Section 17-1610-28 - Voluntary out-of-home intervention(a) Voluntary out-of-home intervention services may be offered to the child or family when there is an assessment that the harm or risk to the child requires temporary out-of-home placement of the child, provided that: (1) There is a determination by the social worker that placement of the child is expected to be for no more than ninety days from the initial date of entry into out-of-home care;(2) The legal custodian of the child and the department have signed a valid voluntary foster custody agreement, binding on all parties to the agreement which specifies, at a minimum, the legal status of the child, and the rights and obligations of the legal custodian, the child, and the department while the child is in out-of-home placement; and(3) There is a case plan that specifies the responsibilities of the family and the department that provides a ninety-day timeframe and clear consequences if the timeframe is not met.(b) If parents or guardians request that the child be returned to their home or to the home of a relative, the voluntary custody agreement shall be deemed to be revoked unless the department opposes such request and obtains a judicial determination that the return of the child to such home would be contrary to the child's best interests.(c) If a child in voluntary out-of-home care cannot be returned to the family home within ninety days, a petition for foster custody of the child shall be submitted to the family court prior to the ninetieth day from the initial date of entry into out-of-home care.(d) The only exception to the ninety-day timeframe to file a petition, prior to the ninetieth day of voluntary out-of-home care, is the case where all of the following conditions have been met: (1) An ohana conference, authorized by the department, has been held;(2) There is a valid voluntary foster custody agreement that covers the second ninety day period for a child in voluntary out-of-home care; and(3) There is a case plan, which would result in the return of the child to the family home within one hundred and eighty (180) days of the initial date of entry into out-of-home placement, which has been approved by the department and the family. For ohana conference cases only, if a determination is made that the child cannot be returned to the family home within one hundred and eighty (180) days of the initial date of entry into out-of-home care, a petition for foster custody of the child shall be submitted, heard, and findings issued by the family court prior to the one hundred and eightieth day from the initial date of entry into out-of-home care.
(e) The department shall request that the court make a judicial determination, to be included in the written court order at the first hearing subsequent to the removal of the child from the home, that based on the record and/or the evidence presented, continuation in the family home would be contrary to the immediate welfare of the child.Haw. Code R. § 17-1610-28
[Eff DEC 09 2010] (Auth: HRS §§ 346-14, 350-2) (Imp: HRS §§ 350-1, 350-2, 587A-11; 45 C.F.R. §1340.14 )