§ 9-28-114 — Foster youth transition

(a) The General Assembly finds that: (1) Each juvenile in foster care should have a family for a lifetime, but too many juveniles in foster care reach the age of majority without being successfully reunited with their biological families and without the security of permanent homes; (2) A child in foster care who is approaching the age of majority shall be provided the opportunity to be actively engaged in the planning of his or her future; and (3) The Department of Human Services shall: (A) Include the child in the process of developing a plan to transition the child into adulthood; (B) Empower the child with information about all of the options and services available; (C) Provide the child with the opportunity to participate in services tailored to his or her individual needs and designed to enhance his or her ability to receive the skills necessary to enter adulthood; (D) Assist the child in developing and maintaining healthy relationships with nurturing adults who can be resources and positive guiding influences in his or her life after he or she leaves foster care; (E) Provide the child with basic information and documentation regarding his or her biological family and personal history; (F) Offer an extended foster care program that provides: (i) Case management services and supports; and (ii) Financial assistance with room and board costs for a juvenile who: (a) Was adjudicated dependent or dependent-neglected; (b) Was in foster care at eighteen (18) years of age but is not yet twenty-one (21) years of age or such other age as may be required under federal law; (c) Wishes to participate in extended foster care to benefit from the program; and (d) Either: (1) Is completing secondary education or a program leading to an equivalent credential; (2) Is enrolled in an institution that provides postsecondary or vocational education; (3) Is participating in a program or activity designed to promote or remove barriers to employment; (4) Is employed for at least eighty (80) hours per month; (5) Has a viable plan to meet the requirements of subdivisions (a)(3)(F)(ii) (d)(1)-(4) of this section; or (6) Is incapable of doing any of the activities listed in subdivisions (a)(3)(F)(ii) (d)(1)-(5) of this section due to a medical condition, which incapability is supported by regularly updated information in the case plan of the juvenile; (G) (i) Allow a juvenile described in subdivisions (a)(3)(F)(ii) (a)-(d) of this section who left foster care to reenter the extended foster care program if the juvenile submits a request in writing or in person to the department for his or her return to foster care. (ii) The department may discharge a juvenile from the extended foster care program if the juvenile: (a) Is over eighteen (18) years of age; (b) Reenters extended foster care after having his or her request to reenter foster care approved; and (c) Fails to engage in or have a viable plan to meet the requirements listed in subdivision (a)(3)(F)(ii) (d) of this section or have a viable plan to meet the requirements listed in subdivision (a)(3)(F)(ii) (d) of this section for more than sixty (60) days; and (H) Recognize that participation in extended foster care does not impede or otherwise alter any right afforded to the youth by virtue of his or her age of majority including without limitation the right to consent to medical treatment or enter into contracts. (b) (1) The department shall assist a juvenile in foster care or entering foster care with the development of a transitional life plan when the juvenile turns fourteen (14) years of age or within ninety (90) days of his or her fourteenth birthday, whichever occurs first. (2) The plan shall include without limitation written information and confirmation concerning: (A) The juvenile's right to stay in extended foster care after reaching eighteen (18) years of age in order to participate in specific transitional programs and services, including without limitation the John H. Chafee Foster Care Program for Successful Transition to Adulthood; and (B) The juvenile's case, including his or her biological family, foster care placement history, tribal information, if applicable, and the whereabouts of siblings, if any, unless a court determines that release of information pertaining to a sibling would jeopardize the safety or welfare of the sibling. (c) The department shall assist the juvenile with: (1) Completing applications for: (A) ARKids First, Medicaid, or assistance in obtaining other health insurance; (B) Referrals to transitional housing, if available, or assistance in securing other housing; and (C) Assistance in obtaining employment or other financial support; (2) Applying for admission to a college or university, to a vocational training program, or to another educational institution and in obtaining financial aid, when appropriate; and (3) Developing and maintaining relationships with individuals who are important to the juvenile and who may serve as resources based on the best interest of the juvenile. (d) A juvenile and his or her attorney shall fully participate in the development of his or her transitional plan, to the extent that the juvenile is able to participate medically and developmentally. (e) (1) If a juvenile does not have the capacity to successfully transition into adulthood without the assistance of the Office of Public Guardian for Adults, the Division of Children and Family Services shall make a referral to the office no later than six (6) months before the juvenile reaches eighteen (18) years of age or upon entering foster care, whichever occurs later. (2) A representative from the office shall attend and participate in the transitional youth staffing, and information shall be provided to all of the parties about what services are available and how to access services for the youth after reaching the age of majority. (f) Before closing a case, the department shall provide a juvenile in foster care who reaches eighteen (18) years of age or before leaving foster care, whichever is later, his or her: (1) Social Security card; (2) Certified birth certificate or verification of birth record, if available or if it should have been available to the department; (3) Family photos in the possession of the department; (4) (A) All of the juvenile's health records for the time the juvenile was in foster care and any other medical records that were available or should have been available to the department. (B) A juvenile who reaches eighteen (18) years of age and remains in foster care shall not be prevented from requesting that his or her health records remain private; (5) All of the juvenile's educational records for the time the juvenile was in foster care and any other educational records that were available or should have been available to the department; and (6) Driver's license or a state-issued official identification card. (g) Within thirty (30) days after the juvenile leaves foster care, the department shall provide the juvenile a full accounting of all funds held by the department to which he or she is entitled, information on how to access the funds, and when the funds will be available. (h) The department shall not request a circuit court to close a family-in-need-of-services case or dependency-neglect case involving a juvenile in foster care until the department complies with this section. (i) The department shall provide notice to the juvenile and his or her attorney before a hearing in which the department or another party requests a court to close the case is held. (j) Nothing in this subchapter prohibits a child in the custody of the department from sharing at his or her discretion information concerning his or her experience with the department after consultation with his or her assigned attorney ad litem.

Legislative History

Amended by Act 2021, No. 791,§ 6, eff. 7/28/2021. Amended by Act 2021, No. 791,§ 5, eff. 7/28/2021. Amended by Act 2021, No. 316,§ 4, eff. 7/28/2021. Amended by Act 2021, No. 316,§ 3, eff. 7/28/2021. Amended by Act 2019, No. 663,§ 2, eff. 7/24/2019. Amended by Act 2015, No. 1033,§ 2, eff. 7/22/2015 Amended by Act 2015, No. 1038,§ 8, eff. 4/4/2015 Acts 2011, No. 591, § 1