By Connie Reguli

So this information just came in on the ABA parent representation listserve.

    Dear Parent Advocates:

    I’m very excited to report to you that Rep. Gwen Moore, a  life-long champion of family-centered child welfare reforms, has just introduced H.R. 7976 in Congress.  This bill’s central focus is on suspending the ASFA    timeline requiring states to petition for termination of parental rights if a child has been in care for 15 of the most recent 22 months.

    Rep. Moore has issued the attached statement in support of the bill.  Here  is the entry on Congress.Gov:

https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/7976/tex

    <https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/7976/text>t.

The text of the bill is attached to this email but we expect the actual bill     text with the bill number to be available at this link soon.   The release that Rep. Moore’s office just issued is attached below this email.

    The following is directed to this listserve specifically. The bill would, if passed, make it clear that states do not have to file petitions for termination of parental rights during times of public health crisis.  It does so in two ways: (1) by directly suspending the requirement of filing a petition for termination of parental rights during any public health crisis that has been declared federally or in the state, and (2) expanding the list of “compelling reasons” not to petition for termination to include times of “public health crisis.” The bill also proposes a one-year time frame after public health emergencies are no longer in effect so that parents can resume services and in effect have some opportunity to make up for the terrible effects of the health crisis that set them back.    The bill also clarifies that reasonable efforts must continue and defines reasonable efforts more specifically by a variety of alternative methods for providing services during times of public health crisis.

    This bill is the result of very hard work by a number of members of this     listserve and others who have joined together to make draft proposals and    seek out Congressional support. Members of the strategic planning group for this effort include a number of National Alliance for Parent Representation Steering Committee members. The bill has strong bipartisan allies including leadership by A Texas Public Policy Foundation and ParentalRights.org  and the Shriver Center who have worked together to bring this issue to the attention of lawmakers.  The states that our working group members represent include the following (in the order of the names listed above), Illinois, New York, New Jersey, California. Pennsylvania, Oregon, Texas, and Virginia.

  Currently, our group is looking for more allies in every state who can help connect us to other groups that may support this bill and identify parents who have compelling stories of why they would need more than 15 months to reunite with their families, especially during times of public help crisis.

     We especially are looking for people who help in states where we don’t yet have active representation in our group. We have had a few folks volunteer to be in our new state network from additional states, but if you are from a state that isn’t listed here and have any political connections or    connections to groups that you think would be in support of the bill, please contact me and I will let you know of next steps for this network of advocates.

    We also view this bill as providing a means of educating members of     Congress as to the real-life harm to children and families of too-speedy    termination especially in times o COVID. This will help Congressmembers    gain a better picture than the media often presents about what the    timelines actually mean.  The bill is consistent with the guidance we have    seen from the Children’s Bureau but it goes further by actually providing    in law the clarity that termination of parental rights is not required states will not forfeit federal dollars if they do not petition for TPR.

    Thank you  Diane Redleaf Co-chair, United Family Advocates Principal, Family Defense Consulting

    Member, Steering Committee, National Alliance for Parent Representation Congresswoman Gwen Moore Introduces the Suspend the Timeline Not Parental Rights During a Public Health Crisis Act*

    Today, Congresswoman Moore introduced H.R. 7976, legislation to pause the federal timeframe for states to file a petition to terminate parental    rights for a child and guarantee that states do not receive federal funding    cuts due to this change in policy. In response, she released the following    statement:

    “COVID-19 has created great uncertainty for many, causing millions to face housing, health, food, and job insecurity. It has also hindered parents    from being able to utilize the services now unavailable in the COVID    closedown that would normally help them reunify with their children. This unprecedented crisis should not lead to permanent damage to families    because of a federal timeline created before this pandemic.”

    This bill already has bipartisan backing from numerous advocacy groups across the aisle, who note the importance of preserving children’s family   ties:

    “Parents who were diligently working services required to provide a safe,  stable home for their children suddenly, and through no fault of their own, found themselves unable to access these services due to COVID-19    pandemic-related lockdowns,” said *Andrew C. Brown, Distinguished Senior  Fellow of Child and Family Policy with the Texas Public Policy Foundation*.

    “But the clock continues to run on arbitrary case timelines governing    termination of parental rights, robbing them of precious time. A temporary  suspension of termination timelines gives these parents a fair opportunity    to restore their families and honors their decision to take personal    responsibility by doing the hard work necessary to achieve reunification.”

    “Children in foster care have a heightened need and clear right to visit    their parents. At the start of the pandemic, many child welfare agencies    suspended in-person family time for children and their parents and    siblings. Before the pandemic, many of these children would have been returned to their  families, but agencies have been unable to provide the services needed to facilitate reunification. We should not allow this pandemic to lead to   unnecessary permanent termination of parent-child relationships,” *Jey Rajaraman, Chief Counsel, Family Representation Project, Legal Services of New Jersey*.

    “We should not allow the unprecedented challenges of this public health  situation to take away a family’s chance to reunite. Children deserve the    right to be with their families whenever safely possible,” *Chris Gottlieb,    Co-Director, NYU School of Law, Family Defense Clinic*.

    *Rep. Gwen Moore has long been a leader on child welfare reform.  She looks forward to working with her colleagues from both parties to ensure these families are given the opportunity they deserve to safely reunify. COVID has led to an immense amount of uncertainty in the lives of families  struggling with poverty.  This bill prevents a temporary, though severe,    health crisis from causing irrevocable separation of children from their    parents and a permanent loss of their vital family times who have lost the    opportunities every family deserves.*

    Read more information about the legislation *here    <https://gwenmoore.house.gov/uploadedfiles/background_information_on_the_suspend_the_timeline_not_parental_rights_during_a_public_health_crisis_act_.pdf>.*