23.8056.01000
Sixty-eighth
Legislative Assembly HOUSE BILL NO. 1091
of North Dakota
Introduced by
Human Services Committee
(At the request of the Department of Health and Human Services)
1 A BILL for an Act to amend and reenact sections 50-11-00.1, 50-11-01, 50-11-01.5, 50-11-01.6,
2 50-11-02, 50-11-02.1, 50-11-02.2, 50-11-03, 50-11-03.2, 50-11-03.3, 50-11-03.4, 50-11-03.5,
3 50-11-04, 50-11-04.2, 50-11-05, 50-11-06.7, 50-11-07, 50-11-08, and 50-11-09 of the North
4 Dakota Century Code, relating to family foster care for children licenses, certifications, and
5 approvals, and identified and kinship relatives; and to provide for a report to legislative
6 management.
7 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF NORTH DAKOTA:
8 SECTION 1. AMENDMENT. Section 50-11-00.1 of the North Dakota Century Code is
9 amended and reenacted as follows:
10 50-11-00.1. Definitions.
11 As used in this chapter:
12 1. "Agency foster home for adults" means a residential home in which foster care for
13 adults is regularly provided by professional staff trained to provide services to older
14 adults or adults with a disability, to four or fewer adults who are not related by blood or
15 marriage to the owner or lessee, for hire or compensation.
16 2. "Approval" means the approval by the department, upon submission of tribal licensing
17 standards or in the absence of tribal licensing standards compliance with state
18 standards, of a facility located on or near, as identified by the tribe, a recognized
19 Indian reservation in North Dakota, not subject to the jurisdiction of the state of North
20 Dakota for licensing purposes, to allow the facility to receive title IV-E funding.
21 3. "Authorized agent" means the human service zone, unless another entity is
22 designated by the department.
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1 4. "Certified family foster home for children" means an occupied private residence in
2 which foster care for children is regularly provided by the owner or lessee of the
3 residence to no more than three children, unless the department approves otherwise.
4 5. "Department" means the department of health and human services.
5 5.6. "Facility" means a foster home for adults, agency foster home for adults, family foster
6 home for children, certified family foster home for children, supervised independent
7 living program, or qualified residential treatment program for children.
8 6.7. "Family foster home for children" means an occupied private residence in which foster
9 care for children is regularly provided by the owner or lessee of the residence to no
10 more than six children, unless the department approves otherwise.
11 7.8. "Foster care for adults" means the provision of food, shelter, security and safety,
12 guidance, and comfort on a twenty-four-hour per day basis, in the residential home of
13 a caregiver or agency, to an individual age eighteen or older, who is unable, neglects,
14 or refuses to provide for the individual's own care.
15 8.9. "Foster care for children" means the provision of substitute parental child care for
16 those children who are in need of care for which the child's parent, guardian, or
17 custodian is unable, neglects, or refuses to provide, and includes the provision of food,
18 shelter, security and safety, guidance, and comfort on a twenty-four-hour basis, to one
19 or more children under twenty-one years of age to safeguard the child's growth and
20 development and to minimize and counteract hazards to the child's emotional health
21 inherent in the separation from the child's family. Foster care may be provided in a
22 licensed, certified, or approved family foster home for children, supervised
23 independent living program, or qualified residential treatment program.
24 9.10. "Foster home for adults" means an occupied private residence in which foster care for
25 adults is regularly provided by the owner or lessee of the residence, to four or fewer
26 adults who are not related by blood or marriage to the owner or lessee, for hire or
27 compensation.
28 10.11. "Identified relative" or "kinship relative" means:
29 a. The child's grandparent, great-grandparent, sibling, half-sibling, aunt, great-aunt,
30 uncle, great-uncle, nephew, niece, or first cousin;
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1 b. An individual with a relationship to the child, derived through a current or former
2 spouse of the child's parent, similar to a relationship described in subdivision a;
3 c. An individual recognized in the child's community as having a relationship with
4 the child similar to a relationship described in subdivision a; or
5 d. The child's stepparent.
6 11.12. "Qualified residential treatment program" means a licensed or approved residence
7 providing an out-of-home treatment placement for children.
8 12.13. "Supervised independent living program" means a licensed or approved setting
9 providing supervision and service delivery to youth transitioning into adulthood.
