An Act prescribing the rights of grandparents related to hearings on petitions to adjudicate a minor as a child in need of aid and to the testimony of grandparents at those hearings; and amending Rules 3, 7, 10, 15, 17(e), and 19, Alaska Child in Need of Aid Rules.

Posted: March 3, 2000
Contact: Representative Fred Dyson's office at (907) 465-2199

HB 409 is a modest step towards recognizing a grandparent’s interest in being involved in a process that affects their grandchildren. If a grandparent requests to be part of the process, HB 409 requires the department to notify them of upcoming custody hearings and provides grandparents with the opportunity to be heard at child in need of aid and delinquency hearings.

Over the past couple of sessions the legislature has focused considerable effort on making our child protection and custody procedures more open, responsive and, hopefully more responsible. We have given foster parents more input and the right to be heard in treatment and placement decisions and we have encouraged more efficient placement procedures.

We believe this bill will result in more informed decisions about the treatment and placement of Alaska’s abused and neglected children. Additionally we believe this measure will increase the likelihood of children being placed with relatives who may not have otherwise been located, much less considered.

The bill specifies that, unless the court specifically finds otherwise, the testimony of parents will be given more weight than a grandparents. This protects the primary parental interest while specifically allowing a court to defer to a grandparent for good cause.

There will be cases where a grandparent is not a suitable option for child placement, but ideally, this bill will encourage the department, and parents, to consider grandparents more frequently as a the preferred placement option for children in need.

Please feel free to contact my office with questions or concerns.