A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to recommend various changes to the state's child welfare system, as recommended by the joint legislative oversight committee on health and human services.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.(a)  The Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Social Services, shall implement the requirements of the federal Program Improvement Plan to bring our State into compliance with national standards for child welfare policy and practices. The Division shall report on the implementation and outcomes of the Program Improvement Plan to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Health and Human Services. The report shall be submitted semiannually on February 1 and August 1 of each year, with the first report submitted on August 1, 2016, and the final report on February 1, 2019.
SECTION 1.(b)  The Division of Social Services shall develop a statewide strategic plan for Child Protective Services that complements the required federal Program Improvement Plan. The statewide strategic plan shall, at a minimum, address the findings of the North Carolina Statewide Child Protective Services Evaluation, which was conducted as required by Section 12C.1(f) of S.L. 2014‑100, in the areas of county performance, caseload sizes, administrative structure, adequacy of funding, social worker turnover, and monitoring and oversight. The Division shall submit the plan to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Health and Human Services by December 1, 2016, for consideration by the 2017 General Assembly.
SECTION 2.(a)  The Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Social Services, shall continue toward completion of the child welfare component of the North Carolina Families Accessing Services Through Technology (NC FAST) system to (i) bring the State into compliance with the Statewide Information System systematic factor of the Child and Family Services Review (CFSR) and (ii) ensure that data quality meets federal standards and adequate information is collected and available to counties to assist in tracking children and outcomes across counties.
SECTION 2.(b)  The Division of Social Services shall report on the development, implementation, and outcomes of the child welfare component of the NC FAST system to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Health and Human Services quarterly beginning July 1, 2016, and ending with a final report on October 1, 2018. The report shall include, at a minimum, each of the following:
(1)	The current time line for development and implementation of the child welfare component to NC FAST.
(2)	Any adjustments and justifications for adjustments to the time line.
(3)	Progress on the development and implementation of the system.
(4)	Address any identified issues in developing or implementing the child welfare component to NC FAST and solutions to address those issues.
(5)	The level of county participation and involvement in each phase of the project.
(6)	Any budget and expenditure reports, including overall project budget and expenditures and current fiscal year budget and expenditures.
SECTION 3.  This act is effective when it becomes law.