II 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3038 

To amend part E of title IV of the Social Security Act to extend the 

adoption incentives program, to authorize States to establish a relative 

guardianship program, to promote the adoption of children with special 

needs, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 20, 2008 

Mr. GRASSLEY introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To amend part E of title IV of the Social Security Act 

to extend the adoption incentives program, to authorize 

States to establish a relative guardianship program, to 

promote the adoption of children with special needs, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Improved Adoption Incentives and Relative Guardianship 

6 Support Act of 2008’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—Table of contents for this 

2 Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—EXTENSION AND IMPROVEMENT OF ADOPTION 

INCENTIVES 

Sec. 101. Extension of adoption incentives program. 

Sec. 102. Promotion of adoption of children with special needs. 

TITLE II—SUPPORT FOR RELATIVE GUARDIANSHIPS 

Sec. 201. Relative guardianship assistance payments for children. 

TITLE III—MISCELLANEOUS 

Sec. 301. Authority for comparisons and disclosures of information in the Federal Parent Locator Service for child welfare, foster care, and 

adoption assistance program purposes. 

3 TITLE I—EXTENSION AND IM4 PROVEMENT OF ADOPTION 

5 INCENTIVES 

6 SEC. 101. EXTENSION OF ADOPTION INCENTIVES PRO7 GRAM. 

8 (a) 5-YEAR EXTENSION.—Section 473A of the Social 

9 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 673b) is amended— 

10 (1) in subsection (b)(4), by striking ‘‘in the 

11 case of fiscal years 2001 through 2007,’’; 

12 (2) in subsection (b)(5), by striking ‘‘1998 

13 through 2007’’ and inserting ‘‘2008 through 2012’’; 

14 (3) in subsection (c)(2), by striking ‘‘each of 

15 fiscal years 2002 through 2007’’ and inserting ‘‘a 

16 fiscal year’’; and 

17 (4) in each of subsections (h)(1)(D) and (h)(2), 

18 by striking ‘‘2008’’ and inserting ‘‘2013’’. 


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1 (b) ADDITIONAL INCENTIVE PAYMENT FOR EXCEED2 ING THE HIGHEST EVER FOSTER CHILD ADOPTION

3 RATE.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 473A(d) of such Act 

5 (42 U.S.C. 673b(b)(1)) is amended— 

6 (A) in paragraph (1), in the matter pre7 ceding subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘para8 graph (2)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraphs (2) and 

9 (3)’’; 

10 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘this sec11 tion’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘para12 graph (1)’’; and 

13 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

14 paragraph: 

15 ‘‘(3) INCREASED INCENTIVE PAYMENT FOR EX16 CEEDING THE HIGHEST EVER FOSTER CHILD ADOP17 TION RATE.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If— 

19 ‘‘(i) for fiscal year 2009 or any fiscal 

20 year thereafter the total amount of adop21 tion incentive payments payable under 

22 paragraph (1) are less than the amount 

23 appropriated under subsection (h) for the 

24 fiscal year; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) a State’s foster child adoption 

2 rate for that fiscal year exceeds the highest 

3 ever foster child adoption rate determined 

4 for the State, 

5 then the adoption incentive payment otherwise 

6 determined under paragraph (1) for the State 

7 shall be increased, subject to subparagraph (C), 

8 by the amount determined for the State under 

9 subparagraph (B). 

10 ‘‘(B) AMOUNT OF INCREASE.—For pur11 poses of subparagraph (A), the amount deter12 mined under this subparagraph with respect to 

13 a State and a fiscal year is the amount equal 

14 to the product of— 

15 ‘‘(i) $1,000; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) the excess of— 

17 ‘‘(I) the number of foster child 

18 adoptions in the State in the fiscal 

19 year; over 

20 ‘‘(II) the product (rounded to the 

21 nearest whole number) of— 

22 ‘‘(aa) the highest ever foster 

23 child adoption rate determined 

24 for the State; and 


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1 ‘‘(bb) the number of chil2 dren in foster care under the su3 pervision of the State on the last 

4 day of the preceding fiscal year. 

5 ‘‘(C) PRO RATA ADJUSTMENT IF INSUFFI6 CIENT FUNDS AVAILABLE.—For any fiscal year, 

7 if the total amount of increases in adoption in8 centive payments otherwise payable under this 

9 paragraph for a fiscal year exceeds the amount 

10 available for such increases for the fiscal year, 

11 the amount of the increase payable to each 

12 State under this paragraph for the fiscal year 

13 shall be— 

14 ‘‘(i) the amount of the increase that 

15 would otherwise be payable to the State 

16 under this paragraph for the fiscal year; 

17 multiplied by 

18 ‘‘(ii) the percentage represented by 

19 the amount so available for the fiscal year, 

20 divided by the total amount of increases 

21 otherwise payable under this paragraph for 

22 the fiscal year.’’. 

