Current law authorizes a court assigned to exercise jurisdiction under the
children's code (juvenile court) to impose certain dispositions with respect to a child
who has been found to be in need of protection or services. Those dispositions include

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placing the child under the supervision of an agency under conditions prescribed by
the juvenile court designed for the well-being of the child. Current law also
authorizes the juvenile court, in a proceeding in which a child has been found to be
in need of protection or services, to order the child's parent, guardian or legal
custodian to comply with any condition determined by the juvenile court to be
necessary for the child's welfare. In addition, under current law, at any time after
the filing of a petition alleging a child to be in need of protection or services and before
the entry of judgment, the juvenile court may, with the agreement of the child, if 12
years of age or over, the child's parent, guardian or legal custodian and the person
filing the petition, suspend the proceedings and place the child under supervision in
his or her own home or present placement under terms and conditions applicable to
the parent, guardian or legal custodian, and to the child, established by the juvenile
court (consent decree). Moreover, under current law, the juvenile court intake
worker (intake worker) may enter into an informal disposition requiring a child who
has been referred to the intake worker as in need of protection or services and the
child's parent, guardian or legal custodian to abide by such obligations as will tend
to ensure the child's rehabilitation, protection or care if the intake worker has
determined that neither the interests of the child nor of the public require the filing
of a petition, if the facts persuade the intake worker that the jurisdiction of the
juvenile court, if sought, would exist and if the child and the child's parent, guardian
or legal custodian consent.

This bill authorizes the juvenile court to order, as part of a dispositional order
or an extension or revision of a dispositional order (dispositional order), the parent,
guardian or legal custodian of a child who has been found to be in need of protection
or services because the child has been the victim of physical or sexual abuse, and the
child, to permit a designee of the agency primarily responsible for providing services
to the child under the order to inspect the child visually immediately upon the
request of the agency or designee. The bill also authorizes the juvenile court to
impose a similar order, as part of a consent decree, requiring the parent, guardian
or legal custodian of a child who is alleged to be in need of protection or services
because the child has been the victim of physical or sexual abuse, and the child, to
permit a designee of the agency supervising the child under the consent decree to
inspect the child visually immediately upon the request of the agency or designee.
In addition, the bill authorizes an intake worker to enter into an informal disposition
with the parent, guardian or legal custodian of a child who has been referred to the
intake worker as in need of protection or services because the child has been the
victim of physical or sexual abuse, and with the child, requiring the parent, guardian
or legal custodian and the child to permit a designee of the agency supervising the
child under the informal disposition to inspect the child visually immediately upon
the request of the agency or designee.

The bill also authorizes the juvenile court to order, as part of a dispositional
order, the parent, guardian or legal custodian of a child under 6 years of age who has
been found to be in need of protection or services because the child has been the
victim of physical abuse to permit to inspect the child visually immediately upon
request a volunteer appointed by or an employe of a court-appointed special

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advocate (CASA) program that is recognized by a county department of human
services or social services (county department), county board or, in a county having
a population of 500,000 or more, the department of health and family services
(DHFS) or a licensed child welfare agency under contract with DHFS to perform
advocacy services for a child who is the subject of a child in need of protection or
services proceeding. In addition, the bill authorizes the juvenile court to impose a
similar order, as part of a consent decree, requiring the parent, guardian or legal
custodian of a child under 6 years of age who is alleged to be in need of protection or
services because the child has been the victim of physical abuse, and the child, to
permit a volunteer appointed by or an employe of a CASA program to inspect the
child visually immediately upon the request of the volunteer or employe. Moreover,
the bill authorizes an intake worker to enter into an informal disposition with the
parent, guardian or legal custodian of a child under 6 years of age who has been
referred to the intake worker as in need of protection or services because the child
has been the victim of physical abuse, and with the child, requiring the parent,
guardian or legal custodian and the child to permit a volunteer appointed by or an
employe of a CASA program to inspect the child visually immediately upon the
request of the volunteer or employe.

Under the bill, a person who is refused permission to inspect a child visually in
violation of a dispositional order must, as soon as possible, report that refusal to the
agency primarily responsible for providing services to the child under the
dispositional order. Similarly, a person who is refused that permission in violation
of a consent decree or informal disposition must, as soon as possible, report the
refusal to the agency supervising the child under the consent decree or informal
disposition. The agency may then seek a juvenile court order for the immediate
removal of the child from his or her present custody or notify a law enforcement
officer who may take the child into custody on the grounds of that refusal. The bill
specifies that refusal to permit a visual inspection of a child in violation of a
dispositional order, consent decree or informal disposition constitutes a satisfactory
showing to judge that the welfare of the child demands that the child be immediately
removed from his or her present custody and constitutes a circumstance under which
a law enforcement officer may take a child into custody.

The bill also specifies that an agency or designee of an agency may request
permission to inspect a child visually, notwithstanding that a requirement to grant
that permission is not included in a dispositional order, consent decree or informal
disposition, if that inspection is necessary to provide appropriate protection or
services to the child.

In addition, the bill provides that a CASA volunteer or employe is immune from
civil liability for any act or omission done in good faith within the scope of his or her
duty and authority as a CASA volunteer or employe.

Finally, under current law, beginning on October 1, 1998, a child welfare
agency, group home, shelter care facility, day care center or day care provider (entity)
may not hire or contract with a person who will be under the entity's control and who
is expected to have access to a child who receives services from the entity (client) if,
the entity knows or should have known that the person has been convicted of, or has

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pending against him or her a charge for, a serious crime, as defined by DHFS by rule,
that is substantially related to the care of a client; that a unit of government or a state
agency has made a finding that the person has abused or neglected a client or
misappropriated the property of a client; that a determination has been made under
the child abuse reporting law that the person has abused or neglected a child; or that,
in the case of a position for which the person must be credentialed by the department
of regulation and licensing (DORL), the person's credential is not current or is limited
so as to restrict the person from providing adequate care to a client. Current law,
however, permits a person who otherwise may not be hired or contracted with by an
entity to demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that he or she has been
rehabilitated. Under current law, before an entity may hire or contract with a person
who will be under the entity's control and who is expected to have access to the
entity's clients, and every 4 years, the entity must obtain a criminal history search
of the person, information that is contained in the client abuse registry maintained
by DHFS regarding any findings against the person, information maintained by
DORL regarding the person's credentials, if the person must be credentialed by
DORL, information maintained by DHFS regarding any substantiated reports of
child abuse or neglect against the person and information regarding any previous
denials to the person of a license, continuation of a license, certification, employment,
a contract with or permission to reside at an entity for a reason specified under
current law (criminal history and child abuse record search).

This bill extends current law that requires a criminal history and child abuse
record search and that prohibits certain persons from being hired, or contracted
with, by an entity to CASA programs. Under the bill, the county department, county
board, DHFS or licensed child welfare agency that recognizes a CASA program is
responsible for conducting, or for appointing an organization to conduct, criminal
history and child abuse record searches for all employes and contractors of the CASA
program who are under the control of the CASA program and who have access to the
clients of the CASA program and the county department, county board, DHFS, child
welfare agency, organization or CASA program is responsible for conducting those
searches for all volunteers of the CASA program who are under the control of the
CASA program and who have access to the clients of the CASA program.