State Child Welfare System - Reporting, the official text

WES MOORE, Governor                                  Ch. 723

Chapter 723

                                 (House Bill 1305)

AN ACT concerning

                   State Child Welfare System – Reporting

FOR the purpose of requiring the State Department of Education to include certain
         information in a certain report; requiring the State Department of Education, in
         cooperation with the Department of Human Services, to develop and submit a certain
         report to the General Assembly on improving outcomes for students in the State child
         welfare system; and generally relating to children and foster youth in the State child
         welfare system.

BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments,
         Article – Family Law
         Section 5–1312(c) and (d)
         Annotated Code of Maryland
         (2019 Replacement Volume and 2025 Supplement)

         SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND,
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows:

                   Article – Family Law

5–1312.

         (c) Subject to subsection (d) of this section, on or before December 1 each year,
the State Department of Education shall report to the General Assembly, in accordance
with § 2–1257 of the State Government Article, and to the Department the following
information regarding children and foster youth in the State child welfare system:

             (1) the stability of school placements;

                  (2) the number of children with individualized education plans
PROGRAMS;

                  (3) the number of children with a plan under § 504 of the federal
Rehabilitation Act;

                  (4) the number of children who have been retained a grade, disaggregated
by grade;

             (5) the number of children who graduate from high school;

             (6) dropout rates;

                                 –1–
Ch. 723  2026 LAWS OF MARYLAND

                  (7) the number of children who are truant students, as defined in § 7–302.2
of the Education Article;

                  (8) the rates of absenteeism;

                  (9) the rates of suspension;

                (10) the rates of expulsion; [and]

                (11) the number of school–based arrests; AND

                (12) THE NUMBER OF FOSTER YOUTH WHO ENROLL IN COLLEGE AND
GRADUATE WITHIN 6 YEARS.

        (d) (1) In reporting the information required under subsections (b) and (c) of
this section, the Department and the State Department of Education shall:

                [(1)] (I) maintain the confidentiality of information on children and
foster youth in the State child welfare system;

                [(2)] (II) ensure that no personally identifiable information is disclosed;
and

                [(3)] (III) disaggregate the information by county, age, gender, race, and
ethnicity.

                (2) IN REPORTING THE INFORMATION REQUIRED UNDER
SUBSECTION (C) OF THIS SECTION, THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION SHALL
INCLUDE, WHERE APPROPRIATE, COMPARISON DATA FOR CHILDREN AND STUDENTS
NOT IN THE STATE CHILD WELFARE SYSTEM.

         SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That:

         (a) In this section, “foster youth” has the meaning stated in § 5–304 of the Human
Services Article.

         (b) On or before December 1, 2026, the State Department of Education, in
cooperation with the Department of Human Services, shall develop and submit a report to
the General Assembly, in accordance with § 2–1257 of the State Government Article, on
improving outcomes for students in the State child welfare system.

         (c) The report required under subsection (b) of this section shall:

                  (1) identify each State agency that provides services for foster youth;

                                                           –2–
WES MOORE, Governor  Ch. 723

                  (2) specifically for children and foster youth students, identify needs and
gaps in services that could improve educational outcomes;

                  (3) identify best practices from other states that have demonstrated
success with college and career readiness for foster youth;

                  (4) provide recommendations for improving educational outcomes for foster
youth students in the State;

                  (5) evaluate the effectiveness of the information reported under § 5–1312
of the Family Law Article; and

                  (6) provide recommendations for improving data collection and reporting
requirements on foster youth students.

         SECTION 3. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect
October 1, 2026. Section 2 of this Act shall remain effective for a period of 1 year and, at
the end of September 30, 2027, Section 2 of this Act, with no further action required by the
General Assembly, shall be abrogated and of no further force and effect.

Approved by the Governor, May 26, 2026.

–3–