I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 8813 

To amend subpart 2 of part B of title IV of the Social Security Act to 

address child welfare involvement caused by poverty, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 25, 2024 

Mr. SMITH of Missouri (for himself and Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin) introduced 

the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means 

A BILL 

To amend subpart 2 of part B of title IV of the Social 

Security Act to address child welfare involvement caused 

by poverty, and for other purposes. 

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 ‘‘Preventing Child Wel5 fare Entry Caused by Poverty Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. MARYLEE ALLEN PROMOTING SAFE AND STABLE 

7 FAMILIES PROGRAM. 

8 (a) FAMILY PRESERVATION SERVICES.—Section 

9 431(a)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

10 629a(a)(1)) is amended— 


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1 (1) in subparagraph (E), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

2 after the semicolon; 

3 (2) in subparagraph (F), by striking the period 

4 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

5 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(G)(i) services providing nonrecurring 

7 short term benefits (including supports related 

8 to housing instability, utilities, transportation, 

9 and food assistance, among other basic needs) 

10 that address immediate needs related to a spe11 cific crisis, situation, or event affecting the abil12 ity of a child to remain in a home established 

13 for the child that is not intended to meet an on14 going need; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) for purposes of this subpart, an ex16 penditure for a service described in clause (i) 

17 may be treated as an expenditure for any 1 or 

18 more of family support services, family preser19 vation services, family reunification services, or 

20 adoption promotion and support services.’’. 

21 (b) STATE PLAN REQUIREMENTS.—Section 432(a) 

22 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 629b(a)) is amended— 

23 (1) in paragraph (9), by striking ‘‘and’’ after 

24 the semicolon; 


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1 (2) in paragraph (10), by striking the period 

2 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

3 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(11) provides a description of policies in place, 

5 including training for employees, to address child 

6 welfare reports and investigations concerning the liv7 ing arrangements or subsistence needs of a child 

8 with the goal to prevent the separation of a child 

9 from a parent of the child solely due to poverty, to 

10 ensure access to services described in section 

11 431(a)(1)(G).’’. 

12 SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The amendments made by this 

14 Act shall take effect on the 1st day of the 1st fiscal year 

15 beginning on or after the date of the enactment of this 

16 Act, and shall apply to payments made under subpart 2 

17 of part B of title IV of the Social Security Act for calendar 

18 quarters beginning on or after such date. 

19 (b) DELAY PERMITTED IF STATE LEGISLATION IS

20 REQUIRED.—If the Secretary of Health and Human Serv21 ices determines that State legislation (other than legisla22 tion appropriating funds) is required in order for any 

23 State plan approved under subpart 2 of part B of title 

24 IV of the Social Security Act to meet the additional re25 quirements imposed by the amendments made by this Act, 


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1 the plan shall not be regarded as failing to meet any of 

2 the additional requirements before the 1st day of the 1st 

3 calendar quarter beginning after the 1st regular session 

4 of the State legislature that begins after the date of the 

5 enactment of this Act. For purposes of the preceding sen6 tence, if the State has a 2-year legislative session, each 

7 year of the session is deemed to be a separate regular ses8 sion of the State legislature. 

Æ 


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