109th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 3525
AMENDMENTS
Bill S 3525
In the House of Representatives, U. S.,
July 25, 2006.
Resolved, That the bill from the Senate (S. 3525) entitled `An
Act to amend subpart 2 of part B of title IV of the Social Security Act
to improve outcomes for children in families affected by methamphetamine
abuse and addiction, to reauthorize the promoting safe and stable families
program, and for other purposes', do pass with the following
AMENDMENTS:
Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the `Child and Family Services Improvement
Act of 2006'.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds as follows:
(1) For Federal fiscal year 2004, child protective services (CPS)
staff nationwide reported investigating or assessing an estimated 3,000,000
allegations of child maltreatment, and determined that 872,000 children
had been abused or neglected by their parents or other caregivers.
(2) Combined, the Child Welfare Services (CWS) and Promoting Safe
and Stable Families (PSSF) programs provide States about $700,000,000
per year for services intended to ensure the safety, permanency, and well-being
of children. These programs are considered the largest source of targeted
Federal funding in the child protection system for prevention--that is,
for services to ensure that children are not abused or neglected and,
whenever possible, help children remain safely with their families.
(3) States have broad flexibility in directing CWS dollars to protect
children from abuse and neglect. Under the PSSF program, States must invest
significant portions of program funds in family preservation services,
family support services, time-limited reunification services, and post-adoption
support services.
(4) However, a 2003 report by the Government Accountability Office
(GAO) reported that little research is available on the effectiveness
of activities supported by CWS funds--evaluations of services supported
by PSSF funds have generally shown little or no effect.
(5) Further, the Department of Health and Human Services recently
completed initial Child and Family Service Reviews (CFSRs) in each State.
No State was in full compliance with all measures of the CFSRs. The CFSRs
also revealed that States need to work to prevent repeat abuse and neglect
of children, improve services provided to families to reduce the risk
of future harm (including by better monitoring the participation of families
in services), and strengthen upfront services provided to families to
prevent unnecessary family break-up and protect children who remain at
home.
(6) Federal policy should ensure that States are appropriately targeting
CWS and PSSF funds to assist at-risk families and protect abused and neglected
children to address issues found in the CFSRs. Encouraging States to invest
their CWS and PSSF funds in services that promote and protect the welfare
of children, support strong, healthy families, and reduce the reliance
on out-of-home care, will help ensure all children are raised in safe,
loving families.
(7) CFSRs also found a strong correlation between frequent caseworker
visits with children and positive outcomes for these children, such as
timely achievement of permanency and other indicators of child well-being.
(8) However, a December 2005 report by the Department of Health and
Human Services Office of Inspector General found that only 20 States were
able to produce reports to show whether caseworkers actually visited children
in foster care on at least a monthly basis, despite the fact that nearly
all States had written standards suggesting monthly visits were State
policy. In fact, 7 of these 20 States indicated that fewer than half of
the children in foster care were visited on a monthly basis.
(9) The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 provided $40,000,000 in fiscal
year 2006 for the PSSF program which this Act ensures will be available
and which the Congressional Budget Office estimates will increase mandatory
budget authority by $40,000,000 each year from 2006 through 2015, for
a total of $400,000,000.
(10) A 2003 GAO report found that the average tenure for a child
welfare caseworker is less than 2 years and this level of turnover negatively
affects safety and permanency for children.
(11) Targeting additional PSSF funds to ensure children in foster
care are visited on at least a monthly basis will promote better outcomes
for vulnerable children, including by preventing further abuse and neglect.
SEC. 3. REAUTHORIZATION OF THE SAFE AND STABLE FAMILIES PROGRAM.
(a) Elimination of Findings- Section 430 of the Social Security Act
(42 U.S.C. 629) is amended by striking all through `(b) Purpose- The purpose'
and inserting the following:
`SEC. 430. PURPOSE.
