SB346

Senate Bill 346 aims to promote permanency and strengthen kinship placements for children within the Arkansas foster care system. The bill amends various sections of the Arkansas Code related to child welfare, including dependency-neglect cases, guardianship, adoption subsidies, and extended juvenile jurisdiction. Key provisions include relaxing certain time requirements for subsidized guardianship, establishing new state-funded adoption subsidies for specific youth, and refining court jurisdiction over young adults up to age 21. The legislation also renames 'visitation' to 'family time' and establishes a rebuttable presumption that such time is in a child's best interest. It clarifies requirements for noncustodial parents, removes the requirement for a home study when transferring custody to a parent, and updates procedures for notifying relatives about foster placement options. Additionally, the bill clarifies when parents can be denied family time due to substance use or impairment.