2018 Colorado Revised Statutes
Title 19 - Children's Code
Article 3 - Dependency and Neglect
Part 7 - Review of Placement
§ 19-3-702. Permanency hearing - periodic review
(1) In order to provide stable permanent homes for children in as short a time as possible, a court on its own motion or upon motion brought by any party shall conduct a permanency hearing if a child cannot be returned home under section 19-1-115 (4)(b) for the purpose of making a determination regarding the future status of the child. Such permanency hearing shall be held as soon as possible following the dispositional hearing but shall be held no later than twelve months after the date the child is considered to have entered foster care and no later than every twelve months thereafter while the child remains in out-of-home placement, or more frequently as deemed necessary by the court. If the court finds that reasonable efforts to reunify the child and the parent are not required pursuant to section 19-1-115 (7), a permanency hearing that includes consideration of in-state and out-of-state permanent placement options for the child shall be held within thirty days after the finding. If the court finds that reasonable efforts to reunify the child and the parent are not required and a motion for termination has been properly filed pursuant to section 19-3-602, the permanency hearing and the hearing on the motion for termination may be combined, and all of the court determinations required at both hearings shall be made in the combined hearing. In a county designated pursuant to section 19-1-123, if the child is under six years of age at the time a petition is filed in accordance with section 19-3-501 (2), such permanency hearing shall be held no later than three months after the decree of disposition of the child. A child shall be considered to have entered foster care on the date that the child is placed out of the home. If the court finds that an appropriate treatment plan cannot be devised at a dispositional hearing in accordance with section 19-3-508 (1)(e)(I), the permanency hearing shall be held no later than thirty days after such determination, unless a motion for termination of parental rights has been filed within thirty days after the court's finding. Where possible, the permanency hearing shall be combined with the six-month review as provided for in section 19-1-115 (4)(c).
(1.5) Any hearing or action, such as a paper review, an ex parte hearing, or a stipulated agreement that has been made an order of the court, that is not open to the participation of the parents of a child, the child, if appropriate, and the foster parents, relative caregivers, or pre-adoptive parents of a child, if any, shall not be considered a permanency hearing for purposes of this section.
(2) When the court schedules a permanency hearing pursuant to this section, the court shall promptly issue a notice reciting briefly the substance of the motion. The notice must set forth the constitutional and legal rights of the child and the child's parents or guardian. Notice of the hearing must be given in accordance with the requirements stated in section 19-3-502 (7). Nothing in this section requires the presence of any person before the court unless the court so directs. The court shall order the county department of human or social services to develop a permanency plan for the child to be completed and submitted to the court at least three working days in advance of the permanency hearing as required in this section.
(2.5) At a permanency hearing held in a county designated pursuant to section 19-1-123, if the child is under six years of age at the time a petition is filed in accordance with section 19-3-501 (2) and has been placed out of the home for three months, the court shall review the progress of the case and the treatment plan including the provision of services. The court may order the county department of human or social services to show cause why it should not file a motion to terminate the parent-child legal relationship pursuant to part 6 of this article 3. Cause may include, but not be limited to, the following conditions:
(a) The parents or guardians have maintained regular parenting time and contact with the child, and the child would benefit from continuing this relationship; or
(b) The criteria of section 19-3-604 have not yet been met.
(2.7) Consideration of the placement of children together as a sibling group shall not delay the efforts for expedited permanency planning or permanency planning in order to achieve permanency for each child in the sibling group.
(3) Except as provided in subsection (2.5) of this section, at the permanency hearing, the court shall first determine whether the child shall be returned to the child's parent or guardian, pursuant to section 19-1-115 (4)(b) and, if applicable, the date on which the child shall be returned, and whether reasonable efforts have been made to find a safe and permanent placement for the child. If the child is not returned to the custody of the child's parent or guardian, the court shall determine whether there is a substantial probability that the child will be returned to the physical custody of the child's parent, guardian, or legal custodian within six months. If the court so determines, it shall set another review hearing for not more than six months, which shall be a permanency hearing.
(3.5) At any permanency hearing conducted by the court, the court shall make determinations as to the following:
(a) Whether procedural safeguards to preserve parental rights have been applied in connection with any change in the child's placement or any determination affecting parental visitation of the child;
(b) Whether reasonable efforts have been made to finalize the permanency plan that is in effect at the time of the permanency hearing;
(c) If a child resides in a placement out of state, whether the out-of-state placement continues to be appropriate and in the best interests of the child; and
(d) If the child is sixteen years of age or older, whether the permanency plan includes independent living services.
(3.7) The court conducting the permanency hearing shall consult with the child in an age-appropriate manner regarding the child's permanency plan.