(b) Limitation on Administrative Cost Reimbursement- Section 434 of
such Act (42 U.S.C. 629d) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a), by inserting `, subject to subsection (d),'
after `shall'; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
`(d) Limitation on Reimbursement for Administrative Costs- The Secretary
shall not make a payment to a State under this section with respect to expenditures
for administrative costs during a fiscal year, to the extent that the total
amount of the expenditures exceeds 10 percent of the total expenditures
of the State during the fiscal year under the State plan approved under
section 432.'.
(c) Funding of Mandatory Grants at $345 Million Per Fiscal Year- Section
436(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 629f(a)) is amended by striking `for fiscal
year 2006.' and all that follows and inserting `for each of fiscal years
2007 through 2011.'.
(d) Funding of Discretionary Grants- Section 437(a) of such Act (42
U.S.C. 629g(a)) is amended by striking `2002 through 2006' and inserting
`2007 through 2011'.
(e) Increase in Set-Asides for Indian Tribes-
(1) MANDATORY GRANTS- Section 436(b)(3) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 629f(b)(3))
is amended by striking `1' and inserting `3'.
(2) DISCRETIONARY GRANTS- Section 437(b)(3) of such Act (42 U.S.C.
629g(b)(3)) is amended by striking `2' and inserting `3'.
(f) Collection of Data on Tribal Promoting Safe and Stable Families
Plans- Section 432(b)(2) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 629b(b)(2)) is amended--
(1) by striking subparagraph (A); and
(2) in subparagraph (B), by striking `Notwithstanding subparagraph
(A) of this paragraph, the' and inserting `The'.
(g) Authority of Intertribal Consortia to Apply for Grants- Section
432(b)(2) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 629b(b)(2)), as amended by subsection (f)
of this section, is amended--
(1) by inserting before subparagraph (B) the following:
`(A) INTERTRIBAL CONSORTIA- This subpart shall not be interpreted
to preclude the development and submission of a single tribal plan under
this subpart by the participating tribes of an intertribal consortium.';
and
(2) in subparagraph (B)--
(A) by inserting `or tribal consortium' after `Indian tribe'; and
(B) by inserting `and tribal consortia' after `Indian tribes'.
(h) Technical Correction- Section 431(a)(6) of such Act (42 U.S.C.
629a(a)(6)) is amended by striking `1986' and inserting `1996'.
SEC. 4. TARGETING OF INCREASED SAFE AND STABLE FAMILIES PROGRAM RESOURCES
TO SUPPORT MONTHLY CASEWORKER VISITS.
(a) Reservation and Use of Funds-
(1) IN GENERAL- Section 436(b) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
629f(b)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
`(4) SUPPORT FOR MONTHLY CASEWORKER VISITS-
`(A) RESERVATION- In the case of each of fiscal years 2006 through
2011, the Secretary shall reserve $40,000,000 for allotment in accordance
with section 433(e).
`(i) IN GENERAL- A State to which an amount is paid from amounts
reserved under subparagraph (A) shall use the amount to support monthly
caseworker visits with children who are in foster care under the responsibility
of the State, with a primary emphasis on activities designed to improve
caseworker retention, recruitment, training, and ability to access
the benefits of technology.
`(ii) NONSUPPLANTATION- A State to which an amount is paid from
amounts reserved pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall not use the amount
to supplant any Federal funds paid to the State under part E that
could be used as described in clause (i).'.
(2) EFFECT ON AMOUNTS RESERVED FOR INDIAN TRIBES- Section 436(b)(3)
of such Act (42 U.S.C. 629b(b)(3)) is amended by striking `The' and inserting
`After applying paragraph (4) (but before applying paragraphs (1) or (2)),
the'.
(b) Allotment of Funds- Section 433 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 629c) is
amended--
(1) in subsection (d), by inserting `subsection (a), (b), or (c)
of' before `this section' the 1st and 2nd places it appears; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
`(e) Special Rules Applicable to Funds Reserved to Support Monthly
Caseworker Visits-
`(A) TERRITORIES- From the amount reserved pursuant to section
436(b)(4)(A) for fiscal year 2006 or any succeeding fiscal year, the
Secretary shall allot to each jurisdiction specified in subsection (b)
of this section that meets the requirements of paragraph (2) of this
subsection for the fiscal year an amount determined in the same manner
as the allotment to each of such jurisdictions is determined under section
423 (without regard to the initial allotment of $70,000 to each State).
