Reforms to Better Protect Children and Youth Earn Legislative Approval
/by the Center for Children’s Advocacy
During the recently concluded 2026 session of the Connecticut state legislature, the Center for Children’s Advocacy, working hand in hand with families and community partners, helped advance a series of important reforms to strengthen protections, improve accountability, and expand access to services for children and youth across Connecticut.
These wins reflect CCA’s work on multiple fronts: legal advocacy, policy reform, youth leadership, family partnerships, and collaboration with advocates, legislators, public agencies, and community organizations. Together, these new laws and policy changes will protect children’s rights and move Connecticut toward systems that are more transparent, accountable, and responsive to the needs of young people.
Strengthening Child Welfare Accountability and Transparency - Public Act No. 26-26, An Act Concerning Child Welfare Accountability and Transparency, includes major reforms to Connecticut’s child welfare system.
The new law creates a Child Welfare Policy and Oversight Committee to strengthen accountability and improve oversight of the systems responsible for children’s safety, stability, and well-being. It also includes additional funding for foster parents to support youth participation in positive afterschool, recreational, and community-based activities.
For children and youth in foster care, access to these kinds of opportunities matters. Sports, clubs, arts programs, community activities, and other prosocial experiences can help young people build relationships, develop confidence, and experience a greater sense of belonging.
Creating Safeguards for Children Withdrawn from Public School - CCA was a lead advocate for Public Act No. 26-37, An Act Concerning the Provision of Parent-Managed Learning, alongside the Office of the Child Advocate and the Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents.
Without basic oversight, withdrawing a child from public school for the stated purpose of homeschooling can be used as a cover to hide abuse or neglect. When children are removed from school, they may also lose regular contact with teachers, school staff, and other mandated reporters who are often among the first to recognize when a child may be unsafe.
The new law creates important safeguards for children withdrawn from public school for parent-managed learning. Parents must now come in person to withdraw a child from school and repeat that process each year the child is homeschooled. The law also requires a DCF check before a child is withdrawn and prohibits withdrawal when DCF has an open case involving the family.
These protections help close gaps in oversight and ensure children are not left invisible when they may need protection the most.
These legislative wins demonstrate what is possible when legal advocacy, community partnerships, youth leadership, and family voices come together.
Improving Oversight for Individuals with Disabilities in State Care - CCA and partners also helped secure passage of Public Act No. 26-39, An Act Concerning the Department of Developmental Services’ Abuse and Neglect Investigations.
This new law strengthens oversight and accountability related to the safety of youth and adults with disabilities in state care. It requires more robust annual reporting from the Department of Developmental Services, an annual public hearing on DDS and DSS efforts to ensure safety, and additional reporting on how the state is responding to and preventing abuse and neglect.
This advocacy built on new legislation from 2025, supported by CCA, requiring DDS to report on abuse and neglect involving individuals with disabilities in state care. That report, issued in February 2026, documented more than 4,000 reports of abuse and neglect. That documentation helped demonstrate the urgent need for stronger oversight and accountability.
CCA advocated for this legislation in partnership with parent advocates and Disability Rights Connecticut.
Expanding Access to Services for Youth with Intellectual Disabilities - CCA also helped advance Public Act No. 26-151, An Act Concerning a Plan to Revise the Definition of Intellectual Disability.
This law addresses barriers faced by youth with intellectual disabilities (ID) who should be eligible for support services, but are denied because of overly restrictive criteria used to define ID. This new law requires the Commissioner of the Department of Developmental Services to study eligibility criteria, gather input from stakeholders, review service models in other states, and make recommendations for improving access to DDS services and not denying services to qualified individuals solely on the basis of their IQ.
CCA advocated for legislative reforms in partnership with SEEK, Koskoff Koskoff & Bieder PC, the Connecticut Council on Developmental Disabilities, and Disability Rights Connecticut. This work is not finished. CCA will continue working with this coalition in 2027 to advance legislation that removes barriers to support services for youth with ID and moves Connecticut towards a person and need-centered service system.
Protecting the Educational Rights of Students Experiencing Homelessness - CCA successfully advanced Public Act No. 26-125, An Act Concerning the Education of Homeless Children and Youth.
The law codifies into state law federal requirements ensuring continuous access to education for students experiencing homelessness. Fast-paced weakening of federal civil and legal rights protections, including dramatic curtailment or abandonment of civil rights monitoring and enforcement, compel urgent action by state policymakers to ensure the rights of vulnerable children and adults are protected.
Students who are homeless or housing unstable often face enormous barriers to school stability, transportation, enrollment, and access to the services they are legally entitled to receive. This law reinforces school districts’ responsibility to identify and support these students so they can remain connected to school and continue learning during periods of instability.
Limiting Suspensions for Young Children - CCA also proposed statutory reforms included in Public Act No. 26-298, An Act Concerning the Reallocation of Certain State Funds, further curtailing the use of out-of-school suspension for children in kindergarten through second grade.
Under the new provision, out-of-school suspension for these young students is confined solely to behavior that causes serious physical harm. This reform is especially important because the youngest students experience the most acute racial disparities in school discipline. Removing very young children from school interrupts learning, strains families, and escalates challenges that should be met with after-school developmentally appropriate support. By limiting exclusionary discipline for young children, Connecticut is taking an important step toward more equitable and supportive school environments.
Advancing Youth-Led Advocacy for Transportation Access - CCA’s Speak Up! youth worked to increase access to transportation for high school students. Their advocacy helped elevate this issue through the Juvenile Justice Policy and Oversight Committee, which recommended the creation of a transportation pilot to provide funding for free and discounted public bus passes for high school students in certain school districts.
For many students, transportation is a major barrier to school attendance and after school activity participation. Current school transportation requirements leave gaps for students who may live far or need to walk in environments they do not feel safe in. These gaps contribute to chronic absenteeism and limit students’ access to education, employment, extracurricular activities, and supportive services.
The leadership of CCA’s Speak Up! youth helped ensure that students most directly affected by transportation barriers had a voice in shaping the solution.
Legal Advocacy. Youth Voice. Systemic Change.
These legislative wins demonstrate what is possible when legal advocacy, community partnerships, youth leadership, and family voices come together. CCA is proud to have partnered with youth, families, and community advocates to move these reforms forward. But passing legislation is only one step. In the months ahead, CCA will continue our work to support implementation, monitor impact, and continue advancing reforms that protect children’s rights.
Every child deserves access to the services, protections, and opportunities they are legally entitled to receive. CCA will continue fighting to make that promise real for children and youth across Connecticut.
The Center for Children’s Advocacy is a nonprofit law firm which fights for the legal rights of Connecticut’s most vulnerable children.
