# Utah S.B. 177: Child Welfare Amendments Utah S.B. 177, Child Welfare Amendments, is a 2025 General Session Senate bill sponsored by Wayne A. Harper (Republican); status signed, last action 2025-03-26 (Governor Signed) (as of 2026-10-17). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/UT-SB177-2025GS - As of: 2026-10-17 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: Utah S.B. 177 - State: Utah - Session: 2025 General Session - Title: Child Welfare Amendments - Status: signed - Chamber: Senate - Introduced: 2025-01-27 - Last action: 2025-03-26, Governor Signed - Sponsor: Wayne A. Harper (Republican) - Cosponsors: 1 - Subjects: Juveniles, Abuse, Neglect, or Dependency, Child Custody/Parent Time, Family, Foster Care, Health and Human Services, Division of Child and Family Services, Child Welfare, Judicial Operations, Administrative Rulemaking, Administrative Rulemaking and Procedures, Driver License, Motor Vehicles, Transportation, Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Licensing and Background Checks, New Rulemaking Authority - Touches household money: no - Roll calls: 13 (176 yes, 0 no in all) - Economic provisions PRIA read: 9 ## Summary No summary available. ## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read - Courts must hear family separation harms: benefit, low. At shelter hearings, juvenile courts must hear relevant evidence about harm from separating a child from a parent or guardian. This includes harm already suffered and harm that continued separation may cause. The child, parent, guardian, requesting party, or requesting party's lawyer can present th… - Easier license addresses for youth in custody: benefit, low. Utah's Driver License Division must set rules allowing applicants in state custody to use a local child services office address. Child services must verify that the applicant is in the state's legal custody. The rules must also allow acceptable custody papers for license residency and address check… - Review options for older abuse records: benefit, low. People listed in the Licensing Information System before May 6, 2002, can request review and removal in writing. Within 30 days, the division must assess whether the incident qualifies as severe abuse, chronic abuse, or chronic neglect. It must remove names for incidents that do not qualify; otherw… - More screening records, tighter privacy for workers: mixed, medium. Child services must promptly enter covered juvenile-court findings into both the Licensing Information System and Management Information System. Added court records can inform department background checks, direct patient access certification, and decisions to grant, deny, or revoke emergency medica… - Parents face revised family reunification rules: mixed, medium. A presumption against reunification services applies when a parent subjected a child to severe abuse or neglect, torture, or human trafficking. It also applies when the parent's rights to another child were involuntarily terminated. The court must establish these circumstances by clear and convinci… - Thirty days to challenge severe abuse findings: mixed, medium. After receiving notice of a supported severe abuse or neglect finding, a person has 30 days to respond. They can request division review, petition juvenile court, or consent to the finding and its licensing-system entry. A parent or guardian must consent for a child. The court petition route is bar… - Abuse challenges can pause during investigations: mixed, low. An administrative challenge to a supported abuse, neglect, or dependency finding can pause during a related court case or active criminal investigation. Beginning May 7, 2025, proceedings on substantiation petitions can also pause for those reasons. The related case or investigation must concern th… - New filing deadlines for abuse cases: mixed, low. The division can file a substantiation petition within 30 days after a supported severe abuse or neglect finding, replacing one year. Filing remains optional when the division considers it advisable. Beginning May 7, 2025, individuals, as well as the division, can file petitions under the listed su… - New sexual abuse rules between children: mixed, low. The law changes how sexual conduct between children counts as abuse in child-welfare cases. An act or attempted act qualifies when it constitutes unlawful sexual activity under Utah Code Section 76-5-401.3. Repeated sexual contact or an age gap of four years or more no longer separately qualifies u… ## Sponsors and cosponsors - Sponsor: Wayne A. Harper (Republican), Senate - Cosponsor: Christine F. Watkins (Republican), House ## Roll call votes | Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2025-02-27 | Senate | Senate/ concurs with House amendment | pass | 27 | 0 | | | 2025-02-26 | House | House/ passed 3rd reading | pass | 66 | 0 | | | 2025-02-24 | House | House Comm - Consent Calendar Recommendation | pass | 9 | 0 | | | 2025-02-24 | House | House Comm - Favorable Recommendation | pass | 9 | 0 | | | 2025-02-24 | House | House Comm - Amendment Recommendation | pass | 9 | 0 | | | 2025-02-12 | Senate | Senate/ passed 3rd