This bill amends current child placement laws in Iowa, specifically prioritizing individuals for child custody after a dispositional hearing. It establishes a new priority for placement, requiring courts to first consider an individual who has provided foster care to the child for at least nine months prior to the hearing. The existing order of priority for placement is modified, with the new insertion of this category and the reordering of subsequent categories, which include adult relatives, fictive kin, and licensed foster care providers. Additionally, the bill mandates that a court must provide specific findings if it decides against placing a child with an adult relative.

Furthermore, the bill appropriates $275,000 from the general fund for the fiscal year 2025-2026 to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to hire five additional employees dedicated to child protective services. These employees will be assigned to different service areas and will be responsible for fulfilling identification and notice duties as outlined in existing law. They are also tasked with implementing the "30 days to family" model, which aims to facilitate the placement of children with family members within 30 days of entering foster care, thereby promoting family-based care solutions.