Okla. Admin. Code § 340:110-1-47.1

Current through Vol. 42, No. 7, December 16, 2024

Section 340:110-1-47.1 - Complaint investigations

(a)Legal basis. The Oklahoma Child Care Facilities Licensing Act (Act), Section 406 of Title 10 of the Oklahoma Statutes (10 O.S. § 406), mandates that Oklahoma Human Services (OKDHS) conduct a full complaint investigation alleging violation against the Act or Licensing requirements.

(b)Complaint receipt. Complaints may be made to Licensing, in writing, in person, by phone, or electronically.

(c)Complaint information. Licensing staff obtains as much relevant information as possible from the complainant.

(d)Screening complaints. Licensing staff accepts a complaint for investigation when alleging:

(1) non-compliance with Licensing requirements;

(2) violation of the Act;

(3) unlicensed program operation; or

(4) abuse or neglect of a child in care.

(e)Disposition of complaints. On receipt of a complaint, Licensing staff determines a disposition, as described in (1) through (7) of this subsection.

(1) A complaint not meeting the criteria in (d) of this Section is discussed with the complainant and, when appropriate, a referral is submitted to another entity, such as local law enforcement, the Office of Juvenile Affairs (OJA), the Office of Client Advocacy (OCA), Child Welfare Services (CWS), or the Office for Civil Rights.

(2) When a screened-out Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline (Hotline) referral without non-compliance with licensing requirements is received, a complaint investigation is not conducted, and Form 07LC080E, Licensing Services Supplemental Information, is completed.

(3) A complaint alleging non-compliance with Licensing requirements or unlicensed program operation is investigated by Licensing.

(4) A complaint alleging child abuse or neglect is immediately referred to the Hotline with Form 07LC012E, Licensing Complaint. The referral is documented on the form. When an immediate response is not received, Licensing staff follows up the next OKDHS-business day to obtain a response.

(5) When a complaint alleges illegal activity by program personnel, including illegal drug activity in the child care facility, all referral information, including the complainant's name, is immediately referred to the OKDHS Office of Inspector General and local law enforcement where the program is located.

(A) Referral follow ups are documented and maintained in the program case record, and the programs supervisor is notified.

(B) Licensing staff follows-up with local law enforcement officials to determine and document the investigation's outcome.

(C) The referral is documented on Form 19MP001E, Office of Inspector General (OIG) Referral Form.

(6) Information in a complaint received from another division within OKDHS or an agency responsible for monitoring residential child care programs or child-placing agencies, such as the Oklahoma Commission on Children and Youth, OCA, the local health, or fire department, may be deemed valid when documented in writing by the agency representative. Licensing staff determines when the observation is a non-compliance. The program is advised of the report, requested to complete Form 07LC037E, Notice to Comply, when applicable, per Oklahoma Administrative Code (OAC) 340:110-1-47.2, and given an opportunity to respond.

(7) The programs supervisor is notified of a complaint when:

(A) the alleged non-compliance caused or could cause imminent risk of harm to a child in care;

(B) the program has repeated or serious non-compliance with requirements;

(C) the alleged non-compliance was addressed in a previous Form 07LC037E, Notice to Comply;

(D) referred to the Hotline or local law enforcement; or

(E) receiving special attention, such as from the media or a legislator.

(f)Duplicate complaint. Allegations received by a different complainant regarding a previously reported incident or allegation may be considered a duplicate complaint.

(1) Duplicate complaints:

(A) must involve the same resident(s), program personnel, or incident date and time;

(B) require supervisory approval before proceeding with duplicate complaint processes; and

(C) received during a pending investigation are documented on Form 04K1001E, Referral Information Report, or Form 07LC012E, Licensing Complaint, and are part of the initial complaint; or

(D) received after the investigation completion are documented on Form 07LC080E, Licensing Services Supplemental Information, and included with the initial complaint investigation documentation; regardless of the duplicate allegation receipt timeframe.

(2) When a duplicate complainant provides additional allegations:

(A) during a pending investigation, allegations are investigated with the initial complaint allegations; or

(B) after investigation completion, the allegations are investigated as a new complaint and documented on Form 04K1001E or Form 07LC012E.

(3) Prior to complaint investigation completion, Licensing informs licensed programs when a duplicate complaint is reported and when additional allegations are investigated.

(4) Allegations of an unlicensed program operation may be considered a duplicate complaint.

(g)Complaint risk levels. Licensing staff determines risk levels based on the degree of harm or danger to children in care. Risk levels are used to ensure investigations occur timely.

(1)Risk level I complaints. Risk level I complaints indicate a child is in imminent risk of serious physical injury. The risk level is not influenced by the removal of a child from the program when other children remain in care. Investigations are initiated immediately or no later than 24-hours after receipt by Licensing unless awaiting OCA or local law enforcement investigation; excluding weekends and holidays when the program or agency is closed. Examples of non-compliances with licensing requirements may include:

(A) alleged physical or sexual abuse;

(B) presence or use of illegal drugs while children are in care;

(C) drug distribution;

(D) children alone in the facility or in a vehicle without anyone present;

(E) facility temperatures;

(F) infant sleep environments;

(G) caregiver's threatening or impaired behavior;

(H) severe understaffing or severe over licensed capacity;

(I) child passenger restraints;

(J) Emergency Order violation;

(K) required personnel without current cardio-pulmonary resuscitation and first aid training;

(L) failure to obtain background investigations; or

(M) knowingly permitting access to children by individuals identified as prohibited, restricted, or Restricted Registry registrants.

