Title 22, Title 22

Recognizing that instability and impermanency are contrary to the welfare of children, it is the intent of the Legislature that this subchapter: 1. Termination of parental rights. Allow for the termination of parental rights at the earliest possible time after rehabilitation and …

A petition for termination of parental rights must be brought in the court that issued the final protection order. The court, for the convenience of the parties or other good cause, may transfer the petition to another district or division. A petition for termination of parental …

1. Petitioner. A termination petition may be brought by the custodial parent of the child, by the parent or guardian of another parent of the child if that parent is a minor, by a person who has filed a petition to adopt the child pursuant to Title 18‑C, Article 9 or by the depar…

The petition and the notice of hearing must be served on the parents and the guardian ad litem for the child at least 10 days prior to the hearing date. Service must be made in accordance with the District Court Civil Rules. The department shall provide written notice of all revi…

The court shall hold a hearing prior to making a termination order.

1. Grounds. The court may order termination of parental rights if: A. One of the following conditions has been met: (1) Custody has been removed from the parent under: (a) Section 4035 or 4038; (b) Title 19‑A, section 1502 or 1653; (c) Section 3792 prior to the effective date of …

1. Parent and child divested of rights. An order terminating parental rights divests the parent and child of all legal rights, powers, privileges, immunities, duties and obligations to each other as parent and child, except the child inherits from the child's former parents if so…

If parental rights have been terminated by judicial order in another state, the order, unless against the public policy of this State, shall be accorded full faith and credit.

The provision in this chapter dealing with family rehabilitation and reunification must be reviewed in accordance with Title 3, chapter 35.

The department may petition the District Court to reinstate the parental rights of a parent whose parental rights have been previously terminated by an order of the District Court. [PL 2011, c. 402, §16 (NEW).] 1. Contents of petition for reinstatement of parental rights. The pet…

1. Department. The department shall care for a child ordered into its custody in licensed or approved family foster homes, in other residential child care facilities or in other living arrangements as appropriate to meet the child's individual needs. 2. Reimbursement. The departm…

1. Payments by department. The department shall provide payments to facilities caring for children to meet the costs of clothing, board and care, within the limits of available funds. The department may establish, by rule, different categories of facilities, levels of need and ca…

If the parents of a child in the custody of the department request in writing that the child be placed in a family of the same general religious faith, for foster care or adoption, the department shall do so when a suitable family of that faith can be found.

1. Physical examination required. The department shall ensure that a child ordered into its custody receives a medical examination by a licensed physician or nurse practitioner within 10 working days after the department's custody of the child commences. 2. Psychological assessme…

Whenever a child is ordered into the custody of the department under this chapter and the child is not expected to be returned to the home within 21 days, the department shall obtain counseling for the child as soon as possible, unless the department finds that counseling is not …

If a child in the custody of the department dies, the department shall arrange and pay for a decent burial for the child. If administration of the deceased child's estate is not commenced, within 60 days after the date of death, by an heir or a creditor, then the department may p…

The department shall submit a report to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over health and human services matters by January 1st each year covering the operations of the Office of Child and Family Services and the experience of the department with…

The department shall develop and disseminate a standard form to be used by school administrative units to authorize participation by children in the custody of the department in school athletics, field trips and other extracurricular activities. This form must be signed once each…

1. Visitation. If the court determines that it is reasonable, practicable and in the best interests of the children involved, the court shall order the custodian of the child who is the subject of the child protection proceeding and any party who is the custodian of a sibling of …

1. Petitioner. The department, a physician or a chief medical administrator of a hospital may petition for a medical treatment order. 2. Contents of petition. A petition shall be sworn and shall include at least the following: A. Name, date of birth and municipal residence, if kn…

1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. A. "Ombudsman" means the director of the program and persons employed or volunteering to perform the work of the program. [PL 2001, c. 439, Pt. X, §5 …

The purpose of this subchapter is to encourage the implementation of statewide standards to be developed by the Department of Health and Human Services and participating hospitals for the identification and management of suspected child abuse and neglect cases presented at hospit…

As used in this subchapter, unless the context indicates otherwise, the following terms have the following meanings. [PL 1989, c. 483, Pt. A, §34 (NEW).] 1. Case plan prescription. "Case plan prescription" means a plan developed by the family support team. 1-A. Council. 2. Family…

Each hospital may establish a suspected child abuse and neglect committee and family support team under this subchapter. The committee shall meet regularly to provide the ongoing development and monitoring of the specialized family support team and the approval of protocols. Thes…

As used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. [PL 2009, c. 155, §2 (NEW).] 1. Homeless youth. "Homeless youth" means a person 21 years of age or younger who is unaccompanied by a parent or guardian and is with…

The department shall establish and support a comprehensive program for homeless youth in the State by contracting with organizations and agencies licensed by the department that provide street outreach, shelter and transitional living services for homeless youth. The department s…

The department shall collect data from its licensed organizations and agencies to ensure that appropriate and high-quality services are being delivered to homeless youth, youth at risk of homelessness and runaways and shall use the data to monitor the success of the contracts and…

The department shall adopt rules as may be necessary for the effective administration of the comprehensive program under section 4099‑E. Rules adopted pursuant to this section are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2‑A.

This section applies to emergency shelter family homes for youths in order to provide the youths with voluntary, safe, emergency housing with individuals or families in locations as close as reasonably possible to the home communities of the youths. [PL 2011, c. 385, §1 (NEW).] 1…

1. Definitions. As used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. A. "At-risk" means there is reasonable cause to suspect that a child's health, safety and welfare has been affected due to abuse, neglect, abandonm…

1. Investigation team. "Investigation team" means individuals employed by the department to investigate allegations of out-of-home abuse or neglect pursuant to this subchapter. 2. Licensed. "Licensed" means holding a license as defined in Title 5, section 8002, subsection 5 or, w…

1. Investigation team established. The investigation team is established within the department to investigate reports of suspected out-of-home abuse or neglect of children in accordance with this subchapter. 2. Participation with other departments. The investigation team, on its …

The duties of the investigation team include, but are not limited to, the following. [PL 2023, c. 248, §4 (NEW).] 1. Receive reports of alleged abuse or neglect. The investigation team shall receive reports of alleged out-of-home abuse or neglect under circumstances set out in th…

A person who is the subject of the decision in section 4099‑L, subsection 5 has the right to a hearing to appeal an indicated or substantiated finding of out-of-home abuse or neglect in accordance with the provisions of the Maine Administrative Procedure Act.

Reported abuse or neglect that occurs in the following out-of-home entities is subject to investigation by the investigation team. [PL 2023, c. 248, §4 (NEW).] 1. Facility or person licensed by department; facility operated or funded by department. Out-of-home abuse or neglect is…

Notwithstanding section 4008, records that are made, acquired or retained by the department in connection with its responsibilities under this subchapter are subject to the provisions set out in section 7703 and the following provisions. [PL 2023, c. 248, §4 (NEW).] 1. Disclosure…

The department may adopt rules to carry out the purposes of this subchapter. Rules adopted pursuant to this section are routine technical rules as defined by Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2‑A. Rules may include but are not limited to establishing the factors that support unsub…