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No school in Crestwood on Wednesday due to unspecified transportation issues

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Legislation signed Tuesday by Gov. Tom Wolf is being signaled as a major victory for grandparents raising grandchildren across Pennsylvania.</p><p>The bipartisan law was crafted by state Reps. Eddie Day Pashinski, D-Wilkes-Barre, and Kathy Watson, R-Bucks County. Getting it to the governor&#8217;s desk culminated a years-long effort.</p><p>&#8220;So to finally get it through not only the House, but also the Senate and on to be signed into law by Gov. Wolf is a tremendous win for grandparents raising grandchildren in Pennsylvania,&#8221; Pashinski said.</p><p>Here are the pieces of the legislative package:</p><p>&#8226; <strong>H.B. </strong><strong>2133</strong> &#8212; Establishes the Kinship Caregiver Navigator Program &#8212; an informational resource for grandparents, both as a website and a toll-free hotline. The website would offer information on support and services available, and a specially trained navigator would be able to provide support and guidance.</p><p>&#8226; <strong>H.B. </strong><strong>1539</strong> &#8212; Grants temporary guardianship to grandparents when the parents of the grandchildren are unable to care for them primarily due to substance abuse issues. Temporary guardianship would give grandparents the right to make vital basic decisions for their grandchildren, such as the ability to take a child to the doctor or enroll the child in school.</p><p>&#8226; <strong>H.R. </strong><strong>390</strong> &#8212; Passed in April 2018, it directs the Joint State Government Commission to study the trend of grandfamilies in Pennsylvania and report its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly.</p><p>Joan Benso, president of the Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children, said it is a tremendous undertaking for anyone to step in as a parent when a relative is struggling with addiction or cannot effectively parent for some other reason.</p><p>&#8220;But we know that children who are placed in informal kinship care are less likely to end up in foster care and will experience better outcomes when they are living with a relative or someone they know,&#8221; Benso said. &#8220;Gov. Wolf, Rep. Pashinski, Rep. Watson and other policymakers recognized the unique challenges these families face and took action.&#8221;</p><p>Officials have said 76,000 grandparents are caring for more than 83,800 grandchildren in Pennsylvania. And they believe the increasing opioid epidemic has worsened an already growing problem. Pashinski said grandparents keeping their grandchildren out of the foster care system saves the state more than $1 billion per year. </p><p>House Bill 1539 takes effect in 60 days, while H.B. 2133 takes effect in 180 days.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Pashinski </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/web1_Pashinski-cmyk.jpg</photo0><caption0>Pashinski </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Bill O&#8217;Boyle</p><p>boboyle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Bill O&#8217;Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Grandparents-raising-grandchildren legislation signed into law