AS Title 47, Chapter 14: Juvenile Programs and Institutions

Article 1. Juvenile Institutions. Chapter 14. Juvenile Programs and Institutions. Sec. 47.14.010. General powers of department over juvenile facilities and institutions. The department may (1) purchase, lease, or construct buildings or other facilities for the care, detention, rehabilitation, and education of children in need of aid or delinquent minors; (2) adopt plans for construction of juvenile detention facilities, juvenile treatment facilities, and other juvenile institutions; (3) adopt standards and regulations for the design, construction, repair, maintenance, and operation of all juvenile detention facilities, juvenile treatment facilities, and institutions; (4) inspect periodically each juvenile detention facility, juvenile treatment facility, or other institution to ensure that the standards and regulations adopted are being maintained; (5) reimburse municipalities maintaining and operating juvenile detention facilities; (6) enter into contracts and arrangements with cities and state and federal agencies to carry out the purposes of AS 47.10 , AS 47.12 , and this chapter; (7) do all acts necessary to carry out the purposes of AS 47.10 , AS 47.12 , and this chapter; (8) adopt the regulations necessary to carry out AS 47.10 , AS 47.12 , and this chapter; (9) accept donations, gifts, or bequests of money or other property for use in construction of juvenile institutions, detention facilities, or juvenile treatment facilities; (10) operate juvenile detention facilities when municipalities are unable to do so; (11) receive, care for, and place in a juvenile detention facility, the minor's own home, a foster home, a juvenile treatment facility, or treatment institution all minors committed to its custody under AS 47.10 , AS 47.12 , and this chapter. Sec. 47.14.020. Duties of department. The department shall (1) accept all minors committed to the custody of the department and all minors who are involved in a written agreement under AS 47.14.100 (c), and provide for the welfare, control, care, custody, and placement of these minors in accordance with this chapter; (2) require and collect statistics on juvenile offenses and offenders in the state; (3) conduct studies and prepare findings and recommendations on the need, number, type, construction, maintenance, and operating costs of juvenile detention facilities, juvenile treatment facilities, and other institutions, and adopt and submit a plan for construction of the facilities and institutions when needed, together with a plan for financing the construction programs; (4) examine, where possible, all facilities, institutions, and places of juvenile detention and treatment in the state and inquire into their methods and the management of juveniles in them. Sec. 47.14.025. Applicability; inclusions of certain persons as minors. The provisions of AS 47.14.010 — 47.14.050 apply to a person who is 18 years of age or older and who is subject to the jurisdiction of AS 47.12 due solely to AS 47.12.020 (b). To implement this section, the term “minor” as used in AS 47.14.010 — 47.14.050 includes a person described in this section. Sec. 47.14.030. Use of standardized form by facilities. For the purpose of collecting statistics, the department shall establish and require state and local agencies that operate a jail or other detention facility to use a standardized form to keep a record and report the admission of a minor. The record shall be limited to the name of the minor admitted, the minor's date of birth, the specific offense for which the minor was admitted, the date and time admitted, the date and time released, the sex of the minor, the ethnic origin of the minor, and other information required by federal law. Except for the notation of the date and time of the minor's release, the record shall be prepared at the time of the minor's admission. Unless otherwise provided by law, information and records obtained under this section are confidential and are not public records. They may be disclosed only for the purpose of compiling statistics and in a manner that does not reveal the identity of the minor. Sec. 47.14.040. Authority to maintain and operate temporary secure juvenile holding area, juvenile detention facility, or juvenile treatment facility. (a) A municipality or entity may maintain and operate a temporary secure juvenile holding area, and a municipality or a nonprofit corporation may maintain and operate a juvenile detention facility or juvenile treatment facility. (b) The municipality or nonprofit corporation may receive grants-in-aid from the state for costs of operation of the temporary secure juvenile holding area or facility maintained and operated under (a) of this section. Sec. 47.14.050. Operation of homes and facilities. (a) The department shall adopt standards and regulations for the operation of juvenile detention facilities and juvenile treatment facilities in the state. (b) The department may enter into contracts with municipalities and other governmental agencies for the detention of juveniles before and after commitment by juvenile authorities. A contract may not be made for longer than one year. Article 2. Care of Children. Sec. 47.14.100. Powers and duties of department over care of child. (a) Subject to (e), (f), and (i) — (m) of this section, the department shall arrange for the care of every child committed to its custody by placing the child in a foster home or in the care of an agency or institution providing care for children inside or outside the state. The department may place a child in a suitable family home, with or without compensation, and may place a child released to it, in