Bill Description: Senate Bill 1050 would require Child Protective Services to notify, in writing, parents or caregivers of their rights if they are under investigation.
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Does it violate the spirit or the letter of either the U.S. Constitution or the Idaho Constitution? Examples include restrictions on speech, public assembly, the press, privacy, private property, or firearms. Conversely, does it restore or uphold the protections guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution or the Idaho Constitution?
Senate Bill 1050 would create Section 16-1648, Idaho Code, titled "Notification of Rights," to say, "When the department, in accordance with this chapter, commences an investigation after having received information that a child may be abused, neglected, or abandoned and in the course of such investigation contacts, directly and in person, the parents or any person or persons maintaining the custody and care of the child, then the department shall notify such parents or persons that they have the right to:
The bill further says the notification "shall be made in writing within seventy-two (72) hours after the department's first contact with the parents or concerned persons."
The bill provides that "the parents or any person or persons maintaining the custody and care of the child shall have standing to challenge a violation of the provisions of this section, and such parents or persons shall be awarded costs and attorney's fees in the event that such challenge prevails."
It is of the utmost importance that government respects parental rights and that parents are fully informed about the scope of their rights. This bill will at least require CPS to notify parents of their rights, which some may not even realize they have.
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