Ohio Administrative Code › Title 5101:2 - Division of Social Services › Chapter 5101:2-49 - IV-E Adoption Assistance › Section 5101:2-49-05 - Initial determination of the Title IV-E adoption assistance (AA) monthly payment amount

Current through all regulations passed and filed through July 1, 2024
(A)
								The monthly
			 amount of the AA payment is determined by negotiation and mutual agreement
			 between the adoptive parent(s) and the public children services agency
			 (PCSA).
(B)
								The PCSA shall not consider the race, color, or
			 national origin of an adoptive parent(s) or of the child for whom a family has
			 indicated an interest in adopting, when negotiating the AA
			 agreement.
(C)
								The PCSA shall consider viability of other relevant
			 resources from local, state and federal program services that are available and
			 pertinent to the child's special needs and prospective adoptive parent(s) needs
			 when determining the payment amount.
(D)
								No income
			 eligibility test shall be used when determining the monthly AA payment. The
			 monthly AA payment amount should combine with the adoptive parent(s) resources
			 and circumstances as provisionally required by the adoptive homestudy and shall
			 provide for the special and foreseeable future needs of the child. When changes
			 occur to the special needs and circumstances of the child and family, those
			 needs shall be addressed or reviewed pursuant to rule
			 5101:2-49-12
			 of the Administrative Code. The child's supplemental security income (SSI)
			 benefits shall be considered along with the adoptive parent(s) resources in the
			 negotiation and determination of the AA payment amount. The special needs of
			 the child shall be based upon rule
			 5101:2-49-03
			 of the Administrative Code.
(E)
								The maximum
			 amount of the monthly AA payment shall not exceed the current cost of the
			 monthly foster care maintenance (FCM) payment that was paid or would have been
			 paid by the PCSA if the child had been placed in a foster home.
(F)
								If the child's AA
			 amount is more than the monthly adoption assistance statewide maximum (MAASM),
			 the PCSA may request from the Ohio department of job and family services
			 (ODJFS) a waiver to exceed the MAASM AA payment amount when the PCSA determines
			 it is in the best interest of the child. The AA payment shall not exceed the
			 FCM amount that was paid or would have been paid if the child was placed in a
			 foster home. The PCSA shall complete a waiver request in the statewide
			 automated child welfare information system (SACWIS).
(G)
								Notification of
			 the approval or denial of the MAASM waiver request shall be made within ten
			 business days upon receipt of the waiver request. The approval or denial of a
			 waiver is a final determination and does not grant the PCSA state hearing
			 rights under section 5101.35 of the Revised Code or
			 Chapters 5101:6-1 to 5101:6-9 of the Administrative Code.
(H)
								Any amount paid
			 for an AA subsidy that exceeds the FCM amount the child would receive if he/she
			 were currently in a foster home shall be paid by the county.
(I)
								Any monthly AA
			 payment amount in excess of the statewide maximum, prior to July 1, 2014, shall
			 remain in effect and shall continue to receive federal financial participation
			 (FFP) up to the current FCM payment for a child in the same level of
			 care.
(J)
								If the child receives SSI benefits, the child may
			 receive AA and SSI concurrently. If there is concurrent receipt of payments
			 from both programs, the social security administration will decrease the
			 monthly SSI benefit by the monthly AA payment amount.
(K)
								If the PCSA and
			 the adoptive parent(s) cannot mutually agree on the monthly AA payment amount
			 after thirty calendar days from the initial negotiation meeting, the adoptive
			 parent(s) or the PCSA may request with the agreement of the other party a state
			 mediation conference using the JFS 01470 "Title IV-E Adoption Assistance State
			 Mediation Conference Request" (rev. 7/2019) to develop a mutually acceptable
			 level of monthly AA payment amount. The JFS 01470 shall be sent to the ODJFS
			 state hearings department.
(1)
									The state mediation conference shall be held within
			 thirty business days from the receipt of the request.
(2)
									If the state
			 mediation conference is successful and results in a mutually acceptable monthly
			 AA payment amount, it is considered a final decision between both
			 parties.
(3)
									If the PCSA and the adoptive parent(s) cannot mutually
			 agree on a monthly AA payment amount at the state mediation conference, the
			 adoptive parent(s) may request a state hearing in accordance with provisions
			 set forth in Chapters 5101:6-1 to 5101:6-9 of the Administrative
			 Code.