PS 00905.022 Maine

A. PS 20-001 Effect of a De Facto Parent-Child Relationship under Maine Law on Deeming for Supplemental Security Income

Date: January 10, 2020

1. Syllabus

The legal findings required to become a de facto parent in Maine address the same factors the agency considers when assessing a person’s role as a parent in a child’s life. For that reason, the agency may consider any individual who is an adjudicated de facto parent under Maine law to be a parent for SSI purposes. In addition, it is our opinion that such parents should be considered “natural” as opposed to “adoptive” parents.

2. Questions Presented

You asked whether a non-biological “de facto parent” in the State of Maine can qualify as a parent for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) purposes. If so, you asked whether the “de facto parent” should be afforded the same considerations as an “adoptive parent” for SSI purposes.

3. Short Answers

We believe that an individual who meets the legal requirements to become a de facto parent in Maine also meets the agency’s definition of “parent” in the SSI program. The Program Operations Manual System (POMS) defines “natural parent” as including not only birth parents, but also those viewed as parents “based on [their] role in the child’s life.” POMS SI 00501.015.A.1. The legal findings required to become a de facto parent in Maine address the same factors the agency considers when assessing a person’s role as a parent in a child’s life. For that reason, the agency may consider any individual who is an adjudicated de facto parent under Maine law to be a parent for SSI purposes. In addition, it is our opinion that such parents should be considered “natural” as opposed to “adoptive” parents.

4. Background

On May XX, 2019, the Farmington District Court in Maine entered a judgment granting C~'s Petition for De Facto Parentage and Motion to Establish/Modify Parental Rights and Responsibilities with respect to N~ and A~ (the children). Among other things, the court found that: (1) the children have resided with C~ since their birth; (2) C~ has engaged in consistent caretaking of the children; (3) the children have a bonded, dependent relationship with C~ which is fostered by the children’s biological parents, who recognize C~ as a parent of the children;^[1] and (4) C~ has accepted full and permanent responsibilities as a parent of the children without expectation of financial compensation. The court also described the following rights and responsibilities:

•

The children’s primary residence is to be with C~;

•

The children’s biological parents are granted limited visitation, subject to C~s discretion;

•

All three parents equally share any uninsured health expenses of the children;

•

C~ alone has the right to claim the children as dependents on federal and state tax returns;

•

C~ is not seeking child support from the biological parents, but all three parents will contribute equally to the costs for sports and extracurricular activities; and

•

All parents have equal and unrestricted access to the children’s records.

As “de facto parent,” C~ applied for SSI benefits on behalf of the children.

5. Analysis

a. Federal Law

In determining SSI eligibility and the amount of benefits due to a child under age 18, the child’s income and resources are deemed to include any income and resources of an ineligible parent. 42 U.S.C. § 1382c(f)(2)(A); 20 C.F.R. §§ 416.1160(a)(2), 416.1202(b)(1); POMS SI 01310.145(A)(1). An “ineligible parent” is defined as a natural or adoptive parent, or the spouse of a natural or adoptive parent, who lives with the child and who is ineligible for SSI. 20 C.F.R. §§ 416.1160(d), 416.1202(b)(1); POMS SI 01310.145(A)(1).

The current regulations do not define “natural” or adoptive parents with further specificity for purposes of SSI.^[2] However, the POMS defines “a natural parent (a parent) to be a person who was a child’s parent from birth or a parent based on his or her role in the child’s life” and “an adoptive parent to be a person who legally adopted a child.” POMS SI 00501.015.A.1. The POMS also explains that, “[i]n a disputed case, notwithstanding records of birth, adoption, or marriage, we evaluate real-life factors to determine whether someone is a parent, such as the degree to which the individual participates in the child’s upbringing, what parental responsibilities he or she accepts, how he or she refers to the child, and how the community regards the relationship.” POMS SI 00501.015.A.2 (emphasis added).

b. State Law

Under Maine law, parentage can be established through any of the following actions: (1) giving birth, (2) adoption, (3) acknowledgment of paternity, (4) unrebutted presumption of parentage, (5) adjudication of de facto parentage, (6) adjudication of genetic parentage, (7) consent to assisted reproduction, and (8) consent to a gestational carrier agreement. Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 19-A, § 1851 (2019). Once parentage is established, it “applies for all purposes,” except as otherwise specifically provided, unless or until parental rights are terminated. Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 19-A, § 1853 (2016).

