(Revised 9/15/23)
AS 47.32.010 Centralized Licensing and Related Administrative Procedures
7 AAC 10 Licensing, Certification, and Approval Alaska Regulations
7 AAC 67 Foster Home Licensing Standards
7 AAC 56 Child Placement Agencies Federal Law
42 U.S.C. 621 Child Welfare Services
45 CFR 1356 Requirements Applicable to Title IV-E
To assist licensing staff with policies and procedures for implementing the laws consistently across the state.
Office of Children’s Services Mission Statement:
Ensuring the safety, permanency, and well-being of children by strengthening families, engaging communities, and partnering with tribes.
Office of Children’s Services Vision Statement:
Safe Children, Strong Families.
The Office of Children’s Services Responsibilities to Children in Custody: When the Office of Children’s Services (OCS) has legal custody of a child who has been removed from the home of a parent or legal guardian, the Department of Family and Community Services, through OCS, has the serious responsibility to arrange for the care of that child.
This legal relationship is described in state law in Title 47, Chapter 10, Section 84 of the Alaska Statutes:
“This relationship imposes on the department and its authorized agents or the parents, guardian, or other suitable person the responsibility of physical care and control of the child, the determination of where and with whom the child shall live, the right and duty to protect, nurture, train, and discipline the child, the duty of providing the child with food, shelter, education, and medical care, and the right and responsibility to make decisions of financial significance concerning the child.”
Legislative findings entered into Alaska law in AS 47.06.030 state, in part:
“The legislature finds that it is the policy of the state to recognize that, when a child is a ward of the state, the child is entitled to reasonable safety, adequate care, and adequate treatment and that the Department of Family and Community Services as legal custodian…should make reasonable efforts to ensure that the child is provided with reasonable safety, adequate care, and adequate treatment for the duration of time thatthe child is a ward of the state;…the child should be placed in a safe, secure, and stable environment;…[and] the child should not be moved unnecessarily….
Community Care Licensing
Community Care Licensing is a critical component for the Office of Children’s Services (OCS). AS 47.32.010(a) is the section of Alaska law that provides the purpose for the community care licensing laws, and contains the following statement:
“These procedures are intended to promote safe and appropriate services by setting standards for licensure that will reduce predictable risk; improve quality of care; foster individual and patient rights; and otherwise advance public health, safety, and welfare.”
Primary responsibilities of the licensing function:
Enforcement of safety standards, and
Recruitment, retention and support of licensed foster homes. The Office of Children’s Services must have an adequate number of licensed foster homes in which to place children in custody, yet those homes must provide reasonably safe and adequate care and treatment for the children placed. OCS employees involved in all levels of the licensing function are faced with balancing these two major responsibilities.
Achieving this balance involves:
Attention to detailed safety requirements,
A willingness and ability to provide support and technical assistance to professional and lay applicants,
Good interviewing and assessment skills,
Comfort with OCS’s high level of authority and responsibility. Licensing entails much more than inspecting facilities against physical safety standards and completing required forms,
Exploring with potential applicants their suitability for caring for children not their own,
Obtaining in-depth responses from applicants to questions of a deeply personal nature,
Helping applicants and licensed providers understand and meet licensing standards,
Assessing an applicant’s ability to work with foster children and biological parents,
Providing support to non-compliant providers to help them reach compliance or stop providing care, and
Taking the difficult position of recommending removal of a child from a facility or enforcing negative licensing action when a placement or facility poses a risk to health or safety or for other reasons does not meet the standards required by law.
Community Care Licensing Roles
Community Care Licensing Specialist (CCLS I)
Depending on the organizational structure of the office, the CCLS I will provide information to potential applicants, be involved in recruitment and orientation activities, receive applications for licensing, and fingerprint individuals. The CCLS I:
Provides assistance to the applicant throughout the application and licensing process,
Conducts the licensing inspection and investigation,
Recommends the number of children and the nature of special needs or problems appropriate for referral to the foster home,
Explains compliance issues with the provider,
Recommends training and/or special training appropriate to the provider,
Explains or clarifies licensing, placement, and payment procedures,
Serves as a liaison between the provider and case workers as necessary,
Recommends negative licensing action when indicated, and
Completes all required forms.
Community Care Licensing Specialist II (CCLS II)
The CCLS II provides oversight of the licensing function in the region. The responsibility of the supervisor(s) includes:
Maintaining expertise in all licensing program areas,
Assisting all staff in the region involved in the licensing process,
Assisting staff in working with difficult situations,
Reviewing applications and recommending appropriate action to the Community Care Licensing Manager, and
May also be involved in recruitment, orientations, and providing information to potential applicants.
Community Care Licensing Specialist III (CCLS III)
The CCLS III provides oversight of the licensing function statewide. This position provides leadership to the CCLS II and promotes statewide consistency for foster care licensing.
The Community Care Licensing Manual (CCLM)
The CCLM provides essential information about the Alaska statutes and regulations, procedures for the many complex tasks and interactions for successful licensing practices.
Legislative, Administrative, and Federal Law
State and federal laws and regulations govern the licensing functions of the Office of Children’s Services.
The laws of Alaska, enacted by the state legislature and contained in the Alaska Statutes, set forth absolute requirements that must be met by the department and division in caring for children in custody and in licensing facilities that care for those children.
Alaska law both requires and authorizes the department to establish standards in administrative law, known as regulations, to implement the law. The department’s regulations, promulgated and adopted following public hearings, are contained in the Alaska Administrative Code.
Alaska law is the authority for the department to cooperate with the federal government to receive federal funds for OCS’s child protection programs. Receiving Title IV-E funds is contingent upon compliance with pertinent federal laws, contained in the United States Code, and regulations, contained in the Federal Register.
With some exceptions, the statutes and regulations on which the policies and procedures set forth in this manual are based will not be stated in the manual. Copies of state statutes and regulations are provided as appendices. Each section that policy addresses will cite the authority for the policy. Federal requirements on licensing are generally quite broad and will usually not be cited for that reason.
Licensing Foster Homes and Child Placement Agencies
Requirement to obtain a license
AS 47.32.020 requires an entity to obtain a license to operate a facility unless exempt. If there is more than one type of activity, the entity must apply for and receive a separate license before operating that type of activity unless exempt.
Powers of the department; delegation to municipality
AS 47.32.030(a)(9) waives the application requirements for an entity seeking licensure if the entity submits documentation verifying that it
has a license issued by an organization or other agency that has licensing authority under state or federal law if the standards for that licensure are approved by the department under this chapter or regulations adopted under this chapter;
has accreditation from a nationally recognized organization if the standards for that accreditation are equal to or more stringent than the standards for licensure under this chapter or regulations adopted under this chapter; or
is an entity that federal law does not require to be licensed.
Organization of the Manual
This manual contains policy and procedures for community care licensing workers in the following chapters: