1 STATE OF OKLAHOMA
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2 2nd Session of the 59th Legislature (2024)
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3 HOUSE BILL 4130 By: Swope
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6 AS INTRODUCED
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7 An Act relating to children and the Juvenile Code;
7 amending 10A O.S. 2021, Sections 1-1-105 and 1-4-205,
8 which relate to deprived children; defining terms;
8 requiring parents to submit letter of intent when
9 requesting a change in educational instruction;
9 requiring certain information in letter of intent;
10 requiring submission of letter of intent when
10 changing school districts; directing the Department
11 of Human Services to perform background check;
11 directing the Department to maintain system;
12 directing the Department to conduct biannual checks;
12 prohibiting instruction in the home if there is
13 abuse, neglect, or violence; directing the Department
13 to explain reason for denial; and providing an
14 effective date.
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17 BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
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18 SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 10A O.S. 2021, Section 1-1-105, is
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19 amended to read as follows:
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20 Section 1-1-105. When used in the Oklahoma Children's Code,
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21 unless the context otherwise requires:
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22 1. "Abandonment" means:
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23 a. the willful intent by words, actions, or omissions not
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24 to return for a child, or
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 1 b. the failure to maintain a significant parental
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2 relationship with a child through visitation or
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3 communication in which incidental or token visits or
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4 communication are not considered significant, or
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5 c. the failure to respond to notice of deprived
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6 proceedings;
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7 2. "Abuse" means harm or threatened harm to the health, safety,
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8 or welfare of a child by a person responsible for the child's
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9 health, safety, or welfare, including but not limited to
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10 nonaccidental physical or mental injury, sexual abuse, or sexual
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11 exploitation. Provided, however, that nothing contained in the
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12 Oklahoma Children's Code shall prohibit any parent from using
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13 ordinary force as a means of discipline including, but not limited
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14 to, spanking, switching, or paddling.
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15 a. "Harm or threatened harm to the health or safety of a
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16 child" means any real or threatened physical, mental,
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17 or emotional injury or damage to the body or mind that
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18 is not accidental including but not limited to sexual
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19 abuse, sexual exploitation, neglect, or dependency.
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20 b. "Sexual abuse" includes but is not limited to rape,
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21 incest, and lewd or indecent acts or proposals made to
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22 a child, as defined by law, by a person responsible
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23 for the health, safety, or welfare of the child.
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 1 c. "Sexual exploitation" includes but is not limited to
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2 allowing, permitting, encouraging, or forcing a child
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3 to engage in prostitution, as defined by law, by any
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4 person eighteen (18) years of age or older or by a
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5 person responsible for the health, safety, or welfare
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6 of a child, or allowing, permitting, encouraging, or
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7 engaging in the lewd, obscene, or pornographic, as
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8 defined by law, photographing, filming, or depicting
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9 of a child in those acts by a person responsible for
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10 the health, safety, and welfare of the child;
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11 3. "Adjudication" means a finding by the court that the
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12 allegations in a petition alleging that a child is deprived are
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13 supported by a preponderance of the evidence;
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14 4. "Adjudicatory hearing" means a hearing by the court as
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15 provided by Section 1-4-601 of this title;
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16 5. "Age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate" means:
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17 a. activities or items that are generally accepted as
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18 suitable for children of the same age or level of
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19 maturity or that are determined to be developmentally
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20 appropriate for a child, based on the development of
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21 cognitive, emotional, physical, and behavioral
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22 capacities that are typical for an age or age group,
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23 and
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 1 b. in the case of a specific child, activities or items
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2 that are suitable for that child based on the
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3 developmental stages attained by the child with
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4 respect to the cognitive, emotional, physical, and
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5 behavioral capacities of the specific child.