23 (2) DEFINITIONS.—Subsection (g) of section 

24 473A of such Act (42 U.S.C. 673b) is amended by 

25 adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(7) HIGHEST EVER FOSTER CHILD ADOPTION

2 RATE.—The term ‘highest ever foster child adoption 

3 rate’ means, with respect to any fiscal year, the 

4 highest foster child adoption rate determined for any 

5 fiscal year in the period that begins with fiscal year 

6 1998 and ends with the preceding fiscal year. 

7 ‘‘(8) FOSTER CHILD ADOPTION RATE.—The 

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

9 to a State and a fiscal year, the percentage deter10 mined by dividing— 

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

12 finalized in the State during the fiscal year; by 

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

14 under the supervision of the State on the last 

15 day of the preceding fiscal year.’’. 

16 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

17 (A) STATE ELIGIBILITY.—Section 

18 473A(b)(2) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 673b(b)(2)) 

19 is amended— 

20 (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

21 ‘‘or’’ at the end; 

22 (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

23 the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; 

24 and 


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1 (iii) by adding at the end the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(C) the State’s foster child adoption rate for 

4 the fiscal year exceeds the highest ever foster child 

5 adoption rate determined for the State;’’. 

6 (B) DATA.—Section 473A(c)(2) of such 

7 Act (42 U.S.C. 673b(c)(2)), as amended by 

8 subsection (a)(3), is amended by inserting ‘‘, 

9 and the foster child adoption rate for the State 

10 for the fiscal year,’’ after ‘‘during a fiscal 

11 year,’’. 

12 (c) INCREASE IN INCENTIVE PAYMENTS FOR SPE13 CIAL NEEDS ADOPTIONS AND OLDER CHILD ADOP14 TIONS.—Section 473A(d)(1) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

15 673b(d)(1)) is further amended— 

16 (1) in subparagraph (C), as redesignated by 

17 subsection (b), by striking ‘‘$2,000’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘$3,000’’; and 

19 (2) in subparagraph (D), as so redesignated, by 

20 striking ‘‘$4,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$8,000’’. 

21 (d) UPDATING OF FISCAL YEAR USED IN DETER22 MINING BASE NUMBERS OF ADOPTIONS.—Section 

23 473A(g) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 673b(g)) is amended— 

24 (1) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘means’’ and 

25 all that follows and inserting ‘‘means, with respect 


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1 to any fiscal year, the number of foster child adop2 tions in the State in fiscal year 2007.’’; 

3 (2) in paragraph (4)— 

4 (A) by inserting ‘‘that are not older child 

5 adoptions’’ before ‘‘for a State’’; and 

6 (B) by striking ‘‘means’’ and all that fol7 lows and inserting ‘‘means, with respect to any 

8 fiscal year, the number of special needs adop9 tions that are not older child adoptions in the 

10 State in fiscal year 2007.’’; and 

11 (3) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘means’’ and 

12 all that follows and inserting ‘‘means, with respect 

13 to any fiscal year, the number of older child adop14 tions in the State in fiscal year 2007.’’. 

15 (e) 24-MONTH AVAILABILITY OF PAYMENTS TO

16 STATES.—Section 473A(e) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

17 673b(e)) is amended— 

18 (1) in the subsection heading, by striking ‘‘2- 

19 YEAR’’ and inserting ‘‘24-MONTH’’; and 

20 (2) by striking ‘‘through the end of the suc21 ceeding fiscal year’’ and inserting ‘‘for a period of 

22 24 months beginning with the month in which the 

23 payments are made’’. 