writing verified by the parent, or guardian or other person having legal custody, for adoptive purposes, in a home for adoption in accordance with existing law. For a child 16 years of age or older, the department may authorize another transitional living arrangement, including student dormitory residence at a postsecondary educational institution, that adequately meets the child's needs and is designed to assist the child's transition to independent living. (b) The department may pay the costs of maintenance that are necessary to assure adequate care of the child, and may accept funds from the federal government that are granted to assist in carrying out the purposes of this chapter, or that are paid under contract entered into with a federal department or agency. A child under the care of the department may not be placed in a family home or institution that does not maintain adequate standards of care. (c) The department may receive, care for, and make appropriate placement of minors accepted for care for a period of up to six months on the basis of an individual voluntary written agreement between the minor's parent, legal guardian, or other person having legal custody and the department. The agreement must include provisions for payment of fees under AS 44.29.022 to the department for the minor's care and treatment. The agreement entered into may not prohibit a minor's parent, legal guardian, or other person who had legal custody from regaining care of the minor at any time. (d) In addition to money paid for the maintenance of foster children under (b) of this section, the department (1) shall pay the costs of caring for foster children with physical or mental disabilities, including the additional costs of medical care, habilitative and rehabilitative treatment, services and equipment, and special clothing, and the indirect costs of medical care, including child care and transportation expenses; (2) may pay for respite care; in this paragraph, “respite care” means child care for the purpose of providing temporary relief from the stresses of caring for a foster child; and (3) may pay a subsidized guardianship payment under AS 25.23.210 when a foster child's foster parents or other persons approved by the department become court-appointed legal guardians of the child. (e) When a child is removed from a parent's home, the department shall search for an appropriate placement with an adult family member or family friend. A supervisor at the department shall certify in writing in the case file whether the department has searched for an appropriate placement with an adult family member or family friend. If the department has not complied with the search requirements under this subsection, the supervisor shall work to ensure that the department completes the search in the shortest time feasible. The department shall place the child, in the absence of clear and convincing evidence of good cause to the contrary, (1) in the least restrictive setting that most closely approximates a family and that meets the child's special needs, if any; (2) within reasonable proximity to the child's home, taking into account any special needs of the child and the preferences of the child or parent; (3) with, in the following order of preference, (A) an adult family member; (B) a family friend who meets the foster care licensing requirements established by the department; (C) a licensed foster home that is not an adult family member or family friend; (D) an institution for children that has a program suitable to meet the child's needs. (f) If an adult family member of the child specified under (e) of this section exists and agrees that the child should be placed elsewhere, before placement elsewhere, the department shall fully communicate the nature of the placement proceedings to the adult family member. Communication under this subsection shall be made in the adult family member's native language, if necessary. (g) The department may enter into agreements with Alaska Native villages or Native organizations under 25 U.S.C. 1919 (Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978) respecting the care and custody of Native children and jurisdiction of Native child custody proceedings. (h) The department may not pay for respite care, as defined in (d) of this section, unless the department or the entity that has contracted with the department to provide the respite care requests criminal history record information as permitted by P.L. 105-277 and AS 12.62 for the individual who provides the respite care within 10 business days after the individual is hired to provide respite care and reviews the information within five business days after receiving it. (i) A child may not be placed with an out-of-home care provider if the department determines that the child can remain safely at home with an adult family member or guardian who lives with the child. In this subsection, “out-of-home care provider” means an agency or person, other than the child's legal parents, with whom a child who is in the custody of the state under AS 47.10.080 (c)(1) or (3), 47.10.142, or (c) of this section is currently placed; “agency or person” includes a foster parent, a relative other than a parent, a person who has petitioned for adoption of the child, and a residential child care facility. (j) For the purpose of determining whether the home of a relative meets the requirements for placement of a child under (e) of this section or under AS 47.10.088 (i), the department shall conduct a criminal background check from state and national criminal justice information available under AS 12.62 . The department may conduct a fingerprint background check on any member of the