North Carolina § 7B-100 - Purpose.

§ 7B-100. Purpose.

This Subchapter shall be interpreted and construed so as to implement the following purposes and policies: To provide procedures for the hearing of juvenile cases that assure fairness and equity and that protect the constitutional rights of juveniles and parents; To develop a disposition in each juvenile case that reflects consideration of the facts, the needs and limitations of the juvenile, and the strengths and weaknesses of the family. To provide for services for the protection of juveniles by means that respect both the right to family autonomy and the juveniles' needs for safety, continuity, and permanence; and To provide standards for the removal, when necessary, of juveniles from their homes and for the return of juveniles to their homes consistent with preventing the unnecessary or inappropriate separation of juveniles from their parents. To provide standards, consistent with the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997, P.L. 105-89, for ensuring that the best interests of the juvenile are of paramount consideration by the court and that when it is not in the juvenile's best interest to be returned home, the juvenile will be placed in a safe, permanent home within a reasonable amount of time. History (1979, c. 815, s. 1; 1987 (Reg. Sess., 1988), c. 1090, s. 1; 1998-202, s. 6; 1999-456, s. 60; 2003-140, s. 5.) Cross References. - As to legislation regarding pilot programs for holding family court within district court districts, see the editor's note under G.S. 7A-244 . As to legislation regarding a study of programs for screening for and identification of delinquency risk factors, see the editor's note under G.S. 7B-1500. As to legislation regarding a study by the Office of Juvenile Justice (now the Division of Juvenile Justice) in cooperation with the Department of Public Instruction to study ways to coordinate case management, provide services to juveniles in need of treatment, and provide public protection, see the editor's note under G.S. 7B-1500. As to a study by the Office of Juvenile Justice (now the Division of Juvenile Justice) of blended sentencing and direct filing in certain juvenile cases, see the notes to G.S. 7B-2500. As to legislation regarding development of a cost-effective plan to establish statewide community-based dispositional alternatives for juveniles adjudicated delinquent, see the editor's note under G.S. 7B-2506. As to legislation regarding a phased-in 10-county pilot On Track program as an additional probation option for certain juvenile delinquents, see the editor's note under G.S. 7B-2508. As to legislation regarding pilot Guard Response Alternative Sentencing Programs as an additional probation option for certain first-time juvenile delinquents, see the editor's note under G.S. 7B-2508. School-Based Child and Family Team Initiative. - Session Laws 2011-145, s. 10.15(a)-(f), provides: "(a) School-Based Child and Family Team Initiative Established. "(1) Purpose and duties. - There is established the School-Based Child and Family Team Initiative. The purpose of the Initiative is to identify and coordinate appropriate community services and supports for children at risk of school failure or out-of-home placement in order to address the physical, social, legal, emotional, and developmental factors that affect academic performance. The Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Public Instruction, the State Board of Education, the Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, the Administrative Office of the Courts, and other State agencies that provide services for children shall share responsibility and accountability to improve outcomes for these children and their families. The Initiative shall be based on the following principles: "a. The development of a strong infrastructure of interagency collaboration. "b. One child, one team, one plan. "c. Individualized, strengths-based care. "d. Accountability. "e. Cultural competence. "f. Children at risk of school failure or out-of-home placement may enter the system through any participating agency. "g. Services shall be specified, delivered, and monitored through a unified Child and Family Plan that is outcome-oriented and evaluation-based. "h. Services shall be the most efficient in terms of cost and effectiveness and shall be delivered in the most natural settings possible. "i. Out-of-home placements for children shall be a last resort and shall include concrete plans to bring the children back to a stable permanent home, their schools, and their community. "j. Families and consumers shall be involved in decision making throughout service planning, delivery, and monitoring. "(2) Program goals and services. - In order to ensure that children receiving services are appropriately served, the affected State and local agencies shall do the following: "a. Increase capacity in the school setting to address the academic, health, mental health, social, and legal needs of children. "b. Ensure that children receiving services are screened initially to identify needs and assessed periodically to determine progress and sustained improvement in educational, health, safety, behavioral, and social outcomes. "c. Develop uniform screening mechanisms and a set of outcomes that are shared across affected agencies to measure children's progress in home, school, and community settings. "d. Promote practices that are known to be effective based upon research or national best practice standards. "e. Review services provided across affected State agencies to ensure that children's needs are met. "f. Eliminate cost-shifting and facilitate cost-sharing among governmental agencies with respect to service development, service delivery, and