9 CAR § 31-102. Child Welfare Agency Review Board

(a) The Child Welfare Agency Review Board shall promulgate and publish rules setting minimum standards governing the granting, revocation, refusal, conversion, and suspension of licenses for: (1) A child welfare agency; and (2) The operation of a child welfare agency. (b) The board may consult with such other agencies, organizations, or individuals as it shall deem proper. (c) The board may amend the rules promulgated pursuant to this section from time to time in accordance with the rule promulgation procedures in the Arkansas Administrative Procedure Act, Arkansas Code § 25-15-201 et seq. (d) The board shall promulgate rules that: (1) Promote the health, safety, and welfare of children in the care of a child welfare agency; (2) Promote safe and healthy physical facilities; (3) Ensure adequate supervision of the children by capable, qualified, and healthy individuals; (4) Ensure appropriate educational programs and activities for children in the care of a child welfare agency; (5) Ensure adequate and healthy food service; (6) Include procedures for the receipt, recordation, and disposition of complaints regarding allegations of violations of: (A) This part; (B) The rules promulgated under the Child Welfare Agency Licensing Act, Arkansas Code § 9-28-401 et seq.; or (C) Child maltreatment laws; (7) Include procedures for the assessment of child and family needs and for the delivery of services designed to enable each child to grow and develop in a permanent family setting; (8) Ensure that criminal record checks and Child Maltreatment Central Registry checks are completed on owners, operators, employees, volunteers, foster parents, adoptive parents, and other persons in the homes, as set forth in this part; (9) Require the compilation of reports and making those reports available to the Division of Children and Family Services when the board determines it is necessary for compliance determination or data compilation; (10) Ensure that a child placement agency: (A) Treats clients seeking or receiving services in a professional manner, as defined by rules promulgated pursuant to this section; and (B) Provides clients seeking or receiving services from a child placement agency that provides adoption services with the phone number and address of the Child Welfare Agency Licensing Unit where complaints can be lodged; (11) Require that all child welfare agencies that provide adoption services fully apprise in writing all clients involved in the process of adopting a child of the agency's adoption program or services, including all possible costs associated with the adoption program; and (12) Establish rules governing retention of licensing records maintained by the division. (e) A licensed child welfare agency may adopt and apply internal operating procedures that meet or exceed the minimum standards required by the board. (f) The Arkansas Administrative Procedure Act, Arkansas Code § 25-15-201 et seq., shall apply to all proceedings brought to the board under this part, except that the following provisions shall control during adverse action hearings to the extent that they conflict with the Arkansas Administrative Procedure Act: (1) All parties to an adverse action shall be entitled to engage in and use formal discovery as provided for in Rules 26, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, and 36 of the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure including: (A) Requests for admission; (B) Request for production of documents and things; (C) Written interrogatories; and (D) Oral and written depositions; and (2) All evidentiary rulings in an adverse action hearing shall be governed by the Arkansas Rules of Evidence with respect to the following types of evidence: (A) The requirements of personal knowledge of a witness as required by Rule 602; (B) The admissibility of character evidence as set forth by Rules 608 and 609; (C) The admissibility of character evidence as set forth by Rules 701 – 703; and (D) The admissibility of hearsay evidence as set forth by Rules 801 – 806.