CHAPTER 4. INTERSTATE COMPACT ON THE PLACEMENT OF CHILDREN

IC 31-28-4
    Chapter 4. Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children

IC 31-28-4-1
Enactment; provision
    Sec. 1. The interstate compact on the placement of children isenacted into law under this chapter and entered into with all otherjurisdictions legally joining the compact in the form substantially asfollows:

ARTICLE I. PURPOSE AND POLICY

    It is the purpose and policy of the party states to cooperate witheach other in the interstate placement of children to the end that:
    (a) Each child requiring placement shall receive the maximumopportunity to be placed in a suitable environment and with a personor an institution having appropriate qualifications and facilities toprovide a necessary and desirable degree and type of care.
    (b) The appropriate authorities in a state where a child is to beplaced may have full opportunity to ascertain the circumstances ofthe proposed placement, thereby promoting full compliance withapplicable requirements for the protection of the child.
    (c) The proper authorities of the state from which the placementis made may obtain the most complete information on the basis ofwhich to evaluate a projected placement before the placement ismade.
    (d) Appropriate jurisdictional arrangements for the care ofchildren must be promoted.

ARTICLE II. DEFINITIONS

    As used in this compact:
    (a) "Child" means a person who, by reason of minority, is legallysubject to parental, guardianship, or similar control.
    (b) "Sending agency" means:
        (1) a party state or a party state's officer or employee;
        (2) a subdivision of a party state or the subdivision's officer oremployee;
        (3) a court of a party state;
        (4) a person;
        (5) a corporation;
        (6) an association;
        (7) a charitable agency; or
        (8) any other entity;
that sends, brings, or causes to be sent or brought any child toanother party state.
    (c) "Receiving state" means the state to which a child is sent,brought, or caused to be sent or brought, whether by publicauthorities or private persons or agencies, and whether for placementwith state or local public authorities or for placement with privateagencies or persons.
    (d) "Placement" means the arrangement for the care of a child byan individual in a free home, in a boarding home, or in a child-caringagency or institution but does not include an institution caring for the

mentally ill, mentally defective, or epileptic or any institutionprimarily educational in character, and a hospital or other medicalfacility.

ARTICLE III. CONDITIONS FOR PLACEMENT

    (a) A sending agency may not send, bring, or cause to be sent orbrought into any other party state a child for placement in foster careor as a preliminary to a possible adoption unless the sending agencycomplies with each requirement under article III and with thereceiving state's laws governing the placement of children.
    (b) Before sending, bringing, or causing any child to be sent orbrought into a receiving state for placement in foster care or as apreliminary to a possible adoption, the sending agency shall furnishthe appropriate public authorities in the receiving state written noticeof the intention to send, bring, or place the child in the receivingstate. The notice shall contain the following:
        (1) The child's name, place, and date of birth.
        (2) The identity and address or addresses of the child's parentsor legal guardian.
        (3) The name and address of the person, agency, or institutionto or with which the sending agency proposes to send, bring, orplace the child.
        (4) A full statement of the reasons for the proposed action andevidence of the authority under which the placement isproposed to be made.
    (c) A public officer or agency in a receiving state that receives anotice under paragraph (b) of article III is entitled, upon request, toreceive additional information necessary to carry out the purpose andpolicy of this compact from the sending agency or any otherappropriate officer or agency of or in the sending agency's state.
    (d) The child shall not be sent, brought, or caused to be sent orbrought into the receiving state until the appropriate publicauthorities in the receiving state shall notify the sending agency, inwriting, to the effect that the proposed placement does not appear tobe contrary to the interests of the child.

ARTICLE IV. PENALTY FOR ILLEGAL PLACEMENT

    The sending, bringing, or causing to be sent or brought into anyreceiving state of a child in violation of the terms of this compactshall constitute a violation of the laws respecting the placement ofchildren of both the state in which the sending agency is located orfrom which the sending agency sends or brings the child and of thereceiving state. The violation may be punished or penalized by thelaws of either jurisdiction. In addition to liability for any punishmentor penalty, any violation shall constitute full and sufficient groundsfor the suspension or revocation of a license, permit, or other legalauthorization held by the sending agency which empowers or allowsthe sending agency to place or care for children.

