In recent years, as the public and their elected representatives have come to realize the enormous harm done by family police agencies, many bills have been introduced to curb these agencies’ power and mitigate the harm. Some became law, others did not. Check out the legislation below, and see if it might be adaptable to your state. Bills are listed by subject, not by state.
This page is very much a work in progress. Please contact NCCPR if there are other bills you think should be included.
BILLS THAT RAISE THE THRESHOLD BEFORE THE FAMILY POLICE CAN INTERVENE IN A FAMILY:
Due to a vile campaign of fear and smear, the legislature retreated a little from this bill, but the revised bill still is a big improvement over what existed before:
Colorardo legislation that did not pass covers not only raising the threshold but also three other categories below, reasonable efforts, “Balance of harms” and prohibiting drug testing without consent.
BILLS THAT DEFINE “REASONABLE EFFORTS”
Both federal law and many state laws require family police agencies and courts to make “reasonable efforts” to keep families together. But in almost every case, the term is not defined – and the law is routinely ignored.
A Montana bill included a detailed definition of what the family police agency must do to meet the reasonable efforts requirement.
Although that bill was vetoed by the governor, the reasonable efforts provisions were included in another bill that has become law. The bill, and others like it, are commonly known as “ICWA-for-all” bills because they incorporate some or all requirements of the federal Indian Child Welfare Act into state law and apply them to all children.
A LAW THAT DOES SOME OF BOTH
This law combines elements of laws raising the threshold for intervention and “ICWA-for-all.”
BILLS THAT SAY POVERTY IS NOT NEGLECT
There are any number of clauses in various state laws that say poverty should not be confused with neglect. Typically, they talk about not removing a child because a given condition is solely because of poverty. These clauses are small steps in the right direction. But put any family under a microscope and you can find something to fault – but of course, affluent families, especially affluent white families, almost never find themselves under that microscope. Maine passed one of those small-step-forward bills this year. A much better, tougher, more specific bill failed.
Maine: The poverty-is-not-neglect bill that should have passed.
BALANCE-OF-HARMS
A crucial failing of family policing is the failure to balance the alleged harm of leaving a child in her or his own home against the enormous, well-known harm of family separation. Another excellent bill in Maine would have forced the family police agency to do just that, and forced the courts to make sure they did. Unfortunately, it was pocket-vetoed by the Governor.
Maine: The Balance of Harms bill
REPLACING ANONYMOUS REPORTING WITH CONFIDENTIAL REPORTING
Texas enacted a law that significantly curbs, but does not eliminate, anonymous reporting; replacing it with confidential reporting. The accused still doesn’t know the name of the accuser, but in most cases, the family police agency has to know, in order to curb the use of such reports for harassment. In New York, a similar bill has passed the legislature by wide margins, and is awaiting action by the governor.
Texas law replacing anonymous reporting
New York bill to replace anonymous reporting bill
FAMILY MIRANDA BILLS
If you don’t know your rights, you don’t have your rights. As the name implies, Family Miranda bills simply require family police agencies to spell out the rights that families already have.
Texas Family Miranda Law (also includes some additional due process protections)
ENDING CHILD WELFARE RANSOM
It is common practice for family police agencies that tear poor children from their parents to then require those parents to pay part of the cost of foster care. Officially, it’s called “child support.” But when you take children from parents against their will and make the parents pay money to get the child back, the only logical term for the payment is “ransom.”
Making parents pay ransom prolongs foster care, drives families deeper into poverty and actually costs states money, since collection efforts cost more than what’s collected.
In recent years, several states have curbed this odious practice. One of the best anti-ransom laws is the one in New Jersey. It not only bans the practice for future cases, it also eliminates any debts owed to the family police because of prior practice:
REASONABLE CHILDHOOD INDEPENDENCE
Many states have introduced bills or passed laws to make clear that no, it is not child neglect to let a child of suitable age play outside, walk to the store, babysit a sibling, etc. LetGrow has links to seven such laws.
Two more excellent examples:
CENTRAL REGISTRIES
Every state maintains some sort of central registry of alleged child abusers. Getting onto the registry is easy – it can take little more than a caseworker checking a box on a form. Getting off again is much harder. The consequences for the falsely listed – and their children – can be devastating. A New York law eases the consequences and makes improvements in due process protections; a Pennsylvania bill would ease the consequences. (In that state, the due process issues are currently being tackled through a lawsuit.)
New York (This law has many good provisions, but note that one of these provisions, raising the standard of evidence for being listed, while a huge achievement for advocates in New York, only raises the standard to the abysmally low level in most states. The old New York standard was even worse.)
TERMINATION OF CHILDREN’S RIGHTS TO THEIR PARENTS
The legal term is “termination of parental rights,” but it’s important to remember who is hurt most by being forever cut off from family. A Colorado law bars the family police and courts from using a parent’s incarceration – or deportation – as the sole ground for termination. It also requires agencies to take steps to preserve children’s “meaningful and safe” relationships with incarcerated or deported parents, and seek alternative placements with extended family that allow ongoing contact.
ACCOUNTING FOR HIDDEN FOSTER CARE
As the name suggests, hidden foster care placements often are, in effect, a form of blackmail. Parents may be told that if they fight the family police agency and try to assert their rights in court, their children will be taken far away and placed with strangers. Surrender all your rights and “voluntarily” let us do what we want with your children, the agencies may say, and we’ll place them with relatives. Typically, these placements are never even recorded as entries into foster care. Legislation in New York would change that.
New York bill (Passed the legislature, awaiting action by the governor.)
The New York bill would not actually curb this practice – but accounting for them is a vital first step. The first Texas bill cited on this page includes some modest curbs on these placements.
LEGITIMATE KINSHIP FOSTER CARE
As noted above, when an agency compels or coerces placement of a child with extended family members, it’s not an alternative to foster care, it’s not a diversion from foster care, it’s still foster care. But research is overwhelming that, when foster care is genuinely necessary, open, above-board kinship foster care is almost always the least harmful form of foster care. Laws in Colorado strengthen children’s rights to be placed with extended family, and, among other provisions, increase financial aid to kinship foster parents who choose not to go through a formal licensing process.
Colorado right to kinship foster care law
Colorado kinship foster parent payment law
BANNING NON-CONSENSUAL DRUG TESTING ON PREGNANT AND POSTPARTUM WOMEN
Such testing leads to needless removal and drives women away from hospitals and prenatal care.
DRUG TREATMENT
When substance use genuinely creates a risk to children the best option is drug treatment. And when the drug treatment is inpatient, the best option is the kind where children can stay with their parents. Maryland law requires inpatient drug treatment programs to provide beds and services to children, and creates a presumption against foster care when a child is in such a setting.
SECOND OPINIONS
One expose after another has revealed the enormous harm done when some child abuse pediatricians wrongly diagnose child abuse. Texas law now gives families the right to a second opinion – from a treating physician, not another child abuse pediatrician.
Published October 25, 2025