Current through Vol. 41, No. 13, March 15, 2024
(a)
Definitions.
(1)
"Board" means the Board of Juvenile Affairs.
(2)
"Emergency" means a
situation that poses a direct and serious threat to the health, safety or
welfare of any child cared for by the shelter.
(3)
"Operator or facility
operator" means the representative of the Department of Human Services
who has been given authority to act on behalf of the state-operated children's
shelter.
(4)
"State-operated
children's shelter or facility" means the Laura Dester Children's
Shelter or the Pauline E. Mayer Children's Shelter or any other shelter that
may be authorized by 10A O.S., § 1-9-111. If the Department of Human Services
contracts with designated youth services agencies or designated child-placing
agencies for the management and operation of such shelters, then OJA shall not
provide for the certification of such shelters.
(b)
Types of issuances.
(1)
Temporary certification.
State-operated children's shelters may be granted up to a six-month temporary
certification if documentation does not show compliance with all certification
requirements.
(2)
Certification. State-operated children's shelters may be granted
an operating certification that is valid for twelve months from the date of its
issuance. OJA certification staff determines that the shelter is operating in
compliance with current Oklahoma Department of Human Services Licensing
Requirements for Residential Child Care Facilities and any additional Board
requirements.
(c)
Case Management.
(1)
Periodic visits.(A) The OJA
certification staff shall annually conduct at a minimum one unannounced visit
to each state-operated children's shelter to document compliance with all
certification requirements and at a minimum two announced visits to monitor
compliance with certification requirements.
(B) During each unannounced compliance visit,
OJA certification staff shall:
(i) Observe the
entire facility, including outdoor play space and vehicles used for
transportation, if available, and
(ii) Check resident files and staff files,
insurance verifications, and fire and health inspections within the preceding
twelve months for compliance with certification requirements.
(C) During each announced
monitoring visit, OJA certification staff shall:
(i) Provide technical assistance to facility
personnel to meet and maintain certification requirements;
(ii) Consult with facility personnel to meet
and maintain certification requirements and improve the quality of care at the
facility.
(2)
Forms. The OJA certification staff shall use standardized
certification forms available for public inspection and copying at
http://www.ok.gov/oja/.
(3)
Reports. The OJA
certification staff annually shall issue at a minimum two monitoring reports
and at a minimum one compliance report to the operator within 30 days of a
monitoring or compliance visit.
(4)
Oklahoma Department of Human Services, Office of Client Advocacy Reports
(OCA). The OJA certification staff shall review all referrals to OCA
that concern the state-operated children's shelters and all investigation
reports issued by the OCA to ensure compliance by the state-operated children's
shelters with certification requirements.
(d)
Complaint procedure. All
complaints received by OJA concerning the state-operated children's shelters
shall be referred to the OCCY Office of Juvenile System Oversight and DHS where
appropriate.
(e)
Non-compliance with requirements.
(1)
Documentation of
non-compliance. The OJA certification staff shall document on the
monitoring reports and the compliance report areas of non-compliance and any
discussion with the operator.
(A) The OJA
certification staff shall request that the operator sign the monitoring reports
and the compliance report, explaining that the operator's signature indicates
acknowledgment of information recorded.
(B) If the person in charge refuses to sign,
the refusal shall be documented on the report.
(C) The operator shall be given a copy of the
completed report.
(D) The operator
shall prepare a plan of correction addressing each area of non-compliance no
later than 30 days from receipt of the monitoring or compliance report, unless
an extension is authorized by OJA certification staff. The plan of correction
shall be reviewed and approved by OJA certification staff.
(E) Immediate correction shall be required
when the non-compliance has a direct impact on the health, safety, or
well-being of a child or children in care. Failure to take immediate corrective
action may result in a response to non-compliance as authorized by 10A O.S., §
2-7-202(D)(5) or any other provision of law.
(2)
Referrals to fire and health
officials. If non-compliance regarding fire or health requirements
places children at risk of harm or remains uncorrected, OJA shall request an
inspection by a fire, health, or Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality
(ODEQ) official.
(3)
Case
management responses to non-compliant facilities. When there is
non-compliance with certification requirements, the OJA responses may include,
but are not limited to:
(A)
Technical
assistance. Technical assistance is offered along with referrals to
consultants or training resources, if necessary, to assist the operator in
meeting and maintaining certification requirements.
(B)
Follow-up phone call. Phone
calls are documented on OJA standardized forms.
(C)
Non-compliance letter. A
non-compliance letter may be written to the operator. The OJA certification
staff shall send a copy of the report and the non-compliance letter to the
operator's supervising authority.
(D)
Return monitoring visit. A
return monitoring visit may be made for non-compliance with certification
requirements or when non-compliance places children at imminent risk of harm.
If the non-compliance is associated with a specific time of day, such as
understaffing after school or a lack of early morning supervision, the return
visit may be made at that approximate time or any other time deemed appropriate
by the OJA certification staff.
(E)
Additional persons. The OJA certification staff may be accompanied
by additional persons during monitoring visits if the facility has areas of
non-compliance or if denial or revocation of the license is being
considered.
(F)
Increased
monitoring visits. The OJA certification staff may increase the
frequency of monitoring when there have been areas of non-compliance or when
the need for additional technical assistance is indicated.