`(B) OTHER STATES- From the amount reserved pursuant to section
436(b)(4)(A) for fiscal year 2006 or any succeeding fiscal year that
remains after applying subparagraph (A) of this paragraph for the fiscal
year, the Secretary shall allot to each State (other than an Indian
tribe) not specified in subsection (b) of this section that meets the
requirements of paragraph (2) of this subsection for the fiscal year
an amount equal to such remaining amount multiplied by the food stamp
percentage of the State (as defined in subsection (c)(2) of this section)
for the fiscal year, except that in applying subsection (c)(2)(A) of
this section, `subsection (e)(1)(B)' shall be substituted for `such
paragraph (1)'.
`(2) REQUIREMENTS- The requirements of this paragraph are the following:
`(A) AMOUNTS ALLOTTED FOR FISCAL YEAR 2007- In the case of amounts
reserved pursuant to section 436(b)(4)(A) for fiscal year 2007, the
State has provided to the Secretary data which shows, for the most recent
fiscal year for which such information is available--
`(i) the percentage of children in foster care under the responsibility
of the State who were visited by the caseworker handling the case
of the child at least once each month while the child was in such
care; and
`(ii) the percentage of the visits that occurred in the residence
of the child.
`(B) AMOUNTS ALLOTTED FOR SUCCEEDING FISCAL YEARS- In the case
of amounts reserved pursuant to section 436(b)(4)(A) for fiscal year
2008 or any succeeding fiscal year:
`(i) DATA SHOWING FREQUENCY AND LOCATION OF CASEWORKER VISITS-
The State has provided to the Secretary data which shows, for the
preceding fiscal year, that--
`(I) for at least 90 percent of the children in foster care
under the responsibility of the State--
`(aa) the caseworker handling the case of the child visited
the child at least once each month while the child was in such care; and
`(bb) the majority of the visits occurred in the residence
of the child; or
`(II) the State made the requisite annual progress, as determined
by the Secretary, to comply with subclause (I) by October 1, 2011.
`(ii) STATE ABILITY TO VERIFY FREQUENCY OF CASEWORKER VISITS-
The Secretary has verified that the State has in effect such policies
and standards as may be necessary to enable the State to determine
whether, for at least 90 percent of the children in foster care under
the responsibility of the State, a caseworker visited the child at
least once each month during the fiscal year.
`(iii) VERIFICATION OF NONSUPPLANTATION COMPLIANCE- The State
has provided to the Secretary such documentation as may be necessary
to verify that the State has complied with section 436(b)(4)(B)(ii)
during the fiscal year.'.
(c) Payments to States- Section 434(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 629d(a)),
as amended by section 3(b)(1) of this Act, is amended by striking `the lesser
of--' and all that follows and inserting the following: `the sum of--
`(A) 75 percent of the total expenditures by the State for activities
under the plan during the fiscal year or the immediately succeeding
fiscal year; or
`(B) the allotment of the State under subsection (a), (b), or (c)
of section 433, whichever is applicable, for the fiscal year; and
`(A) 75 percent of the total expenditures by the State in accordance
with section 436(b)(4)(B) during the fiscal year or the immediately
succeeding fiscal year; or
`(B) the allotment of the State under section 433(e) for the fiscal
year.'.
SEC. 5. IMPROVEMENTS TO THE CHILD WELFARE SERVICES PROGRAM.
(a) Funding- Subpart 1 of part B of title IV of the Social Security
Act (42 U.S.C. 620-628b) is amended by striking sections 420 and 425 and
inserting after section 424 the following:
`LIMITATIONS ON AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS
`SEC. 425. To carry out this subpart, there are authorized to be appropriated
to the Secretary not more than $325,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2007
through 2011.'.
