Ohio law adds safeguard
BY JIM RAUSSEN
The loss of Marcus Fiesel deeply
saddens me as a father of two young children. It is extremely
troubling that the system has so completely failed an innocent
young boy.
Earlier this year, I worked with
colleagues to craft legislation to strengthen Ohio's foster care
system. This legislation, which will take effect on Sept. 18,
covered many issues regarding foster care and child abuse,
including a needs assessment for placing children that have
special needs, and prospective families that have more than five
children in the home. Both items would have directly affected
the case involving Marcus. This new law will also require
increased caseworker training on assessing safety and risk in
the home along with a statewide reporting system that will allow
and encourage neighboring counties to share information about
the child welfare system.
This is a good first step. But I
am committed to continuing our efforts to strengthen foster care
regulation and oversight in Ohio. These include financial
background checks of prospective foster parents and
psychological examinations of prospective parents. It is my goal
to have these proposals deliberated as soon as this fall, with
the goal of continuing to strengthen a fragmented system while
still encouraging families to participate in the state's foster
care system and, most important, to provide a lifetime of
opportunity for children - and to ensure the tragedy of Marcus
Fiesel is one that never happens again.
Rep. Jim Raussen, R-Springdale
Ohio House District 28
www.jimraussen.com