monitoring for participating children and their families. "g. Participate in a local memorandum of agreement signed annually by the participating superintendent of the local LEA, directors of the county departments of social services and health, director of the local management entity, the chief district court judge, and the chief district court counselor. "(3) Local level responsibilities. - In coordination with the North Carolina Child and Family Leadership Council (Council), established in subsection (b) of this section, the local board of education shall establish the School-Based Child and Family Team Initiative at designated schools and shall appoint the Child and Family Team Leaders, who shall be a school nurse and a school social worker. Each local management entity that has any selected schools in its catchment area shall appoint a Care Coordinator, and any department of social services that has a selected school in its catchment area shall appoint a Child and Family Teams Facilitator. The Care Coordinators and Child and Family Team Facilitators shall have as their sole responsibility working with the selected schools in their catchment areas and shall provide training to school-based personnel, as required. The Child and Family Team Leaders shall identify and screen children who are potentially at risk of academic failure or out-of-home placement due to physical, social, legal, emotional, or developmental factors. Based on the screening results, responsibility for developing, convening, and implementing the Child and Family Team Initiative is as follows: "a. School personnel shall take the lead role for those children and their families whose primary unmet needs are related to academic achievement. "b. The local management entity shall take the lead role for those children and their families whose primary unmet needs are related to mental health, substance abuse, or developmental disabilities and who meet the criteria for the target population established by the Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Abuse Services. "c. The local department of public health shall take the lead role for those children and their families whose primary unmet needs are health-related. "d. Local departments of social services shall take the lead for those children and their families whose primary unmet needs are related to child welfare, abuse, or neglect. "e. The chief district court counselor shall take the lead for those children and their families whose primary unmet needs are related to juvenile justice issues. A representative from each named or otherwise identified publicly supported children's agency shall participate as a member of the Team as needed. Team members shall coordinate, monitor, and assure the successful implementation of a unified Child and Family Plan. "(4) Reporting requirements. - School-Based Child and Family Team Leaders shall provide data to the Council for inclusion in their report to the North Carolina General Assembly. The report shall include the following: "a. The number of and other demographic information on children screened and assigned to a team and a description of the services needed by and provided to these children. "b. The number of and information about children assigned to a team who are placed in programs or facilities outside the child's home or outside the child's county and the average length of stay in residential treatment. "c. The amount and source of funds expended to implement the Initiative. "d. Information on how families and consumers are involved in decision making throughout service planning, delivery, and monitoring. "e. Other information as required by the Council to evaluate success in local programs and ensure appropriate outcomes. "f. Recommendations on needed improvements. "(5) Local advisory committee. - In each county with a participating school, the superintendent of the local LEA shall either identify an existing cross-agency collaborative or council or shall form a new group to serve as a local advisory committee to work with the Initiative. Newly formed committees shall be chaired by the superintendent and one other member of the committee to be elected by the committee. The local advisory committee shall include the directors of the county departments of social services and health; the directors of the local management entity; the chief district court judge; the chief district court counselor; the director of a school-based or school-linked health center, if a center is located within the catchment area of the School-Based Child and Family Team Initiative; and representatives of other agencies providing services to children, as designated by the Committee. The members of the Committee shall meet as needed to monitor and support the successful implementation of the School-Based Child and Family Team Initiative. The Local Child and Family Team Advisory Committee may designate existing cross-agency collaboratives or councils as working groups or to provide assistance in accomplishing established goals. "(b) North Carolina Child and Family Leadership Council. - "(1) Leadership Council established; location. - There is established the North Carolina Child and Family Leadership Council (Council). The Council shall be located within the Department of Administration for organizational and budgetary purposes. "(2) Purpose. - The purpose of the Council is to review and advise the Governor in the development of the School-Based Child and Family Team Initiative and to ensure the active participation and collaboration in the Initiative by all State agencies and their local counterparts providing services to children in participating counties in order to increase the academic success of and reduce out-of-home and