Sen. Barbara Favola

Makes numerous changes to the laws governing the provision of foster care services in the Commonwealth. Among other things, the bill (i) allows the Commissioner of Social Services to develop and implement a corrective action plan for or assume temporary control over the foster care services of a local board of social services upon determining that the local board (a) has failed to provide foster care services or make placement and removal decisions in accordance with applicable laws or regulations or (b) has taken any action that poses a substantial risk to the health, safety, or well-being of any child under its supervision and control; (ii) requires the Commissioner to create within the State Department of Social Services (the Department) a foster care health and safety director position; (iii) directs the Commissioner to establish and maintain a confidential hotline to receive reports and complaints from foster parents and other persons regarding violations of laws or regulations applicable to foster care and any other matters related to the health, safety, or well-being of children in foster care; (iv) directs the Department to develop and implement a more reliable, structured, and comprehensive case review and quality improvement process to monitor and improve foster care services provided by local boards and departments of social services; and (v) requires the Department to establish and update annually a caseload standard that limits the number of foster care cases that may be assigned to each foster care caseworker. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act.

Provides that it is the legislative intent that public school buildings and facilities be designed, constructed, maintained, and operated to generate more electricity than consumed, and allows local school boards to enter into leases with private developers to achieve that goal. The bill also provides that private developers that contract with local school boards to modernize public school buildings and facilities may receive financing from the Virginia Small Business Financing Authority.

Directs local departments of social services to notify the appropriate community services board as soon as it is known that a child in the foster care system has a developmental disability so that the community services board may screen the child for placement on the statewide developmental disability waiver waiting list.

Provides that a local board of social services or child welfare agency required to file a petition for a permanency planning hearing may inform the birth parents and shall inform the adoptive parents that they may enter into enter into a post-adoption contact and communication agreement. The bill further provides that such local board of social services or child welfare agency shall inform the child if he is 14 years of age or older that he may consent to such an agreement. This bill is identical to