A. This section shall be known and may be cited as the "Successful Adulthood Act".
B. The purpose of the Successful Adulthood Act shall be:
1. To ensure that eligible individuals, who have been or are in the foster care program of the Department of Human Services or a federally recognized Indian tribe with whom the Department has a contract, due to abuse or neglect, receive the protection and support necessary to allow those individuals to become self-reliant and productive citizens through the provision of requisite services that include, but are not limited to, transitional planning, housing, medical coverage, and education; provided, that eligibility for tuition waivers shall be as set forth in Section 3230 of Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
2. To break the cycle of abuse and neglect that obligates the state to assume custody of children; and
3. To help children who have experienced foster care at age fourteen (14) or older achieve meaningful permanent connections with a caring adult.
C. An individual is eligible to receive services for the transition of the child to a successful adulthood from the age of fourteen (14) until the age of eighteen (18), during the time the individual is in the custody of the Department or a federally recognized Indian tribe and in an out-of-home placement.
D. The permanency plan for the child in transition to a successful adulthood shall be developed in consultation with the child and, at the option of the child, with up to two members of the permanency planning team to be chosen by the child, excluding the foster parent and caseworker for the child, subject to the following provisions:
1. One individual selected by the child may be designated to be the advisor and, as necessary, advocate of the child, with respect to the application of the reasonable and prudent parent standard to the child; and
2. The Department may reject an individual selected by the child to be a member of the permanency planning team at any time if the Department has good cause to believe that the selected individual would not act in the best interests of the child.
E. 1. Each child in foster care under the responsibility of the Department or a federally recognized Indian tribe and in an out-of-home placement, who has attained fourteen (14) years of age shall be given a written Notice of Rights that describes the following specific rights of the child:
2. The child shall sign an acknowledgment stating that the child has been provided with a copy of the Notice of Rights and that the rights described in the notice have been explained to the child in an age-appropriate way.
F. A child about to leave foster care by reason of having attained eighteen (18) years of age and who has been in foster care for at least six (6) months shall be given the following documents pertaining to the child:
1. An official or certified copy of the United States birth certificate;
2. A Social Security card issued by the Commissioner of Social Security;
3. Health insurance information;
4. A copy of the medical records of the child;
5. A state-issued driver license or identification card; and
6. Official documentation necessary to show that the child was previously in foster care.
G. Successful adulthood services may continue to the age of twenty-one (21), provided the individual is in the custody of the Department or a federally recognized Indian tribe due to abuse or neglect and is in an out-of-home placement at the time of the individual's sixteenth birthday.
H. Individuals who are sixteen (16) years of age or older, who have been released from the custody of the Department or federally recognized Indian tribe due to the entry of an adoption decree or guardianship order are eligible to receive successful adulthood services until the age of twenty-one (21).
I. Individuals who are eligible for services pursuant to the Successful Adulthood Act and who are between eighteen (18) and twenty-one (21) years of age shall be eligible for Medicaid coverage, provided such individuals were also in the custody of the Department or a federally recognized Indian tribe on the date they reached eighteen (18) years of age and meet Medicaid financial eligibility guidelines.
J. The Department, in conjunction with the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, shall provide parents and legal guardians of foster youth with information on the Oklahoma Higher Learning Access Program (OHLAP) including, but not limited to, eligibility, application guidelines, academic requirements, and any other information required by the Oklahoma Higher Learning Access Act for participation in the Program.
Added by Laws 2000, c. 374, § 38, eff. July 1, 2000. Amended by Laws 2001, c. 415, § 3, emerg. eff. June 5, 2001; Laws 2009, c. 233, § 63, emerg. eff. May 21, 2009. Renumbered from § 7004-1.6 of Title 10 by Laws 2009, c. 233, § 299, emerg. eff. May 21, 2009. Amended by Laws 2010, c. 324, § 4, emerg. eff. June 5, 2010; Laws 2015, c. 53, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2015; Laws 2015, c. 173, § 9, eff. Nov. 1, 2015; Laws 2019, c. 243, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2019; Laws 2021, c. 448, § 1, emerg. eff. May 7, 2021.
NOTE: Editorially renumbered from § 7004.16 of Title 10 to provide consistency in numbering.