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1 SEC. 102. PROMOTION OF ADOPTION OF CHILDREN WITH 

2 SPECIAL NEEDS. 

3 (a) ELIMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY BASED ON AFDC 

4 AND SSI INCOME STANDARDS.—Section 473(a)(2) of the 

5 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 673(a)(2)) is amended— 

6 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking clauses (i) 

7 and (ii) and inserting the following: 

8 ‘‘(i)(I) at the time of termination of parental 

9 rights was in the care of a public or licensed private 

10 child placement agency or Indian tribal organization 

11 pursuant to a voluntary placement agreement, relin12 quishment, or involuntary removal of the child from 

13 the home, and the State has determined, pursuant 

14 to criteria established by the State (which may, but 

15 need not, include a judicial determination), that con16 tinuation in the home would be contrary to the safe17 ty or welfare of such child; 

18 ‘‘(II) meets all medical or disability require19 ments of title XVI with respect to eligibility for sup20 plemental security income benefits; or 

21 ‘‘(III) was residing in a foster family home or 

22 child care institution with the child’s minor parent, 

23 provided that the child’s minor parent was in such 

24 foster family home or child care institution pursuant 

25 to a voluntary placement agreement, relinquishment, 

26 or involuntary removal of the child from the home, 


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1 and the State has determined, pursuant to criteria 

2 established by the State (which may, but need not, 

3 include judicial determination), that continuation in 

4 the home would be contrary to the safety or welfare 

5 of such child; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) has been determined by the State, pursu7 ant to subsection (c), to be a child with special 

8 needs, which needs shall be considered by the State, 

9 together with the circumstances of the adopting par10 ents, in determining the amount of any payments to 

11 be made to the adopting parents.’’; and 

12 (2) by striking subparagraph (C) and inserting 

13 the following: 

14 ‘‘(C) A child who meets the requirements of subpara15 graph (A), who was determined eligible for adoption as16 sistance payments under this part with respect to a prior 

17 adoption (or who would have been determined eligible for 

18 such payments had the Adoption and Safe Families Act 

19 of 1997 been in effect at the time that such determination 

20 would have been made), and who is available for adoption 

21 because the prior adoption has been dissolved and the pa22 rental rights of the adoptive parents have been terminated 

23 or because the child’s adoptive parents have died, shall be 

24 treated as meeting the requirements of this paragraph for 

25 purposes of paragraph (1)(B)(ii).’’. 


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1 (b) EXCEPTION.—Section 473(a) of the Social Secu2 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 673(a)) is amended by adding at the 

3 end the following: 

4 ‘‘(7)(A) Notwithstanding any other provision of this 

5 subsection, no payment may be made to parents with re6 spect to any child that— 

7 ‘‘(i) would be considered a child with special 

8 needs under subsection (c); 

9 ‘‘(ii) is not a citizen or resident of the United 

10 States; and 

11 ‘‘(iii) was adopted outside of the United States 

12 or was brought into the United States for the pur13 pose of being adopted. 

14 ‘‘(B) Subparagraph (A) shall not be construed as pro15 hibiting payments under this part for a child described 

16 in subparagraph (A) that is placed in foster care subse17 quent to the failure, as determined by the State, of the 

18 initial adoption of such child by the parents described in 

19 such subparagraph.’’. 

20 (c) REQUIREMENT FOR USE OF STATE SAVINGS.— 

21 Section 473(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

22 673(a)), as amended by subsection (b), is amended by 

23 adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(8) A State shall spend an amount equal to the 

25 amount of savings (if any) in State expenditures under 


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1 this part resulting from the application of paragraph (2) 

2 on and after the effective date of the amendments to such 

3 paragraph made by section 102(a) of the Improved Adop4 tion Incentives and Relative Guardianship Support Act of 

5 2008 to provide to children or families any service (includ6 ing post-adoption services) that may be provided under 

7 this part or part B.’’. 

8 (d) DETERMINATION OF A CHILD WITH SPECIAL

9 NEEDS.—Section 473(c) of the Social Security Act (42 

10 U.S.C. 673(c)) is amended to read as follows: 

11 ‘‘(c) For purposes of this section, a child shall not 

12 be considered a child with special needs unless— 

13 ‘‘(1) the State has determined, pursuant to a 

14 criteria established by the State (which may or may 

15 not include a judicial determination), that the child 

16 cannot or should not be returned to the home of his 

17 parents; and 

18 ‘‘(2) the State has determined— 

19 ‘‘(A) that there exists with respect to the 

20 child a specific factor or condition (such as eth21 nic background, age, or membership in a minor22 ity or sibling group, or the presence of factors 

23 such as medical conditions or physical, mental, 

24 or emotional handicaps) because of which it is 

25 reasonable to conclude that the child cannot be 


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1 placed with adoptive parents without providing 

2 adoption assistance under this section and med3 ical assistance under title XIX; and 

4 ‘‘(B) that except where it would be against 

5 the best interests of the child because of such 

6 factors as the existence of significant emotional 

7 ties with prospective adoptive parents while in 

8 the care of such parents as a foster child, a rea9 sonable, but unsuccessful, effort has been made 

10 to place the child with appropriate adoptive 

11 parents without providing adoption assistance 

12 under this section or medical assistance under 

13 title XIX. 