relative's household who is 16 years of age or older when the relative requests placement of the child. For the purposes of obtaining criminal justice information under this subsection, the department is a criminal justice agency conducting a criminal justice activity under AS 12.62 . (k) Notwithstanding other provisions of this section, the department may not pay for inpatient psychiatric services provided to a person under 21 years of age and who is in the custody of the department if the services are provided in an out-of-state psychiatric hospital facility or an out-of-state residential psychiatric treatment center unless the department determines that the assistance is for (1) psychiatric hospital services that are consistent with the person's clinical diagnosis and appropriately address the person's needs and that these services are unavailable in the state; or (2) residential psychiatric treatment center services that are consistent with the person's clinical diagnosis and appropriately address the person's needs and that these services are unavailable in the state. (l) The department shall, on a monthly basis, evaluate what types of services are available in the state for inpatient psychiatric care for persons under 21 years of age. If inpatient psychiatric services that are consistent with the person's clinical diagnosis and that appropriately address the person's needs become available at a location in the state for a person under 21 years of age who is receiving the services under this section at a location outside the state, the department shall, as a condition of continued payment by the state for the services, require the person to be transferred to the in-state facility unless the department determines that the transfer would be detrimental to the person's health, established therapeutic relationship, or clinical need. (m) Prima facie evidence of good cause not to place a child with an adult family member or family friend under AS 47.10.088 (i) or under (e) of this section includes the failure to meet the requirements for a foster care license under AS 47.32 and regulations adopted under AS 47.32 , taking into account a waiver, variance, or exemption allowed under AS 47.32.030 (a)(3) and 47.32.032. Prima facie evidence of good cause not to place a child with an adult family member or adult family friend does not include poverty or inadequate or crowded housing. If the department denies a request for placement with an adult family member or a family friend, the department shall inform the adult family member or family friend of the basis for the denial and the right to request a hearing to review the decision. A non-party adult family member or family friend requesting a review hearing under AS 47.10.088 (i) or under (e) of this section is not eligible for publicly appointed legal counsel. (n) Except as provided in (o) and (p) of this section, the department shall continue to search for a suitable adoptive or permanent legal guardianship for a child or person who is in the custody of the state and who is under 21 years of age. (o) The department may recommend to the court another planned permanent living arrangement for a child who is in state custody only if (1) the child is 16 years of age or older; (2) the department has unsuccessfully made intensive efforts to find a permanent placement for the child; and (3) the department, after considering reunification, adoption, legal guardianship, or permanent placement with a fit and willing relative, determines that there is a compelling reason that the most appropriate permanency plan for the child is placement in another planned permanent living arrangement, and the department documents for the court the compelling reason for the alternate plan. (p) The department may release from state custody a child or person who has been committed to the custody of the department, before the custody is ordered to end, only if the person, if the person is 19 years of age or older, consents, or (1) the child or person, if the child or person is over 16 years of age and available, and the guardian ad litem are notified not less than 30 days before a motion for release is filed unless the parties agree to a shorter notice period; (2) the department files a motion with the court for release of state custody that describes the reasons the release is in the best interest of the child or person; and (3) a court makes a written finding that release from state custody is in the best interest of the child or person. (q) When custody of a child who has been committed to the custody of the department is due to expire, the department shall file a notice of release with the court 30 days before the date of release unless the parties agree to a shorter notice period and distribute the notice to the parties, including the child if the child is 16 years of age or older and available. (r) The department shall make reasonable efforts to place siblings in the same placement if the siblings are residing in the same home when taken into the custody of the department. If siblings are not placed together after reasonable efforts have been made, the case supervisor for the division with responsibility over the custody of children shall document in the file the efforts that were made and the reason separating the siblings for placement purposes is in the best interest of the children. If it is in the best interests of the children to maintain contact, the department shall provide each sibling with contact information for the other sibling and encourage the children's caregivers to provide opportunities for contact between the siblings. In this subsection, “sibling” means two or more persons who are