OKDHS - OAC 340:75-13-45. Clothing purchases for children

340:75-13-45. Clothing purchases for children

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Revised 6-11-01

(a) Clothing accompanies child. The Child Welfare (CW) worker obtains the child's clothing, and any other items that have personal meaning to the child, from the parent(s) at the time of initial placement in out-of-home care. Clothing purchased for or accompanying the child belongs to that child. The CW worker and placement provider ensure the clothing accompanies the child if the child moves from one placement to another. • 1

(b) Clothing purchase authorization amounts. The amounts designated as clothing authorizations are set out in Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) Appendix C-20, Children and Family Services Division Rates Schedule, as amended from time to time, as approved by the Oklahoma Commission for Human Services.

(1) One time startup authorization. • 2
- (A) A one time startup authorization is issued for a child at initial placement into:
  - (i) foster family care;
  - (ii) paid and non-paid kinship care;
  - (iii) therapeutic foster care (TFC); and
  - (iv) emergency foster care (EFC) after the child has been in care 30 days.
- (B) Another one time startup authorization may be issued when OKDHS subsequently obtains custody of the child and the child reenters any of the placements listed in OAC 340:75-13-45(1)(A).
(2) Emergency clothing authorizations. Authorized staff in each county may provide emergency clothing authorizations not more than four times in any twelve-month period. An emergency clothing authorization may not be issued within 90 days of the issuance of a one time startup authorization or a previous emergency clothing authorization. • 2
- (A) The child's CW worker requests an emergency clothing authorization four times a year for a child placed in a:
  - (i) non-paid kinship home;
  - (ii) non-funded group home;
  - (iii) Developmental Disabilities Services Division (DDSD) and CW grand-staffed placement, such as therapeutic community home, home with daily living supports, and agency companion home; or
  - (iv) psychiatric facility, such as acute or residential treatment center (RTC), in-state or out-of-state.
- (B) Emergency authorizations may be provided for a child:
  - (i) initially placed into voluntary foster care, excluding voluntary care after the age of 18;
  - (ii) residing in youth services shelters without adequate clothing;
  - (iii) residing in OKDHS operated shelters in need of special sizes or articles of clothing not available in bulk purchase stock;
  - (iv) who lost clothing as a result of being absent without leave (AWOL) or a disaster, such as fire, flood, and similar natural disasters;
  - (v) placed into a new foster home who has been in continuous custody without sufficient clothing provided by the previous placement provider; • 1
  - (vi) leaving out-of-home care for independent living status;
  - (vii) returning from placement through Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children (ICPC), without sufficient clothing, into out-of-home placement;
  - (viii) placed for adoption without sufficient clothing. This does not include a child who is in a foster home where the foster parent is adopting the child;
  - (ix) who, due to special size or hard-to-fit clothing needs, requires additional clothing purchases;
  - (x) residing in an OKDHS operated group home, and, if applicable, her child; and
  - (xi) placed directly from inpatient psychiatric care into a DDSD home prior to the availability of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits.
(3) Clothing authorization process. The designated staff at the local OKDHS office processes clothing authorizations through the AS400 Finance Division system. • 3 through 5 The authorization is provided to the placement provider who purchases the clothing through a vendor who accepts OKDHS authorizations. The vendor submits the authorization to OKDHS for payment.
(4) Clothing.
- (A) The foster parent is responsible for providing adequate clothing for the child based on the child's needs, such as a minimum of a week's worth of clothing that is appropriate for the season and well-fitting. The foster parent maintains an inventory of clothing utilizing Form DCFS-118, Clothing Inventory. • 6 After the one time startup authorization, the clothing allowance is included in the monthly foster care reimbursement for a child who is in OKDHS custody and placed in a:
  - (i) foster family home;
  - (ii) paid kinship home; or
  - (iii) specialized community home.
- (B) Clothing is made available to a child while placed in EFC per the OKDHS contract and the clothing remains with the EFC agency.
- (C) The clothing allowance is included in the daily reimbursement rates per the OKDHS contract for:
  - (i) TFC; and
  - (ii) funded OKDHS group homes and maternity homes.
- (D) Clothing is purchased with SSI or Social Security Administration (SSA) benefits for a child who is in OKDHS custody and placed in a DDSD foster home or non-paid kinship home.
(5) ICPC placements. The clothing allowances for a child in OKDHS custody placed in foster care out-of-state through ICPC are:
- (A) included in the receiving state's monthly reimbursement; or
- (B) reimbursed by OKDHS when not included in the receiving state's monthly reimbursement. The foster parent may spend the equivalent of the monthly allowance, per OKDHS Appendix C-20. The foster parent obtains store receipts with the store's name and address that clearly identifies the items purchased. The foster parent sends the receipts to Children and Family Services Division Administrative Services Unit, P.O. Box 25352, Oklahoma City, OK 73125. Finance Division issues a warrant to the foster parent.
(6) Allowable clothing purchases. Allowable purchases must meet the child's needs and include:
- (A) clothing;
- (B) shoes; and
- (C) disposable diapers.
(7) Disallowable clothing purchases. The items not appropriate to purchase with clothing authorizations are any non-clothing item, such as:
- (A) hair accessories;
- (B) jewelry;
- (C) cosmetics or personal grooming supplies;
- (D) athletic equipment;
- (E) any food item;
- (F) haircuts;
- (G) toys;
- (H) school supplies; and
- (I) non-prescription medication or supplies.

