(1) With regard to a minor in the custody of the division who is the subject of a petition alleging abuse, neglect, or dependency, and who has been placed in foster care with a foster family, the Legislature finds that:

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Terms Used In Utah Code 80-3-502

  • Abuse: means :
              (1)(a)(i)
                   (1)(a)(i)(A) nonaccidental harm of a child;
                   (1)(a)(i)(B) threatened harm of a child;
                   (1)(a)(i)(C) sexual exploitation;
                   (1)(a)(i)(D) sexual abuse; or
                   (1)(a)(i)(E) human trafficking of a child in violation of Section Utah Code 80-1-102
  • Child: means , except as provided in Section 80-2-905, an individual who is under 18 years old. See Utah Code 80-1-102
  • Custody: means the same as that term is defined in Section 80-2-102. See Utah Code 80-3-102
  • dependency: means a child who is without proper care through no fault of the child's parent, guardian, or custodian. See Utah Code 80-1-102
  • Division: means the Division of Child and Family Services created in Section 80-2-201. See Utah Code 80-3-102
  • Indian child: means the same as that term is defined in Utah Code 80-1-102
  • Minor: means , except as provided in Sections 80-6-501, 80-6-901, and 80-7-102:
         (54)(a) a child; or
         (54)(b) an individual:
              (54)(b)(i)
                   (54)(b)(i)(A) who is at least 18 years old and younger than 21 years old; and
                   (54)(b)(i)(B) for whom the Division of Child and Family Services has been specifically ordered by the juvenile court to provide services because the individual was an abused, neglected, or dependent child or because the individual was adjudicated for an offense;
              (54)(b)(ii)
                   (54)(b)(ii)(A) who is at least 18 years old and younger than 25 years old; and
                   (54)(b)(ii)(B) whose case is under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court in accordance with Subsection 78A-6-103(1)(b); or
              (54)(b)(iii)
                   (54)(b)(iii)(A) who is at least 18 years old and younger than 21 years old; and
                   (54)(b)(iii)(B) whose case is under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court in accordance with Subsection 78A-6-103(1)(c). See Utah Code 80-1-102
  • Natural parent: includes the minor's noncustodial parent. See Utah Code 80-1-102
  • Neglect: means action or inaction causing:
              (58)(a)(i) abandonment of a child, except as provided in Chapter 4, Part 5, Safe Relinquishment of a Newborn Child;
              (58)(a)(ii) lack of proper parental care of a child by reason of the fault or habits of the parent, guardian, or custodian;
              (58)(a)(iii) failure or refusal of a parent, guardian, or custodian to provide proper or necessary subsistence or medical care, or any other care necessary for the child's health, safety, morals, or well-being;
              (58)(a)(iv) a child to be at risk of being neglected or abused because another child in the same home is neglected or abused;
              (58)(a)(v) abandonment of a child through an unregulated child custody transfer under Section 78B-24-203; or
              (58)(a)(vi) educational neglect. See Utah Code 80-1-102
  • Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of a judicial proceeding. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • Relative: means an adult who:
         (6)(a) is the child's grandparent, great grandparent, aunt, great aunt, uncle, great uncle, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, stepparent, first cousin, stepsibling, or sibling;
         (6)(b) is a first cousin of the child's parent;
         (6)(c) is a permanent guardian or natural parent of the child's sibling; or
         (6)(d) in the case of a child who is an Indian child, is an extended family member as defined in the Indian Child Welfare Act, Utah Code 80-3-102
     (1)(a) except with regard to the minor’s natural parents, a foster family has a very limited but recognized interest in its familial relationship with the minor; and
     (1)(b) minors in the custody of the division are experiencing multiple changes in foster care placements with little or no documentation, and that numerous studies of child growth and development emphasize the importance of stability in foster care living arrangements.
(2) For the reasons described in Subsection (1), the Legislature finds that, except with regard to the minor’s natural parents, procedural due process protections must be provided to a foster family prior to removal of a foster minor from the foster home.
(3)

     (3)(a) A foster parent who has had a foster minor in the foster parent’s home for 12 months or longer may petition the juvenile court for a review and determination of the appropriateness of a decision by the division to remove the minor from the foster home, unless the removal was for the purpose of:

          (3)(a)(i) returning the minor to the minor’s natural parent or legal guardian;
          (3)(a)(ii) immediately placing the minor in an approved adoptive home;
          (3)(a)(iii) placing the minor with a relative who obtained custody or asserted an interest in the minor within the preference period described in Subsection 80-3-302(8); or
          (3)(a)(iv) placing an Indian child in accordance with placement preferences and other requirements described in the Indian Child Welfare Act, 25 U.S.C. § 1915.
     (3)(b) The foster parent may petition the juvenile court under this section without exhausting administrative remedies within the division.
     (3)(c) The juvenile court may order the division to place the minor in a specified home, and shall base the juvenile court’s determination on the best interest of the minor.
(4) The requirements of this section do not apply to the removal of a minor based on a foster parent’s request for that removal.

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