ARTICLE V. RETENTION OF JURISDICTION

    (a) The sending agency shall retain jurisdiction over the childsufficient to determine all matters relating to the custody,supervision, care, treatment and disposition of the child, which the

sending agency would have had if the child had remained in thesending agency's state, until the child is adopted, reaches majority,becomes self-supporting, or is discharged with the concurrence of theappropriate authority in the receiving state. The jurisdiction shallalso include the power to effect or cause the child's return or transferto another location and custody as provided by law. The sendingagency shall continue to have financial responsibility for support andmaintenance of the child during the period of placement. Nothingcontained in this compact shall defeat a claim of jurisdiction by areceiving state sufficient to deal with an act of delinquency or crimecommitted within the receiving state.
    (b) When a sending agency is a public agency, the sending agencymay enter into an agreement with an authorized public or privateagency in the receiving state providing for the performance of one(1) or more services in respect of such case by the latter as agent forthe sending agency.
    (c) Nothing in this compact shall be construed to prevent a privatecharitable agency authorized to place children in the receiving statefrom performing services or acting as agent in that state for a privatecharitable agency of the sending state. This compact does not preventthe agency in the receiving state from discharging financialresponsibility for the support and maintenance of a child who hasbeen placed on behalf of the sending agency without relieving theresponsibility set forth in paragraph (a).

ARTICLE VI. INSTITUTIONAL

CARE OF DELINQUENT CHILDREN

    A child adjudicated delinquent may be placed in an institution inanother party jurisdiction under this compact, but no placement shallbe made unless the child is given a court hearing on notice to theparent or guardian with opportunity to be heard prior to the childbeing sent to the other party jurisdiction for institutional care and thecourt finds that:
        (1) equivalent facilities for the child are not available in thesending agency's jurisdiction; and
        (2) institutional care in the other jurisdiction is in the bestinterest of the child and will not produce undue hardship.

ARTICLE VII. COMPACT ADMINISTRATOR

    The executive head of each jurisdiction party to this compact shalldesignate an officer who shall be general coordinator of activitiesunder this compact in the general coordinator's jurisdiction and who,acting jointly with like officers of other party jurisdictions, shall havepower to promulgate rules and regulations to carry out moreeffectively the terms and provisions of this compact.

ARTICLE VIII. LIMITATIONS

    This compact does not apply to:
    (a) The sending or bringing of a child into a receiving state by thechild's parent, stepparent, grandparent, adult brother or sister, adultuncle or aunt, or guardian and leaving the child with any suchrelative or nonagency guardian in the receiving state.
    (b) Any placement, sending, or bringing of a child into a receiving

state under any other interstate compact to which both the state fromwhich the child is sent or brought and the receiving state are party,or to any other agreement between the states which has the force oflaw.

ARTICLE IX. ENACTMENT AND WITHDRAWAL

    This compact shall be open to joinder by any state, territory, orpossession of the United States, the District of Columbia, theCommonwealth of Puerto Rico, and, with the consent of Congress,the Government of Canada or any province thereof. This compactshall become effective with respect to any jurisdiction when thejurisdiction has enacted the same into law. Withdrawal from thiscompact shall be by the enactment of a statute repealing the same,but shall not take effect until two (2) years after the effective date ofthe statute and until written notice of the withdrawal has been givenby the withdrawing state to the governor of each other partyjurisdiction. Withdrawal of a party state shall not affect the rights,duties, and obligations under this compact of any sending agencywith respect to a placement made prior to the effective date ofwithdrawal.

ARTICLE X. CONSTRUCTION AND SEVERABILITY

    The provisions of this compact shall be liberally construed toeffectuate the compact's purposes. The provisions of this compactshall be severable and if any phrase, clause, sentence, or provision ofthis compact is declared to be contrary to the constitution of anyparty state or of the United States or the applicability of this compactto any government, agency, person, or circumstance is held invalid,the validity of the remainder of this compact and the applicability ofthis compact to any government, agency, person, or circumstanceshall not be affected thereby. If this compact shall be held contraryto the constitution of any state party thereto, the compact shallremain in full force and effect as to the remaining states and in fullforce and effect as to the state affected as to all severable matters.
As added by P.L.145-2006, SEC.274.

