legislation

California lawmakers will vote on a bill this week making it harder to file child sexual abuse lawsuits against schools, juvenile facilities and foster care agencies that are already buckling under the weight of current and threatened legal action.

A NY bill would bring "hidden foster care" arrangements into the light, a first step toward understanding the extent of the practice.

Brittany Patterson didn’t set out to inspire change in Georgia’s laws. She wanted to give her kids the same freedoms she enjoyed growing up.

Georgia is now allowing adoptees over the age of 18 who were born in the state to secure copies of their original birth certificates.

Gov. Tim Walz has signed a bill removing barriers for the state’s Ombudsperson for American Indian Families in child welfare cases. 

Colorado lawmakers want to strengthen laws requiring special protections for Indigenous children and families in child welfare cases.

Advocates seeking to codify the rights of foster youth in Minnesota are making a last-minute push to have the bill considered by lawmakers.

Lawmakers are fighting for millions of dollars to support families across the state at risk of losing access to affordable child care. 

Two California bills aim to change how suspected child neglect is reported, and involve community-based organizations in lieu of CPS agencies.