children Services Committee heard HB 1605 on juvenile law matters sponsored by Sen. Brown and Sen. Koch. Author Rep. McGuire introduced the bill and explained that the bill does the following:
- Prohibits an affirmative or implied waiver of procedural deadlines in CHINS and TPR proceedings, but does not ban or alter use of continuances for good cause;
- Requires the court to allow a foster parent, long term foster parent, or unlicensed kinship caregiver to intervene in a CHINS proceeding;
- Provides limitations to reunification efforts set forth in dispositional decrees;
- Requires the court to hold an initial hearing on a TPR petition not later than 30 days after the TPR petition is filed; and
- Allows intervenors in a CHINS matter to file a TPR petition.
The bill was amended by consent to do the following:
- Provides that FSSA’s requirement to provide information to DCS be subject to approval of the state plan amendment or waiver;
- Allows a representative from a licensed child placing agency that is providing services to a child in CHINS matter to attend any hearing conducted as a part of the CHINS and/or TPR proceeding;
- Provides that the requirement that DCS publish certain information regarding a child to facilitate adoption of that child does not apply to a child that is already in a pre-adoptive placement in a proposed adoptive home; and
The following entities testified in support of the bill: Firefly Children & Family Alliance, Champions of Children in Indiana, Rep. Goss-Reaves, Elkhart County Referee[JB1] Heidi Cintron, and numerous private citizens, including attorneys, foster parents, former DCS family case managers, and a former CASA volunteer. The Indiana Public Defender Agency, a private citizen, and two attorneys testified in opposition to the bill. The amended bill passed 7-0 and was reassigned to the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Read the bill at: https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2025/bills/house/1605