14 A child who meets all medical or disability require15 ments of title XVI with respect to eligibility for sup16 plemental security income benefits shall be deemed 

17 to be a child for whom the determination required 

18 by subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2) has been 

19 made.’’. 

20 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

21 this section shall take effect on October 1, 2008, and shall 

22 apply to adoption assistance agreements executed on or 

23 after that date. 


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1 TITLE II—SUPPORT FOR 

2 RELATIVE GUARDIANSHIPS 

3 SEC. 201. RELATIVE GUARDIANSHIP ASSISTANCE PAY4 MENTS FOR CHILDREN. 

5 (a) OPTION FOR STATES TO ENHANCE AND SUB6 SIDIZE A RELATIVE GUARDIANSHIP PROGRAM.— 

7 (1) STATE PLAN AMENDMENT.—Section 

8 471(a)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

9 671(a)(1)) is amended— 

10 (A) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘provides’’; 

11 (B) by adding ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; 

12 and 

13 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(B) at the option of the State, provides for rel15 ative guardianship assistance payments in accord16 ance with subsection (d) of section 473;’’. 

17 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—Section 473 of such Act (42 

18 U.S.C. 673) is amended by adding at the end the fol19 lowing: 

20 ‘‘(d) RELATIVE GUARDIANSHIP ASSISTANCE PAY21 MENTS FOR CHILDREN.— 

22 ‘‘(1) RELATIVE GUARDIANSHIP ASSISTANCE

23 AGREEMENT.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In order to receive 

2 payments under section 474(a)(5), a State 

3 shall— 

4 ‘‘(i) negotiate and enter into a writ5 ten, binding relative guardianship assist6 ance agreement with the relative guardian 

7 of a child who meets the requirements of 

8 paragraph (3)(B); 

9 ‘‘(ii) provide the relative guardian 

10 with a copy of the agreement; and 

11 ‘‘(iii) certify that any child on whose 

12 behalf relative guardianship assistance 

13 payments are made under the agreement 

14 shall be provided medical assistance under 

15 title XIX in accordance with section 

16 1902(a)(10)(A)(i)(I). 

17 ‘‘(B) MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS.—The 

18 agreement shall specify, at a minimum— 

19 ‘‘(i) the amount of, and manner in 

20 which, each relative guardianship assist21 ance payment will be provided under the 

22 agreement; 

23 ‘‘(ii) the additional services and assist24 ance that the child and relative guardian 

25 will be eligible for under the agreement; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) the procedure by which the rel2 ative guardian may apply for additional 

3 services as needed, provided the agency 

4 and relative guardian agree on the addi5 tional services as specified in the agree6 ment; and 

7 ‘‘(iv) that the State will pay up to 

8 $2,000 of nonrecurring expenses associated 

9 with obtaining legal guardianship of the 

10 child. 

11 ‘‘(C) INTERSTATE APPLICATION.—The 

12 agreement shall provide that the agreement 

13 shall remain in effect without regard to the 

14 State residency of the relative guardian. 

15 ‘‘(D) FEDERAL REIMBURSEMENT OF NON16 RECURRING EXPENSES.—A State’s payment of 

17 nonrecurring guardianship expenses under a 

18 relative guardianship assistance agreement in 

19 accordance with subparagraph (B)(iv) shall be 

20 treated as a direct expenditure made for the 

21 proper and efficient administration of the State 

22 plan for purposes of section 474(a)(3)(E). 

23 ‘‘(2) RELATIVE GUARDIANSHIP ASSISTANCE

24 PAYMENT.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara2 graphs (B) and (C), the relative guardianship 

3 assistance payment shall be based on consider4 ation of the circumstances of the relative guard5 ian and the needs of the child. 

6 ‘‘(B) MINIMUM AND MAXIMUM PAY7 MENT.—A relative guardianship assistance pay8 ment shall not be less than the adoption assist9 ance payment the State would have made on 

10 behalf of the child under an adoption assistance 

11 agreement entered into under subsection (a) 

12 and shall not exceed the foster care mainte13 nance payment which would have been paid if 

14 the child had remained in a foster family home. 

