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ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Seventh Legislature, First Regular Session
DCS; hearings; complete disclosure requirements
Purpose
Requires a petition to terminate parental rights or to determine dependency of a child, to include a notarized affidavit stating that there has been full disclosure and an exchange of all information in the custody of the Department of Child Safety (DCS) and evidence relating to the matter. Outlines affidavit requirements and modifies the procedures the court must follow when finding the allegations in a dependency petition are true.
Background
Any person or agency that has a legitimate interest in the welfare of a
child, including a relative, foster parent, physician, DCS or a private
licensed welfare agency may file a petition to terminate the parent-child
relationship. Statute outlines grounds that serve as sufficient evidence to
justify the termination of the parent-child relationship including, but not
limited to evidence that the parent: 1) has abandoned the child; 2) has
neglected or willfully abused the child; 3) is unable to discharge parental
responsibilities due to mental illness, mental deficiency or a history of
chronic abuse of dangerous drugs, controlled substances or alcohol; 4) has had
parental rights to another child terminated within the preceding two years for
the same cause and is unable to discharge parental responsibilities for the
same cause; and 5) is unknown and continues to be unknown following three
months of diligent efforts to identify and locate the parent (A.R.S.
§ 8-533).
DCS or any interested party may file a petition to commence dependency proceedings in the juvenile court, except that an interested party may not file a dependency petition for a child who has been adjudicated delinquent as prescribed. A dependency petition must be verified and contain: 1) the name, age and address of the parents or guardian and the child on whose behalf the petition is brought; 2) a concise statement of the facts to support that the child is dependent; 3) the date and time that the child was taken into temporary custody, if applicable; 4) whether DCS believes that an aggravating circumstance exists; and 5) a statement as to whether the child is subject to the federal Indian Child Welfare Act. If the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence at the dependency adjudication hearing that the allegations in the dependency petition are true, the court must find that it has jurisdiction over the subject matter and the person before the court, the factual basis for the dependency and that the child is dependent. The court must then conduct a disposition hearing (A.R.S. §§ 8-841 and 8-844).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1. Requires a petition to terminate parental rights or to determine dependency of a child to include a notarized affidavit from the petitioner stating that there has been full disclosure and an exchange of all information in the custody of DCS and any other evidence relating to the matter.
2. Requires the notarized affidavit to include:
a) a description of the information in the custody of DCS and any other evidence disclosed;
b) the date of disclosure of each piece of information in the custody of DCS and any other evidence; and
c) the method used for delivering the disclosed information.
3. Modifies the procedures the court must follow, if it finds at the dependency adjudication hearing that the allegations are true, to include ordering DCS to file a report within six months after the dependency adjudication hearing that:
a) indicates whether or not the child continues to be a dependent child based on the allegations and information contained in the dependency petition or if the allegations and information contained in the petition have changed; and
b) contains documentation that evidences a change in the child's dependency status or a change in the allegations of information contained in the dependency petition.
4. Makes technical and conforming changes.
5. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
House Action
JUD 2/19/25 DP 6-0-3-0
3rd Read 3/4/25 32-26-2
Prepared by Senate Research
March 17, 2025
ZD/KS/ci