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HB537 • 2026

AN ACT relating to child welfare.

AN ACT relating to child welfare.

Children
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
J. Bauman
Last action
2026-02-09
Official status
02/09/26: to Families & Children (H)
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

AN ACT relating to child welfare.

AN ACT relating to child welfare.

What This Bill Does

  • AN ACT relating to child welfare.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

  1. 2026-02-09 Kentucky Legislative Research Commission

    to Families & Children (H)

  2. 2026-02-02 Kentucky Legislative Research Commission

    introduced in House to Committee on Committees (H)

Official Summary Text

AN ACT relating to child welfare.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
UNOFFICIAL COPY 26 RS BR 495
Page 1 of 2
XXXX 1/30/2026 12:43 PM Jacketed
AN ACT relating to child welfare. 1
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky: 2
Section 1. KRS 199.462 is amended to read as follows: 3
(1) Before an applicant is approved to provide foster care or relative caregiver services 4
to a child, to be considered a fictive kin placement for a child, or [ approved] to 5
receive a child for adoption, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services shall: 6
(a) Require a criminal background investigation of the applicant and any of the 7
applicant's adult household members by means of a fingerprint check by the 8
Department of Kentucky State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation; 9
or 10
(b) Request from the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet records of all conviction 11
information for the applicant and any of the applicant's adult household 12
members. The Justice and Public Safety Cabinet shall furnish the information 13
to the Cabinet for Health and Family Services and shall also send a copy of 14
the information to the applicant. 15
(2) The request for records shall be in a manner approved by the Justice and Public 16
Safety Cabinet, and the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet may charge a fee to be 17
paid by the applicant for the actual cost of processing the request. 18
(3) The Cabinet for Health and Family Services shall not disapprove of any placement 19
or custody arrangement, including but not limited to foster care, relative caregiver 20
services, fictive kin placement, temporary custody, permanent custody, or adoption 21
on the sole basis of a disabi lity of the prospective caregiver without considering 22
whether targeted adaptive or supportive services could enable the prospective 23
caregiver to provide essential care and protection for the child. 24
(4) During a certified adoptive or foster home's annual re evaluation, the Cabinet for 25
Health and Family Services may: 26
(a) Require a background investigation for each adult household member of the 27
UNOFFICIAL COPY 26 RS BR 495
Page 2 of 2
XXXX 1/30/2026 12:43 PM Jacketed
certified adoptive or foster home under subsections (1) and (2) of this section; 1
or 2
(b) Register each adult household member of a certified adoptive or foster home 3
under subsections (1) and (2) of this section in the rap back system. 4
(5) If a child is placed and resides in a fictive kin home for more than seventy -two (72) 5
hours, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services shall take action, including but 6
not limited to the following: 7
(a) Provide information on how to recognize and report child abuse or neglect; 8
and 9
(b) Ensure that, within the first five (5) days of a child under the age of five (5) 10
years old being placed in a fictive kin home, the fictive kin has completed a 11
one (1) time training course of one and one -half (1.5) hours of training 12
covering the prevention and recognition of pediatric abusive head trauma, as 13
defined in KRS 620.020. 14
(6) The Cabinet for Health an d Family Services shall not approve an individual to 15
provide foster care or relative caregiver services to a child, to be considered a 16
fictive kin placement for a child, or to receive a child for adoption if the 17
individual has: 18
(a) Completed or attended sex offender treatment; 19
(b) An adult living in the individual's home who has completed or attended sex 20
offender treatment; or 21
(c) A minor child living in the individual's home who has completed or 22
attended sex offender treatment; 23
as directed by the court. 24
(7) The Cabinet for Health and Family Services shall promulgate an administrative 25
regulation in accordance with KRS Chapter 13A to implement this section. 26