Texas Administrative Code › Title 40 - SOCIAL SERVICES AND ASSISTANCE › Part 19 - DEPARTMENT OF FAMILY AND PROTECTIVE SERVICES › Chapter 700 - CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES › Subchapter O - FOSTER AND ADOPTIVE HOME DEVELOPMENT › Section 700.1502 - Foster and Adoptive Home Inquiry and Screening

Current through Reg. 49, No. 28; July 12, 2024
The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services'
					 (DFPS') policies for responding to inquiries and screening and approval of
					 foster and adoptive homes are as follows:
(1) Responding to inquiries. DFPS receives
				  inquiries as a result of recruitment efforts by staff, volunteers, foster and
				  adoptive parents, foster and adoptive parent associations, and other
				  organizations that work with DFPS. When inquiries are received, staff should
				  provide a written response within 10 working days to provide families
				  information about the process of becoming a foster or adoptive parent with
				  DFPS.
(2) Screening. When screening
				  prospective foster and adoptive parents, DFPS considers both the Minimum
				  Standards promulgated by Residential Child Care Licensing (RCCL) and the
				  following factors:
(A) Age. Applicants to
				  foster or adopt must be at least 21 years of age. Age is evaluated in relation
				  to the applicant's maturity.
(B)
				  Marriage.
(i) Regarding foster parents, DFPS
				  follows the Minimum Standards promulgated by RCCL that govern married
				  applicants. In order for one spouse to be a foster parent, both spouses must be
				  verified to provide foster care.
(ii) Regarding adoptive parents:
(I) If an applicant is married but not
				  separated and wishes to submit an application, the applicant's spouse must join
				  in the application and the license or declaration of marriage must be
				  recorded.
(II) Except as provided
				  in subclause (III) of this clause, if an applicant is separated but not
				  divorced, he or she may submit an application, but is required to finalize the
				  divorce before the home can be approved.
(III) If an applicant seeking to adopt does
				  not have a finalized divorce, the Assistant Commissioner of Child Protective
				  Services, or designee, may grant a waiver if it is in the best interest of the
				  child to do so. Relevant factors in assessing whether to grant a waiver
				  include, but are not limited to, any family relationship between the applicant
				  and the child, any other significant prior relationship between the applicant
				  and the child, and the applicant's ability to meet the child's particular needs
				  as evidenced in an adoptive home screening.
(C) Length of marriage. DFPS has a preference
				  that couples should be married at least two years before adopting. However,
				  DFPS does accept adoption applications from couples who have not been married
				  for at least two years. In this situation, an individual conducting the home
				  study must assess the stability of the couple's relationship and their reason
				  for wanting to adopt a child, this will include looking at any current or prior
				  family or other significant relationships between the applicant and the child.
				  This information will be used by the individual conducting the home study in
				  determining whether the home study will be initially approved. Once the home
				  study is initially approved, it must also be approved by a Child Placement
				  Management Staff.
(D) Single
				  Parents. Single parents are evaluated in terms of their ability to nurture and
				  provide for a child without assistance of a spouse. Placement with a single
				  parent is considered the best plan for some children.
(E) Disabilities. Disabilities are evaluated
				  in relation to the applicants' adjustment to the disability and the limits, if
				  any, that the disability imposes on the applicants' ability to care for a
				  child.
(F) Residence. Adoptive home
				  screenings are started only if the applicant(s) will live in the community long
				  enough for DFPS to complete a screening and make a placement. Exceptions are
				  made in unusual situations involving a child with special needs if another
				  licensed child placing agency in the new community agrees to complete the
				  adoption services.
(G) Adoption by
				  foster families. Foster families are evaluated using the same criteria applied
				  to any other adoptive applicants. The home screening must be updated to meet
				  the minimum standards for adoptive homes. The evaluation focuses on the
				  family's demonstrated skill and ability to parent the children DFPS has placed
				  in the family's care and determines the attachment the family and the child
				  have to each other.
(H) Finances.
				  Although there are no specific income requirements, the applicants must have
				  enough income, and be able to manage it well enough, to meet the child's basic
				  material needs. Income is also evaluated in terms of past and present
				  management.
(I) Health. The
				  applicants' physical, mental, and emotional health must be sufficient to assume
				  parenting responsibilities. Physical, mental, and emotional conditions are
				  considered to protect the child against another loss of parenting through
				  death, incapacity, or repetition of abuse or neglect.
(J) Religion. There are no specific religion
				  requirements. Applicants are evaluated based on:
(i) Their willingness to respect and
				  encourage a child's religious affiliation.
(ii) Their willingness to provide a child
				  opportunity for religious, spiritual, and ethical development.
(iii) The health protection they plan to give
				  a child if their religious beliefs prohibit certain medical
				  treatment.
(K)
				  Discipline. Physical discipline may not be used on a child in any DFPS foster
				  or adoptive home prior to consummation. DFPS evaluates applicants based on
				  their willingness and ability to:
(i)
				  recognize and respect differences in children, especially children who have
				  been abused or neglected;
(ii)
				  employ methods of discipline that suit the particular needs and circumstances
				  of each child; and
(iii) employ
				  methods of discipline that conform to the policies specified in the Minimum
				  Standards promulgated by Residential Child Care Licensing.
(L) Criminal history. Criminal history
				  background checks must be completed on all prospective foster and adoptive
				  parents and the members of their households who are 14 years old or older and
				  not under the legal conservatorship of DFPS. Criminal history background checks
				  are conducted in accordance with the criminal history rules promulgated by the
				  Child Care Licensing Division of DFPS.
(M) Adoptive home screenings - fertility.
				  Fertility assessments may be needed if DFPS believes the couple needs to know
				  more about their fertility before they adopt a child. The couple's fertility is
				  important only in relation to resolution of their feelings about their
				  infertility and their ability to accept and parent a child not born to
				  them.
(N) Citizenship and
				  immigration. Only U.S. citizens, permanent residents, or other qualified aliens
				  (as defined in
				  8
				  U.S.C. §1641(b)) can be
				  approved as foster or adoptive parents. If an applicant who seeks to adopt a
				  child does not have the required immigration status, the Assistant Commissioner
				  of Child Protective Services or a designee, may grant a waiver if it is in the
				  best interest of the child to do so. Relevant factors in assessing whether to
				  grant a waiver include any family relationship or other significant prior
				  relationship between the child and the applicant, and the applicant's ability
				  to meet the child's particular needs.