OAR 413-110-0000
Definitions
(1)
“Adoptive resource” means an individual or individuals selected by the Department, another public child welfare agency, or a licensed adoption agency as the adoptive family for a child where no administrative review was requested within the timeframe allowed for such a request, or if a review was requested, the selection has been sustained by that review and the review is complete.(2)
“Appropriateness of adoption” means the determination that a child can be successfully freed, placed, and maintained in an adoptive placement and that adoption is in the best interest of the child.(3)
“Approved family” means a family that has been selected for a child in accordance with OAR 413-120-0010 (Purpose) to 413-120-0060 (Review of the Adoption Placement Selection).(4)
“Birth parent” means the woman or man who holds a legally recognized parental relationship to the child.(5)
“Child” means a person under 18 years of age.(6)
“Committee facilitator” means a Department staff member appointed as a member of the committee to facilitate a permanency or adoption committee meeting.(7)
“Compelling reason” means a reason meeting specific criteria and documented in the case plan by the local Department staff for not to file a petition to terminate parental rights of the parents of a child where the Department would otherwise be required to do so under state and federal law.(8)
“Date child entered substitute care”: Oregon statute and federal law use the date the child is found to be within the jurisdiction of the court under ORS 419B.100 (Jurisdiction) or 60 days from date of removal, whichever is earlier. The Department uses the date of the child’s initial substitute care placement for calculating Citizens Review Board reviews, court, or permanency hearings intervals.(9)
“Department” means the Department of Human Services, Child Welfare.(10)
“Indian child” means any unmarried person who is under age 18 and either:(a)
Is a member or citizen of an Indian tribe; or(b)
Is eligible for membership or citizenship in an Indian tribe and is the biological child of a member or citizen of an Indian tribe.(11)
“Legal risk placement” means a placement that occurs when the Department believes that an adoption is in the best interests of the child; that the child is placed in an approved adoptive home; and the agency intends to approve this placement for adoption if the child becomes legally free for adoption.(12)
“Local Office Permanency/Adoption Committee” means the branch committee responsible for certain permanency and adoptions decisions, as specified in these rules. Members are selected by the local office from among the staff of the Department’s field offices. The members must not be involved in the case to be heard.(13)
“Permanency/Adoption Council” (Council) means a council consisting of field management staff, permanency and adoption staff, and community partners from several districts, except that the Council in District 2 consists only of representatives from Multnomah County. A Council makes decisions for children whose county of jurisdiction is within their geographic area about appropriateness of adoption as a permanency plan, sibling planning, recruitment, adoption disruptions, and adoption selections referred by the local office. It also may provide permanency staffings to decide whether to place a child with an out-of-state relative resource prior to receipt by the Department of an approved adoption home study.(14)
“Permanency/Adoption Council Committee” (Committee) means a committee established by the Permanency/Adoption Council that is responsible for decisions regarding adoptive placement selections that are not the responsibility of the local office or the Department’s Adoption Services Unit. The district manager or designee responsible for the local office may delegate a decision to the Committee. Each Committee must include at least three members not involved in the case to be heard by the Committee. There are two types:(a)
An ad-hoc committee selected by the child’s worker. This committee consists of three people drawn from a pool of qualified permanency and adoption staff designated by the Council.(b)
The Standing Permanency/Adoption Committee. This committee is a standing committee of three persons appointed by the Council or the Council chair. Responsibilities of this committee include making decisions, such as those relating to sibling placement planning or current caretaker placement decisions, delegated by the Local Office Permanency/Adoption Committee to the Council.(15)
“Permanency committee” means a group of individuals who are responsible for making a recommendation regarding a permanency plan or a potential permanency resource when the child or young adult likely is not returning to his or her parent.(16)
“Permanency plan” means a written course of action for achieving safe and lasting family resources for the child. Although the plan may change as more information becomes available, the goal is to develop safe and permanent family resources with the parents, relatives, or other people who will assume legal responsibility for the child during the remaining years of dependency and be accessible and supportive to the child in adulthood.(17)
“Relative” has the same meaning as in OAR 413-070-0000 (Definitions).(18)
“Sibling” means one of two or more children or young adults who are related, or would be related but for a termination or other disruption of parental rights, in one of the following ways:(a)
By blood or adoption through a common parent;(b)
Through the marriage of the legal or biological parents of the children or young adults; or(c)
Through a legal or biological parent who is the registered domestic partner of the legal or biological parent of the children or young adults.(19)
“Substitute care” means an out-of-home placement of a child or young adult who is in the legal or physical custody and care of the Department.
Source:
Rule 413-110-0000 — Definitions, https://secure.sos.state.or.us/oard/view.action?ruleNumber=413-110-0000.