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S. 1327, The Foster Care Independence Act of 1999, Extends Services and Supports for Youths Transitioning from Foster Care
August 16, 1999
On June 25, 1999 the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1802, the Foster Care Independence Act of 1999, by a vote of 380 to 6. Now the companion bill in the Senate, the bipartisan S. 1327, also promises to increase the likelihood that many of the 20,000 children who leave foster care at age 18 or 19 each year with no formal connection to families will find the stability and supports they need to succeed. While the bipartisan Adoption and Safe Families Act, enacted in 1997, is intended to offer all young people in foster care permanent homes more quickly in the future, we must not ignore the needs of the young people who are currently being discharged from care and left to fend for themselves.
Without the emotional, social, and financial support that families provide, many of these youths are not adequately prepared for life on their own. Evidence from a careful study in Wisconsin of a group of young people leaving foster care found that: 12 to 18 months after leaving care, 37% had not yet completed high school, 50% were not employed, 44% had a problem obtaining medical care (despite their mental health needs), and 37% of the group had been physically victimized, sexually assaulted, raped, incarcerated, or homeless during that period.
S. 1327 increases funds to states to assist youths to make the transition from foster care to independent living.
- Federal funding for the Independent Living Program is doubled - from $70 million to $140 million a year.
- Funds can be used to help youths make the transition from foster care to self-sufficiency by offering them education, vocational and employment training necessary to obtain employment and/or prepare for post secondary education, training in daily living skills, substance abuse prevention, pregnancy prevention, preventative health activities (including training in how to access health care, mental health, and community-based support services), services to promote active and responsible citizenship and community membership, and connections to dedicated adults.**
- Funds can be used for children in foster care adopted after age 16, as well as children in foster care.
- A 20% state match is required for Independent Living Program funds.
- States must use federal training funds (authorized by Title IV-E of the Social Security Act) to help foster parents, group home workers, case managers, and adoptive parents, address issues confronting adolescents preparing for independent living.
S. 1327 recognizes the need for special help for youths ages 18-21 who have left foster care.
- States must use some portion of their funds for assistance and services for older youths ages 18-21; these may include youths who have left foster care after the age of 16 but are now 18 and have not reached 21.
- States can use up to 30 percent of their Independent Living Program funds for supervised room and board for youths ages 18 to 21 who have left foster care and are enrolled in educational, vocational training or career development programs.
- Youths who have attained 18 but not 25 years of age and who, on the day before attaining 18 years of age, were recipients of foster care maintenance payments are defined as "hard to employ" and eligible for assistance under the Welfare to Work Program.
S. 1327 increases access to health and mental health services for older youths transitioning from foster care.
- In order to receive new Independent Living funds (in excess of the amount payable to the state for FY 1998 under rules in effect before enactment of S. 1327), states must provide Medicaid coverage to youths transitioning from foster care who have attained 18, but not 21, or a subset of this population.
- States are given the option to provide Medicaid coverage to independent foster care adolescents who are under age 21 and were in foster care at age 16 or on their 18th birthday, or were in foster care and adopted after their 16th birthday, or a subset of this population.
S. 1327 offers states greater flexibility in designing their independent living programs.
- States can serve children of various ages who need help preparing for self-sufficiency (not just those ages 16 and over as in current law), children at various stages of achieving independence, and can offer different services to children in different parts of the state; they also can use a variety of providers to deliver independent living services.
- The asset limit for the federal foster care program is changed to allow youths to have $10,000 in savings (rather than the current $1,000 limit) and still be eligible for federal foster care payments.
S. 1327 establishes accountability for states in implementing independent living programs.
- The Secretary of Health and Human Services, in consultation with state and local officials, child welfare advocates, members of Congress, researchers, and others must develop outcome measures to assess state performance and data elements necessary to track how many children are receiving services, what they are receiving, and state performance on outcomes, in coordination with the data collection plans of ASFA, AFCARS, and SACWIS.
- The Independent Living Program funds must be coordinated with other funding sources for similar services.
- Penalties will be imposed if states misuse funds or fail to submit required data on state performance.
- 1.5% ($2.1 million) of the Independent Living Program funds are set aside for a national evaluation and for technical assistance to states in assisting youths transitioning from foster care.
- An Independent Living Coordinator must be designated by a state to oversee activities under independent living programs.
- Public and private organizations involved or interested in addressing the needs of youths aging out of foster care (including those served by the plan, and where applicable, organizations of youths in foster care) must be consulted by states before developing the Independent Living Program plan.
- States must ensure that youths in the program have a personal independent living plan, that they participate directly in designing their independent living activities, and that they accept personal responsibility for participating in the activities.
- States must establish and enforce standards and procedures to prevent fraud and abuse in activities funded by the Independent Living Program.
*Introduced in the Senate on July 1, 1999 by Senators John Chafee (R-RI), John D. Rockefeller IV (D-WV), Jack Reed (D-RI), Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-NY), Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Christopher Bond (R-MO), James Jeffords (R-VT), John Breaux (D-LA), and Robert Kerrey (D-NE). Additional co-sponsors, as of July 26, 1999, include Senators Paul Sarbanes (D-MD), and Carl Levin (D-MI).
** Italics indicate new provisions in S. 1327 that were not in H.R. 1802, as passed by the House of Representatives.
For more information contact Liz Meitner at 202/942-0257 or email emeitner@cwla.org.
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