SB513

SB513 creates a framework for a locally rooted rural child-welfare pilot, with implementation allowed only if it is sufficiently funded. The Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) must develop the model with a lead nonprofit or local government. An eligible region must have received no bids or other expressions of interest after DFPS sought a community-based-care provider, and at least two-thirds of its counties must have populations of 50,000 or less. It is not an automatic statewide transfer of foster care to private providers. Eligibility and funding condition: Sections 264.181–.183 and .195.

A nonprofit lead entity’s entire board must live in the service region. DFPS considers community support, collaborative experience and coordination capacity. The model must address family-based and preservation services, case management, foster and kinship care, adoption and post-adoption support, and services for young people leaving foster care. A community alliance brings families with lived experience and local education, health-care, judicial and other stakeholders into planning and priorities. Local leadership, services and community alliance.

The funding model must account for rural transportation, staffing and provider-network costs, share financial risks and allow reinvestment of savings. A fixed funding rate per child is required only if DFPS finds that approach feasible. An integrated electronic case-management system also requires a feasibility assessment; secure information sharing, technical support and outcome tracking are still required. A workforce plan must address recruitment, retention, training and advancement. Funding, data and workforce provisions.

DFPS retains oversight and responsibility for service quality and compliance with state and federal law. The lead entity can request waivers of department policies or procedures—not a general waiver of statutes. Contract changes require written explanation and cost analysis. A lead entity may reject inadequately funded or substantially altering changes, except those required by law or court order or needed for child health or safety. Contractors must obey applicable court orders; department confidentiality and public-records rules extend to relevant contractor records, and the act addresses attorney-client privilege for representatives of DFPS. Oversight, change orders and records: Sections 264.189–.193.

An independent evaluator must assess outcomes, cost-effectiveness and implementation. A model-development report is due January 1, 2027; annual implementation reports begin December 1, 2028 and include applicable evaluation findings, denied waivers and agreed change orders. Legislative review and expiration are set for September 1, 2031. Signed May 13, 2025, the act took effect September 1, 2025; that date does not establish that the pilot has already begun delivering services. Evaluation, reporting and expiration; History.