My list is long, but the short version is that these facilities ought to be at least as regulated as meat packing plants or airlines are--which is a lot.
People take consumer protection laws for granted. When there are virtually none, as in this industry, people get taken. In this case, often with severe harm or even death of the child.
Least Restrictive Setting required for teens like it is for adults, as determined by the initial independent psychiatrist (chosen by child welfare authorities, not parent selected).
Review monthly at minimum by independent psychiatrist, chosen by child welfare authorities, to ensure teen is in Least Restrictive Setting.
Facilities required to have accredited high school services. Solicit the reputable national accreditation boards to develop standards for these temporary settings, and standards for credits being transferable.
Teen's ability to attend classes made by child welfare's independent psychiatrist, not facility.
Teen must be provided with a set amount of time, daily, minimum, for doing homework.
Teen must be provided with a set amount of sleep time daily, minimum.
Kitchen must be regularly inspected with random, unannounced visits by the same health authorities that inspect restaurants. Facilities must submit menus meeting balanced diet requirements as defined by nutritionist selected by child welfare.
Child welfare must have full access to facility on demand, including all areas, 24/7.
Blue, official postal drop box and working stamp vending machine must be placed in an area all students have free access to every day, students may not be in any way sanctioned for writing letters. Students must have paper, pens and envelopes made freely available, and must have a specified postage allowance given to them weekly, in vending-maching-acceptable cash.
Child welfare will show up on teen's 18th birthday and offer ride to nearest Greyhound station. Facility must allow new adult to take all clothes and personal effects, a minimum of 30 days worth of any medications the child is currently taking, and a cash amount to be specified by law and indexed to cover a bus ticket anywhere in the continental US, or a ticket to the continental US, plus two months' rent based on national median apartment rental costs. Parents must escrow this amount upon admission to facility, but kid is paid at whatever it amounts to when he leaves. Minimum.
For every teen that stays, child welfare offers the ride and such not more than once a week, if they happen to visit the facility for something else, nor less than once a month is they don't. Between visits, if child welfare gets a letter from the 18 year old requesting to leave, they pick him up for his ride, etc., immediately.
If an independent psychiatrist determines that the teen is capable of being helped or otherwise functioning effectively in a less restrictive setting, child welfare should conduct an evaluation, in conjunction with the local authorities at the child's permanent residence, to determine if the child needs a safety plan to be returned to the home, or needs to be removed from the home and placed in foster care. Reason: placement of a child is prima facie evidence that at that time, the home is not meeting the child's needs--evaluation needs to be done to determine whether that is still the situation, but in no case should the child be denied that least restrictive setting.
No US citizen minor, of any age, should ever be sent out of the US, against his will, into the care of persons who are not his parents. Any US citizen minor, of any age, who is outside of the US and living not in the care of his parents should be entitled to repatriation, at government expense (which may be recovered from the parents) and delivered to the custody of child welfare authorities in his previous home state. If there is no previous home state or it cannot be determined, the minor shall be given his choice of cities/states.
Facilities may be fined $1,000 per infraction, or $1,000 per day per child, for requiring children to engage in activity in excess of doctor's orders, or for failing to provide the child with medication or medical treatment according to doctor's orders, or for neglecting to provide timely, appropriate, medical attention to a child.
All staff who interact with minors must be trained in conflict de-escalation techniques and the dangers of improper restraints. All facilities must have a conflict de-escalation process and may not use restraints to protect property but *may* bill parents for property damage caused by their child, if the damage is in excess of $100 for that incident. All staff who are authorized to apply restraints must be trained in applying them safely. All training must be provided by an independent, accredited provider.
Parents should have the right to relinquish custody for a teen to child welfare if they feel unable to cope with being legally responsible for that teen's actions. If they do so, a family court judge shall assess child support to be paid by the parents to the child welfare agency on the child's behalf. A family court judge shall also assess appropriate child support costs for the teen's post-secondary education or job training.
An appropriate federal agency (TBD) shall have the authority, upon recommendation from the child welfare authorities with jurisdiction, to ban a person, for life, from owning, owning an interest in, operating, or holding employment in, any residential facility that serves minors. Child welfare's recommendation should first be presented at a hearing before a family court judge, who shall use a preponderance of the evidence standard in determining whether the person should not be entrusted with the care of teens in a setting that inherently renders those teens vulnerable to abuse. Any citizen may make a complaint against an employee, owner, or operator of a facility, which child welfare must investigate (this is the same standard we currently have for complaints against the child's parents, iirc). State attorneys' general should also be able to make a complaint to that federal agency against owners or operators if they believe that they defrauded parents or engaged in deceptive marketing.
One of the biggest things is getting the bad apples out of the industry. All the survivors here should be able to complain, with no statute of limitations, about people who work in the industry and have child welfare be required to investigate and file their findings. Those ought to be available for FOIA requests.
Yes, I know child welfare where the facility is a major employer are going to look the other way---but not as much as if they *didn't* have to actually put their findings and reasons down in writing where it can come back to bite them in the ass if the employee seriously harms a kid later.
It also means there's a file on accused employees to make sure child welfare is aware of an accused's "rap sheet." If one boy accuses a guy of rape and you aren't sure it happened, that's one thing. If five of them accuse him, and give substantially similar details of his pattern of behavior, that's a whole different kettle of fish.
Julie