Before a court will adjudicate a person to be a de facto parent, it must first make the following determinations:

1. The person has resided with the child for a significant period of time;

2. The person has engaged in consistent caretaking of the child;

3. A bonded and dependent relationship has been established between the child and the person, the relationship was fostered or supported by another parent of the child, and the person and the other parent have understood, acknowledged or accepted that or behaved as though the person is a parent of the child;

4. The person has accepted full and permanent responsibilities as a parent of the child without expectation of financial compensation; and

5. The continuing relationship between the person and the child is in the best interest of the child.

Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 19-A, § 1891(3) (2016). Adjudication of a de facto parent “establishes parentage,” however, an order requiring the payment of support to or from a de facto parent does not disestablish the parentage of any other parent, nor relieve any other parent of the obligation to pay child support unless otherwise ordered by a court. Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 19-A, § 1891(4)(B). Notably, an adjudication of de facto parentage also entitles the child to inherit from the de facto parent in the same manner as a natural child. See Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 18-C, § 2-115 (2019) (a “‘parent’ for purposes of intestate succession means a person who has established a parent-child relationship with the child under Article 9 or Title 19-A, chapter 61 and whose parental rights have not been terminated.”).

6. Discussion

We believe a de facto parent under Maine law may be considered a “natural parent” for SSI purposes. The POMS defines a “natural parent” as including someone who is a parent based on his or her role in the child’s life. POMS SI 00501.015.A.1. In assessing that role, SSA considers “real-life factors” “such as the degree to which the individual participates in the child’s upbringing, what parental responsibilities he or she accepts, how he or she refers to the child, and how the community regards the relationship.”^[3] POMS SI 00501.015.A.2.

Those considerations are at least equivalent to the findings made by a Maine court in a de facto parentage determination. To become a de facto parent under Maine law, an individual must prove that she: (1) has resided with the child for a significant period of time; (2) has engaged in consistent caretaking of the child; (3) has established a bonded and dependent relationship with the child (which is fostered by another parent who understands, acknowledges, or behaves as though the de facto parent is a parent of the child); (4) has accepted full and permanent responsibilities as a parent of the child without expectation of financial compensation; and (5) that the continuing relationship between the person and the child is in the best interest of the child. Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 19-A, § 1891(3) (2016).

Here, in a Judgment dated May XX, 2019, the Farmington District Court in Maine made the following findings: (1) the children have resided with C~ since their birth; (2) C~ has engaged in consistent caretaking of the children; (3) the children have a bonded, dependent relationship with C~ which is fostered by the children’s birth parents, who recognize C~ as a parent of the children; (4) C~ has accepted full and permanent responsibilities as a parent of the children without expectation of financial compensation; and (5) a continuing relationship is in the children’s best interest. The Judgment also states that the children’s primary residence is with C~, that she has unrestricted access to the children’s records, and that, beginning in 2019, C~ will have the right to claim both children as dependents on her state and federal tax returns. We believe these facts and findings are sufficient to establish that C~ is a parent of the children for SSI purposes based on her role in their lives.

It is also our opinion that de facto parents—such as C~—should be considered “natural” as opposed to “adoptive” parents for SSI purposes. Although there are similarities between adoptive parents and de facto parents under Maine law, the two categories are distinct and involve different court procedures. Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 19-A, § 1851 (2019). C~ did not submit a petition for adoption, but a petition to be recognized as a de facto parent. Moreover, those two categories of parenthood treat the rights and responsibilities of birth parents differently. When a child is adopted, the rights and responsibilities of the birth parents are extinguished. Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 18-C, § 9-308(6)(A). With de facto parentage, however, those rights and responsibilities continue. Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 19-A, § 1891(5) (2016). For these reasons, we believe it would be more accurate for SSA to consider a de facto parent under Maine law to be a “natural parent,” rather than an adoptive parent.

7. Conclusion

Because the legal requirements for becoming a de facto parent under Maine law are at least equivalent to the factors the agency considers when assessing a person’s role as a parent, the agency may consider de facto parents—such as C~—to be parents for SSI purposes. It is our opinion that such parents should be considered natural, not adoptive, parents under the POMS.

Footnotes:

^[1]

The birth parents were also present during the court proceeding and agreed that C~ should be declared a de facto parent.

^[2]

The POMS instruct that the Title II definitions of child or parent must not be considered when making a parent-child determination for SSI purposes. POMS SI 00501.015.B.1.

^[3]

To make this determination, the agency ordinarily relies on evidence, such as school records, tax returns, and statements made by those in a position to understand the parent-child relationship. POMS SI 00501.015.E.3.

To Link to this section - Use this URL:
http://policy.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/1600905022

PS 00905.022 - Maine - 02/19/2020
Batch run: 04/20/2020
Rev:02/19/2020