related by blood, adoption, or marriage as a child of one or both parents. (s) As used in (o) of this section, “compelling reason” may include circumstances in which (1) the child has specifically requested that emancipation be established; (2) a parent and child have a significant bond, but the parent is unable to care for the child because of an emotional or physical disability, and the child's foster parents have committed to raising the child to the age of majority and to facilitating visitation with the disabled parent; (t) In this section, (1) “adult family member” has the meaning given in AS 47.10.990 ; (2) “another planned permanent living arrangement” means a permanent living arrangement for a child who is committed to the custody of the department under AS 47.10.080 (c)(1) that is an alternative to permanent placement with an adult family member, and to reunification, adoption, and legal guardianship. (3) “family friend,” as used in (e) of this section, includes, in the case of an Indian child, a member of the Indian child's tribe, a member of the tribe in which the child's biological parent is a member, and another Indian family member. Sec. 47.14.110. Department inspections; reports by foster homes and institutions. (a) A representative of the department shall visit, as often as is considered necessary, every foster home or institution in which a child is placed, and, if not satisfied as to the care given, may remove the child from the foster home or institution and place the child elsewhere. (b) The person or institution receiving a child shall submit the reports the department requires as to the education, health, and welfare of the child and the conditions under which the child is living. Sec. 47.14.112. Training and workload standards; reports to legislature. (a) The department shall implement workload standards and a training program for employees who supervise the care of children committed to the supervision or custody of the department under AS 47.10 , work with families to prevent the removal of a child from the child's home under AS 47.10 , or investigate reports of harm under AS 47.17 . The department shall prepare a staffing report under (b) of this section if the department is unable (1) to employ the number of qualified employees necessary to ensure that (A) the department reasonably and safely minimizes the time a child is not in a permanent living arrangement or under a permanent guardianship; (B) a child is not removed from the child's home when it is possible and in the child's best interest for the department to work with the child's family to prevent the removal of the child from the child's home; (C) each child is placed in a permanent home not more than 24 months after the date the child is first removed from the child's home; (2) to meet best practices standards set by the department requiring the employment of mentors for employees who supervise the care of children committed to the supervision or custody of the department under AS 47.10 , work with families to prevent the removal of a child from the child's home under AS 47.10 , or investigate reports of harm under AS 47.17 ; (3) for a new employee who supervises the care of a child committed to the supervision or custody of the department under AS 47.10 , works with families to prevent the removal of a child from the child's home under AS 47.10 , or investigates reports of harm under AS 47.17 , to (A) provide a minimum of six weeks of training unless the department finds that the new employee has sufficient experience to justify a shorter training period; (B) limit the employee's workload as follows: (i) before the beginning of an employee's fourth month of work with the department, the employee may supervise not more than six families; (ii) after the beginning of the employee's fourth month of work but before the end of the employee's sixth month of work with the department, the employee may supervise not more than 12 families; (iii) when an employee supervises families in a region where travel distances negatively affect the employee's ability to supervise families and the employee has worked for the department for less than 12 months, the employee may not supervise the maximum number of families provided under (i) and (ii) of this subparagraph; and (4) for an employee, other than a new employee, who supervises the care of children committed to the supervision or custody of the department under AS 47.10 , works with families to prevent the removal of a child from the child's home under AS 47.10 , or investigates reports of harm under AS 47.17 , to ensure that the average statewide caseload is not more than 13 families for each worker. (b) A staffing report prepared as a result of the department's inability to meet the training and workload standards in (a) of this section must be included in the department's annual report to the legislature required under AS 18.05.020 . The department shall explain in the staffing report the reasons the department has not been able to meet the standards and provide the following information: (1) the number of employees who vacated positions during the reporting period; (2) the number of funded positions that are vacant; (3) a description of efforts made to recruit and retain employees; (4) if the department determines additional employee positions are necessary to meet the standards, the number and cost of the additional positions; (5) if the department determines additional funding is necessary to meet the standards, the amount and purpose of the additional funding; and (6) the effects on a child and the child's family of the department's inability to meet the standards. (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the