(a) To establish eligibility for federally
funded (Title IV-E) adoption assistance for a child who is NOT an "applicable
child"., the criteria of sections 17-1620-7(a) and (b) (1) through (5) shall be
met and the following additional eligibility requirements shall be met prior to
the finalization of the adoption:
(1) The
child is eligible for AFDC (as was in effect July 16, 1996) pursuant to the
following:
(A) For children whose adoptions
were finalized on or after October 1, 2005, the child is AFDC eligible at the
time of removal from the home of a specified relative; and
(B) The child shall have been removed from
the home of a specified relative as a result of:
(i) A judicial order. There shall be a
judicial determination that continuation in the home would be contrary to the
welfare of the child. For children removed from the home prior to January 23,
2001, this judicial determination shall have been made in any court order up to
the time of the initiation of the adoption proceedings. For children removed
from the home on or after January 23, 2001, this judicial determination shall
have been made at the first court hearing sanctioning removal of the child;
or
(ii) Relinquishment to the
department or a licensed, private, nonprofit child-placing organization
provided that a petition has been filed with the court to remove the child from
his or her home within six months of the time the child lived with the
specified relative and there is a subsequent judicial determination to the
effect that remaining in the home would be contrary to the welfare of the
child. The voluntary relinquishment must be signed by a parent(s) or a legal
guardian(s) who is a specified relative to the child; or
(iii) A valid voluntary foster custody
agreement signed by the child's legal custodian and the department which leads
to a physical or constructive removal of the child, and there must have been a
Title IV-E foster care maintenance payment paid on the child's behalf under the
agreement. In addition, the child shall be under the care and custody of the
department; and
(C) The
child shall have been living with the specified relative from whom removed
within six months prior to the month in which a voluntary foster custody
agreement was entered into or court proceedings were initiated leading to the
removal of the child from the home as a result of a determination that
remaining in the home would be contrary to the welfare of the child;
or
(2) The child meets
the requirements for Title XVI Supplemental Security Income (SSI) prior to the
finalization of the adoption; or
(3) The child is a child of a minor parent
who is in foster care and receiving federally funded foster care maintenance
payments that cover both the minor parent and the child; or
(4) The child received Title IV-E adoption
assistance in a prior adoption that is dissolved or both adoptive parents died,
and the child is subsequently adopted, and the conditions of section
17-1620-7(b)(1), (b)(3), (b)(4), (b)(5), and (b)(6) are met; and
(5) The child is a U.S. citizen or a
qualified alien under section 431 of the Personal Responsibility and Work
Opportunity Act of 1996 (PRWORA); and
(A) The
child must have lived in the United States (U.S.) for five years if the child
entered the U.S. on or after August 22,1996 and is placed with an unqualified
alien; or
(B) The child is exempt
from the five year residency requirement because the child is adopted by a U.S.
citizen or qualified alien; or the child is a member of the exception groups
pursuant to
8
U.S.C. section 1612(b):
refugees, asylees, aliens whose deportation is withheld, veterans and those on
active duty (as well as the spouse and unmarried dependent children of that
person), Cuban or Haitian entrants, and Amerasians from Vietnam; and
(6) The prospective adoptive
parent's home, and all adult members residing in the household, is an approved
adoptive home that has met the following background checks:
(A) The fingerprint-based FBI clearances for
adult household members shall be completed in accordance with federal and state
statutes and departmental procedures prior to approving the adoptive
home.
(B) The check of the state's
child abuse and neglect registry for all adult household members, including the
registries in States where an adult resided within the preceding 5 years, shall
be completed in accordance with federal and state statutes and departmental
procedures prior to approving the adoptive home.
(b) Effective October l, 2009, to
establish eligibility for federally-funded (Title IV-E) adoption assistance for
a child who is an "applicable child", the criteria of section 17-1620-7(a) and
(b) (1)-(5), 17-1620-8(a) (5) &(6), and the following additional
eligibility requirements shall be met prior to the finalization of the
adoption:
(1) At the time of the initiation
of adoption proceedings the child was in the care of a public or licensed
private child placement agency by way of a voluntary placement, voluntary
re-linquishment, or a court-ordered removal with a judicial determination that
remaining at home would be contrary to the child's welfare; or
(2) Meets all disability or medical
requirements of the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program; or
(3) Was residing in a resource family home or
child care institution with the child's minor parent and the child's minor
parent was in foster care pursuant to a voluntary placement, voluntary
relinquishment or court-ordered removal with a judicial determination that
remaining at home would be contrary to the child's welfare; or
(4) Was eligible for federal adoption
assistance in a previous adoption (or would have been found eligible had the
adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997 been in effect at the time of the
previous adoption) in which the adoptive parents have died or had their
parental rights terminated.
(c) Children who have special needs but who
are not citizens or resident of the U.S. and were either adopted in another
country or brought to this country for the purpose of adoption are
categorically ineligible for adoption assistance, except if the child meets the
eligibility criteria after the disruption of the international
adoption.
(d) In determining
whether a child receiving Federally-funded kinship guardianship assistance is
eligible for federally-funded adoption assistance, the child's placement with
the relative guardian and any kinship guardianship payments made on behalf of
the child shall be considered never to have been made. This applies where the
guardianship is dissolved and the child is later placed for adoption with the
relative guardian or another individual.
(e) The state shall spend an amount equal to
any savings in state expenditures under title IV-E as a result of applying the
new program rules to applicable children for a fiscal year for services
permitted under title IV-B or IV-E.