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6 In the event that any age-related activities have implications
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7 relative to the academic curriculum of a child, nothing in this
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8 paragraph shall be construed to authorize an officer or employee of
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9 the federal government to mandate, direct, or control a state or
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10 local educational agency, or the specific instructional content,
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11 academic achievement standards and assessments, curriculum, or
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12 program of instruction of a school;
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13 6. "Assessment" means a comprehensive review of child safety
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14 and evaluation of family functioning and protective capacities that
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15 is conducted in response to a child abuse or neglect referral that
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16 does not allege a serious and immediate safety threat to a child;
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17 7. "Behavioral health" means mental health, substance abuse, or
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18 co-occurring mental health and substance abuse diagnoses, and the
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19 continuum of mental health, substance abuse, or co-occurring mental
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20 health and substance abuse treatment;
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21 8. "Child" means any unmarried person under eighteen (18) years
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22 of age;
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23 9. "Child advocacy center" means a center and the
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24 multidisciplinary child abuse team of which it is a member that is
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 1 accredited by the National Children's Alliance or that is completing
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2 a sixth year of reaccreditation. Child advocacy centers shall be
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3 classified, based on the child population of a district attorney's
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4 district, as follows:
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5 a. nonurban centers in districts with child populations
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6 that are less than sixty thousand (60,000), and
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7 b. midlevel nonurban centers in districts with child
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8 populations equal to or greater than sixty thousand
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9 (60,000), but not including Oklahoma and Tulsa
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10 Counties;
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11 10. "Child with a disability" means any child who has a
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12 physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more
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13 of the major life activities of the child, or who is regarded as
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14 having such an impairment by a competent medical professional;
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15 11. "Child-placing agency" means an agency that arranges for or
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16 places a child in a foster family home, family-style living program,
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17 group home, adoptive home, or a successful adulthood program;
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18 12. "Children's emergency resource center" means a community-
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19 based program that may provide emergency care and a safe and
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20 structured homelike environment or a host home for children
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21 providing food, clothing, shelter and hygiene products to each child
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22 served; after-school tutoring; counseling services; life-skills
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23 training; transition services; assessments; family reunification;
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24 respite care; transportation to or from school, doctors'
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 1 appointments, visitations and other social, school, court or other
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2 activities when necessary; and a stable environment for children in
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3 crisis who are in custody of the Department of Human Services if
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4 permitted under the Department's policies and regulations, or who
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5 have been voluntarily placed by a parent or custodian during a
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6 temporary crisis;
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7 13. "Community-based services" or "community-based programs"
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8 means services or programs which maintain community participation or
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9 supervision in their planning, operation, and evaluation.
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10 Community-based services and programs may include, but are not
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11 limited to, emergency shelter, crisis intervention, group work, case
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12 supervision, job placement, recruitment and training of volunteers,
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13 consultation, medical, educational, home-based services, vocational,
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14 social, preventive and psychological guidance, training, counseling,
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15 early intervention and diversionary substance abuse treatment,
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16 sexual abuse treatment, transitional living, independent living, and
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17 other related services and programs;
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18 14. "Concurrent permanency planning" means, when indicated, the
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19 implementation of two plans for a child entering foster care. One
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20 plan focuses on reuniting the parent and child; the other seeks to
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21 find a permanent out-of-home placement for the child with both plans
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22 being pursued simultaneously;
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23 15. "Court-appointed special advocate" or "CASA" means a
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24 responsible adult volunteer who has been trained and is supervised
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 1 by a court-appointed special advocate program recognized by the
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2 court, and when appointed by the court, serves as an officer of the
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3 court in the capacity as a guardian ad litem;
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4 16. "Court-appointed special advocate program" means an
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5 organized program, administered by either an independent, not-for-
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6 profit corporation, a dependent project of an independent, not-for-
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7 profit corporation or a unit of local government, which recruits,
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8 screens, trains, assigns, supervises and supports volunteers to be
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9 available for appointment by the court as guardians ad litem;
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10 17. "Custodian" means an individual other than a parent, legal
