Whether guardianship of children granted to a child care facility exempts the facility from board licensure requirements. RESPONSE: No. A.C.A. 20-78-202

STATE OF ARKANSAS OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL JUSTICE BUILDING, LITTLE ROGK 72201 STEVE CLARK (501) 371-2007 ATTORNEY GENERAL OPINION NO. 85-3 January 3, 1985 Ray Scott, Director Arkansas Dept. of Human Services Donaghey Building, Suite 1300 7th & Main Little Rock, AR 72201 RE: Opinion Request from Child Care Facility Review Board Dear Mr. Scott: _— You have requested an interpretation of Ark. Stat. Ann. §83- 902(D), specifically whether guardianship of children granted to a child care facility exempts the facility from board licensure requirements. It does not. Pursuant to §83-902(D), the only exempting relationships between the child and the facility would be "blood, mar- riage, or adoption." Guardianship of a minor does not give rise to any of these relationships. As promulgated in Ark. Stat. Ann. §§57-601 et seq. (Repl. 1971, Cum. Supp. 1983), a guardianship is ordered by a probate court to provide care and custody for an incompetent, in this situation a minor. It does not create a permanent relationship between the guardian and ward and can be dis- solved under a variety of circumstances. The parties need not be blood relatives; the guardian is held accountable to the court for his actions as the court retains jurisdiction as long as the guardianship exists; and the guardian may be compensated for his service. While it is true that the guardian of a minor ward will ob- viously perform certain parental functions, the legal relation- ship between the child and his natural parent still exists. Therefore, a guardianship is not a substitute or alternative to adoption because adoption forever terminates the biological parent-child relationship and statutorily creates a parent- child relationship between the child and the adoptive parents. Ark. Stat. Ann. §56-215(a) (1) (2). Ray Scott Page 2 January 3, 1985 . Finally, had it been the intent of the legislature to include guardianship as an exemption to licensure, it would have been a simple matter to include that exemption in §83- 902(D). Therefore, it is the opinion of this office that a child care facility cannot exempt itself from licensure require- ments by obtaining guardianship of a child or children it serves. The foregoing opinion, which I hereby approve, was prepared by Assistant Attorney General Elizabeth Dowling. Attorney General jsc:ED:dc