A bill that would create an infrastructure for family court to reform the way family drug cases are handled passed through the State Assembly and the State Senate and now awaits approval from Governor Scott Walker.

State Rep. Evan Goyke
State Rep. Jessie Rodriguez

The bill, a bipartisan effort headed by Representative Jessie Rodriguez (R-Oak Creek) and Representative Evan Goyke (D-Milwaukee) seeks to expand on the infrastructure of the Family Drug Treatment Court, which is part of the Children’s Court, to make it available in all counties.

The Family Drug Treatment Court works with drug-addicted parents who are involved in the child welfare system and who may lose custody of their children due to substance abuse. The use of the FTDC helps decrease children’s entry and re-entry into the foster care system by allowing parents more time to achieve sobriety and keep their families together.

The FDTC is a team of professionals that includes the judge overseeing the case, child welfare services, the District Attorney and substance abuse treatment specialists. The goal is to help people achieve relief from drug addiction and allow them to do the work to make their homes safe for their kids rather than just ripping the family apart.

It uses a 12-18 month treatment program from https://www.addictiontreatmentrehab.co.uk/ with four different phases. In Phase 1, for example, the parent is required to detox and begin abstinence from using drugs, enter a treatment program and maintain 30 consecutive days of clean random drug tests as well as other requirements in order to pass to the next phase.

The rest of the phases follow similar and escalating requirements until the person has achieved over a year of consecutive sobriety and has pieced together community support, family counseling and other staples of home stability.

Milwaukee County has been using the model since 2011 and reports that over 260 families have been helped.

Representative Rodriguez says that families across the state are facing a drug epidemic that is tearing them apart. He says that this issue has been “depriving children of growing up in a loving, safe home.”

The bill, which has been in the works for over four years, has gotten approval from both the assembly and the senate but those votes were simply to approve the infrastructure. Funding for counties to implement the program has yet to be worked out.

Still, with the national concern over the opioid crisis as well as general addiction issues, the need for reform has been clear for some time. Children being taken out of their homes has coupled with the use of the criminal justice system to deal with what should be considered addiction issues has created the need for a more comprehensive approach on a state level.

“All throughout the state and in every community we are witnessing the harmful effects of the drug epidemic,” said Representative Rodriguez. “The family drug treatment court is an innovative program that will save lives by creating a path for people suffering from addiction to get the help they need to maintain a sober household that is safe for their children.”

Like in Milwaukee County, over 300 communities around the country use the tools of the family drug court structure.

“Family treatment courts and juvenile treatment courts are proven models that help individuals break the cycle of addiction, keep our communities safe, and save taxpayer dollars,” Representative Goyke said. “This Bill will help save lives, repair families in need, and is another important step in combating drug addiction in Wisconsin.”

The Department of Children and Family Services will have the opportunity to request funding for the program in future budgets pending a decision by Governor Walker.