IB 

Union Calendar No. 352 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4472 

[Report No. 114–460] 

To amend title IV of the Social Security Act to require States to adopt 

a centralized electronic system to help expedite the placement of children 

in foster care or guardianship, or for adoption, across State lines, and 

to provide grants to aid States in developing such a system, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 4, 2016 

Mr. YOUNG of Indiana (for himself and Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways 

and Means 

MARCH 21, 2016 

Additional sponsors: Mrs. BROOKS of Indiana, Mr. REICHERT, Mr. NUNES, 

Mr. BOUSTANY, Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania, and Mr. RENACCI

MARCH 21, 2016 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 

House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on February 4, 2016] 


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A BILL 

To amend title IV of the Social Security Act to require 

States to adopt a centralized electronic system to help 

expedite the placement of children in foster care or 

guardianship, or for adoption, across State lines, and 

to provide grants to aid States in developing such a 

system, and for other purposes. 


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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Modernizing the Inter5 state Placement of Children in Foster Care Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds that— 

8 (1) when a child in foster care cannot return 

9 safely home, the child deserves to be placed in a set10 ting that is best for that child, regardless of whether 

11 it is in the child’s State or another State; 

12 (2) the Interstate Compact on the Placement of 

13 Children (ICPC) was established in 1960 to provide 

14 a uniform legal framework for the placement of chil15 dren across State lines in foster and adoptive homes; 

16 (3) frequently, children waiting to be placed with 

17 an adoptive family, relative, or foster parent in an18 other State spend more time waiting for this to occur 

19 than children who are placed with an adoptive, fam20 ily, relative, or foster parent in the same State, be21 cause of the outdated, administratively burdensome 

22 ICPC process; 

23 (4) no child should have to wait longer to be 

24 placed in a loving home simply because the child 

25 must cross a State line; 


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1 (5) the National Electronic Interstate Compact 

2 Enterprise (NEICE) was launched in August 2014 in 

3 Indiana, Nevada, Florida, South Carolina, Wis4 consin, and the District of Columbia, and is expected 

5 to be expanded into additional States to improve the 

6 administrative process by which children are placed 

7 with families across State lines; 

8 (6) States using this electronic interstate case9 processing system have reduced administrative costs 

10 and the amount of staff time required to process these 

11 cases, and caseworkers can spend more time helping 

12 children instead of copying and mailing paperwork 

13 between States; 

14 (7) since NEICE was launched, placement time 

15 has decreased by 30 percent for interstate foster care 

16 placements; and 

17 (8) on average, States using this electronic inter18 state case-processing system have been able to reduce 

19 from 24 business days to 13 business days the time 

20 it takes to identify a family for a child and prepare 

21 the paperwork required to start the ICPC process. 

22 SEC. 3. STATE PLAN REQUIREMENT. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 471(a)(25) of the Social Se24 curity Act (42 U.S.C. 671(a)(25)) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘provide’’ and insert ‘‘provides’’; 

2 and 

3 (2) by inserting ‘‘, which, not later than October 

4 1, 2026, shall include the use of an electronic inter5 state case-processing system’’ before the 1st semicolon. 

6 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amendments made by 

8 subsection (a) shall take effect on the 1st day of the 

9 1st calendar quarter beginning on or after the date of 

10 the enactment of this Act, and shall apply to pay11 ments under part E of title IV of the Social Security 

12 Act for calendar quarters beginning on or after such 

13 date. 

14 (2) DELAY PERMITTED IF STATE LEGISLATION

15 REQUIRED.—If the Secretary of Health and Human 

16 Services determines that State legislation (other than 

17 legislation appropriating funds) is required in order 

18 for a State plan developed pursuant to part E of title 

19 IV of the Social Security Act to meet the additional 

20 requirement imposed by the amendments made by 

21 subsection (a), the plan shall not be regarded as fail22 ing to meet any of the additional requirements before 

23 the 1st day of the 1st calendar quarter beginning after 

24 the first regular session of the State legislature that 

25 begins after the date of the enactment of this Act. For 


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1 purposes of the preceding sentence, if the State has a 

2 2-year legislative session, each year of the session is 

3 deemed to be a separate regular session of the State 

4 legislature. 

