I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3205 

To reauthorize and restructure the adoption incentives grant program, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 27, 2013 

Mr. CAMP (for himself, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. REICHERT, and Mr. DOGGETT) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways 

and Means 

A BILL 

To reauthorize and restructure the adoption incentives grant 

program, 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 ‘‘Promoting Adoption 

5 and Legal Guardianship for Children in Foster Care Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

7 The table of contents of this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Table of contents. 

TITLE I—ADOPTION INCENTIVES GRANT PROGRAM 

Sec. 101. Extension of program through fiscal year 2016. 


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Sec. 102. Improvements to award structure. 

Sec. 103. Renaming of program. 

Sec. 104. Limitation on use of incentive payments. 

Sec. 105. Increase in period for which incentive payments are available for expenditure. 

Sec. 106. State report on calculation and use of savings resulting from the 

phase-out of eligibility requirements for adoption assistance; requirement to spend 20 percent of savings on post-adoption 

services. 

Sec. 107. Preservation of eligibility for kinship guardianship assistance payments with a successor guardian. 

Sec. 108. Effective dates. 

TITLE II—EXTENSION OF FAMILY CONNECTION GRANT 

PROGRAM 

Sec. 201. Extension of family connection grant program. 

TITLE III—UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION 

Sec. 301. Improving the collection of unemployment insurance overpayments 

through tax refund offset. 

1 TITLE I—ADOPTION INCENTIVES 

2 GRANT PROGRAM 

3 SEC. 101. EXTENSION OF PROGRAM THROUGH FISCAL 

4 YEAR 2016. 

5 Section 473A of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

6 673b) is amended— 

7 (1) in subsection (b)(5), by striking ‘‘2008 

8 through 2012’’ and inserting ‘‘2013 through 2015’’; 

9 and 

10 (2) in each of paragraphs (1)(D) and (2) of 

11 subsection (h), by striking ‘‘2013’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘2016’’. 

13 SEC. 102. IMPROVEMENTS TO AWARD STRUCTURE. 

14 (a) ELIGIBILITY FOR AWARD.—Section 473A(b) of 

15 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 673b(b)) is amended 


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1 by striking paragraph (2) and redesignating paragraphs 

2 (3) through (5) as paragraphs (2) through (4), respec3 tively. 

4 (b) DATA REQUIREMENTS.—Section 473A(c)(2) of 

5 such Act (42 U.S.C. 673b(c)(2)) is amended— 

6 (1) in the paragraph heading, by striking 

7 ‘‘NUMBERS OF ADOPTIONS’’ and inserting ‘‘RATES

8 OF ADOPTIONS AND GUARDIANSHIPS’’; and 

9 (2) by striking ‘‘the numbers’’ and all that fol10 lows through ‘‘section,’’ and inserting ‘‘each of the 

11 rates required to be determined under this section 

12 with respect to a State and a fiscal year,’’. 

13 (c) AWARD AMOUNT.—Section 473A(d) of such Act 

14 (42 U.S.C. 673b(d)) is amended— 

15 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

16 (A) by striking ‘‘paragraphs (2) and (3)’’ 

17 and inserting ‘‘paragraph (2)’’; and 

18 (B) by striking subparagraphs (A) through 

19 (C) and inserting the following: 

20 ‘‘(A) $2,000, multiplied by the amount (if 

21 any) by which— 

22 ‘‘(i) the number of foster child adop23 tions in the State during the fiscal year; 

24 exceeds 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the product (rounded to the 

2 nearest whole number) of— 

3 ‘‘(I) the base rate of foster child 

4 adoptions for the State for the fiscal 

5 year; and 

6 ‘‘(II) the number of children in 

7 foster care under the supervision of 

8 the State on the last day of the pre9 ceding fiscal year; 

10 ‘‘(B) $4,000, multiplied by the amount (if 

11 any) by which— 

12 ‘‘(i) the number of pre-adolescent 

13 child adoptions in the State during the fis14 cal year; exceeds 

15 ‘‘(ii) the product (rounded to the 

16 nearest whole number) of— 

17 ‘‘(I) the base rate of pre-adoles18 cent child adoptions for the State for 

19 the fiscal year; and 

20 ‘‘(II) the number of children in 

21 foster care under the supervision of 

22 the State on the last day of the pre23 ceding fiscal year who have attained 9 

24 years of age but not 14 years of age; 

25 and 


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1 ‘‘(C) $8,000, multiplied by the amount (if 

2 any) by which— 

3 ‘‘(i) the number of older child adop4 tions in the State during the fiscal year; 

