Kansas Host Families Act Power of Attorney (K.S.A. 38-2403)

What K.S.A. 38-2403 Is

The Host Families Act, codified at K.S.A. 38-2401 through 38-2404, created a specific framework for parents to delegate care and custody of a minor child to a volunteer host family vetted by a licensed child placement agency. The power of attorney form under K.S.A. 38-2403 is the most detailed statutory POA Kansas has for minor children — and it is the one the Kansas Judicial Council developed a standardized form for.

This matters for kinship caregivers because K.S.A. 38-2403 sets out explicit rules that many schools and clinics apply as the benchmark for any parental POA — even the more common general parental POA that is not technically governed by the Host Families Act. Knowing what K.S.A. 38-2403 requires helps you understand what intake staff are looking for.

The One-Year Limit

Under K.S.A. 38-2403, a Host Families Act POA is limited to one year. It can be renewed once, for one additional year, making the maximum possible duration two years. After that, the parent must execute a new document from scratch or the caregiver needs to pursue a different legal arrangement — typically guardianship.

The military exception: if the parent is on active military duty, K.S.A. 38-2403(d)(2)(B) allows a POA lasting for the term of active duty plus 30 days, which can exceed one year.

Who Can Use This Form

The statutory text was written for volunteer host families working through a licensed child placement agency. But the Kansas Judicial Council form it produced has become the de facto template that many Kansas attorneys, legal aid organizations, and online form providers adapt for general kinship use.

If you are a grandparent, aunt, uncle, or family friend raising a child informally — not through an agency — you are likely using a general Parental POA rather than a Host Families Act POA. The practical differences are small: both require the parent's notarized signature, both cover school enrollment and medical consent, and both can be revoked by the parent at any time. The key difference is that K.S.A. 38-2403 explicitly imposes the one-year cap and requires substantial compliance with the Judicial Council form.

Signature and Notarization Requirements

K.S.A. 38-2403(d)(1) requires that all individuals holding legal custody of the child sign the delegation. In practice, that means:

• If both parents share custody (the default), both sign
• If one parent is deceased, incapacitated, or has had rights terminated, the surviving parent signs alone
• The document must be acknowledged before a Notary Public

An out-of-state execution is generally acceptable. If the parent is in Missouri, Oklahoma, or anywhere else and signs before a notary in that state in compliance with that state's execution laws, Kansas recognizes it under full faith and credit.

What K.S.A. 38-2403 Does Not Allow

Like any parental delegation in Kansas, a Host Families Act POA cannot authorize:

• Consent to marriage, adoption, or termination of parental rights
• Consent to an abortion
• Placement of the child in state foster care
• Management of the child's inheritance or court settlements (that requires a conservatorship)

And executing a valid POA under this statute does not constitute child abandonment or neglect. K.S.A. 38-2402 explicitly states that a proper delegation does not place the child in the foster care system or subject anyone to foster care licensing requirements.

General Parental POA vs. K.S.A. 38-2403 POA

Most kinship caregivers in Kansas use a general Parental Power of Attorney, not a Host Families Act POA. The general version draws on common law contract principles and does not carry the explicit one-year statutory cap — though schools and clinics commonly expect annual renewal anyway.

Both types require notarization and a parent's signature. Both cover routine school and medical decisions. The Host Families Act version is more rigid (one-year cap, Judicial Council form compliance) but also more explicitly codified, which can help if a school pushes back and wants a statutory citation.

Putting It Together

Whether you use a K.S.A. 38-2403 form or a general Parental POA, the execution checklist is similar: get the parent's signature, notarize it, deliver copies to the school and medical providers, and track the expiration date. Our Kansas School and Medical Consent Guide walks through which form fits your situation and how to get it accepted at the first appointment.

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