department is immune from suit under this section if the department was unable to meet the workload standards and adjusted workload standards because of a lack of sufficient appropriations or because the department's efforts to recruit or retain employees did not result in an adequate number of qualified applicants to meet the workload standards, as outlined in the staffing report. (d) The division of the department with responsibility over the custody of children shall prepare and make available to the legislature an annual report on employee recruitment and retention, including a five-year plan, for the division. Not later than November 15 of each year, the department shall deliver the report to the senate secretary and the chief clerk of the house of representatives and notify the legislature that the report is available. The report prepared under this subsection is separate from the annual report to the legislature required under AS 18.05.020 and must include, for the previous 12 months, (1) the number of frontline social workers employed by the division, the annual average turnover rate of the workers, and the average caseload of the workers on January 1 and July 1 of that year; (2) the number of children removed from their homes; (3) the achievement of success measured by the following: (A) rate of family reunification; (B) average length of time children spent in custody of the department; (C) rate of placement with an adult family member or family friend; (D) number of children placed in a permanent living arrangement with a guardian or biological or adoptive parent; (E) number of children released from the custody of the department; (4) if the department has met or exceeded the caseload standards under this chapter and, if the standards were exceeded, the number of caseworker positions in the division that could be eliminated and the amount of funding that could be reduced while continuing to meet but not routinely exceed the caseload standards; (5) the performance of the department on federal benchmarks focused on the safety, well-being, and permanent placements of foster children compared with the previous five years. Sec. 47.14.115. Training of foster parents. (a) If the department has placed a child in a foster home, the department shall, no less often than once quarterly, make available training that will assist the foster parent or parents in providing care that will meet the needs of the child placed in the home and the requirements established by the department in regulation. (b) If the department determines that it is in the best interests of a child in the custody of the department to place the child with an adult family member who does not have a foster care home license under AS 47.32 , the department shall assist the adult family member in obtaining a license, including assisting the adult family member with obtaining any variances necessary to obtain the license, so that the family member is eligible for payments under AS 47.14.100 (b) and (d). Sec. 47.14.120. Standards of care. The department shall establish standards of care and adopt regulations desirable for the welfare of every child under its care. Sec. 47.14.130. Payment of costs. The department shall pay the proper and necessary costs of the court and witnesses and other expenses necessarily incurred in the enforcement of AS 47.14.100 — 47.14.130. Article 3. Citizen Review Panel. Sec. 47.14.200. Citizens' Foster Care Review Board. [Repealed, § 74 ch 35 SLA 2003.] Sec. 47.14.205. State Citizen Review Panel. (a) There is established within the department a Citizen Review Panel. The panel shall be composed of volunteer members who are broadly representative of the state, including members who have expertise in the prevention and treatment of child abuse and neglect. (b) The panel shall meet not less than once every three months. Meetings may take place telephonically. Sec. 47.14.210. Citizens' Foster Care Review Board. [Repealed, § 74 ch 35 SLA 2003.] Sec. 47.14.215. Duties of the state panel. (a) The state panel shall evaluate the extent to which the department is effectively discharging its child protection responsibilities under (1) the state plan submitted to the United States Department of Health and Human Services under 42 U.S.C. 5106a(b); (2) child protection standards under federal and state laws; and (3) any other criteria that the panel considers important to ensuring the protection of children, including the level and efficiency of coordination of foster care and adoption programs in the state and a review of child fatalities and near fatalities. (b) In carrying out the responsibilities under (a) of this section, the state panel shall examine the policies, procedures, and practices of the department, and, where appropriate, evaluate specific cases of child abuse or neglect. (c) The commissioner shall, by regulation, establish policies and procedures necessary to carrying out the duties of the state panel under this section. Sec. 47.14.220. Citizens' Foster Care Review Board. [Repealed, § 74 ch 35 SLA 2003.] Sec. 47.14.225. Cooperation with state panel. (a) The department shall provide the panel access to information on child abuse or neglect cases that is necessary for the panel to carry out its duties under AS 47.14.215 . (b) The department shall serve as staff to the state panel as requested by the panel members. Sec. 47.14.230. Citizens' Foster Care Review Board. [Repealed, § 74 ch 35 SLA 2003.] Sec. 47.14.235. Confidentiality. (a) A person attending a meeting of the state panel or a member or staff of the state panel may not make any disclosure related to information obtained during a review by the