5 exceeds 

6 ‘‘(ii) the product (rounded to the 

7 nearest whole number) of— 

8 ‘‘(I) the base rate of older child 

9 adoptions for the State for the fiscal 

10 year; and 

11 ‘‘(II) the number of children in 

12 foster care under the supervision of 

13 the State on the last day of the pre14 ceding fiscal year who have attained 

15 14 years of age; and 

16 ‘‘(D) $1,000, multiplied by the amount (if 

17 any) by which— 

18 ‘‘(i) the number of foster child 

19 guardianships in the State during the fis20 cal year; exceeds 

21 ‘‘(ii) the product (rounded to the 

22 nearest whole number) of— 

23 ‘‘(I) the base rate of foster child 

24 guardianships for the State for the 

25 fiscal year; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) the number of children in 

2 foster care under the supervision of 

3 the State on the last day of the pre4 ceding fiscal year.’’; and 

5 (2) by striking paragraph (3). 

6 (d) DEFINITIONS.—Section 473A(g) of such Act (42 

7 U.S.C. 673b(g)) is amended by striking paragraphs (1) 

8 through (8) and inserting the following: 

9 ‘‘(1) FOSTER CHILD ADOPTION RATE.—The 

10 term ‘foster child adoption rate’ means, with respect 

11 to a State and a fiscal year, the percentage deter12 mined by dividing— 

13 ‘‘(A) the number of foster child adoptions 

14 finalized in the State during the fiscal year; by 

15 ‘‘(B) the number of children in foster care 

16 under the supervision of the State on the last 

17 day of the preceding fiscal year. 

18 ‘‘(2) BASE RATE OF FOSTER CHILD ADOP19 TIONS.—The term ‘base rate of foster child adop20 tions’ means, with respect to a State and a fiscal 

21 year, the lesser of— 

22 ‘‘(A) the foster child adoption rate for the 

23 State for fiscal year 2007; or 

24 ‘‘(B) the foster child adoption rate for the 

25 State for the then preceding fiscal year. 


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1 ‘‘(3) FOSTER CHILD ADOPTION.—The term 

2 ‘foster child adoption’ means the final adoption of a 

3 child who, at the time of adoptive placement, was in 

4 foster care under the supervision of the State. 

5 ‘‘(4) PRE-ADOLESCENT CHILD ADOPTION

6 RATE.—The term ‘pre-adolescent child adoption 

7 rate’ means, with respect to a State and a fiscal 

8 year, the percentage determined by dividing— 

9 ‘‘(A) the number of pre-adolescent child 

10 adoptions finalized in the State during the fis11 cal year; by 

12 ‘‘(B) the number of children in foster care 

13 under the supervision of the State on the last 

14 day of the preceding fiscal year, who have at15 tained 9 years of age but not 14 years of age. 

16 ‘‘(5) BASE RATE OF PRE-ADOLESCENT CHILD

17 ADOPTIONS.—The term ‘base rate of pre-adolescent 

18 child adoptions’ means, with respect to a State and 

19 a fiscal year, the lesser of— 

20 ‘‘(A) the pre-adolescent child adoption rate 

21 for the State for fiscal year 2007; or 

22 ‘‘(B) the pre-adolescent child adoption rate 

23 for the State for the then preceding fiscal year. 

24 ‘‘(6) PRE-ADOLESCENT CHILD ADOPTION.—The 

25 term ‘pre-adolescent child adoption’ means the final 


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1 adoption of a child who has attained 9 years of age 

2 but not 14 years of age if— 

3 ‘‘(A) at the time of the adoptive placement, 

4 the child was in foster care under the super5 vision of the State; or 

6 ‘‘(B) an adoption assistance agreement 

7 was in effect under section 473 with respect to 

8 the child. 

9 ‘‘(7) OLDER CHILD ADOPTION RATE.—The 

10 term ‘older child adoption rate’ means, with respect 

11 to a State and a fiscal year, the percentage deter12 mined by dividing— 

13 ‘‘(A) the number of older child adoptions 

14 finalized in the State during the fiscal year; by 

15 ‘‘(B) the number of children in foster care 

16 under the supervision of the State on the last 

17 day of the preceding fiscal year, who have at18 tained 14 years of age. 

19 ‘‘(8) BASE RATE OF OLDER CHILD ADOP20 TIONS.—The term ‘base rate of older child adop21 tions’ means, with respect to a State and a fiscal 

22 year, the lesser of— 

23 ‘‘(A) the older child adoption rate for the 

24 State for fiscal year 2007; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) the older child adoption rate for the 

2 State for the then preceding fiscal year. 

3 ‘‘(9) OLDER CHILD ADOPTION.—The term 

4 ‘older child adoption’ means the final adoption of a 

5 child who has attained 14 years of age if— 

6 ‘‘(A) at the time of the adoptive placement, 

7 the child was in foster care under the super8 vision of the State; or 

9 ‘‘(B) an adoption assistance agreement 

10 was in effect under section 473 with respect to 

11 the child. 