IC 31-28-4-1.5
Application of chapter until state withdraws from compact
    Sec. 1.5. (a) This chapter remains in effect with respect to anystate, territory, or possession of the United States, for the District ofColumbia, or for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico if the state,territory, or possession or the district or commonwealth has notadopted the interstate compact for the placement of children underIC 31-28-6. This chapter remains in effect until the governor giveswritten notice of the withdrawal of Indiana from the compact setforth in section 1 of this chapter to the governor of each otherjurisdiction that is a party to the compact set forth in section 1 of thischapter.
    (b) IC 31-28-6 shall be used for the interstate placement ofchildren for a state, territory, or possession of the United States, forthe District of Columbia, or for the Commonwealth of Puerto Ricoif the state, territory, possession, district, or commonwealth has

adopted the interstate compact for the placement of children in theformat found in IC 31-28-6.
As added by P.L.143-2008, SEC.10.

IC 31-28-4-2
Financial responsibility for placed children
    Sec. 2. Financial responsibility for a child placed under theprovisions of the interstate compact on the placement of childrenshall be determined in accordance with Article V. However, for thepartial or complete default of performance, the provisions ofIC 31-2-1 (before its repeal), IC 31-1.5 (before its repeal), IC 31-18,IC 12-14-22-9, and IC 12-14-22-10 also may be invoked. In anyappropriate case, financial support or contribution may be obtainedby an appropriate agency in Indiana under IC 31-40 to aid in thedischarge of the financial obligations of a sending agency that hasplaced a child in another state under the compact.
As added by P.L.145-2006, SEC.274.

IC 31-28-4-3
"Appropriate public authorities"; notices; responsibility
    Sec. 3. The "appropriate public authorities" as used in Article IIIof the interstate compact on the placement of children (section 1 ofthis chapter), with reference to this state, means the department, andthe department shall receive and act with reference to noticesrequired by Article III.
As added by P.L.145-2006, SEC.274.

IC 31-28-4-4
"Appropriate authority in receiving state"
    Sec. 4. As used in paragraph (a) of Article V of the interstatecompact on the placement of children (section 1 of this chapter), thephrase "appropriate authority in the receiving state" with referenceto this state means the department.
As added by P.L.145-2006, SEC.274.

IC 31-28-4-5
Agreements between party states; authorization; approval
    Sec. 5. The officers and agencies of this state and the subdivisionsof this state having authority to place children may enter intoagreements with appropriate officers or agencies of or in other partystates under paragraph (b) of Article V of the interstate compact onthe placement of children (section 1 of this chapter). An agreementthat contains a financial commitment or imposes a financialobligation on this state or a subdivision or agency of this state is notbinding unless the agreement has the approval in writing of theauditor of state in the case of the state and of the chief local fiscalofficer in the case of a subdivision of the state.
As added by P.L.145-2006, SEC.274.

IC 31-28-4-6 Visitation, inspection, or supervision requirements of children orfacilities under other law; fulfillment under compact
    Sec. 6. A requirement for visitation, inspection, or supervision ofchildren, homes, institutions, or other agencies in another party statethat apply under the provisions of IC 31-27 is considered to be metif performed under an agreement entered into by appropriate officersor agencies of this state or a subdivision of this state as contemplatedby paragraph (b) of Article V of the interstate compact on theplacement of children (section 1 of this chapter).
As added by P.L.145-2006, SEC.274.

IC 31-28-4-7
Placement of delinquent children in institution in another state;retained jurisdiction
    Sec. 7. A court having jurisdiction to place delinquent childrenmay place the delinquent child in an institution in another state underArticle VI of the interstate compact on the placement of children(section 1 of this chapter) and shall retain jurisdiction as provided inArticle V.
As added by P.L.145-2006, SEC.274.

IC 31-28-4-8
"Executive head"; appointment of compact administrator
    Sec. 8. As used in Article VII of the interstate compact on theplacement of children (section 1 of this chapter), the term "executivehead" means the governor. The governor may appoint a compactadministrator in accordance with the terms of Article VII.
As added by P.L.145-2006, SEC.274.