Part 40. Policy and Procedure Manual

9 CAR § 40-303. Receipt and assignment of differential response referral. (a) Upon receipt of the DR referral from the Child Abuse Hotline, the Differential Response (DR) Supervisor or designee will: (1) Determine if the referral meets the criteria for differential response by co…

9 CAR § 40-304. Differential response initiation and family assessment. (a) The Differential Response (DR) Supervisor will: (1)(A) Assign each new report to a DR Worker within two (2) hours of receipt from the DR Program Manager or designee. (B) Initial face-to-face contact with …

9 CAR § 40-305. Management of family’s refusal to participate. (a)(1) If the DR Worker has been unable to conduct a safety assessment or is unable to assess underlying issues or additional child maltreatment concerns that may not have been identified in the original hotline repor…

9 CAR § 40-306. Differential response services management. (a) The DR Worker will: (1)(A) Engage the household in a comprehensive and collaborative family assessment of the family’s strengths and needs and gather other relevant, corresponding information within fourteen (14) days…

9 CAR § 40-307. Child Abuse Hotline for child maltreatment reports. (a) Pursuant to Acts 1997, No. 1240, the Department of Human Services and the Division of Arkansas State Police entered into an agreement for the Crimes Against Children Division to assume responsibility for the …

9 CAR § 40-308. Child Abuse Hotline acceptance and assignment of maltreatment reports. (a) The Child Abuse Hotline worker will: (1) Receive and document all child maltreatment allegation reports with sufficiently identifying information as defined by Arkansas law; (2)(A) Receive …

9 CAR § 40-309. County office interaction with Child Abuse Hotline. The county supervisor or designee will: (1) Take the information on child maltreatment as directed in 9 CAR § 40-308 if a reporter contacts the county office and refuses to call or has been unable to contact the …

9 CAR § 40-310. County office secondary review requests from the Division of Children and Family Services Central Office and requests for clearance of other reports from the Child Abuse Hotline. (a) The FSW Investigative Supervisor or County Supervisor will: (1) Determine if an a…

9 CAR § 40-311. Child maltreatment reports involving allegations taking place in other states or countries. (a) The Child Abuse Hotline Worker will: (1) If the alleged offender resides in another state and the suspected maltreatment occurred in another state or country: (A) Docum…

9 CAR § 40-312. Child maltreatment reports involving allegations taking place in Arkansas with alleged parties to the report living outside of Arkansas. (a) The Child Abuse Hotline Worker will, if the alleged maltreatment occurred in Arkansas, but the victim, the parents, and/or …

9 CAR § 40-313. Investigation of child maltreatment reports. (a) Overview. (1)(A) All reports of known or suspected child maltreatment are promptly investigated. (B) The safety of the child is always the first priority during the course of a child maltreatment investigation. (C) …

9 CAR § 40-314. Assignment of Child Abuse Hotline investigation reports. The FSW supervisor or designee will assign the report to a Family Service Worker or Workers or a unit group, as applicable, who will conduct the investigation when a report is received in the CHRIS county in…

9 CAR § 40-315. Preparation for investigation initiation. The FSW will: (1) Conduct a CHRIS history search prior to initiation of investigation unless the report is received after hours or during the weekend or a holiday; (2) If the reporter is named in the report, attempt to con…

9 CAR § 40-316. Investigation initiation. (a) The FSW will: (1) Consider the investigation initiated: (A) By interviewing or observing, when appropriate, the alleged victim child outside the presence of the alleged offender; or (B)(i) Exercising and documenting due diligence when…

9 CAR § 40-317. Child maltreatment report investigation interviews. (a) The FSW will: (1)(A) Prepare for interviews by reviewing intake report and any prior child maltreatment reports, etc. (B) See “Gathering Information” practice guide series for more information; (2)(A) Conduct…

9 CAR § 40-318. Discovery of new victims or allegations in an ongoing investigation. (a) When at any point during the course of an ongoing investigation the FSW Investigator discovers new victims or new allegations of child maltreatment, the following actions will be taken. (b) T…

