Latest news with #LD1893
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Maine lawmakers push decision on proposal to use New Hampshire child advocate model to next year
After renewed scrutiny in recent years, there have been multiple attempts to restructure Maine's child welfare system. (Getty Images) Maine lawmakers postponed action on reforming the state's troubled child welfare system, this time on a proposal modeled after New Hampshire's independent child advocate — a program some see as a blueprint to provide oversight and address systemic issues. There have been many proposals to reform the system in recent years, but some feel that looking to New Hampshire for its Office of the Child Advocate could offer the most promising solution. Assistant House Majority Leader Lori Gramlich (D-Old Orchard Beach) introduced LD 1893 in early May. The bill would transfer Maine's existing child welfare ombudsman into a new, independent agency with expanding responsibilities to advocate for Maine children. Although the Legislature adjourned in late June, the Health and Human Services Committee decided to hold onto the bill until next session, which is slated to begin in January. The Department of Health and Human Services, which houses the state's child welfare agency the Office of Child and Family Services, said at the public hearing that it would also like more time to consider the proposal because of the 'extensive reach' it could have throughout state government. The proposed Office of Child Advocate would have the authority to receive complaints, access information, investigate, make public reports, and advise the executive and legislative branches on how best to provide services to the state's youth beyond just child welfare. This could extend to the Departments of Education, Corrections, or any other agency providing services to or arranging services on behalf of a child. Moira O'Neill, who helped craft the model in New Hampshire and served as its first child advocate before stepping down in 2021, told Maine Morning Star that the language in LD 1893 is far better compared to the first iteration of New Hampshire's law. She also pointed out that the legislation proposes the essential components of ombudsman work: independence, impartiality, access to information, and confidentiality. As O'Neill sees it, children and their interests don't have a seat at the table under Maine's current child welfare infrastructure. She pointed out that there are children in Maine who are hungry, abused, neglected, and will be saddled with long-term effects to their health, employment and relationships. 'They need someone who is just for them — not a part time cabinet, not a caring governor, not a legislative committee — but one person whose only job is to hear children, know their best interest, and speak on their behalf,' she said. 'It must be an independent someone who is beholden only to the children and the statute. Though the department spoke neither for nor against LD 1893, it said it is interested in exploring the model as a way to strengthen oversight. It also acknowledged that there are already multiple avenues for oversight including federal regulations, legislative oversight and citizen advisory panels. After renewed scrutiny in recent years, there have been multiple attempts to restructure the state's child welfare system. This has included multiple failed legislative attempts, including just last year, to separate the OCFS from DHHS. Last year, OCFS frontline workers came forward with accounts of onerous workloads that culminated in December with a letter of no confidence in the agency's leadership. The bill language presents a shift from policing to promoting better practices, including for state agencies, O'Neill explained. 'You can't prosecute and fire your way through a system weakness,' she said. 'When systems are weak due to lack of funding, work force, training, effective policy, etc., the best solution generally comes from collaborative efforts that enhance support for systems and repairs weaknesses.' Melissa Hackett, coordinator of the Maine Child Welfare Action Network, said she prefers the proposed Office of Child Advocate model because it does not solely focus on the child welfare system. 'This office taking that bigger picture view felt more promising to me than some of the other proposals that have really, in my opinion … felt reactionary,' Hackett said. She appreciates that the Office of Child Advocate would build upon the oversight provided by the existing child welfare ombudsman office, while having the ability to explore the root causes that could lead a family to being involved with the system. That could create what Hackett described as a 'both-and' approach to provide oversight and address the systemic factors like substance use disorder or mental health that can bring a family in contact with the child welfare system. But she said that will require public and political will to understand what is really happening with children and families. Hackett said the proposed child advocate would be able 'to really look up from a high level down at what's happening on the ground to see these trends and to not be singularly focused on one incident or case but to be able to look across those trends to say, 'This is what we need to really address and this is how we address it to stem the flow of these kids coming into these systems.'' The Office of Child Advocate could also provide a solution for the ways confidentiality complicates child welfare oversight. In August 2022, the Legislature's Government Oversight Committee asked DHHS to view records relating to the 2021 deaths of four children. The department denied the committee access, citing confidentiality laws. After that denial, the committee filed an action in the Kennebec County Superior Court urging the department to comply with its subpoena. The court denied the committee's request, ruling that it did not have the authority to access the confidential records. The committee appealed the decision to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, which held a hearing in December 2023 before ruling in line with the lower court decision. Because of that decision from the state's highest court, Sen. Craig Hickman (D-Kennebec) put in a bill last session seeking to allow the committee to access 'privileged and confidential' records while keeping them exempt from public disclosure. That proposal was also carried over by the Judiciary Committee to be worked on further next session. O'Neill said the independent child advocate role outlined in LD 1893 is a better solution than opening up legislator access to that sort of confidential information. That person wouldn't be influenced by partisan priorities and can serve as a 'resource for children and families navigating seemingly unfriendly systems,' she added. This story was originally published by Maine Morning Star, which like the New Hampshire Bulletin is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bipartisan call to model child welfare oversight in Maine after New Hampshire
