2019 Alaska Statutes
Title 47. Welfare, Social Services, and Institutions
Chapter 10. Children in Need of Aid
Article 4. General Provisions.
Sec. 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;

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

(C) in the case of an Indian child, an extended family member as defined in 25 U.S.C. 1903;

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

(3) “child” means a person who is

(A) under 18 years of age;

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

(C) under 21 years of age if that person is committed to the custody of the department under AS 47.10.080(c)(1) or (v);

(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;

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

(C) in the case of an Indian child, an extended family member as defined in 25 U.S.C. 1903;

(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 substance” has the meaning given in AS 47.37.270;

(16) “Indian child” has the meaning given in 25 U.S.C. 1903;

(17) “Indian child's tribe” has the meaning given in 25 U.S.C. 1903;

(18) “infant” means a child who is less than 21 days of age;

(19) “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;

(20) “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;

(21) “mental health professional” 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;

(22) “mental illness” has the meaning given in AS 47.30.915;

(23) “mental injury” has the meaning given in AS 47.17.290;

(24) “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;

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

(26) “parent” means the biological or adoptive parent of the child;

(27) “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;

(28) “physical injury” has the meaning given in AS 11.81.900(b);

(29) “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;

(30) “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;

(31) “secure residential psychiatric treatment center” has the meaning given “residential psychiatric treatment center” in AS 47.32.900;

(32) “serious physical injury” has the meaning given in AS 11.81.900(b);

(33) “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;

(34) “support” has the meaning given in AS 11.51.120(b).