(2)Risk level II complaints. Risk level II complaints do not indicate there is imminent danger of injury, but without intervention a child may not be safe. Investigations are initiated within 10-calendar days of receipt by Licensing, unless requested by OCA or local law enforcement to delay the investigation. Examples of noncompliances with requirements may include:

(A) leaving children with underage personnel;

(B) alleged physical abuse from personnel no longer working in the program;

(C) inappropriate discipline where no injury is reported;

(D) diapering or toileting;

(E) hazardous equipment;

(F) transporting without a valid driver license or liability insurance;

(G) lack of supervision, including resident sexual behavior; or

(H) minor understaffing or minor over licensed capacity.

(3)Risk level III complaints. Risk level III complaints do not indicate imminent danger and there are no injuries alleged. Serious non-compliances, per OAC 340:110-1-47.2, are not considered risk level III complaints. Investigations are initiated within 15-calendar days of receipt by Licensing including when a phone investigation is appropriate, per (h) of this Section. Examples of non-compliances with requirements may include:

(A) inadequate meal service;

(B) quarterly vehicle maintenance;

(C) program or agency records and documentation;

(D) inappropriate use of television or videos; or

(E) inadequate facility cleanliness.

(h)The investigation. Licensing staff conducts a full investigation, obtaining sufficient information to determine a finding.

(i)Phone or written investigation. With supervisory approval, Licensing staff may investigate a complaint by phone or written correspondence. The investigation discussion is documented on Form 07LC080E, Licensing Services Supplemental Information, including an agreed-on plan of correction, when necessary and provided to the operator.

(j)Unlicensed program investigations. When a complaint alleging operation of an unlicensed program is received, procedures, per OAC 340:110-1-54.1, are also followed.

(k)Child abuse and neglect complaints. On receipt of abuse or neglect allegations of a child in care, Licensing staff immediately notifies the programs supervisor and submits a referral to the Hotline.

(l)Findings. After investigation completion, Licensing staff, in consultation with the programs supervisor, as appropriate, determines the complaint finding as substantiated or unsubstantiated.

(1)Substantiated. A substantiated finding is determined when some credible evidence indicates the program violated a Licensing requirement or the Act.

(2)Unsubstantiated. An unsubstantiated finding is determined when:

(A) insufficient evidence exists to fully determine whether a violation occurred; or

(B) no violation of a Licensing requirement or the Act occurred.

(m)Documentation of findings. Upon investigation completion, Licensing staff:

(1) informs the programs supervisor the complaint investigation is ready for review;

(2) documents the findings; and

(3) notifies the provider of the findings in writing including:

(A) a summary of facts, per (p) of this Section; and

(B) Form 07LC037E, Notice to Comply; when applicable.

(n)Heinous and shocking abuse findings. Per 10 O.S. § 406, when Licensing receives notification from OCA or CWS of heinous and shocking abuse findings by a person responsible for a child's health, safety, or welfare as defined, per 10A O.S. § 1-1-105, Licensing contacts the program or child-placing agency by email immediately or not later than one-business day after the substantiated finding notification.

(o)Notice to Comply. When a complaint allegation is substantiated, Licensing staff advises the program to correct the violations immediately, using Form 07LC037E, following procedure, per OAC 340:110-1-47.2(c)(7). Licensing staff updates the Licensing database with plan of correction information.

(p)Summary of facts. Licensing provides program directors or agency owners a summary of the facts used to evaluate and determine the complaint findings.

(q)Complaint overview. Licensing staff completes an overview of completed complaint investigations in the Licensing database. This overview provides an investigation summary of how the complaint findings were determined, and is maintained in the case record's confidential section.

Okla. Admin. Code § 340:110-1-47.1

Added at 20 Ok Reg 1274, eff 6-1-03; Amended at 22 Ok Reg 1304, eff 6-1-05; Amended at 24 Ok Reg 1351, eff 7-1-07; Amended at 25 Ok Reg 1962, eff 7-1-08; Amended at 26 Ok Reg 415, eff 11-20-08 (emergency); Amended at 26 Ok Reg 2239, eff 7-1-09; Amended at 27 Ok Reg 1869, eff 7-1-10; Amended at 28 Ok Reg 1669, eff 7-1-11; Amended at 30 Ok Reg 1383, eff 7-1-13; Amended at 32 Ok Reg 704, eff 1-1-16 (emergency).

Amended by Oklahoma Register, Volume 33, Issue 24, September 1, 2016, eff. 9/15/2016

Amended by Oklahoma Register, Volume 37, Issue 24, September 1, 2020, eff. 11/1/2020

Amended by Oklahoma Register, Volume 40, Issue 22, August 1, 2023, eff 9/15/2023

Amended by Oklahoma Register, Volume 41, Issue 23, August 15, 2024, eff. 9/16/2024