15 ‘‘(C) PERIODIC ADJUSTMENTS.—A relative 

16 guardianship assistance payment may be read17 justed periodically, with the concurrence of the 

18 relative guardian (which may be specified in the 

19 relative guardianship assistance agreement), de20 pending upon changes in the circumstances of 

21 the relative guardian and the needs of the child. 

22 ‘‘(D) LIMITATION.—No relative guardian23 ship assistance payment may be made to a rel24 ative guardian for any child who has attained 

25 18 years of age. 


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1 ‘‘(3) CHILD’S ELIGIBILITY FOR A RELATIVE

2 GUARDIANSHIP ASSISTANCE PAYMENT.— 

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A child is eligible for 

4 a relative guardianship assistance payment 

5 under this subsection if the State agency deter6 mines the following: 

7 ‘‘(i) The child— 

8 ‘‘(I) has been removed from his 

9 or her home pursuant to a voluntary 

10 placement agreement or as a result of 

11 a judicial determination to the effect 

12 that continuation in the home would 

13 be contrary to the welfare of the child; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(II) in the month prior to the 

16 establishment of the legal guardian17 ship, is eligible for foster care mainte18 nance payments under section 472. 

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 relative guardian and 

24 the relative guardian has a strong commit25 ment to caring permanently for the child. 


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1 ‘‘(iv) The relative guardian satisfies 

2 the requirements of subparagraph (B). 

3 ‘‘(v) With respect to a child who has 

4 attained 14 years of age, the child has 

5 been consulted regarding the relative 

6 guardianship arrangement. 

7 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS FOR RELATIVE

8 GUARDIANS.—A relative guardian satisfies the 

9 requirements of this subparagraph if the rel10 ative— 

11 ‘‘(i) is the grandparent or other rel12 ative of a child on whose behalf relative 

13 guardianship assistance payments are to 

14 be made; 

15 ‘‘(ii) has satisfied the background 

16 checks required under section 471(a)(20); 

17 ‘‘(iii) has met the State’s require18 ments established under section 471(a)(10) 

19 to be a foster family home; and 

20 ‘‘(iv) assumes legal guardianship of 

21 such child and commits to caring for the 

22 child on a permanent basis. 

23 ‘‘(C) TREATMENT OF SIBLINGS.—With re24 spect to a child described in subparagraph (A) 

25 whose sibling or siblings are not so described— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the child and any sibling of the 

2 child shall be placed in the same relative 

3 guardianship arrangement unless it can be 

4 demonstrated that it is inappropriate to do 

5 so; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) relative guardianship assistance 

7 payments may be paid for the child and 

8 each sibling so placed.’’. 

9 (c) PAYMENTS TO STATES.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 474(a) of such Act 

11 (42 U.S.C. 674(a)) is amended— 

12 (A) in paragraph (3)(B), by striking ‘‘fos13 ter or adoptive parents and the members of the 

14 staff of State-licensed or State-approved child 

15 care institutions providing care to foster and 

16 adopted children receiving assistance under this 

17 part, in ways that increase the ability of such 

18 current or prospective parents, staff members, 

19 and institutions to provide support and assist20 ance to foster and adopted children,’’ and in21 serting ‘‘foster parents, adoptive parents, or rel22 ative guardians and the members of the staff of 

23 State-licensed or State-approved child care in24 stitutions providing care to foster children, 

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1 ative guardian, who are receiving assistance 

2 under this part, in ways that increase the abil3 ity of such current or prospective parents, rel4 ative guardians, staff members, and institutions 

5 to provide support and assistance to foster chil6 dren, adoptive children, or children living with 

7 a relative guardian,’’; 

8 (B) in paragraph (4)(B), by striking the 

9 period at the end and inserting ‘‘; plus’’; and 

10 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(5) an amount equal to the Federal medical 

12 assistance percentage (as defined in section 1905(b)) 

13 of the total amount expended during such quarter as 

14 relative guardianship assistance payments under sec15 tion 473(d) pursuant to relative guardianship assist16 ance agreements.’’. 

17 (2) INCENTIVE PAYMENTS FOR RELATIVE

18 GUARDIANSHIP PLACEMENT.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—Section 473A of the 

20 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 673b) is amend21 ed by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(j) INCENTIVE PAYMENTS FOR RELATIVE GUARD23 IANSHIP PLACEMENTS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) USE OF UNAWARDED ADOPTION INCEN25 TIVE FUNDS TO MAKE RELATIVE GUARDIANSHIP INVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:10 May 21, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3038.IS S3038

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1 CENTIVE PAYMENTS.—If in any fiscal year the total 

2 amount of adoption incentive payments payable 

3 under subsection (d) are less than the amount ap4 propriated under subsection (h) for the fiscal year, 

5 States that have established a relative guardianship 

6 assistance program under section 471(a)(1)(B) shall 

7 be awarded, in addition to any adoption incentive 

8 payments made to such States under subsection (d), 

9 relative guardianship incentive payments from the 

10 portion of such amount that is in excess of the total 

11 amount of adoption incentive payments to be made 

12 under such subsection for such fiscal year. 

