Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 22, § 35017 - Requirements for Photo-Listing Children Who Have Been Freed for Adoption or those with a Case Plan Goal of Adoption

(a) As a means of recruiting prospective adoptive families and promoting permanency outcomes, the Department, county adoption agency, or licensed adoption agency shall register with the photo-listing service of the Department each child who has been freed for adoption and whose case plan goal is adoption.

(b) In order to register the child, the Department, county adoption agency, or licensed adoption agency shall submit the following to the photo-listing service of the Department:

(1) Two recent color photographs of the child which are:

(A) head-to-chest close-ups;

(B) no smaller than 3 1/2 inches by 3 1/3 inches in dimension;

(C) taken no more than six months prior to registration.

(2) A description of each child being registered.

(A) The description shall be typewritten in the "Description of Child" section on the AD 909.

(B) The completed "Description of Child" section on the AD 909 shall be no less than four concise paragraphs which contain, but are not limited to, the following:

1. Include in the first paragraph:

a. the child's birth month and year;

b. the child's religious preference: if no preference, indicate "NONE";

c. whether the child is a member of a sibling group;

d. the child's ethnicity: if a child is of a mixed background, identify the ethnicities, such as, but not limited to, Black/White, Hispanic/Asian, etc.

2. Include in the second paragraph some positive statements about the child's personality, outside or special interests, achievements, and aspirations.

3. Include in the third paragraph a summary of the child's medical, educational, psychological, and behavioral problems, if any, and measures that are being taken to decrease or eliminate those problems.

4. Include in the fourth paragraph:

a. placement restrictions, such as, but not limited to, geographic, which may sever ties between relatives or significant others;

b. information as to whether the child would benefit from ongoing contact with birth parents, siblings, and other relatives;

c. the type of family sought, one or two parents, and the characteristics they should possess;

d. whether the child is eligible for AAP benefits.

(c) Licensed adoption agencies shall send a recent photograph and description of each child to the photo-listing service within 15 working days of the time the child is legally freed for adoption.

(1) The 15-working-day time period shall commence on the first working day following the date on which the AD 4333 is signed by the Department.

(2) When an appeal has been filed challenging the initial court decision of termination of parental rights, the child shall not be photo-listed during the appeal process.

(A) After appeal, the child shall be registered with the photo-listing service within 15 working days after the court's final order of termination of parental rights.

1. Registration shall conform to Sections 35017(a) and (b).

(d) When adoption is the case plan goal for a child, the agency may photo-list that child prior to the child's becoming legally freed for adoption.

(1) Consent to register the child shall be obtained by the agency from the birth parent(s), legal guardian, or the court.

(A) Once consent has been obtained, the child shall be registered within 15 working days.

(e) The Department, county adoption agency, or licensed adoption agencies shall defer a child's registration when the child's foster parent(s) or other identified persons have expressed interest in adopting the child and are meeting the adoption agency's requests for required documentation as specified at Section 35195(a) and are cooperating in the completion of a home study pursuant to Section 35189(a).

(f) Registration shall be deferred no longer than six months from the date the child was legally freed unless documentation is included in the case file which substantiates the need for further deferral resulting from delays not within the control of the prospective adoptive parents.

(g) A child who is 12 years of age, or older, and does not consent to be adopted, shall be deferred from the photo-listing service.

(1) If a child 12 years of age, or older, consents to his or her adoption, subsequent to an initial decision not to consent to his or her adoption, the agency shall register the child within 15 working days following the child's consent.

(h) The photo-listing service of the Department shall list the child in the photo-listing book within 30 working days following receipt of the items enumerated in Sections 35017(b) and (c).

Notes

Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 22, § 35017

1. New section filed 11-13-87; operative 12-13-87. Ed. Note: Text previously appeared in the Manual of Policies and Procedures as section 70-202.5. The printing of this regulation was delayed due to necessary reformatting (Register 89, No. 38). For history of former chapter 3, see Register 88, No. 1.
2. Amendment of subsection (d) and new subsection (e) with re-lettering of subsequent subsections filed 5-29-90; operative 6-28-90 (Register 90, No. 28).
3. Change without regulatory effect amending NOTE filed 8-2-91 pursuant to section 100, title 1, California Code of Regulations and editorial correction of section heading (Register 91, No. 52).
4. Change without regulatory effect relettering subsections and amending NOTE filed 3-27-95 pursuant to section 100, title 1, California Code of Regulations (Register 95, No. 13).
5. Amendment of section and NOTE filed 7-30-98 as an emergency; operative 8-1-98 (Register 98, No. 31). A Certificate of Compliance must be transmitted to OAL by 11-30-98 or emergency language will be repealed by operation of law on the following day.
6. Amendment of section and NOTE refiled 11-24-98 as an emergency; operative 11-29-98 (Register 98, No. 48). A Certificate of Compliance must be transmitted to OAL by 3-29-99 or emergency language will be repealed by operation of law on the following day.
7. Certificate of Compliance as to 11-24-98 order transmitted to OAL 3-25-99 and filed 5-3-99 (Register 99, No. 19).
8. Amendment of section heading, section and NOTE filed 5-9-2018; operative 7-1-2018 (Register 2018, No. 19).

Note: Authority cited: Sections 10553 and 10554, Welfare and Institutions Code; Section 1530, Health and Safety Code; and Sections 8621, 8707(a) and 8714.5, Family Code. Reference: Sections 8707, 8709, 8710 and 8711, Family Code; and Section 16119, Welfare and Institutions Code.