January 23, 2003, Introduced by Senators CLARK-COLEMAN, JACOBS, BRATER and CHERRY
and referred to the Committee on Judiciary.
A bill to amend 1939 PA 280, entitled
"The social welfare act,"
by amending sections 18c, 55, and 115b (MCL 400.18c, 400.55, and
400.115b), sections 55 and 115b as amended by 1998 PA 516, and by
adding section 18b.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
1 Sec. 18b. (1) The department shall subsidize and support
2 children in relative care with both financial assistance and the
3 provision of services in at least the same degree as the
4 assistance and services provided for children in foster care.
5 (2) As used in this act, "relative care" means the care of a
6 child by an adult who is the child's grandparent, brother,
7 sister, stepsister, stepbrother, uncle, or aunt by marriage,
8 blood, or adoption, regardless of the manner in which the child
9 came to be under the care of the relative, including, but not
1 limited to, the following:
2 (a) A parent's voluntary placement of the child with the
3 relative.
4 (b) The placement of the child with the relative by the
5 court, the department, or a child placing agency under this act,
6 the probate code of 1939, 1939 PA 288, MCL 710.21 to 712A.32, or
7 another law of this state.
8 (c) The child's continued residence with the relative as
9 prescribed in section 11a of chapter XIIA of the probate code of
10 1939, 1939 PA 288, MCL 712A.11a.
11 Sec. 18c. Foster care and relative care financed by a
12 county department of
social welfare family independence agency
13 shall be provided by the use of licensed child caring
14 institutions or placement agencies, in accordance with the needs
15 of the child, or if licensed child caring institutions or
16 placement agencies are not available, or there is a religious
17 conflict, foster care or relative care shall be provided under
18 the direct supervision of
the county department. , which care
19 the care provided under this section shall meet the following
20 standards of care and service:
21 (a) (1) Personnel
engaged in placement and supervision of
22 children in foster care shall have qualifying training and
23 experience.
24 (b) (2) Adequate
records shall be maintained with
25 information on the
physical and mental health of the child, his
26 the child's emotional stability and family background, together
27 with the reasons for the child's placement away from home to aid
1 in planning for any a
child placed by the department, toward
2 the end that the child may be reunited with his or her family as
3 soon as it appears possible.
4 (c) (3) Family
foster homes used by the department shall be
5 selected with consideration of the religious, racial, and
6 cultural background of the child to be placed and children thus
7 placed shall be visited in these homes at least once a month.
8 Sec. 55. The county department shall administer a public
9 welfare program , as
follows to do all of the following:
10 (a) To grant Grant
general assistance, including medical
11 care as defined in this section and care in the county medical
12 care facility, but not including hospitalization and infirmary
13 care except for care in the county medical care facility or a
14 county infirmary existing
on January 1, 1981, to any a person
15 domiciled in the county who has a legal settlement in this
16 state. General assistance may also be granted to a person who
17 has a legal settlement in this state but no domicile in the
18 county and a recoupment
may be made when appropriate in the
19 manner as provided in cases of emergency
hospitalization under
20 this act. In a temporary emergency, general assistance may be
21 given to indigents without a settlement in this state as the
22 county department considers necessary, including, if other funds
23 are not available for the purpose, all necessary expenses in
24 transporting an indigent to his or her domicile in this state, or
25 in another state or
nation, when if information reasonably
26 tends to show that the person has a home available in his or her
27 place of domicile in this state or a legal residence in another
1 state or nation. A legal settlement in this state is acquired by
2 an emancipated person who has lived continuously in this state
3 for 1 year with the intent to make it his or her home and who,
4 during the 1-year period has not received public assistance,
5 other than assistance received during and as a direct result of a
6 civil defense emergency, or support from relatives. Time spent
7 in a public institution shall
not be is not counted in
8 determining settlement.
A legal settlement shall be is lost by
9 remaining away from this state for an uninterrupted period of 1
10 year except that absence from this state for labor or other
11 special or temporary
purpose shall does not occasion cause
12 loss of settlement.
13 (b) To administer
Administer categorical assistance
14 including medical care.
