§ 1430.7. Group home as nuisance--Actions--Request for investigation--Complaint
Oklahoma Statutes AnnotatedTitle 10. Children
10 Okl.St.Ann. § 1430.7
§ 1430.7. Group home as nuisance--Actions--Request for investigation--Complaint
A. The operation or maintenance of a group home in violation of the Group Homes for Persons with Developmental or Physical Disabilities Act, or of the rules promulgated by the Commission for Human Services, is declared a public nuisance inimical to the public welfare. The Director of Human Services, in the name of the people of the state, or through the Attorney General or the district attorney of the county in which the group home is located may, in addition to other remedies herein provided, bring action for an injunction to restrain such violation or to enjoin the future operation or maintenance of any such group home.
B. 1. Any person with personal knowledge or substantial specific information who believes that the Group Homes for Persons with Developmental or Physical Disabilities Act or a rule promulgated pursuant thereto may have been violated, may request an investigation. The request may be submitted to the Department of Human Services in writing, by telephone, or personally. An oral complaint shall be reduced to writing by the Department. Provided that any person who willfully or recklessly makes a false complaint without a reasonable basis in fact for such a complaint under the provisions of the Group Homes for Persons with Developmental or Physical Disabilities Act shall be liable in a civil suit for any actual damages, including attorneys' fees and costs, suffered by a group home so requested to be investigated, and for any punitive damages set by the court or jury which may be allowed in the discretion of the court or jury when deemed proper by the court or jury.
4. Upon receipt of a complaint, the Department shall investigate whether the Group Homes for Persons with Developmental or Physical Disabilities Act or a rule promulgated pursuant thereto has been or is being violated. Allegations of abuse, neglect, or exploitation shall be investigated by appropriate authorities in accordance with state law. Other complaints shall be evaluated by authorized Department staff and investigated timely based on the nature of the complaint. A determination about a complaint shall be made in writing. The determination shall state the reasons therefor.
5. In all cases, the Department shall inform the group home and the complainant, if so requested by the complainant, of its findings within ten (10) days of its determination. The notice of such findings shall include a copy of the written determination, the correction order, if any, the warning notice, if any, and the state licensure or regulatory requirement, or both, on which the violation is listed.
Credits
Laws 1987, c. 225, § 7, eff. July 1, 1987; Laws 1994, c. 236, § 7, eff. Sept. 1, 1994; Laws 1996, c. 155, § 7, eff. Nov. 1, 1996. Renumbered from Title 63, § 1-818.7 and amended by Laws 1996, c. 354, §§ 7, 56, eff. Nov. 1, 1996. Laws 2006, c. 137, § 4, eff. Nov. 1, 2006.
10 Okl. St. Ann. § 1430.7, OK ST T. 10 § 1430.7
Current with emergency effective legislation through Chapter 295 of the Second Regular Session of the 59th Legislature (2024). Some sections may be more current, see credits for details.
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