PHOENIX — The Arizona House Government Committee passed all six child welfare bills on its agenda Thursday, including legislation aimed at improving conditions for children in group homes licensed by the Department of Child Safety.

House Bill 2611 would require drug testing and additional training for group home employees, improve security monitoring to address concerns about children going missing, and guarantee more rights for kids in care.

“It gives us protection. It gives us a way to hold adults accountable,” one foster teen testified at the hearing.

Several young people who have involved in the foster care system spoke in favor of the legislation.

“This bill will make sure our rights are real, like the right to have a copy of our rights, the right to join activities when we want,” another teen said.

A separate bill aims to increase kinship placements, so more foster children can move in with a relative or another significant adult in their lives.

Richilyn Fox, the former foster mother of murdered teen Zariah Dodd, testified in favor of the legislation.

“No child like Zariah should have been raised by the state system for 15 long years. Children deserve family and permanent group homes are not a family setting,” Fox said.

Other proposals relate to independent oversight for the Department of Child Safety, DCS’s response to credible abuse and neglect reports, and DCS’s legal representation.

At one point, committee members engaged in a heated exchange about the approach to reform work.

“These bills are not designed to work in conjunction with the current system because the current system is absolutely broken,” said State Rep. John Gillette, R-District 30.

Addressing the committee chairman, State Rep. Stephanie Stahl Hamilton, D-District 21, said, “You come to us and say you want your ideas, but our ideas we’re not introduced in the beginning.”
The chairman, Walt Blackman, R-District 7, urged legislators to focus on the goal.

“We can save some lives, even if it’s just one, but we can’t do it if we are butting heads up here,” said Blackman.

DCS Director Kathryn Ptak attended part of the meeting but did not comment on any of the bills. She is expected to testify at another hearing scheduled for March 4.

This story was reported on-air by ABC15 Senior Investigator Melissa Blasius and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.