(b) Purpose of Program- Such subpart is further amended--
(1) by striking section 424;
(2) by redesignating sections 421 and 423 as sections 423 and 424,
respectively, and by transferring section 423 (as so redesignated) so
that it appears after section 422; and
(3) by inserting after the subpart heading the following:
`PURPOSE
`SEC. 421. The purpose of this subpart is to promote State flexibility
in the development and expansion of a coordinated child and family services
program that utilizes community-based agencies and ensures all children
are raised in safe, loving families, by--
`(1) protecting and promoting the welfare of all children;
`(2) preventing the neglect, abuse, or exploitation of children;
`(3) supporting at-risk families through services which allow children,
where appropriate, to remain safely with their families or return to their
families in a timely manner;
`(4) promoting the safety, permanence, and well-being of children
in foster care; and
`(5) providing training, professional development and support to
ensure a well-qualified child welfare workforce.'.
(c) Modification of State Plan Requirements- Section 422 of such Act
(42 U.S.C. 622) is amended--
(A) by striking paragraphs (3) through (5) and inserting the following:
`(3) include a description of the services and activities which the
State will fund under the State program carried out pursuant to this subpart,
and how the services and activities will achieve the purpose of this subpart;';
(B) by striking paragraph (6) and inserting after paragraph (3)
(as added by subparagraph (A) of this paragraph) the following:
`(4) contain a description of--
`(A) the steps the State will take to provide child welfare services
statewide and to expand and strengthen the range of existing services
and develop and implement services to improve child outcomes; and
`(B) the child welfare services staff development and training
plans of the State;';
(C) by redesignating paragraphs (7) through (9) as paragraphs (5)
through (7), respectively;
(i) by striking subparagraph (A);
(ii) in subparagraph (B)(iii)(II), by inserting `, which may
include a residential educational program' after `in some other planned,
permanent living arrangement';
(iii) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (A);
and
(iv) by striking subparagraph (C) and inserting after subparagraph
(A) the following:
`(B) has in effect policies and administrative and judicial procedures
for children abandoned at or shortly after birth which enable permanent
decisions to be made expeditiously with respect to the placement of
the children;';
(E) in paragraph (14), by striking `and' at the end;
(F) in paragraph (15), by striking the period and inserting a semicolon;
(G) by redesignating paragraphs (10) through (15) as paragraphs
(8) through (13), respectively; and
(H) by adding at the end the following:
`(14) include assurances that not more than 10 percent of the expenditures
of the State with respect to activities funded from amounts provided under
this subpart will be for administrative costs; and
`(15) outlines how the State will ensure that physicians or other
appropriate medical professionals are actively consulted and involved
in--
`(A) assessing the health and well-being of children in foster
care under the responsibility of the State; and
`(B) determining appropriate medical treatment for the children.';
and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
`(c) Definitions- In this subpart:
`(1) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS- The term `administrative costs' means
costs for the following, but only to the extent incurred in administering
the State plan developed pursuant to this subpart: procurement, payroll
management, personnel functions (other than the portion of the salaries
of supervisors attributable to time spent directly supervising the provision
of services by caseworkers), management, maintenance and operation of
space and property, data processing and computer services, accounting,
budgeting, auditing, and travel expenses (except those related to the
provision of services by caseworkers or the oversight of programs funded
under this subpart).
`(2) OTHER TERMS- For definitions of other terms used in this part,
see section 475.'.
(d) Provisions Relating to State Allotments- Section 423 of such Act,
as so redesignated by subsection (b)(2) of this section, is amended--
(A) by inserting `In General- ' after `(a)';
(B) by striking `420' and inserting `425'; and
(C) by striking `He' and inserting `The Secretary';
(A) by inserting `Determination of State Allotment Percentages-
' after `(b)'; and
(B) by striking `per centum' each place it appears and inserting
`percent';
(3) in subsection (c), by inserting `Promulgation of State Allotment
Percentages- ' after `(c)';
(A) by inserting `United States Defined- ' after `(d)'; and
(B) by striking `fifty' and inserting `50'; and
(5) by adding at the end the following:
`(e) Reallotment of Funds-
`(1) IN GENERAL- The amount of any allotment to a State for a fiscal
year under the preceding provisions of this section which the State certifies
to the Secretary will not be required for carrying out the State plan
developed as provided in section 422 shall be available for reallotment
from time to time, on such dates as the Secretary may fix, to other States
which the Secretary determines--
`(A) need sums in excess of the amounts allotted to such other
States under the preceding provisions of this section, in carrying out
their State plans so developed; and
`(B) will be able to so use such excess sums during the fiscal
year.
