Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 26, December 27, 2024
Section 07.02.25.02 - DefinitionsA. In this chapter, the following terms have the meanings indicated.(1) "Abuse" means: (a) Child abuse as defined in Family Law Article, § 5-701, Annotated Code of Maryland; or(b) Sexual abuse of a child as defined in Family Law Article, § 5-701, Annotated Code of Maryland, whether or not a child sustains physical injuries.(2) "Administration" means the Social Services Administration of the Department of Human Services.(3) "Adoption" means the legal proceeding by which an individual becomes the child of an adoptive family and has all the legal rights and privileges to which a child born to that family would be entitled.(4) "Applicant" means an individual applying to a local department to be a resource parent.(5) "Case plan" has the meaning stated in COMAR 07.02.11(6) "Child" means an individual under age 18.(7) "Child in care" means a child or young adult for whom the local department has responsibility for placement, care, custody, or guardianship.(8) "Child in care's family" means the child's birth family, adoptive family, or legal guardian.(9) "CPS" means the child protective services unit that responds to reports of suspected child abuse or neglect pursuant to Family Law Article § 5-701 et. seq.(10) "Day" means a calendar day unless otherwise specified.(11) "Department" means the Department of Human Services.(12) "Family" means the basic family unit consisting of one or more adults and children related by blood, marriage, adoption, legal guardianship, or domestic partnership as that term is defined in Health General Article, §6-101, Annotated Code of Maryland.(13) Foster Care. (a) "Foster care" means continuous 24-hour care and supportive services provided for a child a local department places in a resource home.(b) "Foster care" includes:(i) Services to the child's parents or legal guardians, family, and kin to achieve a safe, permanent placement for the child;(ii) Services to the resource parents and monitoring of the child in the out-of-home placement; and(iii) Post-placement services to the child and the child's caregiver to prevent placement disruption or re-entry into out-of-home placement.(14) "Household" means the home where the applicant or licensed resource parent lives.(15) "Household member" means an individual who lives in or is regularly present in a household.(16) "Kin" means an individual who is related to the child through blood, marriage, adoption, tribal law or custom, or cultural custom or practice; or an individual who is unrelated to the child, but has a strong familial or significant bond with the child, or is a person identified by the child's parent.(17) "LGBTIQA+2" means individuals who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer/questioning, asexual, two-spirit, or other description that an individual may use to describe their gender, sexuality, and psychological sex characteristics.(18) "Licensed" means approved by a local department as a resource parent and a resource for custody and guardianship or adoption of a child.(19) "Local department" means a department of social services in a county or Baltimore City or the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services.(20) "Local director" means the director of a local department.(21) "Monthly care stipend" means financial support that a local department provides to a resource parent to assist the resource parent with caring for a child in care and placed in the resource home.(22) "Neglect" means child neglect as defined in Family Law Article, § 5-701, Annotated Code of Maryland(23) "Out-of-home care" means out-of-home placement and the monitoring of and services provided to a child in aftercare following a child's out-of-home placement.(24) "Out-of-home placement" means a living arrangement for a child in care, including foster care, kinship care, group care, or residential treatment care.(25) "Parent" means the legal mother or father of a child or young adult whose rights have not been terminated or a legal guardian other than a local department.(26) "Permanency plan" means a plan specifying where and with whom a child in care will live and the proposed legal relationship between the child and the temporary or permanent caregiver.(27) "Regularly present in the household" means visiting or staying in a home with sufficient frequency to make an individual a significant part of the household.(28) "Resource home" means the residence of an individual that a local department has licensed as a resource parent.(29) "Resource parent" means an individual whom a local department licenses to provide 24-hour care for a child in care in the resource home.(30) "Secondhand smoke" means a complex mixture of gasses and particles that includes: (a) Sidestream smoke, that is, smoke from a burning cigarette, cigar, or pipe; and(b) Exhaled mainstream smoke.(31) "Sleeping arrangement" means the location where a child in care will sleep and the furniture provided for sleeping.(32) "Worker" means a local department staff member assigned to work with and support a resource parent or a child in care.(33) "Young adult" means an individual 18 years old or older but not yet 21 years old.Md. Code Regs. 07.02.25.02
Regulation .02B amended effective June 15, 2009 (36:12 Md. R. 836); adopted effective 51:24 Md. R. 1075-1130, eff. 12/12/2024.