state panel unless authorized under AS 47.10.092 or 47.10.093. (b) Meetings of the state panel are subject to AS 44.62.310 — 44.62.319 (Open Meetings Act). Sec. 47.14.240. Citizens' Foster Care Review Board. [Repealed, § 74 ch 35 SLA 2003.] Sec. 47.14.245. Public outreach. The state panel shall conduct public outreach and gather public comment on current department procedures and practices involving children and family services. Sec. 47.14.250. Citizens' Foster Care Review Board. [Repealed, § 74 ch 35 SLA 2003.] Sec. 47.14.255. Report. (a) The state panel shall prepare and make available to the governor, the legislature, and the public an annual report containing a summary of the activities of the panel conducted under AS 47.14.205 — 47.14.295 and recommendations for the improvement of child protection services in the state. (b) Not later than six months after the date on which the report is released under (a) of this section, the department shall submit a written response to the report. The department's response must include a description of whether and how the department will incorporate the recommendations of the panel, where appropriate. Sec. 47.14.260. Citizens' Foster Care Review Board. [Repealed, § 74 ch 35 SLA 2003.] Sec. 47.14.265. Civil penalty for violation of AS 47.14.235 . A violation under AS 47.14.235 is subject to a civil penalty of up to $2,500 for each violation. Sec. 47.14.270. Citizens' Foster Care Review Board. [Repealed, § 74 ch 35 SLA 2003.] Sec. 47.14.275. Immunity. A member of the state panel and a person who furnishes services to or advises the state panel is not liable for damages or other relief in an action involving the performance or failure to perform a duty or other activity of the state panel. Sec. 47.14.280. Citizens' Foster Care Review Board. [Repealed, § 74 ch 35 SLA 2003.] Sec. 47.14.295. Definitions. In AS 47.14.205 — 47.14.295, (1) “near fatality” has the meaning given in AS 47.10.990 ; (2) “state panel” means the Citizen Review Panel established under AS 47.14.205 . Sec. 47.14.299. Citizens' Foster Care Review Board. [Repealed, § 74 ch 35 SLA 2003.] Article 4. Multidisciplinary Child Protection Teams. Sec. 47.14.300. Multidisciplinary child protection teams. (a) The department, a state or municipal agency with expertise in child abuse or neglect, or a tribe recognized by the United States Secretary of the Interior to exist as an Indian tribe under 25 U.S.C. 5131 (Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994) with expertise in child abuse or neglect, in partnership with the department, may facilitate the initial establishment of a multidisciplinary child protection team. The purpose of a team is to assist in the evaluation and investigation of reports of child abuse or neglect, as defined in AS 47.17.290 , made under AS 47.17 or initiated by the department or a law enforcement agency; to assist in the evaluation and investigation of reports of sexual contact or sexual penetration, as defined in AS 11.81.900 (b), occurring between children under 13 years of age; and to provide consultation and coordination for agencies involved in child-in-need-of-aid cases under AS 47.10 . The multidisciplinary child protection teams shall (1) ensure that investigations involving child abuse or neglect are coordinated and conducted by trained investigators; (2) take and recommend steps to avoid duplicative interviews of children; (3) assist in the reduction of trauma to a child and family involved in an investigation of child abuse or neglect; and (4) review records, provide consultation, and make recommendations to the department pertaining to a child-in-need-of-aid case under AS 47.10 referred to the team by a team member. (b) A team shall be made up of (1) an employee of the child protection office in the department who has expertise in child abuse and neglect; (2) a peace officer, as defined in AS 11.81.900 ; (3) one or more staff members of a local child advocacy center, if a center is located in the relevant area; (4) a medical care provider licensed under AS 08 who has received training in child abuse assessment; (5) a counselor, social worker, psychologist, or physician who specializes in mental health care, is licensed under AS 08 , and has knowledge of child abuse dynamics; (6) a prosecutor of child abuse cases or a designee of a prosecutor of child abuse cases; (7) a victim advocate with knowledge of child abuse dynamics; (8) other persons with expertise in child abuse and neglect invited to serve as needed by consensus of the team as follows: (A) child development specialists; (B) educators; (C) victim counselors as defined in AS 18.66.250 ; (D) experts in the assessment and treatment of substance abuse; (E) an attorney who specializes in child protection in the attorney general's office; (F) a representative of an Indian tribe, as defined in 25 U.S.C. 1903(8) (Indian Child Welfare Act), as designated by the tribe; (G) guardians ad litem; and (H) a representative of the division in the department with jurisdiction over juvenile justice. (c) A team may meet, review records, and conduct business in the absence of one or more members of the team. When a case is referred to the team, the department shall make available to the team records pertaining to the case prepared by or in the possession of the department, including appropriate confidential records under AS 47.10.093 (b). A member of the team may use or disclose records made available by the department under this subsection only as necessary for the performance of the member's duties. The team may make recommendations to the department on appropriate planning for the case. (d) Except for a public report issued by a team that