12 ‘‘(10) FOSTER CHILD GUARDIANSHIP RATE.— 

13 The term ‘foster child guardianship rate’ means, 

14 with respect to a State and a fiscal year, the per15 centage determined by dividing— 

16 ‘‘(A) the number of foster child guardian17 ships occurring in the State during the fiscal 

18 year; by 

19 ‘‘(B) the number of children in foster care 

20 under the supervision of the State on the last 

21 day of the preceding fiscal year. 

22 ‘‘(11) BASE RATE OF FOSTER CHILD

23 GUARDIANSHIPS.—The term ‘base rate of foster 

24 child guardianships’ means, with respect to a State 

25 and a fiscal year, the lesser of— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the foster child guardianship rate for 

2 the State for fiscal year 2007; or 

3 ‘‘(B) the foster child guardianship rate for 

4 the State for the then preceding fiscal year. 

5 ‘‘(12) FOSTER CHILD GUARDIANSHIP.—The 

6 term ‘foster child guardianship’ means, with respect 

7 to a State, the exit of a child from foster care under 

8 the responsibility of the State to live with a legal 

9 guardian, if the State has reported to the Sec10 retary— 

11 ‘‘(A) that the State agency has determined 

12 that— 

13 ‘‘(i) the child has been removed from 

14 his or her home pursuant to a voluntary 

15 placement agreement or as a result of a ju16 dicial determination to the effect that con17 tinuation in the home would be contrary to 

18 the welfare of the child; 

19 ‘‘(ii) being returned home or adopted 

20 are not appropriate permanency options 

21 for the child; 

22 ‘‘(iii) the child demonstrates a strong 

23 attachment to the prospective legal guard24 ian, and the prospective legal guardian has 


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1 a strong commitment to caring perma2 nently for the child; and 

3 ‘‘(iv) if the child has attained 14 years 

4 of age, the child has been consulted re5 garding the legal guardianship arrange6 ment; or 

7 ‘‘(B) the alternative procedures used by 

8 the State to determine that legal guardianship 

9 is the appropriate option for the child.’’. 

10 SEC. 103. RENAMING OF PROGRAM. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The section heading of section 

12 473A of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 673b) is 

13 amended to read as follows: 

14 ‘‘SEC. 473A. ADOPTION AND LEGAL GUARDIANSHIP INCEN15 TIVE PAYMENTS.’’. 

16 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

17 (1) Section 473A of such Act is amended in 

18 each of subsections (a), (d)(1), (d)(2)(A), and 

19 (d)(2)(B) (42 U.S.C. 673b(a), (d)(1), (d)(2)(A), and 

20 (d)(2)(B)) by inserting ‘‘and legal guardianship’’ 

21 after ‘‘adoption’’ each place it appears. 

22 (2) The heading of section 473A(d) of such Act 

23 (42 U.S.C. 673b(d)) is amended by inserting ‘‘AND

24 LEGAL GUARDIANSHIP’’ after ‘‘ADOPTION’’. 


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1 SEC. 104. LIMITATION ON USE OF INCENTIVE PAYMENTS. 

2 Section 473A(f) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

3 673b(f)) is amended in the 1st sentence by inserting ‘‘, 

4 and shall use the amount to supplement, and not supplant, 

5 any Federal or non-Federal funds used to provide any 

6 service under part B or E’’ before the period. 

7 SEC. 105. INCREASE IN PERIOD FOR WHICH INCENTIVE 

8 PAYMENTS ARE AVAILABLE FOR EXPENDI9 TURE. 

10 Section 473A(e) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

11 673b(e)) is amended— 

12 (1) in the subsection heading, by striking ‘‘24- 

13 MONTH’’ and inserting ‘‘36-MONTH’’; and 

14 (2) by striking ‘‘24-month’’ and inserting ‘‘36- 

15 month’’. 

16 SEC. 106. STATE REPORT ON CALCULATION AND USE OF 

17 SAVINGS RESULTING FROM THE PHASE-OUT 

18 OF ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR ADOP19 TION ASSISTANCE; REQUIREMENT TO SPEND 

20 20 PERCENT OF SAVINGS ON POST-ADOPTION 

21 SERVICES. 

22 Section 473(a)(8) of the Social Security Act (42 

23 U.S.C. 673(a)(8)) is amended to read as follows: 

24 ‘‘(8)(A) A State shall calculate the savings (if any) 

25 resulting from the application of paragraph (2)(A)(ii) to 

26 all applicable children for a fiscal year, using a methodVerDate Mar 15 2010 20:19 Oct 02, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3205.IH H3205

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1 ology specified by the Secretary or an alternate method2 ology proposed by the State and approved by the Sec3 retary. 

