4122. Case Transfers

Original Date: March 1, 2010

Revised Date: June 15, 2024

Sunset Review Date: June 30, 2028

Approved by: Natalie Green, Assistant Secretary of Child Welfare, and Ruben Reeves, Assistant Secretary of Licensing Division

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to provide guidance when transferring cases between units, programs, offices, and regions to prioritize safety, permanency, and well-being for children and youth and the families’ progress in services.

Scope

This policy applies to child welfare (CW) and Licensing Division (LD) child protective services (CPS) employees.

Policy

CW and LD CPS employees must:
1. Coordinate the transfer of information, documentation, and services to promote safety, permanency, well-being for children and youth, and the family’s progress in services when transferring cases.
2. Verify whether there is reason to know children are or may be Indian children.
3. Follow the Case Assignment policy when determining primary case assignments and emergent responses.
Supervisors must complete the following when transferring cases and differing opinions or unresolved issues occur:
1. Make efforts to resolve differences at the lowest level possible.
2. Consult with the following if differences are unresolved. For:
  1. CW:
    1. Area administrator
    2. Deputy regional administrator
  2. LD:
    1. Area administrator
    2. Senior administrator

Procedures

Case Transfers Between Units or Programs in the Same Office
1. When cases transfer between units or programs after filing a dependency or change in program:
  1. Sending caseworkers may:
    1. Request to transfer cases.
    2. Follow the Initial Dependency Case Transfer Guide DCYF and document the applicable tasks outlined in the guide when transferring initial dependency cases.
  2. Sending supervisors must discuss cases transferring with receiving supervisors within three calendar days of the request to transfer.
  3. Receiving supervisors must complete the following when there is agreement to transfer the case:
    1. Assign cases to caseworkers, within five calendar days of the request for transfer.
    2. Schedule case transfer staffings with sending and receiving caseworkers.
  4. Sending and receiving supervisors may follow the Initial Dependency Case Transfer Guide to determine what needs to be discussed during transfer staffing’s when transferring dependency cases.
  5. Receiving caseworkers must review the case history, including Child Health and Education Tracking (CHET) reports, if applicable, and participate in case transfer staffing’s.
2. When a guardianship has been identified for subsidy:
  1. Caseworkers must provide the required documentation to the GAP gatekeeper, per the Guardianship Assistance Program (GAP) and Extended Guardianship Assistance Program (EGAP) policy.
  2. Children and Family Welfare Services (CFWS) supervisors must co-assign the subsidy case with the caseworker and GAP gatekeeper.
  3. GAP gatekeepers must review the subsidy documentation and participate in case staffing, if requested.
3. When children or youth become legally-free and the permanent plan is adoption:
  1. CFWS caseworkers must request to transfer the case.
  2. CFWS supervisors must complete the following within five calendar days of the court order terminating parental rights:
    1. Schedule case transfer staffing’s with sending and receiving supervisors and caseworkers.
    2. Transfer cases to adoptions.
  3. Adoption supervisors must assign cases to adoption caseworkers within five calendar days.
  4. Adoption caseworkers must review the case history and participate in case transfer staffing’s.
4. When children or youth are legally-free and their permanent plan changes to a plan other than adoption:
  1. Adoption caseworkers may request to transfer a case.
  2. Adoption supervisors may discuss case transferring with receiving CFWS supervisors within three calendar days of the changed court order. If a determination is made to:
    1. Transfer the case to CFWS, they must complete the following within five calendar days of the court ordered change:
      1. Schedule case transfer staffing’s with the sending and receiving CFWS and adoption supervisors and caseworkers.
      2. Assign cases to a CFWS supervisor.
    2. Maintain the case in adoptions:
      1. Notify the adoption caseworker.
      2. Follow Policy Section 2 if there are differing opinions or unresolved issues.
  3. CFWS supervisors must assign cases to CFWS caseworkers within five calendar days of being assigned the case.
  4. CFWS caseworkers must review the case history and participate in case transfer staffing’s.
Transfers Between CW Offices
1. When cases transfer between CW offices:
  1. Sending caseworkers may request a transfer of the primary case assignment between CW offices for non-court involved cases, if any of the following occurs:
    1. Parents or guardians establish residency in a different county and continued assessment or services are needed or requested.
    2. A parent or guardian has been residing in a licensed residential treatment facility (RTF) for inpatient substance use disorder (SUD) treatment with their children for a minimum of 30 calendar days.
  2. Sending supervisors must discuss cases transferring with receiving supervisors within three calendar days of the request to transfer.
  3. Receiving supervisors must complete the following within five calendar days of the request to transfer the case:
    1. Schedule case transfer staffing’s with the sending and receiving caseworkers.
    2. Assign cases to receiving caseworkers.
  4. Receiving caseworkers must review the case history and participate in case transfer staffing’s.
2. When requesting a transfer of primary case assignment, excluding legally-free cases, between offices for court-involved cases:
  1. Sending caseworkers must:
    1. Follow the Legal Jurisdiction and Office Assignment policy.
    2. Request to transfer the case.
  2. Sending supervisors must:
    1. Follow the Legal Jurisdiction and Office Assignment policy.
    2. Verify there is a court order by the receiving county’s court accepting legal jurisdiction.
    3. Complete the transfer within five calendar days of receiving the court order to transfer legal jurisdiction.
  3. Receiving supervisors must assign the case to a receiving caseworker.
  4. Receiving caseworkers must review the case history, including CHET reports if applicable, and participate in case transfer staffing’s.
Transferring Extended Foster Care (EFC) Cases Between Offices
When EFC cases transfer between offices:
1. Sending caseworkers may request a transfer of the primary case assignment to the office in the county where the youth resides for youth who have:
  1. Established residency in a different county and have lived in that county for at least three months.
  2. Entered into EFC while in the custody of DCYF Juvenile Rehabilitation Division, Department of Corrections, county detention, or jail and were released to a county outside of the county in which the intake was assigned.
2. Sending supervisors must:
  1. Follow the Legal Jurisdiction and Office Assignment policy.
  2. Verify there is a court order by the receiving county’s court accepting legal jurisdiction.
  3. Complete the transfer within five calendar days of receiving the court order accepting the transfer of legal jurisdiction.
3. Receiving supervisors must assign cases to caseworkers:
  1. Within five calendar days of receiving the request for transfer.
  2. Who have experience working with youth, when possible.
4. Receiving caseworkers must review the case history and refer to the EFC policy.
CW employees must follow the Legal Jurisdiction and Office Assignment policy when transferring cases to tribes, once tribal jurisdiction has been established.
CPS Case Transfers Between LD and CW Offices
When CPS cases transfer between LD and CW offices:
1. LD CPS supervisors must request a staffing with the CW CPS supervisor to:
  1. Request case co-assignment.
  2. Share information.
2. LD CPS investigators must:
  1. Share information with caseworkers if transferring a case to begin the dependency process and assist in the dependency writing process.
  2. Complete the CPS and licensing investigations.
3. CW supervisors must assign the case to caseworkers.
4. Caseworkers must review the case and participate in case transfer staffings.
Caseworkers must document case transfer summaries into FamLink case notes under “Transfer/Closing Summary” within seven calendar days, per the Documentation policy.
Supervisors must complete the following when case transfer staffing’s occur:
1. Verify the case documentation is complete.
2. Summarize and document case transfer staffing’s into FamLink supervisor case notes within seven calendar days.