`(2) CONSIDERATIONS- The Secretary shall make the reallotments on
the basis of the State plans so developed, after taking into consideration--
`(A) the population under 21 years of age;
`(B) the per capita income of each of such other States as compared
with the population under 21 years of age; and
`(C) the per capita income of all such other States with respect
to which such a determination by the Secretary has been made.
`(3) AMOUNTS REALLOTTED TO A STATE AMOUNTS DEEMED PART OF STATE ALLOTMENT-
Any amount so reallotted to a State is deemed part of the allotment of
the State under this section.'.
(1) EXCLUSION OF EXPENDITURES FOR CHILD DAY CARE, FOSTER CARE MAINTENANCE
PAYMENTS, AND ADOPTION ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS FROM ALLOWABLE EXPENDITURES-
Section 424 of such Act, as so redesignated by subsection (b)(2) of this
section, is amended--
(I) by striking `No' and inserting `Except as provided in paragraph
(2), no';
(II) by striking `, for any fiscal year beginning after September
30, 1979,';
(III) in subparagraph (A), by striking `necessary' and all
that follows through `living'; and
(IV) in subparagraph (C), by striking `, to the extent' and
all that follows through `1979'; and
(ii) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following:
`(2) In the case of a State which demonstrates to the Secretary that
the State made an expenditure described in paragraph (1) in fiscal year
2005, the Secretary shall not make a payment to the State under this part
for any fiscal year beginning after September 30, 2006, with respect to
the State expenditures so described, to the extent that the Federal payment
with respect to the expenditures so described for the fiscal year exceeds
the lesser of--
`(A) the total amount of the Federal payment under this part for
fiscal year 1979; or
`(B) the total amount of the Federal payment with respect to the
expenditures so described for fiscal year 2005.'; and
(i) by striking `(excluding expenditures for activities specified
in subsection (c)(1))'; and
(ii) by striking `such activities' and inserting `activities
specified in subsection (c)(1)'.
(2) LIMITATION ON ADMINISTRATIVE COST REIMBURSEMENT- Section 424
of such Act (42 U.S.C. 623), as so redesignated by subsection (b)(2) of
this section, is amended by adding at the end the following:
`(e) Limitation on Reimbursement for Administrative Costs- The Secretary
shall not make a payment to a State under this section with respect to expenditures
during a fiscal year for administrative costs, to the extent that the total
amount of the expenditures exceeds 10 percent of the total expenditures
of the State during the fiscal year for activities funded from amounts provided
under this subpart.'.
(3) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT- Section 424(a) of such Act, as so redesignated
by subsection (b)(2) of this section, is amended by striking `per centum'
and inserting `percent'.
(f) Elimination of Obsolete Provision- Section 426 of such Act (42
U.S.C. 626) is amended by striking subsection (b) and redesignating subsection
(c) as subsection (b).
(g) Conforming Amendments-
(1) Section 428(b) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 628(b)) is amended by striking
`421' and inserting `423'.
(2) Section 429 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 628a) is amended--
(A)(i) by striking the following:
`CHILD WELFARE TRAINEESHIPS
`SEC. 429. The Secretary'; and
(ii) inserting the following:
`(c) Child Welfare Traineeships- The Secretary'; and
(B) by transferring the provision to the end of section 426 (as
amended by subsection (f) of this section).
(3) Section 429A of such Act (42 U.S.C. 628b) is redesignated as
section 429.
(4) Section 433(b) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 629c(b)) is amended by
striking `421' and inserting `423'.
(5) Section 437(c)(2) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 629g(c)(2)) is amended
by striking `421' and inserting `423'.
(6) Section 472(d) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 672(d)) is amended by striking
`422(b)(10)' and inserting `422(b)(8)'.
