211-10:  Language around prudent parenting/normalcy would be helpful.  Regarding terminology around parents/families – Create greater distinction between fostering and adoption while also recognizing the umbrella term for all approved parents, resource family.  For example:

“Adoptive parent” – The parent of a child in which the parent-child relationship was established by a Court of Law after a finalized adoption order, rather than biology.  Under the adoptive relationship, the child becomes an heir and is entitled to all privileges belonging to the biological child of a parent.

“Foster parenting” means providing 24-hour substitute family care for a child in foster care, including nurturing, room & board, necessities, and supervision for children or youth committed/entrusted to a child-placing agency.

“Resource family” is an umbrella term used in practice to refer to approved families who are fostering, have adopted, are formal kinship caregivers, or who provide respite care.    **Please consider fixing this phrase instead of striking “resource parent,” as it is the field-wide standard and goes hand-in-hand with the philosophies behind dual approval.  While the definition currently in the law reflects inaccurate and dated language from early concurrent planning pilots, the phrase is appropriate to use as it is the field-wide term for those formally approved through DSS/LCPA to provide family foster care.  Updating instead of striking ensures not only consistency with the field at large, it is consistent with the VDSS-supported pre-service curriculum used by a majority of LDSS (PRIDE).  Most states have included this umbrella term, some to greater detail than others.  For example, California's definition is "caregivers who provide out-of-home care for children in foster care. Resource families include individuals, couples and families. They may be related to the child, have a familiar or mentoring relationship with the child, or no previous relationship with the child."  In Maine, "Resource family Includes foster/adoptive parents, foster parents, and relative or kinship caregivers."  (Seems like “formal kinship” would be an important distinction.)

211-20

A:  Regarding “the approved provider shall be allowed to choose to provide only … adoptive care” – this reads as if there is an adoption-only option through foster care, rather than reflecting its roots in dual approval.  One way to reword could be:  A family who is dually-approved has met the requirements for both foster care and adoption.  While some families may choose to foster but not adopt, there is no mechanism in foster care by which a family can adopt but not foster.

F2: consider adding language similar to confidentiality, to ensure that parents are very clear on what constitutes corporal punishment before signing the agreement!