15.8 Border Agreements

Georgia State Seal

Georgia Division of Family and Children Services
Child Welfare Policy Manual

Chapter:

(15) Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children (ICPC)

Policy Title:

Border Agreements

Policy Number:

15.8

Previous Policy Number(s):

N/A

Effective Date:

February 2015

Manual Transmittal:

2015-01

Codes/References

O.C.G.A. § 39-4
ICPC Article VIII - Limitations

Requirements

A border agreement may be established between Georgia and another state sharing a geographic boundary when the opinion of the Georgia Department of Human Services (DHS) Commissioner or Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) Director and the Commissioner/Director of the border state’s child welfare agency agree that the existence of such agreement will positively impact the children subject to the border agreement. Georgia shares geographic boundary with the following states:

  1. South Carolina

  2. North Carolina

  3. Tennessee

  4. Alabama

  5. Florida

Georgia currently does not have an approved Border Agreement with North Carolina but does have an approved Border Agreement with the other states.

The components of a properly executed border agreement will:

  1. Identify by county/region and/or state the parties to the agreement;

  2. Identify the population of children to be served (children subject to court jurisdiction due to deprivation or all children subject to Child Protective Services (CPS) Investigation and/or Family Preservation Services (FPS))

  3. Establish specific time frames for the completion of the following:

    1. Initial contact with the receiving county/state for the purpose of execution of an out of home safety plan placement in accordance with the border agreement;

    2. Initial contact with the proposed resource caregiver(s) (safety resource, relative, relative foster home or foster home)for the purpose of determining that the resource family is interested, willing and capable of meeting the alleged victim child(ren)'s safety and well being needs;

    3. Preliminary criminal records name search and CPS records search for all adult household members living in the proposed resource home;

    4. Preliminary assessment of the resource home and resource caregivers’ capacity to assure the safety of the child(ren) subject to the request and willingness to abide by the reasonable requests of the sending and receiving agencies;

    5. Provision for the full assessment of the resource caregiver and resource home, in accordance with the policies and procedures of the receiving state child welfare agency;

    6. If required, compliance with policies and procedures outlined in the Interstate Compact for the Placement of Children (ICPC).

  4. Require compliance with federal, state and other policy and regulatory requirements;

  5. Require that the sending state remain programmatically, legally and fiscally responsible for the child as allowable under the sending state’s policies and procedures;

  6. Provide for a mechanism for conflict resolution should problems arise; and

  7. Provide for the training of staff members in the counties, regions and states that are a party to the border agreement.

A properly executed border agreement will not:

  1. Impose requirements or standards that are in violation of federal or state law, regulation or policy;

  2. Result in an expense being incurred for the cost of maintenance of the child in the resource home that is not allowable under the fiscal policies of the sending state;

  3. Transfer fiscal responsibility for a child subject to the border agreement to the receiving state, except for those services otherwise available to the child or resource parent absent child welfare involvement;

  4. Violate federal or state law, rule, regulation or policy established by the parties to the border agreement.

The signature of the Georgia DHS Commissioner or DFCS Director and the Child Welfare Commissioner/Director of the border state is required for the border agreement to be effective and enforceable.

Procedures

See Appendices for the specific requirements included in the Border Agreement between Georgia and bordering states.

Practice Guidance

The purpose of the ICPC Regulations is to provide the member state agencies with guidelines for the achievement of permanency of children through their safe and timely placement with permanency resources in other states. Both Georgia law and the ICPC agreement acknowledge that under certain circumstances it may be beneficial for states sharing a geographical border to enter into compact agreements resulting in expedited placements that enhance child safety, permanency and well-being by agreeing to work collaboratively and in the best interests of children.

Forms and Tools

Association of Administrators of the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children – ICPC Articles
Association of Administrators of the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children – ICPC Regulations
Alabama - Georgia Border Agreement
Florida - Georgia Border Agreement
South Carolina – Georgia Border Agreement
Tennessee - Georgia Border Agreement