Chapter 5 - Interstate Compact On Placement Of Children
CHAPTER 5 - INTERSTATE COMPACT ON PLACEMENT OF CHILDREN
14-5-101. Compact provisions generally.
The Interstate Compact on the Placement ofChildren is enacted into law and entered into with all other jurisdictionslegally joining therein in form substantially as follows:
ArticleI. Definitions.
As used in this compact:
(a) "Child"means a person who, by reason of minority, is legally subject to parental,guardianship or similar control.
(b) "Sendingagency" means a party state, or officer or employee thereof; a subdivisionof a party state, or officer or employee thereof; a court of a party state; aperson, corporation, association, charitable agency or other entity whichsends, brings, or causes to be sent or brought any child to another partystate.
(c) "Receivingstate" means the state to which a child is sent, brought, or caused to besent or brought, whether by public authorities or private persons or agencies,and whether for placement with state or local public authorities or forplacement with private agencies or persons.
(d) "Placement" means the arrangement for the care of a child in a familyfree or boarding home or in a child-caring agency or institution but does notinclude any institution caring for the mentally ill, mentally defective orepileptic or any institution primarily educational in character, or a hospitalor other medical facility.
Article II. Conditions for Placement.
(a) No sending stateshall send, bring, or cause to be sent or brought into any other party stateany child for placement in foster care or as a preliminary to a possibleadoption unless the sending agency shall comply with each and every requirementset forth in this article and with the applicable laws of the receiving stategoverning the placement of children therein.
(b) Prior to sending,bringing or causing any child to be sent or brought into a receiving state forplacement in foster care or as a preliminary to a possible adoption, thesending agency shall furnish the appropriate public authorities in thereceiving state written notice of the intention to send, bring or place thechild in the receiving state. The notice shall contain:
(1) The name, date andplace of birth of the child.
(2) The identity andaddress or addresses of the parents or legal guardian.
(3) The name andaddress of the person, agency or institutions to or with which the sendingagency proposes to send, bring, or place the child.
(4) A full statement ofthe reasons for such proposed action and evidence of the authority pursuant towhich the placement is proposed to be made.
(c) Any public officeror agency in a receiving state which is in receipt of a notice pursuant toparagraph (b) of this article may request of the sending agency, or any otherappropriate officer or agency of or in the sending agency's state, and shall beentitled to receive therefrom, such supporting or additional information as itmay deem necessary under the circumstances to carry out the purpose and policyof this compact.
(d) The child shall notbe sent, brought or caused to be sent or brought into the receiving state untilthe appropriate public authorities in the receiving state shall notify thesending agency, in writing, to the effect that the proposed placement does notappear to be contrary to the interests of the child, or in violation of the lawof the receiving state.
Article III. Penalty for Illegal Placement.
The sending, bringing, or causing to besent or brought into any receiving state of a child in violation of the termsof this compact shall constitute a violation of the laws respecting theplacement of children of both the state in which the sending agency is locatedor from which it sends or brings the child and of the receiving state. Suchviolation may be punished or subjected to penalty in either jurisdiction inaccordance with its laws. In addition to liability for any such punishment orpenalty, any such violation shall constitute full and sufficient grounds forthe suspension or revocation of any license, permit, or other legalauthorization held by the sending agency which empowers or allows it to place,or care for children.
ArticleIV. Retention of Jurisdiction.
(a) The sending agencyshall retain jurisdiction over the child sufficient to determine all matters inrelation to the custody, supervision, care, treatment and disposition of thechild which it would have had if the child had remained in the sending agency'sstate, until the child is adopted, reaches majority, becomes self-supporting oris discharged with the concurrence of the appropriate authority in thereceiving state. Such jurisdiction shall also include the power to effect orcause the return of the child or its transfer to another location and custodypursuant to law. The sending agency shall continue to have financialresponsibility for support and maintenance of the child during the period ofthe placement. Nothing contained herein shall defeat a claim of jurisdiction bya receiving state sufficient to deal with an act of delinquency or crimecommitted therein.
(b) When the sendingagency is a public agency, it may enter into an agreement with an authorizedpublic or private agency in the receiving state providing for the performanceof one or more services in respect of such case by the latter as agent for thesending agency.
(c) Nothing in thiscompact shall be construed to prevent a private charitable agency authorized toplace children in the receiving state from performing services or acting asagent in that state for a private charitable agency of the sending state; norto prevent the agency in the receiving state from discharging financialresponsibility for the support and maintenance of a child who has been placedon behalf of the sending agency without relieving the responsibility set forthin paragraph (a) hereof.
Article V. Institutional Care of Delinquent Children.