The failings of the Office of Child and Family Services, a division of the Maine Department of Health and Human Services, was a key focus of the Legislature last session. (Photo by Getty Images) A bipartisan group of lawmakers wants to change oversight of child welfare in Maine to mirror the approach taken by its neighboring state. Assistant House Majority Leader Lori Gramlich (D-Old Orchard Beach) said she modeled her bill after the New Hampshire Office of the Child Advocate. LD 1893, which has two Republican and seven Democrat cosponsors, would transfer Maine's existing child welfare ombudsman into a new, independent agency with expanding responsibilities to advocate for Maine children. The proposed Office of Child Advocate would have the authority to receive complaints, access information, investigate, make public reports and advise the executive and legislative branches on how best to provide services to the state's youth. 'This bill builds a foundation for meaningful oversight and reform while ensuring children's voices and interests remain at the forefront,' Gramlich told the Legislature's Health and Human Services Committee during a public hearing Friday morning. After renewed scrutiny in recent years, there have been multiple proposals from lawmakers and agency leadership to improve the state's embattled child welfare system. Last year, frontline workers came forward with accounts of onerous workloads that culminated in December with a letter of no confidence in the agency's leadership. The proposed restructuring comes after the committee backed a proposal to update the state's definition of child abuse and neglect that legal experts have argued is easy to conflate with poverty. Christine Alberi, the state's current child welfare ombudsman, supports the bill to transition her position into an Office of Child Advocate because it preserves the work her office is already doing while adding 'necessary functions.' For example, the new office would allow for juvenile justice investigations and access to facilities such as Long Creek Youth Development Center, the South Portland-based youth correctional facility. However, Alberi said that adequate funding would be crucial to the office's success. During the hearing, she said it wasn't clear where those resources would come from, since the ombudsman office has struggled with a lack of funding for staff since 2012. The current child welfare ombudsman program in Maine operates as a nonprofit that assists and investigates complaints against how child protective services cases are handled. It submits an annual report that includes an analysis of case specific reviews and other details about its interaction with the Office of Child and Family Services. Having served as New Hampshire's first child advocate, Moira O'Neill said she believes Maine could have avoided a lawsuit with the U.S. Department of Justice over the state's children's behavioral health services had there been a proactive resource checking on the children in the care of the Department of Corrections. The suit was settled last November. O'Neill, who helped craft the model in New Hampshire before stepping down in 2021, supported Maine adopting that structure. She said Maine's current ombudsman office leaves many children, especially those in the juvenile justice system, without an ally. Republican lawmakers in New Hampshire have expressed interest in cutting the Office of Child Advocate when looking for ways to trim the state budget. Gramlich said the Office of the Attorney General suggested modest amendments to the bill that she is happy to work with the committee to incorporate. The Department of Health and Human Services, which houses the state's child welfare agency, spoke neither for nor against the bill. Director of Government Relations Abby Stivers said the department would like more time to review the proposal, but cautioned that the new framework being proposed likely requires more consideration than the department can give it in the remaining time for this legislative session. Stivers said the authority granted to the child advocate in this legislation could be wide reaching and questioned whether it is necessary given the multiple forms of oversight that already exist for child welfare services. The agency is subject to federal oversight, multiple citizen review panels and was subject to extensive investigative work from the Legislature's Government Oversight Committee last session. However, Sen. Joe Baldacci (D-Penobscot) reintroduced a bill he brought forth last session to create an Office of the Inspector General of Child Protection. 'The problems with the Maine Department of Health and Human Services are going to require far more than cosmetic surgery being suggested by some,' he told the committee when introducing LD 770. An inspector general at the state level would send a 'clear and articulate message' that the accountability and transparency of Maine's child welfare system needs to be substantially changed, Baldacci said. He referenced a 2024 report from the federal watchdog that indicated Maine struggled to comply with best practices in the vast majority of abuse and neglect cases. Under this proposal, the inspector general would be appointed by the governor to serve a five year term, with the potential for reappointment. It would also take on matters related to juvenile justice and have subpoena powers. No one from the public testified on the bill. Bobbi Johnson, director of the Office of Child and Family Services, provided written testimony opposing the legislation. She wrote that it isn't clear what benefit the role would offer to the 'robust and comprehensive oversight of child welfare that already exists.' The proposal last session ultimately died after it was not endorsed by the Health and Human Services Committee. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
