1. (a) The Family Service Worker will:

   1. (1) Develop a transitional plan with all youth in foster care between fourteen (14) and twenty-one (21) years of age, and for all youth who turn fourteen (14) years of age while in foster care, within ninety (90) days of entering care or within ninety (90) days after their fourteenth birthday;
   2. (2) Assist the youth in developing a transitional team to include individuals identified by the youth as significant (e.g., foster parents, bio family, AAL, CASA, mentors, therapists, TSC, teachers, coaches);
   3. (3) Review the transitional plan every six (6) months to ensure consistency with education plan, case plan, and life plan and coordinate with the youth’s school at least annually, until the youth exits foster care or secondary school;
   4. (4) Determine, based on the youth’s age, maturity, disabilities, and other factors, what shall be appropriate to include in the transition plan;

   5. (5) Determine at which point in the youth’s development to include the following components (all components must be present by the time the youth is seventeen (17) years of age):

      1. (A) Education component;
      2. (B) Employment component;
      3. (C) Health component to include information on:

2. (i) Options for health insurance; and

   1. (ii) Documentation of a healthcare power of attorney or healthcare proxy if the youth chooses to designate one;

      1. (D) Housing component;
      2. (E) Lifelong connections component;
      3. (F) Written confirmation that the youth has been informed of his or her right to stay in foster care after reaching eighteen (18) years of age for education, treatment, work, or other specific programs and services, including but not be limited to the John H. Chafee Foster Care Independence Program and other transitional services;

      4. (G) The youth's court case record, including information on:

         1. (i) His or her biological family;
         2. (ii) Foster care placement history;
         3. (iii) Tribal information, if applicable; and
         4. (iv) Whereabouts of siblings, if any, unless a court determines that release of information pertaining to siblings would jeopardize the safety or welfare of the sibling;
      5. (H) List of significant individuals in the youth’s life; and
      6. (I) Assistance in obtaining a free credit report and if the youth has a bad credit report because of identity theft, assistance in correcting the credit report;

   2. (6) Assist the youth or arrange for assistance in:

      1. (A) Procuring life skills training;

      2. (B) Completing applications for:

         1. (i) ARKids First, Medicaid, or assistance in obtaining other health insurance;
         2. (ii) Referrals to transitional housing, if available, or assistance in securing other housing; and
         3. (iii) Assistance in obtaining employment or other financial support;
      3. (C) Applying for admission to a college or university, or to a vocational training program, or another educational institution and in obtaining financial aid, when appropriate; and
      4. (D) Developing and maintaining relationships with individuals who are important to the youth and who may serve as a resource to the youth based on his or her best interests;
   3. (7) Discuss with the youth the importance of designating someone to make healthcare decisions on their behalf when they exit from foster care, if they become unable, or if they do not have or do not want, an otherwise authorized relative to do so;

   4. (8)

      1. (A) Assist the youth in contacting the individual or individuals who they would like to serve as their healthcare power of attorney or healthcare proxy and completing documentation authorizing a healthcare power of attorney or healthcare proxy;
      2. (B) The Department of Human Services serves as the youth’s healthcare power of attorney or healthcare proxy until the youth exits foster care;
   5. (9) With court permission and if the youth desires, facilitate visits between the youth and his or her relatives;

   6. (10)

      1. (A) Assist all youth in or entering foster care at fourteen (14) years of age or older or in the ninth grade, whichever comes first, within ninety (90) days after their fourteenth birthday or ninety days (90) days after entering the ninth grade, in developing a life plan (CFS-002: Life Plan and Agreement for Youth in Transition).
      2. (B) The life plan shall be youth-driven.
      3. (C) The life plan shall contain a concrete to-do list for youth, staff, and stakeholders.
      4. (D) The life plan should be adopted by the transitional team within six (6) months of the youth’s sixteenth birthday or entry into foster care, whichever comes first;
   7. (11) Hold a final transitional team meeting within ninety (90) days of youth’s planned exit from foster care;
   8. (12) Invite the youth’s TSC to the transitional team meeting to discuss Chafee after care support and ETV;

   9. (13) At the final transitional team meeting, complete CFS-003: Checklist for Youth Exiting Care and provide the youth with the following and obtain his or her signature and that of his or her attorney ad litem confirming receipt:

