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Alaska Statutes.

Title 47. Welfare, Social Services and Institutions

Chapter 10. Children in Need of Aid

Section 990. Definitions.

previous: Section 980. Grants-in-Aid.
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AS 47.10.990. Definitions.

In this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires,

(1) "adult family member" means a person who is 18 years of age or older and who is

(A) related to the child as the child's grandparent, aunt, uncle, or sibling; or

(B) the child's sibling's legal guardian or parent;

(2) "care" means to provide for the physical, mental, and social needs of the child;

(3) "child" means a person under 18 years of age and a person 19 years of age if that person was under 18 years of age at the time that a proceeding under this chapter was commenced;

(4) "child in need of aid" means a child found to be within the jurisdiction of the court under AS 47.10.010 and 47.10.011;

(5) "commissioner" means the commissioner of health and social services.

(6) "court" means the superior court of the state;

(7) "custodian" means a natural person 18 years of age or older to whom a parent or guardian has transferred temporary physical care, custody, and control of the child for a period of time;

(8) "department" means the Department of Health and Social Services;

(9) "domestic violence" has the meaning given in AS 18.66.990;

(10) "family member" means a person of any age who is

(A) related to the child as the child's grandparent, aunt, uncle, or sibling; or

(B) the child's sibling's legal guardian or parent;

(11) "family support services" means the services and activities provided to children and their families, including those provided by the community, a church, or other service organization, both to prevent removal of a child from the parental home and to facilitate the child's safe return to the family; "family support services" may include counseling, substance abuse treatment, mental health services, assistance to address domestic violence, visitation with family members, parenting classes, in-home services, temporary child care services, and transportation;

(12) "foster care" means care provided by a person or household under a foster home license required under AS 47.32;

(13) "gravely disabled" has the meaning given in AS 47.30.915 ;

(14) "guardian" means a natural person who is legally appointed guardian of the child by the court;

(15) "hazardous volatile material or substances" has the meaning given in AS 47.37.270 ;

(16) "intoxicant" means a substance that temporarily diminishes a person's control over mental or physical powers, including alcohol, controlled substances under AS 11.71, and a hazardous volatile material or substance misused by inhaling its vapors;

(17) "juvenile detention home" is a separate establishment, exclusively devoted to the detention of minors on a short-term basis and not a part of an adult jail;

(18) "mental health professional" has the meaning given in AS 47.30.915;

(19) "mental illness" has the meaning given in AS 47.30.915, except that, if the child is placed in another state by the department, "mental health professional" also includes a professional listed in the definition of "mental health professional" in AS 47.30.915 who is not licensed to practice by a board of this state but is licensed by a corresponding licensing authority to practice in the state in which the child is placed;

(20) "mental injury" has the meaning given in AS 47.17.290;

(21) "near fatality" means physical injury or other harm, as certified by a physician, caused by an act or omission that created a substantial risk of death;

(22) "out-of-home care provider" means a foster parent or relative other than a parent with whom the child is placed;

(23) "parent" means the biological or adoptive parent of the child;

(24) "permanency hearing" means a hearing

(A) designed to reach a decision in a case concerning the permanent placement of a child under AS 47.10; and

(B) at which the direction of the case involving the child is determined;

(25) "physical injury" has the meaning given in AS 11.81.900 (b);

(26) "reasonable efforts" means, with respect to family support services required under AS 47.10.086 , consistent attempts made during a reasonable time period and time-limited services;

(27) "reasonable time" means a period of time that serves the best interests of the child, taking in account the affected child's age, emotional and developmental needs, and ability to form and maintain lasting attachments;

(28) "secure residential psychiatric treatment center" has the meaning given "residential psychiatric treatment center" in AS 47.32.900;

(29) "serious physical injury" has the meaning given in AS 11.81.900(b);

(30) "sexual abuse" means the conduct described in AS 11.41.410 - 11.41.460; conduct constituting "sexual exploitation" as defined in AS 47.17.290, and conduct prohibited by AS 11.66.100 - 11.66.150;

(31) "support" has the meaning given in AS 11.51.120 (b).