Video monitoring or recording in residential care centers for children and youth, group homes, and shelter care facilities, the official text

2025 - 2026 LEGISLATURE
LRB-4746/1
EHS:cjs&cdc

2025 SENATE BILL 485
October 2, 2025 - Introduced by Senators James and Cabral-Guevara, cosponsored by Representatives Dittrich, Petersen, Behnke, Gundrum, Melotik, Mursau, Penterman, Piwowarczyk and Wichgers. Referred to Committee on Mental Health, Substance Abuse Prevention, Children and Families.

An Act to amend 51.61 (1) (o); to create 48.672 of the statutes; relating to: video monitoring or recording in residential care centers for children and youth, group homes, and shelter care facilities.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill authorizes group homes, shelter care facilities, and child welfare agencies that operate a residential care center for children and youth to use video surveillance and recordings in common areas, entrances, and exits without the consent of the child being surveilled or recorded, but must inform the child and the child's parent, guardian, legal custodian, or Indian custodian about the video surveillance and recording. The bill requires all child welfare agencies that operate a residential care center for children and youth, all group homes, and all shelter care facilities to adopt a policy for monitoring safety, which may include the use of video surveillance and recording in common areas, entrances, and exits. The bill provides that the video surveillance and recording authorized under the bill may not be used as a substitute for one-on-one monitoring of a child who is at high risk for self-harm.
The bill provides that, generally, such video data is confidential and not open to public inspection. However, the bill provides that all exceptions to confidentiality that apply under current law with respect to records and information kept by DCF, county departments of human or social services, licensed child welfare agencies, and licensed child care centers about individuals in their care or legal custody also apply to this video data. Under the bill, DCF may review any authorized video recording.
Under current law, generally, an individual who is receiving services for mental illness, developmental disability, alcoholism, or drug dependency (patient) has a right not to be filmed or taped unless the patient signs an informed and voluntary consent. This includes an individual who is admitted to a treatment facility or detained, committed, or placed under the Children’s Code. Under the bill, a patient placed in a residential care center for children and youth, group home, or shelter care facility, may be subject to video surveillance or recording in common areas, entrances, and exits without the patient’s consent as authorized under the bill.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

Section 1. 48.672 of the statutes is created to read:
48.672 Video surveillance and recording. (1) Group homes, shelter care facilities, and child welfare agencies that operate a residential care center for children and youth may use video surveillance and recordings in common areas, entrances, and exits without the consent of the child being surveilled or recorded. The group home, shelter care facility, or child welfare agency shall inform the child and the child's parent, guardian, legal custodian, or Indian custodian about the video surveillance and recording.
(2) All child welfare agencies that operate a residential care center for children and youth, all group homes, and all shelter care facilities shall adopt a policy for monitoring safety in those facilities, which may include the use of video surveillance and recording in common areas, entrances, and exits.
(3) Video surveillance and recording authorized under subs. (1) and (2) may not be used as a substitute for one-on-one monitoring of a child who is at high risk for self-harm.

(4) Video recording data under this section is confidential and not open to public inspection, except that the exceptions to the confidentiality of records that apply to agencies under s. 48.78 (2) apply to residential care centers for children and youth, group homes, and shelter care facilities with respect to video recording data under this subsection. The department may review any recording made under this section.
Section 2. 51.61 (1) (o) of the statutes is amended to read:
51.61 (1) (o) Except as otherwise provided, have a right not to be filmed or taped, unless the patient signs an informed and voluntary consent that specifically authorizes a named individual or group to film or tape the patient for a particular purpose or project during a specified time period. The patient may specify in the consent periods during which, or situations in which, the patient may not be filmed or taped. If a patient is adjudicated incompetent, the consent shall be granted on behalf of the patient by the patient’s guardian. A patient in Goodland Hall at the Mendota Mental Health Institute, a patient detained or committed under ch. 980, or a patient who is in the legal custody of or under the supervision of the department of corrections, may be subject to video surveillance or filmed or taped without the patient’s consent, except that such a patient may not be filmed in patient bedrooms or bathrooms without the patient’s consent unless the patient is engaged in dangerous or disruptive behavior. A patient placed in a residential care center for children and youth, group home, or shelter care facility licensed under ch. 48 may be subject to video surveillance or filmed or taped without the patient’s consent as authorized under s. 48.672. A treatment activity involving a patient
committed or detained under ch. 980 may be filmed or taped if the purpose of the recording is to assess the quality of the treatment activity or to facilitate clinical supervision of the staff involved in the treatment activity.
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