(a) The General Assembly recognizes that children are defenseless and that there is no greater moral obligation upon the General Assembly than to provide for the protection of our children and that our child welfare system needs to be strengthened by establishing a clear policy of the state that the best interests of the children must be paramount and shall have precedence at every stage of juvenile court proceedings.
(b) The best interest of the child shall be the standard for recommendations made by employees of the Department of Human Services as to whether a child should be reunited with his or her family or removed from or remain in a home wherein the child has been abused or neglected.
Structure Arkansas Code
Chapter 28 - Placement or Detention
Subchapter 1 - Children and Family Services
§ 9-28-101. Legislative intent and purpose
§ 9-28-102. Creation of the Division of Children and Family Services
§ 9-28-103. Division of Children and Family Services — Powers and duties
§ 9-28-104. Best interest of the child
§ 9-28-105. Preference to relative caregivers for a child in foster care
§ 9-28-106. Religious preference — Removal of barriers to inter-ethnic adoption
§ 9-28-107. Notice when juvenile transferred to custody of department
§ 9-28-108. Placement of juveniles — Definitions
§ 9-28-109. Notice of move in foster care placement
§ 9-28-110. Smoking in the presence of foster children
§ 9-28-111. Case plans — Definition
§ 9-28-112. Foster children and educational issues
§ 9-28-113. Continuity of educational services to foster children
§ 9-28-114. Foster youth transition
§ 9-28-115. Immunity — Definition
§ 9-28-116. Restrictions on foster and adoptive parents
§ 9-28-117. Authority to obtain local criminal background checks
§ 9-28-118. Training hours for employees
§ 9-28-119. Department of Human Services — Power to obtain information — Definitions
§ 9-28-120. Public disclosure of information on deaths and maltreatment