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11 guardian or Indian custodian, to whom legal custody of the child has
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12 been awarded by the court. As used in this title, the term
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13 "custodian" shall not mean the Department of Human Services;
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14 18. "Day treatment" means a nonresidential program which
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15 provides intensive services to a child who resides in the child's
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16 own home, the home of a relative, group home, a foster home or
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17 residential child care facility. Day treatment programs include,
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18 but are not limited to, educational services;
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19 19. "Department" means the Department of Human Services;
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20 20. "Dependency" means a child who is homeless or without
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21 proper care or guardianship through no fault of his or her parent,
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22 legal guardian, or custodian;
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23 21. "Deprived child" means a child:
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 1 a. who is for any reason destitute, homeless, or
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2 abandoned,
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3 b. who does not have the proper parental care or
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4 guardianship,
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5 c. who has been abused, neglected, or is dependent,
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6 d. whose home is an unfit place for the child by reason
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7 of depravity on the part of the parent or legal
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8 guardian of the child, or other person responsible for
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9 the health or welfare of the child,
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10 e. who is a child in need of special care and treatment
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11 because of the child's physical or mental condition,
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12 and the child's parents, legal guardian, or other
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13 custodian is unable or willfully fails to provide such
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14 special care and treatment. As used in this
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15 paragraph, a child in need of special care and
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16 treatment includes, but is not limited to, a child who
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17 at birth tests positive for alcohol or a controlled
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18 dangerous substance and who, pursuant to a drug or
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19 alcohol screen of the child and an assessment of the
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20 parent, is determined to be at risk of harm or
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21 threatened harm to the health or safety of a child,
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22 f. who is a child with a disability deprived of the
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23 nutrition necessary to sustain life or of the medical
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24 treatment necessary to remedy or relieve a life-
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 1 threatening medical condition in order to cause or
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2 allow the death of the child if such nutrition or
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3 medical treatment is generally provided to similarly
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4 situated children without a disability or children
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5 with disabilities; provided that no medical treatment
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6 shall be necessary if, in the reasonable medical
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7 judgment of the attending physician, such treatment
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8 would be futile in saving the life of the child,
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9 g. who, due to improper parental care and guardianship,
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10 is absent from school as specified in Section 10-106
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11 of Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes, if the child is
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12 subject to compulsory school attendance,
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13 h. whose parent, legal guardian or custodian for good
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14 cause desires to be relieved of custody,
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15 i. who has been born to a parent whose parental rights to
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16 another child have been involuntarily terminated by
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17 the court and the conditions which led to the making
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18 of the finding, which resulted in the termination of
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19 the parental rights of the parent to the other child,
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20 have not been corrected, or
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21 j. whose parent, legal guardian, or custodian has
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22 subjected another child to abuse or neglect or has
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23 allowed another child to be subjected to abuse or
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 1 neglect and is currently a respondent in a deprived
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2 proceeding.
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3 Nothing in the Oklahoma Children's Code shall be construed to
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4 mean a child is deprived for the sole reason the parent, legal
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5 guardian, or person having custody or control of a child, in good
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6 faith, selects and depends upon spiritual means alone through
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7 prayer, in accordance with the tenets and practice of a recognized
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8 church or religious denomination, for the treatment or cure of
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9 disease or remedial care of such child.
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10 Evidence of material, educational or cultural disadvantage as
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11 compared to other children shall not be sufficient to prove that a
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12 child is deprived; the state shall prove that the child is deprived
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13 as defined pursuant to this title.
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14 Nothing contained in this paragraph shall prevent a court from
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15 immediately assuming custody of a child and ordering whatever action
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16 may be necessary, including medical treatment, to protect the
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17 child's health or welfare;
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18 22. "Dispositional hearing" means a hearing by the court as
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19 provided by Section 1-4-706 of this title;
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20 23. "Drug-endangered child" means a child who is at risk of
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21 suffering physical, psychological or sexual harm as a result of the
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22 use, possession, distribution, manufactu