Current through Register Vol. 43, No. 39, September 26, 2024
(a) Each licensee
shall be responsible for the operation of the child-placement agency and shall
meet the following requirements:
(1) Establish
and maintain a written organizational plan, including an organizational chart,
appoint an executive director to oversee the operation of the child-placement
agency, and appoint qualified staff;
(2) provide staff, facilities, equipment,
supplies, and services to children and families;
(3) adopt written administrative policies and
procedures for the delivery of services and for the operation of the
child-placement agency, including services to each foster family and adoptive
family, client eligibility criteria, fee schedules for each program offered by
the child-placement agency, and reimbursement rates for placement
families;
(4) ensure that written
personnel policies are developed and implemented that specify the necessary
qualifications for each position and govern staff member selection, roles and
responsibilities, and job duties;
(5) develop and implement written policies
and procedures on the confidentiality of information, including confidentiality
of child-placement agency records. Nothing in these policies and procedures
shall prevent access to information about a child or a family by the child's
child-placing agent, the sponsoring child-placement agency, law enforcement,
the court, the Kansas department of children and families, or the Kansas
department of corrections as allowed by applicable law;
(6) develop and implement written policies
and procedures to prevent a conflict of interest or undue influence for any
staff member of a child-placement agency, any known relative of a staff member
of a child-placement agency, and any governing body member of a child-placement
agency, who wants to be or is sponsored by that child-placement agency as a
placement resource for a child in need of an out-of-home placement;
(7) develop and implement policies and
procedures for addressing grievances concerning the delivery of
services;
(8) adopt written
policies and procedures for quality assurance;
(9) adopt written policies and procedures for
record-keeping and retention of records;
(10) adopt written policies and procedures
for transportation services; and
(11) develop and implement policies and
procedures on acceptable behavior management and discipline of children by
staff members and volunteers of the child-placement agency and families
sponsored by the child-placement agency. These policies and procedures shall
include the following:
(A) The use of
positive methods for behavior management that are appropriate to the age and
developmental levels of children and encourage cooperation, self-direction, and
independence;
(B) methods of
behavior management that are designed to help each child develop inner controls
and manage each child's own behavior in a socially acceptable manner;
(C) prohibition of any punishment that is
humiliating, frightening, or physically harmful to the child; and
(D) prohibition of corporal
punishment.
(b)
Each administrative program director shall oversee the daily operations and
maintenance of the child-placement agency and implement the policies and
procedures in compliance with licensing requirements.
(c) Each licensee shall have contracts or
agreements with other agencies or service resources providers as needed for the
provision of any services needed by children or families that are not provided
by the licensee.
(d) Each licensee
shall ensure that all child-placement agency contracts, agreements, policies,
and procedures are reviewed annually and updated as needed.
(e) Each licensee shall ensure that the
child-placement agency has a governing body, which shall exercise authority
over and have responsibility for the operation, policies, and practices of the
child-placement agency.
(f) The
administrative program director of the child-placement agency shall prepare an
annual report of the agency's activities. The report shall include fiscal and
statistical sections indicating the levels of income and expenditures, the size
and types of staff and the number of clients serviced by each service
program.
(g) The administrative
program director of the child-placement agency shall ensure financial solvency
to carry out its program for the licensing period. Child-placement agencies
which have not operated shall have capital necessary for at least a six-month
period of operation. The agency shall prepare an annual budget and accounting
of funds and shall be audited every three years by a certified public
accountant.
(h) Each licensee shall
ensure that no child is forced to participate in publicity or promotional
activities.
(i) Each licensee shall
ensure that all staff members and volunteers are informed of and have access to
all written policies and procedures and the regulations governing the licensing
of child-placement agencies in order to carry out their job duties.
(j) Each licensee shall ensure that all
families who are sponsored by the child-placement agency are informed of and
comply with all applicable policies and procedures of the child-placement
agency.