13 ‘‘(2) PAYMENT AMOUNT.—Subject to paragraph 

14 (3), the relative guardianship incentive payment pay15 able to a State for a fiscal year under this sub16 section shall be equal to— 

17 ‘‘(A) in the case of the first fiscal year in 

18 which the State establishes a relative guardian19 ship assistance program under section 

20 471(a)(1)(B), the product of $1,000 and the 

21 number of relative guardianship assistance 

22 agreements entered into under section 473(d) 

23 in the State during that fiscal year; and 

24 ‘‘(B) in the case of any succeeding fiscal 

25 year, the product of $1,000 and the amount (if 


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1 any) by which the number of relative guardian2 ship assistance agreements entered into under 

3 section 473(d) in the State for the fiscal year 

4 exceed the base number of relative guardianship 

5 assistance agreements in the State for the fiscal 

6 year. 

7 ‘‘(3) PRO RATA ADJUSTMENT IF INSUFFICIENT

8 FUNDS AVAILABLE.—For any fiscal year, if the total 

9 amount of relative guardianship incentive payments 

10 otherwise payable under this subsection for a fiscal 

11 year exceeds the amount available for such payments 

12 for the fiscal year, the amount of the relative guard13 ianship incentive payment payable to each State 

14 under this subsection for the fiscal year shall be— 

15 ‘‘(A) the amount of the relative guardian16 ship incentive payment that would otherwise be 

17 payable to the State under this subsection for 

18 the fiscal year; multiplied by 

19 ‘‘(B) the percentage represented by the 

20 amount so available for the fiscal year, divided 

21 by the total amount of relative guardianship in22 centive payments otherwise payable under this 

23 section for the fiscal year.’’. 

24 (B) DEFINITION OF BASE NUMBER OF

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1 MENTS.—Subsection (g) of section 473A of 

2 such Act (42 U.S.C. 673b), as amended by sec3 tion 101(b)(2), is amended by adding at the 

4 end the following: 

5 ‘‘(9) BASE NUMBER OF RELATIVE GUARDIAN6 SHIP ASSISTANCE AGREEMENTS.—The term ‘base 

7 number of relative guardianship assistance agree8 ments’ means, with respect to a fiscal year, the 

9 number of relative guardianship assistance agree10 ments entered into under section 473(d) in the State 

11 in the fiscal year for which the number is the great12 est in the period that begins with the first fiscal year 

13 in which the State establishes a relative guardian14 ship assistance program under section 471(a)(1)(B) 

15 and ends with the preceding fiscal year.’’. 

16 (C) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Sub17 section (f) of section 473A of such Act (42 

18 U.S.C. 673b) is amended by inserting ‘‘and rel19 ative navigator and support services’’ after 

20 ‘‘post-adoption services’’. 

21 (d) MAINTAINING ELIGIBILITY FOR ADOPTION AS22 SISTANCE PROGRAM.—Section 473(a) of the Social Secu23 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 673(a)), as amended by subsections 

24 (b) and (c) of section 102, is amended by adding at the 

25 end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(9) A child on whose behalf relative guardianship 

2 assistance payments have been made under section 473(d) 

3 and who pursuant to subsection (c) has been determined 

4 to be a child with special needs, shall be eligible for adop5 tion assistance as if no relative guardianship agreement 

6 or payments had been made. The State shall make pay7 ments of nonrecurring adoption expenses under this sec8 tion to the adoptive parents of such a child.’’. 

9 (e) ELIGIBILITY FOR INDEPENDENT LIVING SERV10 ICES AND EDUCATION AND TRAINING VOUCHERS FOR

11 CHILDREN WHO EXIT FOSTER CARE FOR RELATIVE

12 GUARDIANSHIP OR ADOPTION AFTER AGE 16.— 

13 (1) INDEPENDENT LIVING SERVICES.—Section 

14 477(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 677(a)) is amended— 

15 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para16 graph (5); 

17 (B) by striking the period at the end of 

18 paragraph (6) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

19 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(7) to provide the services referred to in this 

21 subsection to children who, after attaining 16 years 

22 of age, have left foster care for relative guardianship 

23 or adoption.’’. 

