A group of Senators led by Speaker Mike Flood of Norfolk have agreed to combine several bills dealing with helping families in need. The compromise came after extensive debate over which proposal was the best one to pass. Flood says by agreeing to group the bills together, a solution can be figured out by the next round of debate, which will likely come after the budget forecast on April 1st.
There was also debate and concern over the cost of implementing the bills. Senator John Harms scolded his peers saying they wanted to do whatever was needed at whatever cost when Senators met last year in special session over the Safe Haven Law. Harms says he’s met with families in crisis and has been deeply affected by their problems.
The debate comes one year after Senators passed a Safe Haven Bill that allowed children of any age to be left at hospitals. The bill was later changed to only allow infants to be dropped off at hospitals. Many Senators say the problem of teens in crisis was uncovered when an age was left out of the bill.