The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part of the
legislative instrument, were prepared by Carla S. Roberts.
DIGEST
Present law provides certain incentives for certain children who are in the custody of the
Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) to be placed with adoptive parents once the
biological rights of the parents have been terminated.
Proposed law provides that proposed law shall be known and may be cited as the "Louisiana Has
Faith in Families" Act.
Proposed law provides legislative findings as follows:
(1)It is in the best interest of a foster child who is adoption eligible to be placed in a
permanent adopted family as soon as is practicable.
(2)The state has an interest in decreasing the delays in finalizing adoptions in order to
facilitate permanent adoption and family cohesion.
Proposed law provides that, in order to facilitate the recruitment of new families for children, the
incentives shall be made available to those children who have been adopted from the custody of
the state and meet any eligibility requirements.
Proposed law provides that the department shall make every effort to declare every child in the
department's custody eligible for certain adoption assistance or subsidy.
Proposed law provides that the department is authorized to develop and implement a program for
subsidizing the adoption of children with special needs.
Proposed law provides that the department may make payments to adoptive parents or, in the
case of the subsequent death of the adoptive parents prior to the child's reaching the age of
majority, to the duly designated tutor or guardian of said child, on behalf of a child placed for
adoption if all of the following conditions are met:
(1)The child, because of physical or mental condition, race, age, membership in a sibling
group, or other serious impediments or special needs, is considered a child that is difficult
to place for adoption and the department has made reasonable attempts to place such
child for adoption to no avail.
(2)The adoptive family, tutor, or guardian is capable of providing the permanent family
relationship needed by the child in all respects other than financial, and the needs of the
child are beyond the economic ability and resources of the family, tutor, or guardian. Proposed law provides that payments in subsidy of adoption may include but are not limited to
the maintenance costs, medical and surgical expenses, and other costs incidental to the care,
training, and education of the child, including special medical costs for any child in connection
with any physical or mental condition which existed prior to the date of the initial judgment of
adoption.
Proposed law provides that the amount of payments may vary, depending upon the needs of the
child and the adoptive parents, tutor, or guardian, but shall not exceed one hundred percent of the
cost of providing foster care for the child. Payments for medical, surgical, psychiatric, and other
special costs and services may not exceed the amount the department would pay if it were to
provide or secure them as guardian of the child.
Proposed law provides that payments to the parents, tutor, or guardian shall be terminated when
the adoptive child becomes eighteen years of age.
Proposed law provides that eligibility for payments in subsidy of adoption shall be determined
and approved by the department prior to the completion of the adoption proceeding, and shall be
redetermined at least annually thereafter, except in those cases where the child is eligible for
funding pursuant to the Social Security Act, such redetermination shall be made at least every
five years thereafter.
Proposed law provides adoptive parents who are residents of the state of Louisiana, and who are
eligible to adopt a child residing in Louisiana and to receive subsidy payments for such adoption,
or the designated tutor or guardian, shall remain eligible to receive such payments, regardless of
whether or not such adoptive parents, tutor, or guardian subsequently become residents of
another state, except in cases where that state has any of the following:
(1)A subsidized adoption program that is available to such former Louisiana residents,
parents, tutors, or guardians for the particular Louisiana child to be adopted.
(2)Is a party to the Interstate Compact on Adoption and Medical Assistance in accordance
with the provisions of Children's Code Articles 1601 et seq.
Proposed law provides that adoptive parents who are residents of other states, and who are
eligible to adopt a child residing in Louisiana, or the designated tutor or guardian residing in
another state, shall be eligible for a subsidy under the same conditions as Louisiana residents,
except in cases where the other state:
(1)Has a subsidized adoption program that is available to such Louisiana nonresident
parents, tutors, or guardians for the particular Louisiana child to be adopted.
(2)Is a party to the Interstate Compact on Adoption and Medical Assistance.
Proposed law provides that the subsidized payments, as provided herein, shall include cases
involving children in the custody of the department and children determined to be entitled to benefits pursuant to federal laws, rules, or regulations.
Proposed law provides that the department, in accordance with the Administrative Procedure
Act, shall adopt, promulgate, and enforce such rules and regulations as are necessary and
appropriate to implement the provisions of the proposed law.
