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Authority: AS 47.14.215 AS 47.14.245 AS 47.14.255 7 AAC 58.020. Membership and maintenance of the state panel. (a) The state panel may not exceed a total of nine members. The state panel must be composed of a minimum of five members. Each member must be a volunteer and a resident of the state. Each of the five separate administrative regions established by the department for the administration of children’s services must be represented by at least one member of the panel who resides in that region. Three members constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. (b) Members of the state panel must be broadly representative of the state. In addition to meeting the requirement in (a) of this section for representing administrative regions, the state panel must represent the state’s diversity geographically and with respect to gender, ethnicity, professional background, race, and life experience. The panel must include five or more members in the following categories, and not more than two members may be in the same category:

(1) a professional with expertise in prevention and treatment of child abuse and neglect;

(2) a parent who has had a previous open case with the office of children’s services in the department;

(3) a foster parent;

(4) a peace officer;

(5) a health or behavioral health provider;

(6) a tribal representative;

(7) a child advocate;

(8) an attorney with significant experience representing children or parents in child protection matters; or

(9) an individual with work experience in child protection services. (c) The state panel shall establish procedures to appoint its members. The panel or the department may not appoint an individual who is listed on the United States Department of Justice’s Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Public Website (NSOPW) maintained under 34 U.S.C. 20922, the Alaska Sex Offender/Child Kidnapper Registry that the Department of Public Safety maintains under AS 18.65.087, or a list or registry maintained under a substantially similar law in another jurisdiction. The panel shall consult with the director or the director’s designee before it appoints a member. The director or the director’s designee may approve or