1. (a) If an unmarried minor parent and child are not living in a living arrangement as described in 20 CAR § 502-306, then the county office will first determine whether the minor parent meets one (1) of the following exception situations before requiring a change in living arrangements or denying the application:

   1. (1)

      1. (A) The minor parent’s current living arrangement is determined to be appropriate.
      2. (B) In this situation, the parent and minor child or children must continue to reside in such living arrangement as a condition of continued receipt of cash assistance.
      3. (C) An example of such an arrangement might be that the minor parent and child are living with an unrelated adult who has been acting as a parent to the minor;
   2. (2) The minor parent has no parent, legal guardian, or other appropriate adult relative of his or her own who is living or whose whereabouts are known;
   3. (3) The minor parent’s parent or legal guardian will not allow the minor parent and child to live in his or her home, and there is no other appropriate adult relative who will allow the minor parent and child to live in their home;
   4. (4) The minor parent or child is being or has been subjected to serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse, or exploitation in the home of the minor parent’s parent or legal guardian;
   5. (5) Substantial evidence exists of an act or failure to act that places the minor parent or child at risk of imminent or serious harm in the home of the minor parent’s parent or legal guardian; or
   6. (6) It is otherwise determined that it is in the best interest of the minor parent’s child to waive the living arrangement requirement for the minor parent and child.

2. (b)

   1. (1) The decision as to whether a particular living arrangement is appropriate under subdivision (a)(1) of this section is made at the county office level.
   2. (2) The case record should be documented as to why a living arrangement was determined to be appropriate.

3. (c)

   1. (1) The type or amount of verification requested of the minor parent to establish any of the above exceptions will be determined by the county office.
   2. (2) Since the intent of the living arrangement requirement is to ensure as many minor parents and their children live in adult-supervised settings as possible, attempts to verify the basis of an exception should be made.
   3. (3) However, depending upon the individual situation, the minor parent’s declaration may be accepted, if deemed appropriate.
4. (d) In situations in which it is determined that either subdivision (a)(4) or (a)(5) of this section applies, a referral to the Division of Children and Family Services will be made on behalf of the minor parent and child.

Codification Notes: This section as promulgated prior to codification into the Code of Arkansas Rules provided as follows: “07/01/97”