24 (2) EDUCATION AND TRAINING VOUCHERS.— 

25 Section 477(i)(2) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 677(i)(2)) 


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1 is amended by striking ‘‘from foster care after at2 taining age 16’’ and inserting ‘‘or entering relative 

3 guardianship from foster care after attaining 16 

4 years of age’’. 

5 (f) NOTICE REQUIREMENTS.— 

6 (1) IV-E STATE PLAN REQUIREMENTS.— 

7 (A) NOTICE TO RELATIVES.—Section 

8 471(a)(19) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 671(a)(19)) 

9 is amended— 

10 (i) by striking ‘‘that the State’’ and 

11 inserting ‘‘that— 

12 ‘‘(A) the State’’; and 

13 (ii) by adding at the end the fol14 lowing: 

15 ‘‘(B) within 60 days of the removal of the 

16 child from the custody of the child’s parent or 

17 parents, the State shall exercise due diligence to 

18 identify and provide notice to all adult grand19 parents and other adult relatives of the child 

20 (including any other adult relatives suggested 

21 by the parents), subject to exceptions due to 

22 family or domestic violence, that— 

23 ‘‘(i) specifies that the child has been 

24 or is being removed from the custody of 

25 the child’s parent or parents; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) explains the options the relative 

2 has under Federal, State, and local law to 

3 participate in the child’s care and place4 ment, including any options that may be 

5 lost by failing to respond to the notice; 

6 ‘‘(iii) describes the requirements 

7 under section 471(a)(10) to become a fos8 ter family home and the additional services 

9 and supports that are available for children 

10 placed in such a home; and 

11 ‘‘(iv) if the State has elected the op12 tion to make relative guardianship assist13 ance payments under paragraph (1)(B), 

14 describes how the relative may enter into 

15 an agreement with the State under section 

16 473(d) to receive such payments; and 

17 ‘‘(C) with respect to any minor child (ex18 cluding minor heads of households and their 

19 spouses) receiving assistance under the State 

20 program funded under part A (or under a State 

21 program funded with qualified State expendi22 tures (as defined in section 409(a)(7)(B)(i))) 

23 who is in the care of a nonparent caretaker rel24 ative as a result of interaction with the State 

25 agency responsible for administering the proVerDate Aug 31 2005 05:25 May 21, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3038.IS S3038

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1 gram authorized under this part, and who does 

2 not have a parent in the home, the State shall 

3 provide the nonparent caretaker relative with 

4 notice that— 

5 ‘‘(i) explains the options the relative 

6 has under Federal, State, and local law to 

7 participate in the child’s care and place8 ment, including any options that may be 

9 lost by failing to respond to the notice; 

10 ‘‘(ii) describes the requirements under 

11 section 471(a)(10) to become a foster fam12 ily home and the additional services and 

13 supports that are available for children 

14 placed in such a home; and 

15 ‘‘(iii) if the State has elected the op16 tion to make relative guardianship assist17 ance payments under paragraph (1)(B), 

18 describes how the relative may enter into 

19 an agreement under section 473(d) with 

20 the State to receive such payments;’’. 

21 (B) INFORMATION ON ADOPTION TAX

22 CREDIT.—Section 471(a) of such Act (42 

23 U.S.C. 671(a)) is amended— 

24 (i) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of 

25 paragraph (26); 


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1 (ii) by striking the period at the end 

2 of paragraph (27) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; 

3 and 

4 (iii) by adding at the end the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘(28) provides that the State will inform any 

7 individual who is adopting, or whom the State is 

8 made aware is considering adopting, a child who is 

9 in foster care under the responsibility of the State 

10 of the potential eligibility of the individual for a 

11 Federal tax credit (under section 23 of the Internal 

12 Revenue Code) without the need to document any 

13 adoption-related expenses.’’. 

14 (2) TANF PENALTY FOR FAILURE TO PROVIDE

15 NOTICE.—Section 409(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

16 609(a)) is amended by adding at the end the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(16) PENALTY FOR NONCOMPLIANCE WITH

19 NOTICE REQUIREMENTS FOR RELATIVES UNDER

20 PART E.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary deter22 mines that a State to which a grant is made 

23 under section 403 in a fiscal year has not exer24 cised the due diligence required under section 

25 471(a)(19)(C) during the fiscal year, the SecVerDate Aug 31 2005 05:25 May 21, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00029 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3038.IS S3038

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1 retary shall reduce the grant payable to the 

2 State under section 403(a)(1) for the imme3 diately succeeding fiscal year by an amount 

4 equal to not less than 1 percent and not more 

5 than 5 percent of the State family assistance 

6 grant. 

