News Release
Charles Rangel, Congressman, 15th District

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
October 30, 2008
Contact: Emile Milne | Elbert Garcia 
(202) 225-4365 | (212) 663-3900

RANGEL & ADVOCATES CALL ON STATES TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF
NEW FEDERAL FUNDING
TO IMPROVE CHILD WELFARE SYSTEM

NEW YORK - Congressman Charles Rangel and coalition of local child welfare advocates called on state agencies around the country to take advantage of newly signed federal legislation that promises to invest as much as $3 billion over the next ten years to benefit children who are in foster care, those who transition out of the system, and who are living in adoptive homes.

Introduced in Rep. Rangel's Ways and Means Committee and signed into law earlier this month by President George Bush, the bipartisan Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act represents the most significant child welfare policy changes in over a decade. Improvements include providing money for grandparents and other relatives caring for foster children; extending foster care payments up to age 21 for youth who are now aging out of the foster care system on their 18th birthday; increasing training opportunities for child welfare workers and court personnel, and expanding federal adoption assistance payments which provides incentives for families to adopt a child out of the foster care system.

The legislation is paid for without adding new debt to the federal deficit. Instead, it is funded by administrative changes that permit the Department of Treasury to improve its management of the government's short-term operating cash (per a recommendation from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the Bush Administration). The costs of the bill is also offset by a provision that clarifies the uniform definition of a child for tax purposes, including ensuring the child is younger than the claimant.

"Even in these times of great financial uncertainly, this effort shows that if Congress works together, we can provide important services directly to states to help children and families without adding to our nation's soaring debt," said Rep. Rangel, who was joined by representatives and parent leaders from the Child Welfare Organizing Project(CWOP), the Center for Family Representation (CFP), the Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP), the Child Welfare League of America (CWLA), and the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies (FPWA).

While some of the additional funding will go to increasing services that the federal government already provides like the training of child welfare workers, a sizable share will also go to matching aid to state programs that don't exist yet in New York, like providing assistances to grandparents and other relatives who want to care for foster care children.

"The Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies (FPWA) applauds the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act (H.R. 6893) and the bipartisan effort that ultimately led to its passage," said FPWA Executive Director Fatima Goldman. "This important legislation includes a number of provisions that will help and support children and families in the child welfare system, including the expansion of federal assistance for kinship families, adoptive families of special needs children, and older youth in foster care. This bill represents a critical step towards meeting the needs of some of our nation's most vulnerable children."

The legislation is the culmination of over a year of bipartisan work between advocates and elected officials locally and in Washington. The law includes several recommendations that were published in a July 2007 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report requested by Chairman Rangel on the overrepresentation of African American children and a follow-up forum on the same subject that was held in Harlem in December 2007. Specifically, the legislation provides federal subsidized guardianship payments to relatives caring for children in those states that elects to provide such assistance. In response to a recommendation that was made by local advocates and families following last year’s community forum, the bill also provides states with federal funding through a grant program to support family group decision-making models.

"In December 2007 we were privileged to co-sponsor a Harlem community forum with Congressman Rangel on over-representation of African American children in foster care. The foremost consensus recommendation arising from this discussion was the need for federal support for extended family members raising their relatives' children," said CWOP Executive Director Mike Arsham. "The Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act addresses this need directly. Thank you to Congressman Rangel and the bipartisan co-signers of HR 6893 for listening and responding to the voices of the people most directly effected by public child welfare legislation."

KEY PROVISIONS

Currently there are over 500,000 children in the foster care system, of which 129,000 are waiting to be adopted. The legislation will improve services by:

Connecting and Supporting Relative Caregivers: The law provides federal reimbursement to States that choose to provide assistance to grandparents and other relatives who become legal guardians of children for whom they have cared as foster parents. It provides $15 million per year for Family Connection Grants to promote kinship navigator programs and other initiatives designed to connect and help relative caregivers. It requires relatives to be notified within 30 days of a child’s removal from their home. It codifies existing licensing standards for relatives becoming foster parents and requires a report on impact and next steps. And it allows the child welfare system to utilize the Parent Locator Service.

Improving Outcomes for Children in Foster Care: It gives states the option to use federal foster care assistance to continue up to the age of 21 for youth engaged in school, work, or other constructive activities. It requires transitional plans for youth aging out of foster care. It expands enhanced federal funding for training to cover private child welfare workers and court personnel. It Requires plan for the educational stability of every foster child and assurance of their school attendance. It requires improved oversight of the health care needs of every foster child, covering their assessment, treatment, medical records, and medication. And it requires reasonable efforts to place siblings together when removed from their homes, or if not possible, to allow ongoing interaction.

Providing Tribal Foster Care and Adoption Access: It provides direct federal foster care and adoption assistance to tribal governments for children in their care. It provides $3 million per year to provide technical and start-up assistance to tribal foster care programs.

Improving Incentives for Adoption: The law extends, expands and improves the Adoption Incentives Program, which provides financial bonuses to States increasing the number of children adopted out of foster care. It provides federal adoption assistance to all special needs children (phased in on the basis of age and time in care), rather than only those children whose birth parents were eligible for welfare under the rules in place in 1996. It requires prospective adoptive parents of foster children to be informed of their potential eligibility for a current-law tax credit.

 

The new law also permits the Department of the Treasury to improve its management of the government’s short-term operating cash. clarifies the uniform definition of a child for tax purposes, including ensuring the child is younger than the claimant and ensures that nothing in the act alters any current prohibitions on payments to individuals who are unlawfully in the U.S.

“We are going to be able to take better care of America’s most vulnerable children because of the major reforms contained in this legislation,” said U.S. Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA), one of the bill's original co-sponsors. “And, we are clearly telling these children that they are not alone in America, and they can grow up in a loving, caring home with a chance at the American Dream.”

McDermott, who is chairman of the House Ways and Means Income Security and Family Support Subcommittee, acknowledged the bipartisan work in both the House and Senate that led to final passage of the legislation.

“H.R. 6893 is a major accomplishment that will make a positive difference in the lives of countless children, and I want to acknowledge the leadership of the Ranking Republican on my subcommittee, Rep. Jerry Weller, as well as the leadership and strong support from Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus and Ranking Member Charles Grassley,” added McDermott.

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