15 (c) To supervise Supervise
and be responsible for the
16 operation of the county infirmary and county medical care
17 facility. In a county having a population of 1,000,000 or more
18 which that maintains a county infirmary or county
hospital or a
19 joint infirmary and
hospital providing for mental mentally ill
20 patients, the institution
and the admissions admission to the
21 institution shall be are
subject to the control of a board to
22 be known as the board of county institutions. The board of
23 county institutions shall consist of 5 members appointed by the
24 county board of commissioners, except that in a county having a
25 board of county auditors, 3 members of the board of county
26 institutions shall be appointed by the county board of
27 commissioners and 2 members shall be appointed by the board of
1 county auditors. Each member of the board of county institutions
2 shall hold office for a term and receive compensation as the
3 county board of commissioners provides by ordinance. In relation
4 to the administration of
the institutions the board shall have
5 and succeed to of county institutions has all powers and
duties
6 formerly vested by law, general, local or special, in the
7 superintendents of the poor in the county and the board of county
8 institutions as constituted on April 13, 1943. The board of
9 county institutions of the county may also maintain outpatient
10 facilities for the treatment of needy persons suffering from
11 mental disorders illness.
The board shall also have the same
12 powers as are given to the county board in section 78.
13 (d) To furnish Furnish
in all cases, insofar as
14 practicable, care and
treatment which that will tend to restore
15 needy persons to a condition of financial and social
16 independence.
17 (e) To require Require
that each applicant shall furnish
18 proof satisfactory to the county board that the applicant is
19 entitled to the aid, assistance, or benefit sought.
20 (f) To
investigate Investigate, in respect to each
21 application for any a
form of public aid or assistance, the
22 circumstances of the applicant, both at the time of application
23 and periodically during the receipt of aid or assistance.
24 (g) To maintain Maintain
adequate social and financial
25 records pertaining to
each recipient of aid or assistance and so
26 far as is practicable engage in the prevention
of social
27 disabilities.
1 (h) Except as
otherwise provided in this subdivision, to
2 investigate, when requested by the probate court or the family
3 division of circuit court, matters pertaining to dependent,
4 neglected, and delinquent children and wayward minors under the
5 court's jurisdiction, to provide supervision and foster care or
6 relative care as provided
by court order, and to furnish the
7 court, on request, investigational service in respect to the
8 hospitalization of children under the program of services for
9 crippled children established under part 58 of the public health
10 code, 1978 PA 368, MCL 333.5801 to 333.5879, which services
11 shall include the follow-up investigation and
continuing
12 observations. If the county is a county juvenile agency as
13 defined in section 2 of the county juvenile agency act, 1998
14 PA 518, MCL 45.622, the county department's obligations under
15 this subdivision are limited to public wards within the county's
16 jurisdiction under the youth rehabilitation services act, 1974
17 PA 150, MCL 803.301 to 803.309, and county juvenile agency
18 services as defined in section 117a.
19 (i) To assist Assist
other departments, agencies, and
20 institutions of the
federal, state, and county governments, when
21 so if requested, in performing services in
conformity with the
22 purposes of this act.
23 (j) To assist Assist
in the development of sound programs
24 and standards of child welfare, and promote programs and policies
25 looking toward the
prevention of to prevent dependency,
26 neglect, and delinquency and other conditions affecting adversely
27 the welfare of families and children.
1 (k) To create Create
within the county department a
2 division of medical care. The county board may appoint a
3 properly qualified and licensed doctor of medicine as the head of
4 the division and an advisory committee. The advisory committee
5 shall consist of 1 doctor of medicine, nominated by the county
6 medical society; 1 dentist, nominated by the district dental
7 society; and 1 pharmacist, nominated by the district
8 pharmaceutical association, to assist in formulating policies of
9 medical care and auditing and reviewing bills. "Medical care" as
10 used in this act means medical care rendered under the
11 supervision of a licensed
physician in an organized out-patient
12 outpatient department of a hospital licensed by the department of
13 public community health under article 17 of the
public health
14 code, 1978 PA 368, MCL 333.20101 to 333.22260, or home and office
15 attendance by a physician, osteopathic physician and surgeon, or
16 podiatrist licensed under article 15 of the public health code,
17 1978 PA 368, MCL
333.16101 to 333.18838; and when if prescribed
18 by the physician, osteopathic physician and surgeon, or
19 podiatrist, diagnostic services
service requiring the use of
20 equipment not available
in his or her offices office, if the
21 services do service does not require overnight care,
dental
22 service, optometric service, bedside nursing service in the home,
23 or pharmaceutical service. The private physician-patient
24 relationship shall be maintained. The normal relationships
25 between the recipients of dental, optometric, nursing, and
26 pharmaceutical services, and the services furnished by a
27 physician, osteopathic
physician and surgeon, podiatrist, or a
1 chiropractor licensed under article 15 of the public health code,
2 1978 PA 368, MCL 333.16101 to 333.18838, and the persons
3 furnishing these services shall be maintained. This section
4 shall does not affect the office of a city physician
or city
5 pharmacist established under a city charter, a county health
6 officer, or the medical superintendent of a county hospital.
