256N.001 CITATION. Sections 256N.001 to 256N.28 may be cited as the “Northstar Care for Children Act.” Sections 256N.001 to 256N.28 establish Northstar Care for Children, which authorizes certain benefits to support a child in need who is served by the Minnesota child welfare system and who is the responsibility of the state, local county social […]
256N.01 PUBLIC POLICY. (a) The legislature declares that the public policy of this state is to keep children safe from harm and to ensure that when children suffer harmful or injurious experiences in their lives, appropriate services are immediately available to keep them safe. (b) Children do best in permanent, safe, nurturing homes where they […]
256N.02 DEFINITIONS. Subdivision 1. Scope. For the purposes of sections 256N.001 to 256N.28, the terms defined in this section have the meanings given them. Subd. 2. Adoption assistance. “Adoption assistance” means medical coverage as allowable under section 256B.055 and reimbursement of nonrecurring expenses associated with adoption and may include financial support provided under agreement with […]
256N.20 NORTHSTAR CARE FOR CHILDREN; GENERALLY. Subdivision 1. Eligibility. A child is eligible for Northstar Care for Children if the child is eligible for: (1) foster care under section 256N.21; (2) Northstar kinship assistance under section 256N.22; or (3) adoption assistance under section 256N.23. Subd. 2. Assessments. Except as otherwise specified, a child eligible for […]
256N.21 ELIGIBILITY FOR FOSTER CARE BENEFITS. Subdivision 1. General eligibility requirements. (a) A child is eligible for foster care benefits under this section if the child meets the requirements of subdivision 2 on or after January 1, 2015. (b) The financially responsible agency shall make a title IV-E eligibility determination for all foster children meeting […]
256N.22 NORTHSTAR KINSHIP ASSISTANCE ELIGIBILITY. Subdivision 1. General eligibility requirements. (a) To be eligible for Northstar kinship assistance under this section, there must be a judicial determination under section 260C.515, subdivision 4, that a transfer of permanent legal and physical custody to a relative who is not the child’s parent is in the child’s best […]
256N.23 NORTHSTAR ADOPTION ASSISTANCE ELIGIBILITY. Subdivision 1. General eligibility requirements. (a) To be eligible for Northstar adoption assistance under this section, a child must: (1) be determined to be a child with special needs under subdivision 2; (2) meet the applicable citizenship and immigration requirements in subdivision 3; (3)(i) meet the criteria in section 473 […]
256N.24 ASSESSMENTS. Subdivision 1. Assessment. (a) Each child eligible under sections 256N.21, 256N.22, and 256N.23, must be assessed to determine the benefits the child may receive under section 256N.26, in accordance with the assessment tool, process, and requirements specified in subdivision 2. (b) If an agency applies the emergency foster care rate for initial placement […]
256N.25 AGREEMENTS. Subdivision 1. Agreement; Northstar kinship assistance; adoption assistance. (a) In order to receive Northstar kinship assistance or adoption assistance benefits on behalf of an eligible child, a written, binding agreement between the caregiver or caregivers, the financially responsible agency, or, if there is no financially responsible agency, the agency designated by the commissioner, […]
256N.26 BENEFITS AND PAYMENTS. Subdivision 1. Benefits. (a) There are three benefits under Northstar Care for Children: medical assistance, basic payment, and supplemental difficulty of care payment. (b) A child is eligible for medical assistance under subdivision 2. (c) A child is eligible for the basic payment under subdivision 3, except for a child assigned […]
256N.261 SUPPORT FOR ADOPTIVE, FOSTER, AND KINSHIP FAMILIES. Subdivision 1. Program established. The commissioner shall design and implement a coordinated program to reduce the need for placement changes or out-of-home placements of children and youth in foster care, adoptive placements, and permanent physical and legal custody kinship placements, and to improve the functioning and stability […]
256N.27 FEDERAL, STATE, AND LOCAL SHARES. Subdivision 1. Federal share. For the purposes of determining a child’s eligibility under title IV-E of the Social Security Act for a child in foster care, the financially responsible agency shall use the eligibility requirements outlined in section 472 of the Social Security Act. For a child who qualifies […]
256N.28 ADMINISTRATION AND APPEALS. Subdivision 1. Responsibilities. (a) The financially responsible agency shall determine the eligibility for Northstar Care for Children for children in foster care under section 256N.21, and for those children determined eligible, shall further determine each child’s eligibility for title IV-E of the Social Security Act, provided the agency has such authority […]