      1. (A) Social Security card;
      2. (B) Certified birth certificate or verification of birth record, if available or should have been available;
      3. (C) Family photos in the possession of the Division of Children and Family Services;

      4. (D)

         1. (i) All the youth’s health records for the time the youth was in foster care and any other medical records that were available or should have been available to the division.
         2. (ii) A youth who chooses to remain in foster care after reaching eighteen (18) years of age may request that his or her health records remain private;
      5. (E) All of the youth’s educational records for the time the youth was in foster care and any other educational records that were available or should have been available to the division;
      6. (F) Driver’s license and other picture identification;
      7. (G) Transitional resource book and life book, if applicable;
      8. (H) Life plan;

      9. (I) If the youth elected not to designate a healthcare power of attorney or healthcare proxy before aging out of care, whether at eighteen (18) or twenty-one (21) years of age, contact information for legal services if at a later point the youth decides to designate someone to make healthcare decisions on his or her behalf, if he or she:

         1. (i) Becomes unable to participate in such decisions; and
         2. (ii) Does not have, or does not want, a relative who would otherwise be authorized to make such decisions;
      10. (J) All information contained within the youth’s case plan (current or former, as requested); and
      11. (K) A list of all the youth’s former placements;

   10. (14)

       1. (A) Document a current address and contact information for youth who reside outside the foster home in order to study, work, or for any other reason.
       2. (B) This information must be kept current; and
   11. (15) Within seventy-two (72) hours of case closure, notify the eligibility unit of the case closing and provide the Trust Coordinator with any information requested.

3. (b) The Transitional Youth Services Unit Manager or designee will:

   1. (1)

      1. (A) Review CHRIS report regarding TYS credit check alerts monthly to determine when to run an annual credit check on youth who are sixteen (16) years of age and older.
      2. (B) Submit information on each appropriate youth to each of the three (3) credit reporting agencies (CRAs) – TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian – in succession, i.e., do not contact all three (3) CRAs at the same time, in order to request a credit check.

      3. (C)

         1. (i) This process will begin within thirty (30) days of the youth’s sixteenth birthday or within thirty (30) days of the youth coming into care, whichever comes first, until the youth exits care.
         2. (ii)
4. (a) (a) One (1) CRA must be contacted, the credit check information received from that CRA, and any inaccuracies corrected before the next CRA is contacted.

5. (b) (b) Ensure that one (1) full year has passed since accessing the previous year’s report before viewing the current year’s report.

   1. (iii) Obtain a copy of the credit report, if one exists (the majority of youth under eighteen (18) years of age should not have a credit report), from each of the three (3) nationwide credit reporting agencies (CRAs) – TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian – for each youth (information must be obtained from each CRA in succession (i.e., all three (3) CRAs are not to be contacted at the same time regarding a particular youth));

   2. (2)

      1. (A) If problems or inaccuracies are detected on a youth’s credit report, contact the CRA that issued the report to resolve any inaccuracies found in the report.
      2. (B) Explain that the child is a minor and cannot legally enter into any type of contract.

      3. (C) To prove that the child is a minor, send the CRA:

         1. (i) A copy of the child’s birth certificate or other documentation of age, such as a court order;
         2. (ii) A letter asking them to remove all accounts, application inquiries, and collection notices from the credit report associated with the child’s name or personal information; and
         3. (iii) Documentation verifying that the youth is in foster care and the agency is authorized to act on the youth’s behalf.
      4. (D) Discuss with the CRA the appropriate course of action and initiate applicable next step for the action or actions;
   3. (3) Share relevant information with the youth and the youth’s FSW and TSC; and

   4. (4) Document credit report review in contacts screen in CHRIS.

      1. (c) The Eligibility Unit Trust Coordinator will, within thirty (30) days after the youth leaves foster care, provide the youth with the following information:
   5. (1) A full accounting of all funds held by the department to which he or she is entitled;
   6. (2) How to access the funds; and
   7. (3) When the funds will be available.

Codification Notes: “TSC” means transitional services coordinator. This section as promulgated prior to codification into the Code of Arkansas Rules provided as follows: "08/2012"