7 This section shall
permit permits the use of a case management
8 system, a patient care management system, or other alternative
9 system for providing medical care.
10 (l) To cause Cause to be suitably buried
the body of a
11 deceased indigent person
who has a domicile in the county, when
12 if requested by the person's relative or friend, or of a
13 stranger, when if
requested by a public official following an
14 inquest.
15 (m) To administer
Administer additional welfare functions
16 as are vested in the department, including hospitalization.
17 (n) To act Act
as an agent for the state department in
18 matters requested by the state department under the rules of the
19 state department.
20 (o) To provide
temporary general assistance for each family
21 found ineligible for
aid to dependent children assistance by
22 reason of unsuitable
family home as provided in section 56.
23 Sec. 115b. (1) The department shall assume responsibility
24 for all children committed to it by the juvenile division of the
25 probate court, the family division of circuit court, or the court
26 of general criminal jurisdiction under the youth rehabilitation
27 services act, 1974 PA 150, MCL 803.301 to 803.309, and 1935 PA
1 220, MCL 400.201 to 400.214. The department may provide
2 institutional care, supervision in the community, boarding care,
3 halfway house care, relative care, and other children and youth
4 services and programs necessary to meet the needs of those
5 children or may obtain appropriate services from other state
6 agencies, local public agencies, or private agencies, subject to
7 section 115o. If the program of another state agency is
8 considered to best serve the needs of the child, the other state
9 agency shall give priority to the child.
10 (2) The department shall study and act upon a request for
11 service as to, or a report received of, neglect, exploitation,
12 abuse, cruelty, or abandonment of a child by a parent, guardian,
13 custodian, or person serving in loco parentis, or a report
14 concerning a child in need of protection. On the basis of the
15 findings of the study, the department shall assure, if necessary,
16 the provision of appropriate social services to the child,
17 parent, guardian, custodian, or person serving in loco parentis,
18 to reinforce and supplement the parental capabilities, so that
19 the behavior or situation causing the problem is corrected or the
20 child is otherwise protected. In assuring the provision of
21 services and providing the services, the department shall
22 encourage participation by other existing governmental units or
23 licensed agencies and may contract with those agencies for the
24 purchase of any service within the scope of this subsection. The
25 department shall initiate action in an appropriate court if the
26 conduct of a parent, guardian, or custodian requires. The
27 department shall promulgate rules necessary for implementing the
1 services authorized in this subsection. The rules shall include
2 provision for local citizen participation in the program to
3 assure local understanding, coordination, and cooperative action
4 with other community resources. In the provision of services,
5 there shall be maximum utilization of other public, private, and
6 voluntary resources available within a community.
7 (3) When If
an agency or organization proposes to place for
8 adoption, with a person domiciled in this state, a child who is a
9 citizen of or resides in, a country other than the United States
10 or Canada, the department shall conduct, within 180 days after
11 receipt of the request from the agency or organization, the
12 investigation prescribed by section 46 of chapter X of the
13 probate code of 1939, 1939 PA 288, MCL 710.46. In a county in
14 which the department determines it to be more feasible both
15 geographically and economically, the department may purchase the
16 adoption services up to the actual cost of providing those
17 services. The department shall charge parent fees prescribed by
18 the legislature.
19 (4) The office shall be responsible for the development,
20 interpretation, and dissemination of policy regarding
21 departmental investigations requested or ordered by the probate
22 court under section 55(h) and the provision of foster care or
23 relative care services authorized by this act. Foster care and
24 relative care services shall include foster care of state wards,
25 aid to dependent children foster care, foster care of wards of
26 the family division of circuit court placed under the care and
27 supervision of the department by order of the court, and
1 voluntary parental placement of children in foster care or
2 relative care.
3 Enacting section 1. This amendatory act does not take
4 effect unless Senate Bill No. _____ or House Bill No. _____
5 (request no. 00761'03) of the 92nd Legislature is enacted into
6 law.