Code of Maine Rules › 05 - DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION › 071 - EDUCATION - GENERAL › Chapter 18 - RULES FOR THE LICENSURE OF RESIDENTIAL CHILD CARE FACILITIES › Section 071-18-4 - REQUIREMENTS FOR LICENSURE

Current through 2024-29, July 17, 2024
NTE: Rules preceded by an asterisk require submission of
				  documentation for initial licensure. This documentation will be maintained by
				  the licensing authority for use in licensing reviews as evidence of continued
				  compliance with those requirements. Changes in such documentation shall be
				  provided to the licensing authority in accordance with 4.A.2.k.
A. Organization
(1)* Statement of Ownership. (Non-waiverable)
				The facility shall submit documentary evidence of its sources of authority to
				operate a facility. The facility shall have documents which fully identify the
				names and addresses of its principal owners. A corporation, partnership or
				association shall identify the names and addresses of its officers and
				directors and shall provides, where applicable, the charter, partnership
				agreement, constitution, articles of association and by-laws.
(2) Responsibilities of the Governing Body.
				The facility shall have a governing body which shall meet at least quarterly
				and which shall be responsible for and have authority over the policies and
				activities of the facility. The governing body shall:
a. Ensure the facility's continual compliance
				and conformity with the provisions of the facility's charter;
b. Ensure the facility's continual compliance
				and conformity with all relevant laws and regulations, whether federal, state
				or local, governing the operation of the facility;
c. Ensure that the facility is adequately
				funded and fiscally sound and shall:
i.
				Review and approve the facility's annual budget;
ii. Provide for the review and approval of an
				annual report to be completed by an independent auditor;
d. House, maintain, staff and equip the
				facility in such a manner as to implement the program;
e. Designate a person to act as chief
				administrative officer of the facility and delegate sufficient authority to
				such person to manage the facility;
f. Formulate and annually review written
				policies required by these rules in consultation with the chief administrative
				officer;
g. Complete an annual
				written evaluation of the performance of the chief administrative officer to
				ensure that the officer's conduct of the facility's business conforms with its
				charter, all relevant laws and regulations, and the policies defined by the
				governing body;
h. Meet with
				representatives of the licensing authority whenever required to do
				so;
i. Maintain minutes of all
				meetings of the governing body;
j.
				Provide prior written notification to the licensing authority of any proposed
				change in location, name or ownership of the facility;
k. Provide written notification upon any
				change of chief administrator of the facility and notice of intent prior to any
				substantial change in policy, staff or service within a time which is
				reasonable to permit the licensing authority to take any steps to determine
				whether any change in licensing status is necessary;
l. Report in writing any legal proceedings
				brought against the facility or against any employee within two weeks after the
				facility receives notification of such proceedings. Such notification is
				required only if the proceedings arise out of circumstances related to the care
				of children or to agreements related to the care of children or to continued
				operation of the facility;
m. Make
				available to the licensing authority any policy or records which are required
				by these rules or are reasonably related to the assessment of compliance with
				these rules.
(3)
				Organization of the Governing Body.
a. The
				governing body shall be organized and composed in such a manner as to
				adequately discharge its defined responsibilities.
b. No employee, or member of the immediate
				family of an employee assigned responsibilities associated with the licensing,
				purchase of service or contracting functions of any public agency which
				purchases the services or regulates the facility shall be a member of the
				governing body.
c. Non-Profit
				Organization.
i. A non-profit facility shall
				have a board of directors and shall maintain a list of the membership of its
				board of directors indicating the name, address, position and the term of
				office for each officer.
ii. If a
				paid staff person or the chief administrative officer of the facility serve as
				a member of the governing body they shall not have a controlling or determining
				vote and shall not vote on matters of self-interest.
d. For-Profit Organization. A for-profit
				organization shall have the governing body of the facility served by an
				advisory board. The appointment of the advisory board shall be done by the
				governing body from among persons knowledgeable in children's care and shall
				not include relatives of members of the governing body and/or employees of the
				facility or of the members of the governing body.
i. The facility shall maintain a list of the
				members of the advisory board which shall indicate the name, address and term
				of membership.
ii. The advisory
				board shall:
(a) Keep informed of the
				operational policies and practices of the facility;
(b) Provide advice to the governing body on
				matters affecting the care of and services to children;
(c) Periodically review aspects of the
				operation of the facility;
(d) Meet
				at least quarterly;
(e) Maintain
				records of attendance and minutes of its meetings which shall be available to
				the licensing authority.
iii. In the event of a serious disagreement
				between the governing body and the advisory board, the advisory board shall
				report to the licensing authority clearly outlining in writing the nature of
				the disagreement and their recommendations.
(*4)Administrative Organization.
				(Non-waiverable) The facility shall submit an organizational table and/or
				written description showing complete information 'on the facility's lines of
				authority and communications staff responsibility and assignment.
a. Role of the Administrative Officer. The
				chief administrative officer shall:
i. Manage
				the affairs of the facility in accordance with policies established by the
				governing body and these rules;
ii.
				Have direct and immediate access to health and medical services, food services
				and buildings and grounds maintenance services;
iii. Notify the licensing authority in the
				event of the death of a child in care;
iv. Notify the licensing authority in the
				event of fire, structural damage or other catastrophe which renders the
				facility unsafe, unusable or uninhabitable within a time which is reasonable to
				permit a determination of whether any change in licensing status is
				necessary;
v. Post any current
				license issued by the department in a clearly visible place within the
				facility.
b. Designated
				Administrator of Facility. When a residential child care facility is part of a
				larger organization which provides services other than those licensable under
				these rules there shall be a person designated to act in the role of the
				administrative officer as outlined above.
c. Availability of Administrative Officer.
