{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-199.640","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 199.640","heading":"Licensing of child -caring and child-placing agencies or facilities -- License","body":"fees -- Standards -- Recordkeeping and reporting -- Use of corporal\npunishment -- Prohibition against hiring convicted sex offender --\nConfidentiality of records.\n(1) Any facility or agency seeking to conduct, operate, or maintain any child -caring\nfacility or child -placing agency shall first obtain a license to conduct, operate, or\nmaintain the facility or agency from the cabinet.\n(2) The cabinet shall:\n(a) Develop standards, as provided in subsection (5) of this section, which must\nbe met by any facility or agency seeking to be licensed to conduct, operate, or\nmaintain a child-caring facility or child-placing agency;\n(b) Issue licenses to any facility or agency found  to meet established standards\nand revoke or suspend a license after a hearing in any case that a facility or\nagency holding a license is determined to have substantially failed to conform\nto the requirements of the standards;\n(c) Establish and follow procedures designed to ensure that any facility or agency\nlicensed to conduct, operate, or maintain a child -caring facility or child -\nplacing agency complies with the requirements of the standards on an ongoing\nbasis.\n(3) Licenses shall be issued for a period o f one (1) year from date of issue unless\nrevoked by the cabinet. Each licensed facility or agency shall be visited and\ninspected at least one (1) time each year by a person authorized by the cabinet and\nmeeting specific qualifications established by the se cretary of the cabinet in an\nadministrative regulation. A complete report of the visit and inspection shall be\nfiled with the cabinet.\n(4) Each license issued shall specify the type of care or service the licensee is\nauthorized to perform. The cabinet may promulgate administrative regulations to\nestablish fees that shall not exceed costs of the program to the cabinet, for the\nproper administration of licensure. The fees collected by the secretary shall be\ndeposited in the State Treasury and credited to a re volving fund account for the\npurpose of carrying out the provisions of this section. The balance of said account\nshall lapse to the general fund at the end of each biennium.\n(5) (a) The secretary shall promulgate administrative regulations establishing bas ic\nstandards of care and service for child -caring facilities and child -placing\nagencies relating to the health and safety of all children in the care of the\nfacility or agency, the basic components for a quality program, as referenced\nbelow, and any other factors as may be necessary to promote the welfare of\nchildren cared for or placed by the agencies and facilities. Standards\nestablished may vary depending on the capacity of the agency or facility\nseeking licensure. These administrative regulations shall establish standards\nthat ensure that:\n1. The treatment program offered by the facility or agency is directed\ntoward child safety, improved child functioning, improved family\nfunctioning, and continuity and permanence for the child;\n2. The facility or agenc y has on staff, or has contracted with, individuals\nwho are qualified to meet the treatment needs of the children being\nserved, including their psychological and psychiatric needs;\n3. The facility or agency has procedures in place to ensure that its staff\nreceives ongoing training and that all staff members who are required to\ndo so meet all regional and national standards;\n4. The facility or agency develops an integrated, outcomes -based treatment\nplan that meets the health, mental health, education, safety, and security\nneeds of each child in its care;\n5. The facility or agency has procedures in place to include parents, family,\nand other caregivers in a child's treatment program;\n6. The facility or agency has procedures in place whereby it evaluates its\nprograms on a quarterly basis and documents changes in the program if\nthe results of the review indicate a change is needed;\n7. The facility or agency makes available quality programs for substance\nabuse prevention and treatment with providers licensed under KRS\nChapter 222 as part of its treatment services;\n8. The facility or agency initiates discharge planning at admission and\nprovides sufficient aftercare; and\n9. The facility or agency has written policies and procedures in place that\noutline the structure and objectives of cooperative relationships with the\ncommunity within which it is located and the local school district,\nincluding outreach activities to be undertaken by the facility or agency to\nboth develop and maintain those cooperative relationships.\n(b) The secretary shall promulgate administrative regulations establishing\nrecordkeeping and reporting requirements and sta ndards for licensed agencies\nand facilities that recognize the electronic storage and retrieval of information\nfor those facilities that possess the necessary technology and that include, at a\nminimum, the following information relating to children in the care of the\nagency or facility:\n1. The name, age, social security number, county of origin, and all former\nresidences of the child;\n2. The names, residences, and occupations, if available, of the child's\nparents;\n3. The date on which the child was received  by the agency or facility; the\ndate on which the child was placed in a foster home or made available\nfor adoption; and the name, occupation, and residence of any person\nwith whom a child is placed; and\n4. A brief and continuing written narrative history o f each child covering\nthe period during which the child is in the care of the agency or facility.\n(c) The secretary may promulgate administrative regulations creating separate\nlicensure standards for different types of facilities.\n(d) The secretary shall p romulgate administrative regulations to establish\npractices and procedures for the inspection of child -caring facilities and child-\nplacing agencies. These administrative regulations shall establish a uniform\nreporting mechanism that includes guidelines for enforcement.\n(6) Any administrative regulations promulgated pursuant to KRS Chapter 13A to\ngovern services provided by church-related privately operated child-caring agencies\nor facilities shall not prohibit the use of reasonable corporal physical discipl ine\nwhich complies with the provisions of KRS 503.110(1), including the use of\nspanking or paddling, as a means of punishment, discipline, or behavior\nmodification and shall prohibit the employment of persons convicted of any sexual\noffense with any child-caring facility or child-placing agency.\n(7) All records regarding children or facts learned about children and their parents and\nrelatives by any licensed agency or facility shall be deemed confidential in the same\nmanner and subject to the same provision s as similar records of the cabinet. The\ninformation thus obtained shall not be published or be open for public inspection,\nexcept to authorized employees of:\n(a) The cabinet or of such licensed agency or facility in performance of their\nduties; and\n(b) A school or local school district in which a child is enrolling or currently\nenrolled, in order to identify and serve the educational needs of the child, in\naccordance with KRS 199.802.","path":["KRS Chapter 199"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=50240","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:51:54Z","sha256":"59eb984079107c485be71bd7fc54844683c55e4afe1248a66008b93c6d5388fa","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-199.630","next":"us-ky/krs-199.641"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}