Proposed law provides that any agreement by the department to subsidize the adoption of a child
eligible for such subsidy, which results in a final decree of adoption of the child by adoptive
parents or the designated tutor or guardian of the child who is relying on the availability of the
subsidy at the time of the final decree of adoption, shall constitute a contractual obligation on the
part of the state in favor of the adoptive parents, tutor, or guardian, to the extent that the parents,
tutor, or guardian remain eligible for the subsidy under the laws which were in effect on the date
of the final decree of adoption.
Proposed law provides that any contractual obligation shall cease when the adoptive child
reaches the age of majority.
Proposed law provides that changes in the child's condition or changes in the income of the
adoptive parents, where the condition or income formed the basis for the subsidy, shall be cause
for modifying the subsidy agreement in accordance with the laws and regulations prevailing at
the time of the final decree of adoption.
Proposed law provides that the adoptive parents may be awarded a one-time payment to cover
non-recurring expenses of the adoption, such as attorney fees and court costs, which are directly
related to the legal adoption of a child with special needs, in an amount to be approved by the
department.
Proposed law provides that any child in the custody of the department who is eligible for
adoption and is placed in an approved adoptive home shall be eligible for dependant coverage
pursuant to the prospective adoptive parents' health insurance policy as a dependant. Proposed
law further provides that any additional costs for the child to be added to the adoptive parents'
health insurance policy shall not be paid for by the department.
Proposed law provides that any child who is in the custody of the department or has been adopted
from the custody of the department shall be automatically qualified for enrollment in the
Louisiana Children and Youth Health Insurance Program (LaChip).
Proposed law provides that any child in the custody of the department who is Medicaid eligible,
is eligible for adoption, and is placed in an approved prospective adoptive home or has been
adopted from the custody of the department, shall be deemed eligible for premium assistance for
private health insurance.
Proposed law provides that a child in custody of the department shall be entitled to any of the
following options: (1)A child who is in foster care pursuant to placement through the department shall be
allowed to remain enrolled in the public school in which the child was enrolled at the
time he entered foster care for the duration of the child's stay in the custody of the state or
until he completes the highest grade offered at the school, if the department determines
that remaining in that school is in the best interest of the child. Proposed law further
provides that transportation shall be provided in accordance with law.
(2)A child in the custody of the department shall be eligible to attend a school in the school
district of the foster care placement.
(3)A child in the custody of the department shall be given preference in enrollment in the
same manner as children already receiving a preference to attend a charter school.
(4)When a child is in the custody of the department and is placed with foster parents who
have other children living in the home who already attend a nonpublic or parochial
school, the foster child may attend the same nonpublic or parochial school if the
department finds it is in the best interest of the child. Proposed law further provides that
the foster parents shall not be prohibited from paying for the expenses associated with
such education.
(5)When a child is in the custody of the department and is placed with foster parents who
have other children in the home who are participants in an approved home study program,
the department may approve the placement of the foster child in an approved home study
program if the department finds it is in the best interest of the child. Proposed law further
provides that the foster parent shall monitor the home study program to assure that it
offers a sustained curriculum of quality at least equal to that offered by public schools at
the same grade level.
Proposed law provides that in order to shorten the waiting time for finalizing the adoption when
the child eligible for adoption has been in foster care with the prospective adoptive parents, any
necessary waiting period as required by law shall be applied retroactively.
Proposed law provides when the child is in the custody of the department, any additional home
study required by law may be waived by the court if the adoptive parents have been the foster
parents of the child for the required six month time period.
Proposed law provides whenever a child has been placed in the custody of the department and the
child is eligible for adoption, the prospective adoptive parents may file an adoption proceeding in
the court which terminated the parental rights and the case shall be allotted to the judge who
presided over the termination proceedings.
Proposed law provides that the court may order the approval of the adoptive placement ex parte
without the need for a hearing where the prospective adoptive parents were previously approved
by the department as foster parents for the child. Present law provides that DCFS is authorized to develop and implement a program for
subsidizing the adoption of children with special needs. Provides procedures and requirements
for eligibility, costs and expenses, and contractual obligations.
Proposed law repeals present law.
Effective upon signature of the governor or lapse of time for gubernatorial action.
(Adds Ch. C. Arts. 1279.1 - 1279.7; repeals R.S. 46:1790-1794)