An Act To Improve Family Team Meetings In Child Welfare Cases To Ensure Better Outcomes For Children By Providing Adequate Funding

This bill directs the Department of Health and Human Services to hire an independent group to evaluate how well the state's family team meetings work for children in the child welfare system. The evaluation process will gather data from case reviews and participant feedback to check if current practices match state policies and to create a plan for continuous improvement. A final report on these findings must be submitted by January 2, 2026, to the department and the Maine Child Welfare Advisory Panel. The legislation also authorizes $171,190 in funding over two years to cover the cost of this evaluation study.