(G)
Notice to comply when plan of
correction is not approved. The OJA certification staff may issue a
notice to comply specifically addressing those areas where the plan of
correction is insufficient or otherwise fails to address the areas of
non-compliance or is unacceptable and not approved. The notice to comply shall
state the time frame within which compliance by the operator must be
accomplished. If compliance is not obtained within the time frames set forth
within the notice to comply, then OJA may initiate the denial or revocation
process. The operator may be required to take immediate action if the area of
non-compliance places the health, safety, or well-being of a child or children
in care at risk.
(H)
Office
conference. The OJA certification staff may schedule an office
conference with the operator of the facility. Areas of non-compliance and
progress toward meeting the plan(s) of correction shall be reviewed and
technical assistance shall be offered. The conference and any plan of
correction shall be documented.
(I)
Consent agreement. OJA and the facility operator may enter into a
consent agreement whereby the facility agrees to specific conditions in lieu of
certification denial or revocation.
(J)
Certification Denial or
Revocation. The OJA certification staff may recommend that the
certification be denied or revokeed when non-compliance with requirements has
been observed and documented or the facility has failed to adequately protect
children.
(4)
Case
management responses when children are at risk. If the OJA certification
staff documents a situation where children may be at imminent risk of harm, or
if the Office of Juvenile System Oversight is investigating a complaint that
children may be at imminent risk of harm, the OJA certification staff may
consider the following options:
(A) The
operator shall be asked to immediately correct the situation where children may
be at risk of harm.
(B) The
operator may agree to enter into a consent agreement whereby the facility shall
agree to specific conditions.
(C)
The OJA certification staff may recommend that the certification be denied or
revoked when the operator fails to take necessary steps to eliminate the
situation giving rise to the imminent risk of harm.
(f)
Revocation or denial of
certification. The Office of Juvenile Affairs may revoke or deny the
certification of any state-operated children's shelter found to be in violation
of any of the rules of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services Licensing
Requirements for Residential Child Care Facilities, as set forth in
340:110-3-167,
and any additional Board requirements.
(1) No
certification shall be revoked or denied until such time as the facility
operator or applicant shall have been given at least thirty (30) days notice in
writing for the grounds of the proposed revocation or denial.
(2) Within one (1) business day of the
facility's receipt of the notice of the proposed revocation or denial, the
facility operator shall notify the parent, guardian, or legal custodian of any
child residing in the facility. The notification to the parent, guardian, or
legal custodian shall be given verbally, electronically, or in written form, as
well as by the posting of an announcement in the facility.
(g)
Formal Protest. When served
with a notice of proposed revocation or denial, the facility operator may,
within fifteen (15) days of receipt of notice, file a formal protest in writing
addressed to the Executive Director of the Office of Juvenile Affairs. Upon the
filing of the protest, the Executive Director shall set the matter for a
hearing within thirty (30) days. Notice of the hearing shall be given to the
facility operator by personal service or by delivery to the proper address by
certified mail, return receipt requested, at least ten (10) days prior to the
date of the hearing. If the facility operator does not file a protest,
certification shall be revoked or denied effective upon the expiration of the
thirty (30) day notice period set forth in (f)(1). The hearing will not be a
full evidentiary proceeding and formal rules of evidence shall not apply. The
purpose of the hearing is to provide the Executive Director with information
from which a determination may be made as to whether or not reasonable grounds
exist to support the revocation or denial. The hearing shall be recorded in its
entirety, and a copy provided upon request to the facility operator.
(h)
Emergency action.
(1) Whenever the Office of Juvenile Affairs
finds, after an investigation, that an emergency exists requiring immediate
action to protect the health, safety, or welfare of any child cared for by a
facility, the Office of Juvenile Affairs may without notice or hearing issue an
emergency order stating the existence of such an emergency and requiring that
such action be taken by the facility operator as OJA deems necessary to meet
the emergency, including when necessary, removing children from the shelter and
prohibiting the facility from providing services to children.
(2) The emergency order shall remain in
effect until the Executive Director determines that it is no longer necessary.
The operator shall be provided with a written Notice of Emergency Action, which
will include notice of a hearing before the Executive Director within fifteen
(15) days of service of the notice. The Executive Director will make a
determination at that time as to whether the emergency situation has been
resolved, and may extend, modify, or rescind the order. The hearing will not be
a full evidentiary proceeding and formal rules of evidence shall not apply. The
hearing shall be recorded in its entirety, and a copy provided upon request to
the facility operator.
(i)
Review of decision by the Board of
Juvenile Affairs. Any operator aggrieved by a decision of the Executive
Director may file a written request for review of the decision with the Board
of Juvenile Affairs within fifteen (15) days of the Executive Director's
decision. The Board shall have access to all documents submitted to the
Executive Director, as well as an audio recording or transcript of the hearing,
and the decision of the Director. The matter shall be placed on the next
available Board meeting agenda after the filing date. Upon consideration, the
Board shall enter a decision affirming, modifying, or reversing the decision of
the Executive Director. The decision shall be in writing and copies of the
decision shall be promptly mailed to all parties of record in the case. The
decision of the Board shall be final and binding.
Added at 30 Ok Reg 277, eff 12-5-12 (emergency) ; Added at
30 Ok Reg 710, eff 6-1-13