4 ‘‘(B) A State shall annually report to the Secretary— 

5 ‘‘(i) the methodology used to make the calcula6 tion described in subparagraph (A), without regard 

7 to whether any savings are found; 

8 ‘‘(ii) the amount of any savings referred to in 

9 subparagraph (A); and 

10 ‘‘(iii) how any such savings are spent, account11 ing for and reporting the spending separately from 

12 any other spending reported to the Secretary under 

13 part B or E. 

14 ‘‘(C) The Secretary shall make all information re15 ported pursuant to subparagraph (B) available on the 

16 website of the Department of Health and Human Services 

17 in a location easily accessible to the public. 

18 ‘‘(D) A State shall spend an amount equal to the 

19 amount of the savings (if any) in State expenditures under 

20 this part resulting from the application of paragraph 

21 (2)(A)(ii) to all applicable children for a fiscal year, to 

22 provide to children of families any service that may be pro23 vided under this part or part B, and shall spend not less 

24 than 20 percent of any such savings on post-adoption serv25 ices. Any such spending shall be used to supplement, and 


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1 not supplant, any Federal or non-Federal funds used to 

2 provide any service under part B or E.’’. 

3 SEC. 107. PRESERVATION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR KINSHIP 

4 GUARDIANSHIP ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS 

5 WITH A SUCCESSOR GUARDIAN. 

6 Section 473(d)(3) of the Social Security Act (42 

7 U.S.C. 673(d)(3)) is amended by adding at the end the 

8 following: 

9 ‘‘(C) ELIGIBILITY NOT AFFECTED BY RE10 PLACEMENT OF GUARDIAN WITH A SUCCESSOR

11 GUARDIAN.—In the event of the death or inca12 pacity of the relative guardian, the eligibility of 

13 a child for a kinship guardianship assistance 

14 payment under this subsection shall not be af15 fected by reason of the replacement of the rel16 ative guardian with a successor legal guardian 

17 named in the kinship guardianship assistance 

18 agreement referred to in paragraph (1) (includ19 ing in any amendment to the agreement), not20 withstanding subparagraph (A) of this para21 graph and section 471(a)(28).’’. 

22 SEC. 108. EFFECTIVE DATES. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided in 

24 this section, the amendments made by this Act shall take 

25 effect on October 1, 2013. 


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1 (b) RESTRUCTURING AND RENAMING OF PRO2 GRAM.— 

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

4 sections 102 and 103 shall take effect on October 1, 

5 2014, subject to paragraph (2). 

6 (2) TRANSITION RULE.—Notwithstanding any 

7 other provision of law, the total amount payable to 

8 a State under section 473A of the Social Security 

9 Act for fiscal year 2014 shall be an amount equal 

to 1 10 ⁄2 of the sum of— 

11 (A) the total amount that would be payable 

12 to the State under such section for fiscal year 

13 2014 if the amendments made by section 102 

14 of this Act had not taken effect; and 

15 (B) the total amount that would be pay16 able to the State under such section for fiscal 

17 year 2014 in the absence of this paragraph. 

18 (c) PRESERVATION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR KINSHIP

19 GUARDIANSHIP ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS WITH A SUC20 CESSOR GUARDIAN.—The amendment made by section 

21 107 shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this 

22 Act. 


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1 TITLE II—EXTENSION OF FAM2 ILY CONNECTION GRANT 

3 PROGRAM 

4 SEC. 201. EXTENSION OF FAMILY CONNECTION GRANT 

5 PROGRAM. 

6 Section 427(h) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

7 627(h)) is amended by striking ‘‘2013’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘2016’’. 

9 TITLE III—UNEMPLOYMENT 

10 COMPENSATION 

11 SEC. 301. IMPROVING THE COLLECTION OF UNEMPLOY12 MENT INSURANCE OVERPAYMENTS 

13 THROUGH TAX REFUND OFFSET. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 303 of the Social Security 

15 Act (42 U.S.C. 503) is amended by adding at the end the 

16 following: 

17 ‘‘(m) In the case of a covered unemployment com18 pensation debt (as defined under section 6402(f)(4) of the 

19 Internal Revenue Code of 1986) that remains uncollected 

20 as of the date that is 2 years after the date when such 

21 debt was first incurred, the State to which such debt is 

22 owed shall take action to recover such debt under section 

23 6402(f) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.’’. 


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1 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

2 subsection (a) shall take effect on October 1, 2015. 

Æ 


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