40 Tex. Admin. Code § 700.804 - Who is a child with special needs?

A child with special needs is one who meets all of the criteria in this section:

(1) At the time the adoptive placement agreement is signed, the child is less than 18 years old and meets at least one of the following conditions:

(A) Except as provided in § 700.863 of this title (relating to Does a child remain eligible for benefits in a subsequent adoption?) and § 700.883 of this title (relating to Can I still get adoption assistance benefits if I assume legal responsibility of a child in DFPS conservatorship before the adoption is finalized?), the child was in the managing conservatorship of DFPS or an authorized entity from the time of adoptive placement until the consummation of the adoption, and:

(i) the child is at least six years old;

(ii) the child is at least two years old and a member of a racial or ethnic group that exits foster care at a slower pace than other racial or ethnic groups;

(iii) the child is being adopted with a sibling or to join a sibling who has been adopted by the parents or for whom the parents already have permanent managing conservatorship or an equivalent arrangement in another state; or

(iv) the child has a verifiable physical, mental, or emotional disabling condition, as established by an appropriately qualified professional through a diagnosis that addresses:

(I) what the condition is; and

(II) that the condition is disabling; or

(B) The child has been determined by the Social Security Administration to meet all the medical or disability requirements with respect to eligibility for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits;

(2) The state has determined that the child cannot or should not be returned to the home of his parents; and

(3) A reasonable, but unsuccessful, effort was made to find an adoptive placement without providing adoption assistance, unless doing so was not in the child's best interests. Proof of such reasonable efforts may include:

(A) documentation that the child was registered on an adoption registry exchange for more than 60 days;

(B) documentation of any ongoing effort, whether through child welfare entities, government or private organizations, to locate an adoptive family; or

(C) the fact that one or more adoptive placements did not result in an adoption.

Notes

40 Tex. Admin. Code § 700.804

The provisions of this §700.804 adopted to be effective July 12, 2001, 26 TexReg 5061; amended to be effective September 1, 2007, 32 TexReg 5388; amended to be effective March 1, 2010, 35 TexReg 875; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 42, Number 02, January 13, 2017, TexReg 85, eff. 1/19/2017