2023 Montana Code Annotated › Title 41. Minors › Chapter 3. Child Abuse and Neglect › Part 13. Montana Indian Child Welfare Act › 41-3-1319. Active efforts

41-3-1319. (Temporary) Active efforts.
(1) Any party seeking to effect a foster care placement of, or termination of parental rights to, an Indian child under state law shall satisfy the court that active efforts have been made to provide remedial services and rehabilitative programs designed to prevent the breakup of the Indian family and that the efforts have proven unsuccessful.
(2) The court shall make written findings that the petitioning party has provided active efforts and the efforts must be documented in detail in the record.
(3) If the department is involved in the child custody proceeding, active efforts must include assisting the parent, parents, or Indian custodian through the steps of a case plan and with accessing or developing the resources necessary to satisfy the case plan.
(4) (a) To the maximum extent possible, active efforts must be provided in a manner consistent with the prevailing social and cultural conditions and way of life of the Indian child's tribe and conducted in partnership with the Indian child and the Indian child's parents, extended family members, Indian custodians, and tribe. Active efforts are to be tailored to the facts and circumstances of the case and may include but are not limited to:
(i) conducting a comprehensive assessment of the circumstances of the Indian child's family, with a focus on safe reunification as the most desirable goal;
(ii) identifying appropriate services and helping the parents to overcome barriers, including actively assisting the parents in obtaining the services;
(iii) identifying, notifying, and inviting representatives of the Indian child's tribe to participate in providing support and services to the Indian child's family and in family team meetings, permanency planning, and resolution of placement issues;
(iv) conducting or causing to be conducted a diligent search for the Indian child's extended family members and contacting and consulting with extended family members to provide family structure and support for the Indian child and the Indian child's parents;
(v) offering and employing all available and culturally appropriate family preservation strategies and facilitating the use of remedial and rehabilitative services provided by the child's tribe;
(vi) taking steps to keep siblings together whenever possible;
(vii) supporting regular visits with parents or Indian custodians in the most natural setting possible as well as trial home visits of the Indian child during any period of removal, consistent with the need to ensure the health, safety, and welfare of the child;
(viii) identifying community resources, including housing, financial, transportation, mental health, substance abuse, and peer support services and actively assisting the child's parents or, when appropriate, the child's family, in accessing and using the resources;
(ix) monitoring progress and participation in services;
(x) considering alternative ways to address the needs of the Indian child's parents and, when appropriate, the family, if the optimum services do not exist or are not available; and
(xi) providing postreunification services and monitoring.
(b) Referral to a service or program does not constitute an active effort if the referral was the sole action taken. (Terminates June 30, 2025--sec. 55, Ch. 716, L. 2023.)
History: En. Sec. 12, Ch. 716, L. 2023.