SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – Monday afternoon, Gov. Tim Walz signed into law HF 554, a bill authored by Rep. Rena Moran (DFL – Saint Paul), that allows parents, who had previously had their parental rights terminated for non-egregious harm, to directly seek reestablishment of these rights from the courts. Currently, only a county attorney is able to make this petition.
“Whenever we’re able to, we should keep families together and our children deserve to be protected, loved, and nurtured. When they can stay in their community with their parents, this gives them the best outlook in life,” Rep. Moran said. “We know all too well that our child welfare system doesn’t seem to always have the best interest of the child in mind, and that’s why it’s important for us to keep working to improve it. Every child deserves a strong future and I thank Governor Walz for signing this important bill into law.”
The House approved the measure by a vote of 130-0 on April 4, and the Senate followed on April 29 with a vote of 66-0. Continue reading “Gov. Walz signs Rep. Moran bill providing pathway to reestablishment of parent/child relationships”