out-of-county placements of children at risk of academic failure. "(3) Membership. - The Superintendent of Public Instruction and the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall serve as cochairs of the Council. Council membership shall include the Secretary of the Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, the Chair of the State Board of Education, the Director of the Administrative Office of the Courts, and other members as appointed by the Governor. "(4) The Council shall do the following: "a. Sign an annual memorandum of agreement (MOA) among the named State agencies to define the purposes of the program and to ensure that program goals are accomplished. "b. Resolve State policy issues, as identified at the local level, which interfere with effective implementation of the School-Based Child and Family Team Initiative. "c. Direct the integration of resources, as needed, to meet goals and ensure that the Initiative promotes the most effective and efficient use of resources and eliminates duplication of effort. "d. Establish criteria for defining success in local programs and ensure appropriate outcomes. "e. Develop an evaluation process, based on expected outcomes, to ensure the goals and objectives of this Initiative are achieved. "f. Review progress made on integrating policies and resources across State agencies, reaching expected outcomes, and accomplishing other goals. "g. Report semiannually, on January 1 and July 1, on progress made and goals achieved to the Office of the Governor, the Joint Appropriations Committees and Subcommittees on Education, Justice and Public Safety, and Health and Human Services, and the Fiscal Research Division of the Legislative Services Office. The Council may designate existing cross-agency collaboratives or councils as working groups or to provide assistance in accomplishing established goals. "(c) Department of Health and Human Services. - The Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services shall ensure that all agencies within the Department collaborate in the development and implementation of the School-Based Child and Family Team Initiative and provide all required support to ensure that the Initiative is successful. "(d) Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. - The Secretary of the Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention shall ensure that all agencies within the Department collaborate in the development and implementation of the School-Based Child and Family Team Initiative and provide all required support to ensure that the Initiative is successful. "(e) Administrative Office of the Courts. - The Director of the Administrative Office of the Courts shall ensure that the Office collaborates in the development and implementation of the School-Based Child and Family Team Initiative and shall provide all required support to ensure that the Initiative is successful. "(f) Department of Public Instruction. - The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall ensure that the Department collaborates in the development and implementation of the School-Based Child and Family Team Initiative and shall provide all required support to ensure that the Initiative is successful." Session Laws 2011-145, s. 1.1, provides: "This act shall be known as the 'Current Operations and Capital Improvements Appropriations Act of 2011.'" Session Laws 2011-145, s. 32.2, provides: "Except for statutory changes or other provisions that clearly indicate an intention to have effects beyond the 2011-2013 fiscal biennium, the textual provisions of this act apply only to funds appropriated for, and activities occurring during, the 2011-2013 fiscal biennium." Session Laws 2011-145, s. 32.5 is a severability clause. Editor's Note. - Articles 1-11 of Subchapter I of Chapter 7B , as enacted by Session Laws 1998-202, s. 6, and amended by Session Laws 1998-229, ss. 18 through 28, and Session Laws 1999-456, s. 60, are effective July 1, 1999, and applicable to abuse, neglect, and dependency reports received, petitions filed, and reviews commenced on or after that date. Section 5 of Session Laws 1998-202, also effective July 1, 1999, repealed the former North Carolina Juvenile Code, Articles 41 through 59 of Chapter 7A , along with additional related provisions. Where applicable, historical citations and case annotations to former sections have been added to the corresponding sections in new Chapter 7B . At the end of new Chapter 7B are tables showing comparable sections and their disposition of new Chapter 7B . Session Laws 2009-126, s. 1(a) and (b), provides: "The Joint Legislative Program Evaluation Oversight Committee shall include in the 2009-2010 Work Plan for the Program Evaluation Division of the General Assembly a study of existing programs that directly or indirectly benefit children and youth in this State. The Division shall identify the programs and their sources of funding and determine whether the programs have clear goals, indicators, or benchmarks by which to measure the programs' success. "The Program Evaluation Division shall submit its findings and recommendations to the Joint Legislative Program Evaluation Oversight Committee, the Joint Legislative Study Commission on Children and Youth, and the Fiscal Research Division at a date to be determined by the Joint Legislative Program Evaluation Oversight Committee." Session Laws 2009-451, s. 10.7A(a)-(k), provided for the consolidation of certain agencies and programs relating to early childhood education and care. See the Editor's note at G.S. 143B-138.1 for details. Legal Periodicals. - For article, "Leandro v. State and the Constitutional Limitation on School Suspensions and Expulsions in North Carolina" see 83 N.C. L. Rev. 1507 (2005).