D.C. Code § 4-217.02: Types of placement.

Foster care shall be provided in a foster family home or in a child-care institution, whichever best meets the needs of the individual child. The Mayor, in providing such care, may use foster family homes and child-care institutions outside the District of Columbia, provided that such homes and institutions are licensed by the state in which they are located or are approved to meet the standards established by the state for such foster family homes or institutions.