(4) If the court determines that the child cannot be returned to the physical custody of such child's parent or guardian and that there is not a substantial probability that the child will be returned to the physical custody of such child's parent or guardian within six months, the court shall enter an order determining the future status or placement of the child. Any court order regarding future status or placement of a child out of the home shall include specific findings concerning the placement goal for the child. Such findings shall include a determination of whether the placement goal for the child is that the child be returned to the parent, be referred for legal guardianship or custody, be placed in a planned permanent living arrangement, or be placed for adoption, in which case the county department shall file a motion for termination of parental rights. In cases in which the county department has documented to the court a compelling reason for determining that it would not be in the best interests of the child to return home, the court's findings shall include a determination of whether the placement goal for the child is that the child be referred for termination of parental rights, be placed for adoption, be placed with a fit and willing relative, be placed with a legal guardian or custodian, or be placed in another permanent living arrangement. The court must be provided with documentation of a compelling reason for establishing a permanency plan with a goal other than reunification, adoption, or legal guardianship.
(5) In order to enable the child to obtain a permanent home, the court may make the following determinations and orders:
(a) If the court finds from the materials submitted by the county department of human or social services that the child appears to be adoptable and meets the criteria for adoption in section 19-5-203, the court may order the county department of human or social services to show cause why it should not file a motion to terminate the parent-child legal relationship pursuant to part 6 of this article 3. Cause may include, but need not be limited to, any of the following conditions:
(I) The parents or guardians have maintained regular parenting time and contact with the child, and the child would benefit from continuing this relationship; or
(II) A child who is twelve years of age or older objects to the termination of the parent-child legal relationship; or
(III) The child's foster parents are unable to adopt the child because of exceptional circumstances which do not include an unwillingness to accept legal responsibility for the child but are willing and capable of providing the child with a stable and permanent environment, and the removal of the child from the physical custody of his or her foster parents would be seriously detrimental to the emotional well-being of the child; or
(IV) The criteria of section 19-3-604 have not yet been met.
(b) If the child is currently in a foster home and the foster parents are capable of providing and willing to provide a stable and permanent environment, the court may determine that the child shall not be removed from the home if the removal would be seriously detrimental to the emotional well-being of the child because the child has substantial psychological ties to the foster parents.
(6) (a) Periodic reviews conducted by the court or, if there is no objection by any party to the action, in the court's discretion, through an administrative review conducted by the state department of human services, shall determine the following:
(I) Whether the child's safety is protected in the placement;
(II) Whether reasonable efforts have been made to find a safe and permanent placement;
(III) The continuing necessity for and appropriateness of the placement;
(IV) The extent of compliance with the case plan, and the extent of progress that has been made toward alleviating or mitigating the causes necessitating placement in foster care; and
(V) A likely date by which the child may be returned to and safely maintained at the home, placed for adoption, legal guardianship, or placed in another permanent safe placement setting.
(b) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2003, p. 2487, § 2, effective July 1, 2003.)
(c) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2001, p. 847, § 11, effective June 1, 2001.)
(6.5) If the court combines a permanency hearing and a periodic review, the court shall make the determinations required by this section for both the permanency hearing and the periodic review at the combined hearing.
(7) (Deleted by amendment, L. 93, p. 390, § 4, effective April 19, 1993.)
(8) (a) Subsequent reviews by the court or, if there is no objection by any party to the action, in the court's discretion, through an administrative review conducted by the state department of human services, shall be conducted every six months except when the court requires a court review or when a court review is requested by the child's parents or guardians or by the child. In the event that an administrative review is ordered, all counsel of record shall be notified and may appear at said review. The entity conducting the review shall make the same determinations as are required at a periodic review conducted pursuant to paragraph (a) of subsection (6) of this section.
(b) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2003, p. 2487, § 2, effective July 1, 2003.)
(c) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2001, p. 847, § 11, effective June 1, 2001.)
(9) In making placement determinations concerning a child pursuant to the provisions of this section, the court shall consider all pertinent information related to modifying the placement of the child prior to removing the child from his or her placement, including the following:
(a) An individualized assessment of the child's needs created pursuant to Title IV-E of the federal "Social Security Act", as amended, and regulations promulgated thereunder, as amended;
(b) Whether the child's placement at the time of the hearing is a safe and potentially permanent placement for the child;
(c) The child's actual age and developmental stage and, in consideration of this information, the child's attachment needs;
(d) Whether the child has significant psychological ties to a person who could provide a permanent placement for the child, including a relative, and, if so, whether this person maintained contact with the child during the child's placement out of the home;
(e) Whether a person who could provide a permanent placement for the child is willing to maintain appropriate contact after an adoption of the child with the child's relatives, particularly sibling relatives, when such contact is safe, reasonable, and appropriate;
(f) Whether a person who could provide a permanent placement for the child is aware of the child's culture and willing to provide the child with positive ties to his or her culture;
(g) The child's medical, physical, emotional, or other specific needs, and whether a person who could provide a permanent placement for the child is able to meet the child's needs; and
(h) The child's attachment to the child's caregiver at the time of the hearing and the possible effects on the child's emotional well-being if the child is removed from the caregiver's home.
(10) Prior to closing a case prior to a youth's eighteenth birthday, the court or the youth's guardian ad litem shall notify the youth that he or she shall lose the right to receive medicaid until the youth's twenty-first birthday if the case is closed prior to the youth's eighteenth birthday.
