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Department
of Human Services Families
First Online Policy Manual Living in the Home With a Relative |
Revised: |
14.1 |
POLICY STATEMENT |
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To be eligible to receive Families First
benefits, a child must live in a place of residence maintained by a specified
relative as his or her home and the home of the child. For Families First purposes, legal custody
is not pertinent to the determination of eligibility and relationship. Where the child actually lives and who has care and control of the child are the determining factors. A relative is considered to have care
and control of child when he/she has the major responsibility for
parental obligations of day-to-day care, support, supervision and guidance
for the child. These responsibilities
may be carried out either alone or with another person living in the
home. When the child lives with the relative, it is presumed that the
relative has care and control of the child.
However, there are certain situations when this may be questionable
and the caseworker must determine who has care and control of the child. The following are examples of instances when care and control must be
established: ·
Joint
custody cases. ·
When the
relative and the child live in different dwellings. ·
When
temporary absence is claimed. ·
When a
relative who is not the parent receives Families First benefits for the child
and a parent returns to the home. The decision as to if the relative has care and control of a child is
made on a case by case basis. The
caseworker/supervisor must evaluate the facts in each particular situation
and use their best judgment. If the
facts establish that the relative has care and control, then the child is
considered to be living with that relative.
See Procedures in this section for a guide in determining care and
control. |
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