7 ‘‘(B) PENALTY BASED ON SEVERITY OF

8 FAILURE.—The Secretary shall impose reduc9 tions under subparagraph (A) with respect to a 

10 fiscal year based on the degree of noncompli11 ance.’’. 

12 (g) CASE PLAN REQUIREMENTS.—Section 475(1) of 

13 such Act (42 U.S.C. 675(1)) is amended by adding at the 

14 end the following: 

15 ‘‘(F) In the case of a child with respect to 

16 whom the permanency plan is placement with a 

17 relative and receipt of relative guardianship as18 sistance payments under section 473(d), a de19 scription of— 

20 ‘‘(i) the steps that the agency has 

21 taken to determine that it is not appro22 priate for the child to be returned home or 

23 adopted; 

24 ‘‘(ii) the reasons why a permanent 

25 placement with a fit and willing relative 


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1 through a relative guardianship assistance 

2 arrangement is in the child’s best interests; 

3 ‘‘(iii) the ways in which the child 

4 meets the eligibility requirements for a rel5 ative guardianship assistance payment; 

6 ‘‘(iv) the efforts the agency has made 

7 to discuss adoption by the child’s relative 

8 guardian who is to receive such payments 

9 as a more permanent alternative to legal 

10 guardianship and, in the case of such a rel11 ative guardian who has chosen not to pur12 sue adoption, documentation of the reasons 

13 therefor; and 

14 ‘‘(v) the efforts made by the State 

15 agency to secure the consent of the child’s 

16 parent or parents to the relative guardian17 ship assistance arrangement, or the rea18 sons why the efforts were not made.’’. 

19 (h) REQUIREMENT TO CONDUCT CRIMINAL

20 RECORDS AND CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT REGISTRY

21 CHECKS.—Section 471(a)(20) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

22 671(a)(20)) is amended— 

23 (1) in subparagraph (A), in the matter pre24 ceding clause (i) by striking ‘‘foster or adoptive par25 ent before the foster or adoptive parent may be fiVerDate Aug 31 2005 05:25 May 21, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3038.IS S3038

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1 nally approved for placement of a child on whose be2 half foster care maintenance payments or adoption 

3 assistance payments’’ and inserting ‘‘foster parent, 

4 adoptive parent, or relative guardian before the fos5 ter parent, adoptive parent, or relative guardian may 

6 be finally approved for placement of a child on 

7 whose behalf foster care maintenance payments, 

8 adoption assistance payments, or relative guardian9 ship assistance payments’’; and 

10 (2) in subparagraph (B)(i) (as redesignated by 

11 section 152(b)(2) of Public Law 109–248), by strik12 ing ‘‘prospective foster or adoptive parent and on 

13 any other adult living in the home’’ and all that fol14 lows through ‘‘adoption assistance payments’’ and 

15 inserting ‘‘prospective foster parent, adoptive parent, 

16 or relative guardian and on any other adult living in 

17 the home of such a prospective parent or relative 

18 guardian, and request any other State in which any 

19 such prospective parent, relative guardian, or other 

20 adult has resided in the preceding 5 years, to enable 

21 the State to check any child abuse and neglect reg22 istry maintained by such other State for such infor23 mation, before the prospective foster parent, adop24 tive parent, or relative may be finally approved for 

25 placement of a child, regardless of whether foster 


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1 care maintenance payments, adoption assistance 

2 payments, or relative guardianship assistance pay3 ments’’. 

4 (i) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

5 this section shall take effect on October 1, 2008, and shall 

6 apply to relative guardianship agreements executed on or 

7 after that date. 

8 TITLE III—MISCELLANEOUS 

9 SEC. 301. AUTHORITY FOR COMPARISONS AND DISCLO10 SURES OF INFORMATION IN THE FEDERAL 

11 PARENT LOCATOR SERVICE FOR CHILD WEL12 FARE, FOSTER CARE, AND ADOPTION ASSIST13 ANCE PROGRAM PURPOSES. 

14 Section 453(j)(3) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 653(j)(3)) 

15 is amended, in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), 

16 by inserting ‘‘, part B, part E,’’ after ‘‘this part’’. 

Æ 


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