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SB15 • 2026

A BILL FOR AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning family law and juvenile law.

A BILL FOR AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning family law and juvenile law.

Children Labor
Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor
Senator Kyle Walker
Last action
2026-03-04
Official status
Enrolled Senate Bill (S)
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Foster Youth Bill of Rights

This law requires Indiana's Department of Child Services to create, update, and distribute a statement called 'the foster youth bill of rights' that explains the rights and responsibilities of children in foster care.

What This Bill Does

  • Creates a document called 'the foster youth bill of rights' for children in foster care.
  • Updates this document periodically with new information about rights and responsibilities.
  • Distributes copies of the bill of rights to specified individuals involved in foster care.
  • Posts the bill of rights on the Department of Child Services website.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Children who are part of Indiana's foster care system
  • Social workers and other staff at the Department of Child Services

Terms To Know

Foster youth
A child or teenager in the custody of the state, living with a family that is not their own biological family.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify how often updates to the 'foster youth bill of rights' must be made.
  • It's unclear which specific individuals will receive copies of the bill of rights.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

SB0015.02.COMS.AMH01

Committee Senate Bill (H) • Representative Dale DeVon

Filed

Plain English: The amendment adds a new section to the Indiana Code that outlines specific rights for foster youth.

  • Adds a new section to the Indiana Code that lists out certain rights for children in the foster care system.
  • The exact details of what these rights include are not provided in the amendment text, so it's unclear exactly which rights will be granted.
  • It is not clear how this new section will interact with existing laws and regulations concerning family law and juvenile law.

Bill History

  1. 2026-03-04 Senate

    Signed by the Governor

  2. 2026-03-04 Senate

    Public Law 67

  3. 2026-02-27 Senate

    Signed by the President of the Senate

  4. 2026-02-26 Senate

    Signed by the President Pro Tempore

  5. 2026-02-26 House

    Signed by the Speaker

  6. 2026-02-25 Senate

    Senate concurred with House amendments; Roll Call 270: yeas 42, nays 0

  7. 2026-02-23 Senate

    Motion to concur filed

  8. 2026-02-18 House

    Returned to the Senate with amendments

  9. 2026-02-17 House

    Third reading: passed; Roll Call 261: yeas 86, nays 0

  10. 2026-02-16 House

    Second reading: ordered engrossed

  11. 2026-02-12 House

    Committee report: amend do pass, adopted

  12. 2026-01-29 House

    Representative Olthoff added as cosponsor

  13. 2026-01-28 House

    First reading: referred to Committee on Family, Children and Human Affairs

  14. 2026-01-27 House

    Representative Hamilton added as cosponsor

  15. 2026-01-22 Senate

    Senator Qaddoura added as coauthor

  16. 2026-01-22 Senate

    Referred to the House

  17. 2026-01-20 Senate

    Third reading: passed; Roll Call 35: yeas 46, nays 0

  18. 2026-01-20 Senate

    House sponsor: Representative Lopez

  19. 2026-01-20 Senate

    Senator Buck added as coauthor

  20. 2026-01-20 Senate

    Senator Randolph added as coauthor

  21. 2026-01-20 Senate

    Senators Alexander, Yoder added as coauthors

  22. 2026-01-15 Senate

    Second reading: ordered engrossed

  23. 2026-01-12 Senate

    Committee report: do pass, adopted

  24. 2026-01-12 Senate

    Senator Ford J.D. added as coauthor

  25. 2026-01-08 Senate

    Senator Jackson L added as coauthor

  26. 2025-12-08 Senate

    Authored by Senators Walker K, Walker G, Goode

  27. 2025-12-08 Senate

    Coauthored by Senator Hunley

  28. 2025-12-08 Senate

    First reading: referred to Committee on Family and Children Services

  29. 2025-12-08 Senate

    Senator Becker added as coauthor

Official Summary Text

A BILL FOR AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning family law and juvenile law.
Foster youth.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
A BILL FOR AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning family law and juvenile law.

Foster youth.

Requires the department of child services to: (1) create a statement called "the foster youth bill of rights", which is to summarize a foster youth's rights and responsibilities; (2) update the statement periodically; (3) distribute the statement to specified individuals; and (4) publish the statement on the department's website. Defines "foster youth" for purposes of the foster youth bill of rights. Makes conforming changes.