10 SECTION 2. AMENDMENT. Section 50-11-01 of the North Dakota Century Code is
11 amended and reenacted as follows:
12 50-11-01. Foster care for children - License, certification, or approval required.
13 1. A person may not furnish foster care for children for more than thirty days during a
14 calendar year without first procuring a license, certification, or approval to do so from
15 the department. The mandatory provisions of this section requiring licensure,
16 certification, or approval do not apply when the care is provided in:
17 a. The home of an identified relative.
18 b. The home of a kinship relative.
19 c. A home or institution under the management and control of the state or a political
20 subdivision.
21 c.d. A home or facility furnishing room and board primarily to accommodate the child's
22 educational or career and technical education needs.
23 2. An individual providing care under subdivision a of subsection 1 shall submit to a
24 criminal history record investigation as required under section 50-11-06.8.
25 3. The family foster care for children license, certification, or approval is nontransferable
26 and valid only for the applicants residing at a physical location noted at the time of
27 issuance, unless otherwise approved by the department. Only one family foster home
28 for children license, certification, or approval is permitted for each physical location.
29 SECTION 3. AMENDMENT. Section 50-11-01.5 of the North Dakota Century Code is
30 amended and reenacted as follows:
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1 50-11-01.5. Fire prevention training.
2 Before initial licensure, or certification and each renewal under this chapter, each foster
3 parentfamily foster home for children shall complete a course of instruction related to fire
4 prevention and safety. The state fire marshal shall design the course in cooperation with the
5 department of health and human services. The course must be available on videotape or any
6 equivalent mediumto the public as designed by the department. The department of health and
7 human services shall offer the course throughout the state.
8 SECTION 4. AMENDMENT. Section 50-11-01.6 of the North Dakota Century Code is
9 amended and reenacted as follows:
10 50-11-01.6. Self-declaration form.
11 The department of health and human services shall prescribe self-declaration forms to be
12 completed and signed by each foster parentfamily foster home for children provider before initial
13 licensure or certification and each renewal under this chapter. The self-declaration forms must
14 include references to smoke detectors, fire extinguishers, fire escape plans, and inspections of
15 appliances, electrical systems, and heating systems.
16 SECTION 5. AMENDMENT. Section 50-11-02 of the North Dakota Century Code is
17 amended and reenacted as follows:
18 50-11-02. License or certification granted - Term - Conditions.
19 1. The department shall grant a license or certification for the operation of a facility
20 receiving persons for foster care, for a period of not more than two years, to reputable
21 and responsible persons upon showing that:
22 a. The premises to be used are in fit sanitary condition and properly equipped to
23 provide good care for all persons who may be received;
24 b. The persons in active charge of the facility are properly qualified to carry on
25 efficiently the duties required of them;
26 c. The facility is likely to be conducted for the public good in accordance with sound
27 social policy and with due regard to the health, morality, and well-being of all
28 persons cared for in the facility;
29 d. The facility will be maintained according to the standards prescribed for its
30 conduct by the rules of the department;
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1 e. The applicant has not had a previous facility license, certification, or approval
2 denied within two years of the date of the current application, unless waived by
3 the department after the department considers the health and safety of children
4 and the licensing, certification, or approval history of the applicant; and
5 f. The applicant has not had a previous facility license, certification, or approval
6 revoked within five years of the date of the current application, unless waived by
7 the department after the department considers the health and safety of children
8 and the licensing, certification, or approval history of the applicant.
9 2. Before licensing, certifying, or approving a facility providing foster care for children or
10 adults, the department shall seek a criminal history record when required by this
11 chapter. The department shall consider any criminal history record information
12 available at the time a licensinglicense, certification, or approval decision is made.
13 3. The department shall determine, in accordance with rules of the department, whether
14 a license, certification, or approval may be issued to a facility that houses or employs
15 any individual who has a criminal record.
16 SECTION 6. AMENDMENT. Section 50-11-02.1 of the North Dakota Century Code is
17 amended and reenacted as follows:
18 50-11-02.1. Conviction not bar to licensure - Exceptions.
19 Conviction of an offense does not disqualify a person from licensure, certification, or
20 approval under this chapter unless the department determines that the offense has a direct
21 bearing upon that person's ability to serve the public as the operator of a facility or that,
22 following conviction of any offense, the person is not sufficiently rehabilitated under section
23 12.1-33-02.1.
