Current through Register No. 40, October 3, 2024
(a) Any person, regardless of race, sex,
religion, ethnicity, marital status, sexual orientation, national origin, or
physical or mental disability, may apply for a foster family care
license.
(b) The applicant, or at
least one applicant if more than one person is applying together, shall:
(1) Be a legal resident of the state of New
Hampshire;
(2) Be at least 21 years
of age as of the date of the application;
(3) Have sufficient income to make timely
payments for shelter, food, utility costs, clothing, and other household
expenses prior to the addition of a child or children in care;
(4) Be able to communicate with the child,
DCYF, and health care providers and service providers;
(5) Have a high school diploma or its
equivalent;
(6) Have functional
literacy, such as having the ability to read medication labels; and
(7) If the applicant will transport children
in care, show proof of:
a. Possession of a
valid New Hampshire driver's license;
b. Possession of an automobile that has a
current and valid state inspection; and
c. Possession of automobile liability
insurance.
(c)
A full application shall be submitted by the applicant as described in
He-C
6446.06 or a full renewal application as described in
He-C
6446.15.
(d) Prior to the issuance of a license, the
applicant and all household members shall:
(1) Reside in a home that complies with the
foster home requirements set forth in
He-C
6446.09;
(2) Meet with representatives of the
licensing agency as required by
He-C
6446.10;
(3) Participate in the preparation of the
home study as required in
He-C
6446.11; and
(4) Complete pre-licensing training as
required by He-C
6446.12.
(e) The applicant and all household members
18 years of age or older shall not have been convicted of a felony or other
crime as described in
He-C
6446.28(b)(1)-(3).
(f) Through compliance with the requirements
of He-C
6446.04 and
He-C
6446.06 - 6446.12, prior to the issuance of a license,
each applicant shall demonstrate his or her ability to:
(1) Provide a child in care with a safe,
nurturing, and stable family environment, which is free from abuse and
neglect;
(2) Provide for the basic
needs of a child in care, including those for food, clothing, shelter, and
supervision;
(3) Assure, in
conjunction with the child-placing agency, that a child in care receives
routine and emergency medical and dental care, and mental health
care;
(4) Honor and uphold the
foster care children's bill of rights codified in
RSA
170-G:20-21;
(5) Promote the physical, mental,
educational, and emotional development of a child in care;
(6) Show respect for the linguistic, ethnic,
spiritual, and cultural background of a child in care;
(7) Accept the relationships of a child in
care with his or her parents, family members, DCYF, the licensing agency, and
other individuals identified by the child and family as being a supportive and
positive resource for the child through a relative, social, educational, or
community relationship;
(8) Assist
a child in care in handling stressful situations and trauma frequently
associated with placement in foster care, including:
a. Removal from the parents' home;
b. Placement in a new home
environment;
c. Visitation with
parents and siblings; and
d. Return
to the parents' home or placement in other substitute care;
(9) Manage the stressful
situations that might develop in the foster home or with the foster family, as
the result of the placement of a child in care;
(10) Accept the temporary nature of foster
family care and the likelihood that the child in care will, pursuant to the
child's case plan, return to his or her parent(s) or be placed in a permanent
placement;
(11) Work cooperatively
with DCYF or the child-placing agency in implementing the case plan for the
child in care;
(12) Respect the
legal rights and responsibilities of the parents of the child in
care;
(13) Complete the pre-license
training required by He-C 6446.12;
(14) Complete the in-service training
required by He-C 6446.20 for the applicant's
foster family care license renewal, as applicable;
(15) Discipline a child in care in a safe,
non-threatening, and instructive manner that complies with
He-C
6446.22; and
(16) Demonstrate freedom from physical,
mental, or emotional illness that would substantially impair the applicant's
ability to comply with the requirements of He-C 6446 for the care of children
in care.