INSTRUCTIONS TO STAFF 340:75-13-45

ITS only revised 5-11-06

1. Insufficient clothing. If a child moves from one foster family home to another without sufficient clothing, the Child Welfare (CW) worker completes Form DCFS-117 (new form number 04AF022E), Report of Violation of Rules in an OKDHS Resource Home, and forwards the form to the assigned resource specialist.

2. Authorization and authorization monitoring. One time startup and emergency authorizations are closely monitored in each Field Operations Division (FOD) services area by designated staff.

(1) When the child is placed outside of the county of jurisdiction, the CW county of jurisdiction worker is responsible for obtaining one time startup and emergency clothing authorizations and providing the authorizations to the CW county of placement worker.
(2) The CW worker in the county of jurisdiction:
- (A) upon notification of the need for one time startup or emergency clothing authorization, requests authorization per OAC 340:75-13-45 Instructions to Staff (ITS) 5;
- (B) notifies the CW worker and supervisor by e-mail within the next working day that the clothing authorization is complete and can be printed; and
- (C) documents the clothing authorization in KIDS Contacts screen by selecting purpose - clothing purchase no later than the fourth day of the month following authorization.

3. Authorization protocol for multiple county assignments for a child in non-paid kinship placement.

(1) When the child is placed outside of the county of jurisdiction, the CW county of jurisdiction worker is responsible for obtaining clothing authorizations.
(2) Each quarter, the CW worker in the county of jurisdiction:
- (A) requests the clothing authorization per OAC 340:75-13-45 ITS 5;
- (B) notifies the CW worker and supervisor by e-mail within the next working day that the clothing authorization is complete and can be printed; and
- (C) documents the clothing authorization in KIDS Contacts screen by selecting purpose - clothing purchase no later than the fourth day of the month following authorization.

4. Authorization protocol for multiple county assignments for a child in non funded group home, above foster care Developmental Disabilities Services Division placement, or psychiatric facility.

(1) When the child is placed outside of the county of jurisdiction, the CW county of jurisdiction worker is responsible for obtaining clothing authorizations.
(2) Prior to the CW worker's quarterly visit, the CW county of jurisdiction worker:
- (A) requests the clothing authorization per OAC 340:75-13-45 ITS 5;
- (B) provides the clothing authorization to the placement provider or assists the child in obtaining the clothing during the CW worker's quarterly visits; and
- (C) documents the clothing authorization in KIDS Contacts screen by selecting purpose - clothing purchase no later than the fourth day of the month following the authorization.

5. Authorization process. Each county has a designated staff member who is authorized to provide one time startup and emergency clothing authorizations. These authorizations are obtained from the AS400 Finance Division system. Issuing an authorization via AS400 Finance system is detailed in (1) through (12).

- (1) Pull up the initial menu screen in Finance and select automated authorizations.
- (2) Select option 4 - Foster Care Clothing Authorizations Menu.
- (3) Select option 4 - Issue and Print Emergency and Start Up Clothing Authorization.
- (4) Enter E for emergency authorization or S for startup authorization in the first field.
- (5) Enter the child's last, first, and middle initial.
- (6) Enter the child's age in years.
- (7) Enter the child's KK number.
- (8) The vendor to whom the placement provider takes the authorization fills in the vendor number, name, and address fields.
- (9) The name of the person generating the automated authorization populates into the contact field along with the phone number. The authorization is signed in red ink. The file copy is filed in the child's case record.
- (10) Hit F5 to print the automated authorization.
- (11) If the designated staff is unable to process an authorization, the staff contacts the respective FOD services area office.
- (12) To end the authorization without printing, hit F3.

6. Clothing inventory. At each monthly visit, the CW worker discusses with the foster parent any concerns about the child's clothing. If the foster parent fails to provide adequate clothing, the CW worker completes and forwards Form DCFS-117 (new form number 04AF022E) to the resource specialist.

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