reading | pass | 26 | 0 | | | 2025-02-11 | Senate | Senate/ uncircled | fail | 0 | 0 | | | 2025-02-11 | Senate | Senate/ passed 2nd reading | pass | 22 | 0 | | | 2025-02-10 | Senate | Senate/ circled | fail | 0 | 0 | | | 2025-01-30 | Senate | Senate Comm - Favorable Recommendation | pass | 4 | 0 | | | 2025-01-30 | Senate | Senate Comm - Substitute Recommendation | pass | 4 | 0 | | | | Senate | Senate/ uncircled | fail | 0 | 0 | | | | Senate | Senate/ circled | fail | 0 | 0 | | ## Actions (44) - 2025-03-26: Governor Signed - 2025-03-13: Senate/ to Governor (Senate) - 2025-03-13: Senate/ received enrolled bill from Printing (Senate) - 2025-03-07: Senate/ enrolled bill to Printing (Senate) - 2025-03-07: Enrolled Bill Returned to House or Senate - 2025-03-03: Draft of Enrolled Bill Prepared - 2025-03-03: Bill Received from Senate for Enrolling - 2025-02-27: Senate/ signed by President/ sent for enrolling (Senate) - 2025-02-27: Senate/ received from House (Senate) - 2025-02-27: House/ to Senate (House) - 2025-02-27: House/ signed by Speaker/ returned to Senate (House) - 2025-02-27: House/ received from Senate (House) - 2025-02-27: Senate/ to House (Senate) - 2025-02-27: Senate/ concurs with House amendment (Senate) - 2025-02-26: Senate/ placed on Concurrence Calendar (Senate) - 2025-02-26: Senate/ received from House (Senate) - 2025-02-26: House/ to Senate (House) - 2025-02-26: House/ passed 3rd reading (House) - 2025-02-26: House/ 3rd reading (House) - 2025-02-24: House/ 2nd reading (House) - 2025-02-24: House/ comm rpt/ amended/ placed on Consent Cal (House) - 2025-02-24: House Comm - Consent Calendar Recommendation (House) - 2025-02-24: House Comm - Favorable Recommendation (House) - 2025-02-24: House Comm - Amendment Recommendation (House) - 2025-02-20: House/ to standing committee (House) - 2025-02-20: Bill Substituted by Sponsor in House Rules Comm - 2025-02-13: House/ 1st reading (Introduced) (House) - 2025-02-12: House/ received from Senate (House) - 2025-02-12: Senate/ to House (Senate) - 2025-02-12: Senate/ passed 3rd reading (Senate) - 2025-02-12: Senate/ 3rd reading (Senate) - 2025-02-11: Senate/ passed 2nd reading (Senate) - 2025-02-11: Senate/ uncircled (Senate) - 2025-02-10: Senate/ circled (Senate) - 2025-02-10: Senate/ 2nd reading (Senate) - 2025-01-31: Senate/ placed on 2nd Reading Calendar (Senate) - 2025-01-31: Senate/ comm rpt/ substituted (Senate) - 2025-01-30: Senate Comm - Favorable Recommendation (Senate) - 2025-01-30: Senate Comm - Substitute Recommendation (Senate) - 2025-01-30: Senate/ received fiscal note from Fiscal Analyst (Senate) - 2025-01-29: Senate/ to standing committee (Senate) - 2025-01-28: Senate/ 1st reading (Introduced) (Senate) - 2025-01-28: Senate/ received bill from Legislative Research (Senate) - 2025-01-27: Numbered Bill Publicly Distributed ## Bill text - Enrolled, 2025-03-07: [PDF](https://le.utah.gov/Session/2025/bills/enrolled/SB0177.pdf) - Amended 2/24/2025 11:02:622, 2025-02-24: [PDF](https://le.utah.gov/Session/2025/bills/amended/AV_SB0177S02_2025-02-24_11-08-22.pdf) - Substitute #2, 2025-02-13: [PDF](https://le.utah.gov/Session/2025/bills/introduced/SB0177S02.pdf) - Substitute #1, 2025-01-29: [PDF](https://le.utah.gov/Session/2025/bills/introduced/SB0177S01.pdf) - Introduced, 2025-01-27: [PDF](https://le.utah.gov/Session/2025/bills/introduced/SB0177.pdf) ## Related bills - S.B. 199: Guardianship Amendments (signed) - H.B. 562: Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Amendments (signed) - H.B. 493: Medical Examiner Amendments (signed) - H.B. 482: Health and Human Services Reporting Requirements (signed) - S.B. 197: Property Tax Amendments (vetoed) - S.B. 3: Appropriations Adjustments (signed) ## Sources - [Enrolled (PDF)](https://le.utah.gov/Session/2025/bills/enrolled/SB0177.pdf) - [Amended 2/24/2025 11:02:622 (PDF)](https://le.utah.gov/Session/2025/bills/amended/AV_SB0177S02_2025-02-24_11-08-22.pdf) - [Substitute #2 (PDF)](https://le.utah.gov/Session/2025/bills/introduced/SB0177S02.pdf) - [Substitute #1 (PDF)](https://le.utah.gov/Session/2025/bills/introduced/SB0177S01.pdf) - [Introduced (PDF)](https://le.utah.gov/Session/2025/bills/introduced/SB0177.pdf) ## Related - [S.B. 199: Guardianship Amendments](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/UT-SB199-2025GS) - [H.B. 562: Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Amendments](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/UT-HB562-2025GS) - [H.B. 493: Medical Examiner Amendments](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/UT-HB493-2025GS) - [H.B. 482: Health and Human Services Reporting Requirements](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/UT-HB482-2025GS) - [S.B. 197: Property Tax Amendments](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/UT-SB197-2025GS) - [S.B. 3: Appropriations Adjustments](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/UT-SB3-2025GS) - [Utah bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/utah/bills) - [Utah state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/utah) - [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/UT-SB177-2025GS (as of 2026-10-17).