does not contain confidential information, records or other information collected by the team or a member of the team related to duties under this section are confidential and not subject to public disclosure under AS 40.25.100 and 40.25.110. (e) A team shall meet at least monthly and may meet more often as needed. Meetings of a team are closed to the public and are not subject to the provisions of AS 44.62.310 — 44.62.319 (Open Meetings Act). (f) The determinations, conclusions, and recommendations of a team or its members are not admissible in a civil or criminal proceeding. A member may not be compelled to disclose a determination, conclusion, recommendation, discussion, or thought process through discovery or testimony in a civil or criminal proceeding. Records and information collected by the team are not subject to discovery or subpoena in connection with a civil or criminal proceeding. (g) Notwithstanding (f) of this section, an employee of the department may testify in a civil or criminal proceeding concerning cases reviewed by a team even though the department's records were reviewed by a team and formed the basis of that employee's testimony and the team's report. (h) A person who serves on a multidisciplinary child protection team is not liable for damage or other relief in an action brought by the reason of the performance of a duty, a function, or an activity of the team. (i) In this section, “team” means a multidisciplinary child protection team created under (a) and (b) of this section. Article 5. Alaska Education Savings Program for Children. Sec. 47.14.400. Education savings program. (a) The department shall administer a program to encourage investment by a person or entity in the education of eligible children in the state. The program must include (1) a central office, dedicated to faith-based and community services, for development and marketing of the program; (2) a mechanism for the department to establish and maintain an education savings plan under AS 14.40.802 — 14.40.817 for an eligible child who is a beneficiary of the program; (3) a process for identifying donors and eligible beneficiaries; (4) a process for distributing nonidentifying information about an eligible beneficiary to a potential donor, including the age, sex, and general location of the beneficiary, unless the information readily leads to the identification of the eligible beneficiary; (5) terms and conditions for participation in the program that are consistent with the education savings plan restrictions and with federal law pertaining to education savings accounts; and (6) a procedure for monitoring success of the program, for record keeping, and for maintaining confidentiality of records as required by federal and state law. (b) A person is eligible for participation in the education savings program for children as a beneficiary if the person was ordered committed to the custody of the department under AS 47.10.080 (c) or AS 47.12.120 (b)(1) or (3), was placed in out-of-home care for not less than two years, and is a resident of the state. (c) The commissioner of family and community services or the commissioner's designee may name a new beneficiary to an existing education savings plan established under (a) of this section if the new designation is not prohibited under federal law or under the education savings plan and if the named beneficiary dies, fails to enroll in an eligible program before the beneficiary becomes 30 years of age, or fails to meet conditions established in regulations adopted by the commissioner of family and community services. (d) Identifying information of a beneficiary contained in records related to the program is confidential. (e) In this section, (1) “beneficiary” has the meaning given in AS 14.40.802 ; (2) “donor” means the person or entity who contributes to the education savings program for children for the purpose of establishing or contributing to an education savings plan established for a child under this section; (3) “education savings plan” means an education savings program established under AS 14.40.802 — 14.40.817. (4) “out-of-home care” means care at the residence or facility at which a child is placed by the state, and does not include care at the residence from which the child was removed. Article 6. General Provisions. Sec. 47.14.980. Grants-in-aid. The department may accept grants-in-aid from the federal government or private foundations and may accept other gifts consistent with the purposes of this chapter. Sec. 47.14.990. Definitions. In this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires, (1) “care” or “caring” under AS 47.14.100 (c) means to provide for the physical, emotional, mental, and social needs of the child; (2) “child in need of aid” means a child found to be within the jurisdiction of the court under AS 47.10.010 and 47.10.011; (3) “court” means the superior court of the state; (4) “criminal justice information” has the meaning given in AS 12.62.900 ; (5) “delinquent minor” means a minor found to be within the jurisdiction of the court under AS 47.12.020 ; (6) “department” means the Department of Family and Community Services; (7) “juvenile detention facility” has the meaning given in AS 47.12.990 ; (8) “juvenile probation officer” has the meaning given in AS 47.12.990 ; (9) “juvenile treatment facility” has the meaning given in AS 47.12.990 ; (10) “minor” has the meaning given in AS 47.12.990 ; (11) “temporary secure juvenile holding area” has the meaning given in AS 47.12.990 ; (12) “treatment institution” means a hospital, clinic, institution, center, or other health care facility that has been designated by the department for the treatment of juveniles.