SB 523
Increase circumstances where Department of Human Services is required to seek termination of parental rights
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- Passed Senate
- Passed House of Delegates
- To Governor
- Became Law
Bill overview
This bill changes the circumstances under which West Virginia’s Department of Human Services (DHS) must pursue termination of parental rights. It expands the situations where DHS must seek termination, including cases involving child abuse, neglect, abandonment, or parental criminal activity. The bill also modifies the length of time parents have to improve their circumstances before termination is considered, with potential extensions under specific conditions and limitations.
Key provisions
- DHS must seek termination of parental rights in cases of child abuse (physical, sexual, chronic), neglect, abandonment, or parental criminal activity (murder, manslaughter, unlawful wounding, sexual assault).
- A child must be in foster care, kinship placement, a residential facility, or in the care of a non-offending parent for 15 of the most recent 22 months to trigger DHS’s termination petition.
- The bill establishes three types of improvement periods: preadjudicatory, post-adjudicatory, and post-dispositional, with varying lengths.
- Post-adjudicatory improvement periods can be up to six months, and post-dispositional periods can be up to six months.
- A court can extend improvement periods for up to three months if the respondent has substantially complied with the terms.
- The total time a child can be in out-of-home placement while an improvement period is in effect is limited to 15 months of the most recent 22 months.
- The bill requires a release of medical information from the respondent during an improvement period.
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