The Pennsylvania House has approved a measure that could help reinstate the rights of parents whose children are in state custody and another that would protect the parental rights of incarcerated people.

The latter bill clarifies that a person’s incarceration status cannot be the sole reason for taking away parental rights.

It gives courts flexibility in parental-right termination cases by allowing them to consider an individual’s efforts to comply with family service plan requirements despite being incarcerated. Also, courts could delay filing for termination when incarceration is the primary reason a child has been placed in foster care.

The Joint State Government Commission’s Task Force on Children recommended the changes in 2011.

The other bill would give parents whose children have been in the custody of the state for at least 15 months, or who are at least 17 years old, a process to reinstate their parental rights. Those parents would now be able to petition the court and demonstrate they are willing and able to properly care for their children.

Both bills, which were passed earlier in the week with minimal opposition, now head to the Senate for consideration.

Democratic State Rep. Rick Krajewski, whose district covers West and Southwest Philly, introduced both bills. Krajewski said that under current law, it is extremely difficult for people whose parental rights have been removed to get them reinstated, and he is interested in providing people second chances.

“It doesn’t mean those parents are any less loving, any less caring, or any less willing to show up for their children. And unfortunately, people make mistakes … people are also not static. People grow, they go through changes,” he said.

Krajewski said his personal experience witnessing his stepfather being incarcerated and other family members being involved in the criminal justice system helped him understand how detrimental separating children and parents can be for both parties. He said removing a person’s parental rights solely because of incarceration is cruel.

“This feels like an additional punishment that isn’t relevant to whatever harm they caused. … I don’t think it’s just to add this additional penalty on top,” he said.

Krajewski has also introduced another child-welfare-related bill that would end the practice of intercepting benefits intended for foster children, and instead place the benefits in a savings account. City Council banned the practice in Philadelphia in 2022 following an Inquirer investigation, but the Philadelphia Department of Human Services still kept over $1 million a year meant for foster children and the practice remained common statewide. The bill was passed out of committee on Wednesday and will be considered by the full House.

Local advocates like Community Legal Services Philadelphia and Philly Voice for Change, a nonprofit working to prevent family separation, voiced their support for the parental rights bills after they passed.

“The bipartisan support in the House demonstrates a commitment to families and a recognition that children should not remain in the system when their parents are ready, willing and able to provide safe and loving care,” said Philly Voice for Change cofounder April Lee in a statement.

“This vote is an important step toward keeping families together, promoting reunification and ensuring that children have every opportunity to return home when it is in their best interest,” she said.

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