A child adjudicated delinquent may beplaced in an institution in another party jurisdiction pursuant to this compactbut no such placement shall be made unless the child is given a court hearingon notice to the parent or guardian with opportunity to be heard, prior to hisbeing sent to such other party jurisdiction for institutional care and thecourt finds that:
1. Equivalentfacilities for the child are not available in the sending agency'sjurisdiction; and
2. Institutional carein the other jurisdiction is in the best interest of the child and will notproduce undue hardship.
Article VI. Compact Administrator.
The executive head of each jurisdictionparty to this compact shall designate an officer who shall be generalcoordinator of activities under this compact in his jurisdiction and who,acting jointly with like officers or other party jurisdictions, shall havepower to promulgate rules and regulations to carry out more effectively theterms and provisions of this compact.
ArticleVII. Limitations.
This compact shall not apply to:
(a) The sending orbringing of a child into a receiving state by his parents, step-parent,grandparent, adult brother or sister, adult uncle or aunt, or his guardian orthe leaving of the child with any such relative or nonagency guardian in thereceiving state.
(b) Any placement,sending or bringing of a child into a receiving state pursuant to any otherinterstate compact to which both the state from which the child is sent orbrought and the receiving state are party, or to any other agreement betweensaid states which has the force of law.
Article VIII. Enactment and Withdrawal.
This compact shall be open to joinder byany state, territory or possession of the United States, the District ofColumbia, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and with the consent of congress,the government of Canada or any province thereof. It shall become effectivewith respect to any such jurisdiction when such jurisdiction has enacted thesame into law. Withdrawal from this compact shall be by the enactment of astatute repealing the same, but shall not take effect until two (2) years afterthe effective date of such statute and until written notice of the withdrawalhas been given by the withdrawing state to the governor of each other partyjurisdiction. Withdrawal of a party state shall not affect the rights, dutiesand obligations under this compact of any sending agency therein with respectto a placement made prior to the effective date of withdrawal.
ArticleIX. Construction and Severability.
The provisions of this compact shall beliberally construed to effectuate the purposes thereof. The provisions of thiscompact shall be severable and if any phrase, clause, sentence or provision ofthis compact is declared to be contrary to the constitution of any party stateor of the United States or the applicability thereof to any government, agency,person or circumstance is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of thiscompact and the applicability thereof to any government, agency, person orcircumstance shall not be affected thereby. If this compact shall be heldcontrary to the constitution of any state party thereto, the compact shallremain in full force and effect as to the remaining states and in full forceand effect as to the state affected as to all severable matters.
14-5-102. Financial responsibility.
Financialresponsibility for any child placed pursuant to the provisions within W.S.14-5-101 shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of article IVthereof.
14-5-103. Duties of department of family services.
(a) "Appropriate public authorities" as used inarticle II of W.S. 14-5-101 and "appropriate authority in the receivingstate" as used in article IV(a) of W.S. 14-5-101 mean the Wyomingdepartment of family services. The department shall:
(i) Receive and act with reference to notices required byarticle II of W.S. 14-5-101; and
(ii) Act as compact administrator in accordance with article VIof W.S. 14-5-101.
14-5-104. Agreements with other party states authorized; when approvalrequired.
Officersand agencies of the state of Wyoming and its subdivisions having authority toplace children may enter into agreements with appropriate officers or agenciesof other party states pursuant to article IV(b) of W.S. 14-5-101. Any agreementwhich contains a financial commitment or imposes a financial obligation on thestate of Wyoming, a subdivision or agency thereof is not binding unless it hasthe written approval of the administrator of the budget division of the Wyomingdepartment of administration and information or the county treasurer in thecase of a county.
14-5-105. Inspection and supervision of children and facilities inother states.
Anyrequirements for inspection or supervision of children, homes, institutions orother agencies in another party state which apply under W.S. 14-4-101 through14-4-111 are deemed met if performed pursuant to an agreement entered into byappropriate officers or agencies of this state or a subdivision thereof asspecified in article IV (b) of W.S. 14-5-101 and performed by agents of anadministrative or governmental agency of another state.
14-5-106. Placement of child in out-of-state institution.
Anydistrict or juvenile court in any district in Wyoming which finds a child to bedelinquent or guilty of committing a felony may place the child in aninstitution in another state pursuant to article V of W.S. 14-5-101 and shallretain jurisdiction as provided in article IV thereof.
14-5-107. Prerequisites for placement of children from other states.
Anyperson, firm, partnership, corporation, state or political subdivision oragency thereof shall not send, bring or cause to be sent or brought to thestate of Wyoming any child for placement in foster care or as a preliminary toa possible adoption unless the sending person, firm, corporation, state,political subdivision or agency thereof complies with the prerequisitesrequired in article II of W.S. 14-5-101.
14-5-108. Penalties for violations.
Anyperson, firm or corporation which places a child in the state of Wyoming orreceives a child in this state without meeting the requirements of W.S.14-5-101 through 14-5-107 is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be fined onehundred dollars ($100.00) or imprisoned in the county jail for a maximum ofthirty (30) days, or both. Each day of violation is a separate offense.