Stoneham Delegation and Mass. Legislature Pass Bill to Enhance Child Welfare

BOSTON—State Senator Jason Lewis and State Representative Michael S. Day joined their colleagues in the Massachusetts Legislature to pass comprehensive legislation to strengthen oversight, transparency, and accountability within the Commonwealth’s child welfare system.

An Act Enhancing Child Welfare Protections builds on the work of the Office of the Child Advocate (OCA), the Department of Children and Families (DCF), the Family Resource Center (FRC) network and the Commonwealth’s public schools by making sure all children receive the support and services they need to thrive.

“Ensuring the safety and wellbeing of children in Massachusetts, especially those in state and foster care, is of paramount importance to me and to the legislature,” said Senator Jason Lewis. “This law strengthens our policies and protections to make sure that the health, safety, and wellbeing of our children always comes first.”

“This law will build on existing protections for our children by increasing training and reporting requirements and by streamlining programs to provide services to our children quickly,” said Representative Michael S. Day. “Ensuring that children get the assistance they need to improve the quality of their lives is one of the most important things we can do as legislators and I was proud to help pass this law.”

Highlights of the child welfare protection legislation include:

• Establishing a Foster Child Bill of Rights that outlines the basic rights and services foster children need to live healthy, safe, and fulfilling lives.
• Allowing children the same ability as adults to petition the court to extend certain abuse harassment protection orders issued on their behalf.
• Creating a DCF Education Unit to monitor students’ academic progress and coordinate with school districts. The law also sets clear timelines for school enrollment and transferring records when children in DCF custody move schools, helping prevent interruptions to their education.
• Connecting more children and families with Family Resource Centers when children face behavioral issues. This approach helps families access resources they need without involving the court system when it is not necessary.
• Requiring DCF to promptly notify a child’s attorney about emergency situations for certain emergency situations including arrest, expulsion, hospitalization, or 51A reports of suspected child abuse or neglect.
• Strengthening the independence of the OCA as an autonomous state agency. The law expands the OCA’s authority to examine systemic disparities, work with other state agencies, maintain a public website for mandated reporters, conduct systemwide reviews of DCF, and publicly share critical incident reports to improve greater public accountability and transparency.
• Codifying a Youth Engagement program within the OCA to ensure young people have a voice in policies, oversight, and programs that affect them.
• Expanding resources and training for people who work with children by directing the OCA to provide training materials to mandated reporters and others who regularly work with children. The law also requires the OCA to maintain a list of resources for grieving parents who have experienced a sudden, unexplained pediatric death.

Governor Maura Healey signed the legislation into law on August 7, 2026, after the Massachusetts Senate and House of Representatives passed the bill.