Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
I don't think anyone saw this coming . . . one of the achievements of this legislature, according to The Arizona Republic Legislative Scorecard, was Child Protective Sevices (CPS) reforms: "[T]he Legislature passed a vital reform bill that will create a two-track system for investigating child abuse, allowing
case workers and a beefed up special investigations unit to focus on the
most serious cases. A good day for kids. A-."
On Wednesday, Governor Brewer vetoed HB 2144, the CPS reforms bill.
Veto Letter.
Among my concerns, this legislation would include CPS caseworkers among persons prohibited from disclosing information about an adoption hearing . . .
Additionally, I am wary of encouraging courts to grant a petition to adopt when an appeal to tje termination of parental rights is still pending.
So Governor Brewer cherry-picked the adoption provision out of a much larger reforms bill out of a public policy concern for maintaining the family unit? Typically the legal standard is "the best interests of the child." I am guessing that we are going to hear more about this veto from legislators.