9 CAR § 40-319. Medical/psychological evaluation required during investigation. (a) The FSW Investigator will: (1) Confer with the supervisor concerning a complete examination/evaluation by a mental health professional if a child has one (1) of the following: (A) Impairment of th…

9 CAR § 40-320. Other child maltreatment investigation actions. (a) The FSW Investigator will: (1)(A) Use CFS-317: Off-Site Worker’s Safety Log during the child maltreatment investigation for all off-site visits away from his or her primary work site. (B) If worker will return to…

9 CAR § 40-321. Protective custody of a child in immediate danger. The FSW will: (1) Take a child into protective custody for up to seventy-two (72) hours if: (A) The circumstances present an immediate danger to the child’s health or physical well-being; (B) The child is neglecte…

9 CAR § 40-322. Using interpreter services during an investigation. (a) Both verbal language interpreter services and American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter services are available statewide and require, when possible, a twenty-four-hour notice. (b) Language interpretation may b…

9 CAR § 40-323. Request for investigative timeframe extension. (a) If the FSW Investigator is unable to make a supervisor-approved investigative determination within forty-five (45) calendar days of receipt of the child maltreatment report due to good cause, then the FSW Investig…

9 CAR § 40-324. Child maltreatment investigation closures and determinations. (a) Within forty-five (45) calendar days of receipt of a report from the Child Abuse Hotline (or within sixty (60) calendar days for those investigations for which an extension was granted as outlined a…

9 CAR § 40-325. Referrals and case openings based on investigative findings. (a) The FSW will: (1) For reports of sexual abuse determined to be true and involving an alleged offender under eighteen (18) years of age at the time the act or omission occurred, refer the alleged offe…

9 CAR § 40-326. Division of Children and Family Services and law enforcement interfaces and responses. (a) When a parent or custodian is arrested and can no longer care for his or her child, law enforcement often contacts the Division of Children and Family Services. (b)(1) The d…

9 CAR § 40-327. Policy — Medical neglect of an infant with disabilities. The Division of Children and Family Services shall maintain sufficient contact with healthcare facilities to facilitate communication between those facilities and the division in order to enable the healthca…

9 CAR § 40-328. Procedure — Medical neglect of an infant with disabilities. The Family Service Worker will: (1) Make telephone inquiry to the healthcare facility immediately upon receipt of an allegation of suspected medical neglect of an infant with disabilities to determine if:…

9 CAR § 40-329. Substance-exposed infant referral and assessments. (a)(1) The Division of Children and Family Services believes in coordinating with other state agencies and community partners to help strengthen and support families in an effort to prevent child abuse and neglect…

9 CAR § 40-330. Prenatal substance exposure referrals. The Child Abuse Hotline worker will: (1) Receive and document prenatal substance exposure referrals from healthcare providers involved in the delivery and care of infants with sufficiently identifying information as defined b…

9 CAR § 40-331. Receipt and assignment of prenatal substance exposure referrals. The Differential Response Supervisor or designee will: (1) Check CHRIS inbox at least one (1) time in the morning and one (1) time in the afternoon each business day; and (2) Assign each new referral…

9 CAR § 40-332. Prenatal substance exposure assessment and plan of safe care. (a) The Differential Response Supervisor or designee will: (1) Conference with the DRT Specialist within one (1) business day after the DRT specialist’s initial face-to-face contact with the infant and …

9 CAR § 40-333. Team decision making. (a) The policy and related procedures in this section only apply to those counties in which team decision making has been implemented. (b) Overview. (1) Team decision making (TDM) provides a facilitated forum for families, community members, …

9 CAR § 40-334. Team decision making initiation and referral. (a) After establishing a protection plan and/or initiating an investigation involving a Garrett’s Law allegation (regardless of whether the child is left in the home or removed), the FSW will: (1) Inform parents (or pe…

9 CAR § 40-335. Team decision making preparation. (a) The FSW will: (1) Conference with the FSW Supervisor who approved the protection plan or the supervisor of the primary FSW Investigator involving a Garrett’s Law allegation, as applicable, and facilitator to prepare for the TD…

9 CAR § 40-336. Team decision making meetings. (a) The facilitator will: (1) Open the TDM meeting by: (A) Welcoming all participants; (B) Explaining purpose of TDM; (C) Asking all participants to complete CFS-354: Team Decision Making Meeting Sign-in Sheet and Privacy Statement; …

9 CAR § 40-337. Team decision making review. (a) The requesting Division of Children and Family Services staff member will: (1) Notify the entire TDM team of his or her intent to seek a review prior to the end of the TDM meeting; and (2) Present a summary of the meeting and reaso…

9 CAR § 40-338. Team decision making follow-up. (a) The FSW will: (1) Meet or conference call with the Facilitator and FSW supervisor who approved the protection plan or supervisor of the primary FSW Investigator involving a Garrett’s Law allegation within twenty-four (24) hours …

9 CAR § 40-339. Community notification of sex offenders. (a) Upon notification to the Division of Children and Family Services by law enforcement of the presence of a sex offender, the division is responsible to notify foster parents and families with whom the division has active…

9 CAR § 40-340. Notification of sex offenders. Upon notification, the Family Service Worker will: (1) Notify foster parents or families with whom the Division of Children and Family Services has active cases that an offender has moved into their neighborhood; (2) Document in the …

9 CAR § 40-341. Family in need of services. (a) Arkansas Code § 9-27-303 defines “Family in Need of Services” (FINS) as any family whose juvenile evidences behavior which includes, but is not limited to, the following: (1) Being habitually and without justification absent from sc…

9 CAR § 40-342. Family in need of services. (a)(1) The Office of Chief Counsel attorney will fax the County Supervisor the written notice of intent from the court. (2) The court must fax written notice of intent five (5) working days prior to ordering the Department of Human Serv…

9 CAR § 40-343. Early intervention referrals and services. (a)(1) For children who have or are at risk of a developmental delay, appropriate early intervention services are essential. (2) Early intervention services are designed to lessen the effects of any potential or existing …

9 CAR § 40-344. Division of Developmental Disability Services early intervention services referrals. (a) When children under three (3) years of age are involved in a substantiated case of child maltreatment, but a case is not opened, the investigator will: (1) Provide an overview…

9 CAR § 40-345. Division of Developmental Disabilities Services early intervention individualized family service planning. (a) The FSW will: (1)(A) Regardless of the type of case (i.e., protective or foster care), include early intervention services and individualized family serv…

9 CAR § 40-346. FASD referrals and services. (a) Note. (1) This procedure is applicable to those children already involved in an open Division of Children and Family Services case and who the division staff or providers suspect may be affected by FASD. (2) This procedure is not a…

9 CAR § 40-347. Policy — Sex offender with custody or unsupervised visitation rights. When the Division of Children and Family Services receives a report that a child is living with or participating in unsupervised visits with a registered sex offender, the division will find the…

9 CAR § 40-348. Procedure — Sex offender with custody or unsupervised visitation rights. When investigating a report that a child is living with or participating in unsupervised visits with a registered sex offender, the Family Service Worker will: (1) Determine if a court has gr…

9 CAR § 40-401. General services case opening and reevaluations. (a)(1) The Division of Children and Family Services will open cases to ensure safety and promote the best interest of the child and to provide services to strengthen, reunify, and assist families. (2) This will be a…

9 CAR § 40-402. Protective/supportive services case opening. The Family Service Worker will: (1)(A) Gather data from the family about the needs of the family and place the information in the Family Advocacy and Support Tool (FAST). (B) This information is located in the “Case Pla…

9 CAR § 40-403. Out-of-home placement services case opening. The Family Service Worker will: (1) Complete the “Case Connect” screen in the investigation to open a case; (2) Enter the appropriate information in the open case on the “Removal” screen in the “Removal” section of CHRI…

9 CAR § 40-404. Case reevaluation for Medicaid redetermination purposes. The Family Service Worker will: (1) Receive the printout of cases due for reevaluation from the Foster Care/Medicaid Eligibility Unit; (2)(A) Receive CHRIS tickler notification of Medicaid/IV-E case redeterm…