				The chief administrative officer or designee shall be readily accessible to the
				staff of the facility and to the authorized representatives of the department
				as well as other appropriate governmental agencies at all
				times.
(5) Business and
				Fiscal Management.
a. The facility shall
				establish a system of business management and staffing to assure maintenance of
				complete and accurate accounts books and records as required by these
				regulations and in accordance with generally accepted accounting practice. When
				a residential child care facility is part of a larger organization which
				provides other services, the residential child care facility shall have a
				written annual budget reflecting the actual total cost of such
				services.
b. Financial Plan.
				(Non-waiverable) The facility shall provide a written plan of financial
				capability projected for the licensing period and including:
i. A projected budget including income and
				expenses;
ii. A cash flow plan
				showing projected revenue, lines of credit and cash or liquid asset reserves
				sufficient to meet the facility's expenses over a three (3) month
				period;
iii. A list of all revenue
				sources and amounts of revenue anticipated from these sources, together with;
(a) Letters of commitment from the revenue
				sources or
(b) Evidence of
				contracts or agreements with the revenue source, and
(c) Any other evidence of financial
				viability.
c.
				The facility shall demonstrate fiscal accountability through regular recording
				of its finances and an annual external audit. This audit shall be made
				available to any agency from which the facility purchases services or which
				provides funds to the facility.
d.
				The facility shall not permit public funds to be paid or committed to be paid
				to any of the members of the governing body, administrative personnel, or
				members of the immediate families of members of governing body or
				administrative personnel or to any corporation or partners in a business
				enterprise in which any of these persons serve as an officer or employee or
				have any direct or indirect financial interest., unless the subcontracted
				services or goods involved are provided at a competitive cost or under terms
				favorable to the facility. The facility shall make written disclosure to the
				department of any financial transaction with the facility in which a member of
				the governing body, administrative personnel, or their immediate family is
				involved.
(6) Insurance
				Coverage.
a. Bonding. The facility shall
				maintain fidelity bonding in the amount equal to the maximum projected monthly
				cast flow within a fiscal year. All persons delegated the authority to sign
				checks or manage funds shall be bonded at the facility's expense.
b. Fire and Liability Insurance. The facility
				shall carry insurance covering' fire and personal injury liability as
				protection for children in care. Liability shall be for $300,000 aggregate
				minimum.
c. Vehicular Insurance.
				The facility shall ensure that any vehicle authorized for business use shall
				have insurance which covers liability. The facility shall ensure that any
				vehicle used to transport children has the following minimum amount of
				liability insurance:
i. Injury per person:
				$300,000
ii. Injury per accident:
				$500,000
iii. Property damage: $
				25,000
(7)
				Rights of Privacy and Confidentiality. The facility shall adopt written
				policies and procedures describing how the privacy of children in care and
				confidentiality of children's case records will be protected against loss,
				tampering or unauthorized use. The description shall include policy regarding:
a. The photographing and audio or
				audio-visual recordings of children in care which ensures the dignity and
				confidentiality of the child and is authorized by the child's
				guardian;
b. The participation of
				children in data research;
c. The
				maintenance and security of records which specifies who shall supervise the
				maintenance of records, who shall have custody of records, and to whom records
				may be released; and
d. The
				arrangements for appropriate disposition of children's records in the event of
				the facility's closure.
(8) Release of Information and Disposal.
a. The facility shall obtain the written
				informed consent of the child, if appropriate to the child's capability, and
				the child's guardian prior to involving the child in any activity related to
				fund raising, research or publicity for the facility.
b. The facility shall maintain the
				confidentiality of all children's case records. Staff of the facility shall not
				disclose or knowingly permit the disclosure of any information concerning the
				child or the child's family to any unauthorized person.
i. Unless otherwise permitted by law the
				facility shall, prior to releasing confidential information about a child,
				obtain a written informed consent signed and dated by the child's guardian
				which shall include:
(a) Identification of
				the person or agency to whom the information is to be disclosed;
(b) Identification of the specific
				information to be disclosed;
(c)
				The reason for disclosure; and
(d)
				The expiration date of the consent,. not to exceed six (6) months from date of
				signature.
ii. The
				facility shall, upon request, make available information in the case record to
				the child, the child's parent or guardian and their respective legal counsel if
				the information does not contain:
(a)
				Material which violates the right of privacy of another individual;
				or
(b) Material that must be
				withheld from release according to other laws or by order of the
				court.
(c) Information that, in the
				professional judgment of the administration of the facility, would be damaging
				to a child, except as provided for under the federal guidelines on the Family
				Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 and the Education of All Handicapped
				Children Act of 1975 ( PL 94-142 ).
iii. The facility which, in the professional
				judgment of the administration of that facility, believes that information
				contained in the record would be damaging to the child may withhold that
				information except:
(a) When ordered by a
				court to disclose the information; or
(b) When required by federal or state laws to
				disclose the information.
c. The facility shall not use material from
				case records for teaching or research unless names are deleted and other
				identifying information is disguised or deleted.
d. The facility shall maintain the child's
				records for a period of not less than seven (7) years after the child attains
				the age of majority, unless specified otherwise in applicable state or federal
				laws. At that time the records may be disposed of in a manner which maintains
				the confidential nature of the material.
(9) Representatives at Hearings. The facility
				shall, when allowed by law, have a representative present at judicial,
				educational or administrative hearings which address the status of a child in
				care of the facility.