Committee backs proposal to decouple Maine's definition of child neglect with poverty
(Stock photo by Os Tartarouchos via Getty Images)
Maine lawmakers are suggesteing the state move forward with a proposal to update the state's definition of child abuse and neglect that legal experts have argued is easy to conflate with poverty.
The Legislature's Health and Human Services Committee held a work session for two bills looking to amend the statutory definitions to better identify the children at risk of harm and prevent families from interacting with the child welfare system due to their financial situation.
'It does a simple thing, but the consequences are enormous,' said committee co-chair Sen. Henry Ingwersen (D-York) of LD 1406, which was backed unanimously by the committee members present Friday.
They did not endorse a similar bill, LD 891, because the language was duplicative but described as 'heavy' compared to the other bill.
Both bills sought out to clarify that a scenario rises to neglect if a child's needs are willfully withheld. The idea is supported by former foster parents, child welfare advocates and legal organizations; however, some preferred LD 891 because they felt the proposed changes went further to address the issue.
Maine's definition of neglect is 'easy to conflate with poverty'
Rep. Michele Meyer (D-Eliot), who sponsored LD 1406, said her bill was born out of advisory groups that included state agencies, child welfare advocates and other entities dedicated to keeping Maine children safe that looked into the state's mandated reporting laws and how they affect families. The language in her proposal is modeled after the language Kentucky used to update its definition.
Even if the claims are unsubstantiated, Meyer said it is still traumatic for families to be reported to child protective services. Additionally, having to weed through reports of parents who can't financially provide certain needs can mean less time for caseworkers to address situations where children face serious harm.
At the public hearing for these bills, Bobbi Johnson, the director of the Office of Child and Family Services, testified in support of LD 1406, saying it is part of a broader effort to support families in need rather than getting them tangled up in the system.
However, she said the child welfare agency is opposed to LD 891 because it inserts certain language that isn't currently defined in statute and would limit the agency's ability to intervene in certain accidental situations, even if they are connected to a larger concern about the child's care.
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