(7) Section 473A(f) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 673b(f)) is amended by
striking `423' and inserting `424'.
(8) Section 1130(b)(1) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1320a-9(b)(1)) is amended
to read as follows:.
`(1) any provision of section 422(b)(8), or section 479; or'.
(9) Section 104(b)(3) of the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 (42
U.S.C. 14914(b)(3)) is amended by striking `422(b)(14) of the Social Security
Act, as amended by section 205 of this Act' and inserting `422(b)(12)
of the Social Security Act'.
SEC. 6. REAUTHORIZATION OF THE COURT IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM.
Section 438 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 629h) is amended
in each of subsections (c)(1)(A) and (d) by striking `2006' and inserting
`2011'.
SEC. 7. REAUTHORIZATION OF PROGRAM FOR MENTORING CHILDREN OF PRISONERS.
Section 439 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 629i) is amended--
(1) in subsection (c), by striking `2002 through 2006' and inserting
`2007 through 2011'; and
(2) in subsection (h), by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the
following:
`(1) LIMITATIONS ON AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; RESERVATION
OF CERTAIN AMOUNTS- To carry out this section, there are authorized to
be appropriated to the Secretary such sums as may be necessary for fiscal
years 2007 through 2011.'.
SEC. 8. AVAILABILITY OF ADDITIONAL PROMOTING SAFE AND STABLE FAMILIES
RESOURCES FOR FISCAL YEAR 2006.
(a) Appropriation- Out of any money in the Treasury of the United States
not otherwise appropriated, there are appropriated to the Secretary of Health
and Human Services $40,000,000 for fiscal year 2006 to carry out section
436 of the Social Security Act, in addition to any amount otherwise made
available for fiscal year 2006 to carry out such section.
(b) Availability of Funds- Notwithstanding section 434(b)(2) of such
Act, the amounts paid to States from the amount appropriated under subsection
(a) of this section shall remain available for expenditure by the States
through fiscal year 2008.
SEC. 9. REPORTS.
Section 435 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 629e) is amended
by adding at the end the following:
`(1) CONTENT- The Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Ways
and Means of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Finance
of the Senate biennial reports on--
`(A) the level of expenditures, and the programs and activities
funded, under subpart 1 and this subpart by each State, territory, and
Indian tribe to which funds are paid under this part;
`(B) the number of children and families served by each such State,
territory, and Indian tribe under the programs; and
`(C) how spending under the programs has helped achieve the goals
identified by each such State, territory, and Indian tribe as part of
the annual planning process undertaken in developing plans pursuant
to this part.
`(2) TIMING- The Secretary shall submit the biennial reports required
by paragraph (1) not later than July 1, 2008, and not later than July
1 of every other calendar year thereafter.'.
SEC. 10. EFFECTIVE DATES.
(a) In General- Except as otherwise provided in this section, the amendments
made by this Act shall take effect on October 1, 2006, and shall apply to
payments under part B of title IV of the Social Security Act for calendar
quarters beginning on or after such date, without regard to whether regulations
to implement the amendments are promulgated by such date.
(b) Delay Permitted If State Legislation Required- If the Secretary
of Health and Human Services determines that State legislation (other than
legislation appropriating funds) is required in order for a State plan developed
pursuant to subpart 1 of part B, or a State plan approved under subpart
2 of part B, of title IV of the Social Security Act to meet the additional
requirements imposed by the amendments made by this Act, the plan shall
not be regarded as failing to meet any of the additional requirements before
the 1st day of the 1st calendar quarter beginning after the first regular
session of the State legislature that begins after the date of the enactment
of this Act. If the State has a 2-year legislative session, each year of
the session is deemed to be a separate regular session of the State legislature.
(c) Availability of Additional Promoting Safe and Stable Families Resources
for Fiscal Year 2006- Section 8 shall take effect on the date of the enactment
of this Act.
Amend the title so as to read `An Act to amend part B of title IV of the
Social Security Act to reauthorize the safe and stable families program,
and for other purposes.'.
Attest:
Clerk.
END