24 SECTION 7. AMENDMENT. Section 50-11-02.2 of the North Dakota Century Code is
25 amended and reenacted as follows:
26 50-11-02.2. Provisional license, certification, or approval.
27 At the discretion of the department, a provisional license, certification, or approval may be
28 issued to an applicant who, or whose facility, fails to conform in all respects to this chapter and
29 the rules of the department. The department may set conditions under which a provisional
30 license, certification, or approval may be issued, and may issue such a license, certification, or
31 approval for any period of time, not to exceed two years, as the department may deem
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1 reasonable or appropriate to the circumstances of the case. The department may not be
2 compelled to issue a provisional license, certification, or approval.
3 SECTION 8. AMENDMENT. Section 50-11-03 of the North Dakota Century Code is
4 amended and reenacted as follows:
5 50-11-03. Department to make rules - Records kept by facility.
6 A record of all children and adults cared for in any facility licensed, certified, or approved
7 under this chapter must be maintained at the facility in the manner and form prescribed by the
8 department. The department shall establish reasonable minimum standards, and shall make
9 such reasonable rules for the conduct of such place as are necessary to carry out the purposes
10 of this chapter.
11 SECTION 9. AMENDMENT. Section 50-11-03.2 of the North Dakota Century Code is
12 amended and reenacted as follows:
13 50-11-03.2. Use of public funds.
14 1. Public funds for the purchase of foster care for children or adults may be used only in
15 facilities licensed, certified, or approved by the department. No person acting on behalf
16 of any state, county, or local governmental entity may arrange for or promote care
17 provided in a facility that does not have a license, certification, or approval issued by
18 the department. This section does not apply to any home or institution under the
19 management and control of the state.
20 2. Nonfederal funds may be used to reimburse the costs of shelter care placements for
21 no more than seven days if the shelter care services are certified by the department. If
22 the entity has diligently pursued other placement, the department may grant an
23 extension for the health and safety of the child or due to unforeseeable circumstances.
24 3. Nonfederal funds may be used for maintenance payments to unlicensed identified
25 relatives or unlicensed kinship relatives for no more than six months.
26 SECTION 10. AMENDMENT. Section 50-11-03.3 of the North Dakota Century Code is
27 amended and reenacted as follows:
28 50-11-03.3. Department to provide liability coverage to foster homes for children.
29 1. The department shall provide liability coverage for acts or omissions of foster children
30 placed in the care of foster familieslicensed, certified, or approved family foster homes
31 for children. The department may provide this liability coverage through self-insurance.
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1 2. The liability coverage under this section:
2 a. Must provide coverage for damage to property which is caused by the act of a
3 foster child. This coverage must be for the lesser of the reasonable cost to repair
4 or to replace the damaged property.
5 b. Is secondary to any other coverage.
6 c. Except as provided in subdivision d, may not exceed five thousand dollars per
7 claim, with an annual maximum of ten thousand dollars per year per claimant.
8 The coverage under this subsection must include a deductible not to exceed one
9 hundred dollars per claim.
10 d. In cases in which the property damage per event total exceeds twenty-five
11 thousand dollars, the department may further review the claim. The department
12 may cover twenty-five percent of the remaining property damage after any
13 insurance reimbursement, not to exceed ten thousand dollars.
14 3. The department may provide for exclusions from liability coverage provided under this
15 section.
16 SECTION 11. AMENDMENT. Section 50-11-03.4 of the North Dakota Century Code is
17 amended and reenacted as follows:
18 50-11-03.4. Immunity for a person providing foster care.
19 A person providing foster care for children in a licensed, certified, or approved facility is
20 immune from civil liability for any act or omission resulting in damage or injury to or by a child in
21 foster care if, at the time of the act or omission, the person providing foster care for children
22 applied the reasonable and prudent parent standard in a manner that protects child safety, while
23 also allowing the child in foster care to experience age or developmentally appropriate activities.
24 SECTION 12. AMENDMENT. Section 50-11-03.5 of the North Dakota Century Code is
25 amended and reenacted as follows:
26 50-11-03.5. Automated clearinghouse payments.
27 The department shall provide payment to family foster home for children, supervised
28 independent living program, certified family foster home for children, and qualified residential
29 treatment program for children providers using an automated clearinghouse to provide for
30 electronic fund transfers. To receive payment, family foster home for children, supervised
31 independent living program, certified family foster home for children, and qualified residential
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