5 SEC. 4. GRANTS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN ELEC6 TRONIC INTERSTATE CASE-PROCESSING SYS7 TEM TO EXPEDITE THE INTERSTATE PLACE8 MENT OF CHILDREN IN FOSTER CARE OR 

9 GUARDIANSHIP, OR FOR ADOPTION. 

10 Section 437 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 637) 

11 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(g) GRANTS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN ELEC13 TRONIC INTERSTATE CASE-PROCESSING SYSTEM TO EXPE14 DITE THE INTERSTATE PLACEMENT OF CHILDREN IN FOS15 TER CARE OR GUARDIANSHIP, OR FOR ADOPTION.— 

16 ‘‘(1) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this subsection 

17 is to facilitate the development of an electronic inter18 state case-processing system for the exchange of data 

19 and documents to expedite the placements of children 

20 in foster, guardianship, or adoptive homes across 

21 State lines. 

22 ‘‘(2) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—A State 

23 that desires a grant under this subsection shall submit 

24 to the Secretary an application containing the fol25 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(A) A description of the goals and out2 comes to be achieved during the period for which 

3 grant funds are sought, which goals and out4 comes must result in— 

5 ‘‘(i) reducing the time it takes for a 

6 child to be provided with a safe and appro7 priate permanent living arrangement across 

8 State lines; 

9 ‘‘(ii) improving administrative proc10 esses and reducing costs in the foster care 

11 system; and 

12 ‘‘(iii) the secure exchange of relevant 

13 case files and other necessary materials in 

14 real time, and timely communications and 

15 placement decisions regarding interstate 

16 placements of children. 

17 ‘‘(B) A description of the activities to be 

18 funded in whole or in part with the grant funds, 

19 including the sequencing of the activities. 

20 ‘‘(C) A description of the strategies for inte21 grating programs and services for children who 

22 are placed across State lines. 

23 ‘‘(D) Such other information as the Sec24 retary may require. 


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1 ‘‘(3) GRANT AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may 

2 make a grant to a State that complies with para3 graph (2). 

4 ‘‘(4) USE OF FUNDS.—A State to which a grant 

5 is made under this subsection shall use the grant to 

6 support the State in connecting with the electronic 

7 interstate case-processing system described in para8 graph (1). 

9 ‘‘(5) EVALUATIONS.—Not later than 1 year after 

10 the final year in which grants are awarded under this 

11 subsection, the Secretary shall submit to the Congress, 

12 and make available to the general public by posting 

13 on a website, a report that contains the following in14 formation: 

15 ‘‘(A) How using the electronic interstate 

16 case-processing system developed pursuant to 

17 paragraph (4) has changed the time it takes for 

18 children to be placed across State lines. 

19 ‘‘(B) The number of cases subject to the 

20 Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children 

21 that were processed through the electronic inter22 state case-processing system, and the number of 

23 interstate child placement cases that were proc24 essed outside the electronic interstate case-proc25 essing system, by each State in each year. 


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1 ‘‘(C) The progress made by States in imple2 menting the electronic interstate case-processing 

3 system. 

4 ‘‘(D) How using the electronic interstate 

5 case-processing system has affected various 

6 metrics related to child safety and well-being, in7 cluding the time it takes for children to be placed 

8 across State lines. 

9 ‘‘(E) How using the electronic interstate 

10 case-processing system has affected administra11 tive costs and caseworker time spent on placing 

12 children across State lines. 

13 ‘‘(6) DATA INTEGRATION.—The Secretary, in 

14 consultation with the Secretariat for the Interstate 

15 Compact on the Placement of Children and the States, 

16 shall assess how the electronic interstate case-proc17 essing system developed pursuant to paragraph (4) 

18 could be used to better serve and protect children that 

19 come to the attention of the child welfare system, by— 

20 ‘‘(A) connecting the system with other data 

21 systems (such as systems operated by State law 

22 enforcement and judicial agencies, systems oper23 ated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for 

24 the purposes of the Innocence Lost National Ini25 tiative, and other systems); 


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1 ‘‘(B) simplifying and improving reporting 

2 related to paragraphs (34) and (35) of section 

3 471(a) regarding children or youth who have 

4 been identified as being a sex trafficking victim 

5 or children missing from foster care; and 

6 ‘‘(C) improving the ability of States to 

7 quickly comply with background check require8 ments of section 471(a)(20), including checks of 

9 child abuse and neglect registries as required by 

10 section 471(a)(20)(B).’’. 

11 SEC. 5. CONTINUATION OF DISCRETIONARY FUNDING TO 

12 PROMOTE SAFE AND STABLE FAMILIES. 

13 Section 437(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

14 637(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘2016’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘2017’’. 

16 SEC. 6. RESERVATION OF FUNDS TO IMPROVE THE INTER17 STATE PLACEMENT OF CHILDREN. 

18 Section 437(b) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

19 637(b)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(4) IMPROVING THE INTERSTATE PLACEMENT

21 OF CHILDREN.—The Secretary shall reserve 

22 $5,000,000 of the amount made available for fiscal 

23 year 2017 for grants under subsection (g), and the 

24 amount so reserved shall remain available through 

25 fiscal year 2021.’’. 


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sradovich on DSK3TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
Union Calendar No. 352 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4472 

[Report No. 114–460] 

A BILL 

To amend title IV of the Social Security Act to repurposes. States in developing such a system, and for other across State lines, and to provide grants to aid foster care or guardianship, or for adoption, tem to help expedite the placement of children in quire States to adopt a centralized electronic sysMARCH 21, 2016 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Comand ordered to be printed mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 


sradovich on DSK3TPTVN1PROD with BILLS