I

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 586

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

to administer qualifying examinations to all State employees with new

authority to make decisions regarding child welfare services, to expedite

the permanent placement of foster children, to facilitate the placement

of foster children in permanent kinship care arrangements, and to require

State agencies, in considering applications to adopt certain foster children, to give preference to applications of a foster parent or caretaker

relative of the child.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JANUARY 19, 1995

Mrs. MALONEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the

Committee on Ways and Means

A BILL

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

to require States to administer qualifying examinations

to all State employees with new authority to make decisions regarding child welfare services, to expedite the

permanent placement of foster children, to facilitate the

placement of foster children in permanent kinship care

arrangements, and to require State agencies, in considering applications to adopt certain foster children, to give

preference to applications of a foster parent or caretaker

relative of the child.
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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 ‘‘Omnibus Foster Care

5 Improvement Act of 1995’’.

6 SEC. 2. REQUIREMENT THAT STATES ADMINISTER QUALI7 FYING EXAMINATIONS TO ALL STATE EM8 PLOYEES WITH NEW AUTHORITY TO MAKE

9 DECISIONS REGARDING CHILD WELFARE

10 SERVICES.

11 Section 474 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.

12 674) is amended by adding at the end the following:

13 ‘‘(d) The Secretary may not make a payment to a

14 State under subsection (a) for any calendar quarter begin15 ning after the 18-month period that begins with the date

16 of the enactment of this subsection, unless the State has

17 in effect procedures to ensure that, before the State pro18 vides to a prospective child welfare decisionmaker the au19 thority to make decisions regarding child welfare services,

20 the individual must take and pass an examination, admin21 istered by the State, that tests knowledge of such subjects

22 as child development, family dynamics, dysfunctional be23 havior, substance abuse, child abuse, and community ad24 vocacy. As used in the preceding sentence, the term ‘pro25 spective child welfare decisionmaker’ means an individual
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1 who, on the date of the enactment of this subsection, does

2 not have any authority to make a decision regarding child

3 welfare services.’’.

4 SEC. 3. PROCEDURES TO EXPEDITE THE PERMANENT

5 PLACEMENT OF FOSTER CHILDREN.

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 474 of the Social Security

7 Act (42 U.S.C. 674), as amended by section 2 of this Act,

8 is amended by adding at the end the following:

9 ‘‘(e) The Secretary may not make a payment to a

10 State for a calendar quarter under subsection (a) unless

11 the State has in effect procedures requiring the State

12 agency, at the time a child is removed from a home and

13 placed in foster care under the supervision of the State,

14 to locate any parent of the child who is not living at the

15 home, and evaluate the ability of the parent to provide

16 a suitable home for the child.’’.

17 (b) APPLICABILITY.—The amendment made by sub18 section (a) of this section shall not apply with respect to

19 any child who, on the date of the enactment of this Act,

20 is in foster care under the supervision of a State (as de21 fined in section 1101(a)(1) of the Social Security Act for

22 purposes of title IV of such Act).
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1 SEC. 4. PLACEMENT OF FOSTER CHILDREN IN PERMANENT

2 KINSHIP CARE ARRANGEMENTS.

3 (a) STATE OPTION TO DEEM KINSHIP PLACEMENT

4 AS ADOPTION.—Section 473(a) of the Social Security Act

5 (42 U.S.C. 673(a)) is amended by adding at the end the

6 following:

7 ‘‘(7) If a State places a child (who has been in foster

8 care under the supervision of the State) with a blood rel9 ative of the child or of a half-sibling of the child, and

10 transfers legal custody of the child to the relative, pursu11 ant to a written agreement, entered into between the State

12 and the relative, that contains provisions of the type de13 scribed in section 475(3), then, at the option of the State,

14 for purposes of this part—

15 ‘‘(A) the placement is deemed an adoption;

16 ‘‘(B) the initiation of the proceeding to so place

17 the child is deemed an adoption proceeding;

18 ‘‘(C) the relative is deemed the adoptive parent

19 of the child;

20 ‘‘(D) the agreement is deemed an adoption as21 sistance agreement;

22 ‘‘(E) the payments made under the agreement

23 are deemed to be adoption assistance payments; and

24 ‘‘(F) any reasonable and necessary court costs,

25 attorneys fees, and other expenses which are directly

26 related to the placement or the transfer of legal cus-
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1 tody and are not in violation of State or Federal law

2 are deemed nonrecurring adoption expenses.’’.

3 (b) CONSIDERATION OF KINSHIP PLACEMENT OP4 TION AT DISPOSITIONAL HEARING.—Section 475(5)(C) of

5 such Act (42 U.S.C. 675(5)(C)) is amended by inserting

6 ‘‘should be placed with a relative of the child as provided

7 in section 473(a)(7),’’ before ‘‘should be placed for adop8 tion’’.

9 SEC. 5. FEDERAL FUNDS FOR FOSTER CARE AND ADOP10 TION ASSISTANCE AVAILABLE ONLY TO

11 STATES THAT REQUIRE STATE AGENCIES, IN

12 CONSIDERING APPLICATIONS TO ADOPT

13 CERTAIN FOSTER CHILDREN, TO GIVE PREF14 ERENCE TO APPLICATIONS OF A FOSTER

15 PARENT OR CARETAKER RELATIVE OF THE

16 CHILD.

17 Section 474 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.

18 674), as amended by sections 2 and 3 of this Act, is

19 amended by adding at the end the following:

20 ‘‘(f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this sec21 tion, the Secretary may not make any payment to a State

22 under this section, for any calendar quarter ending after

23 the 5-year period that begins with the date of the enact24 ment of this subsection, unless the State has in effect laws

25 and procedures requiring a State agency to complete the
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1 processing of an application to adopt a child who is in

2 foster care under the responsibility of the State that has

3 been submitted by a foster parent or caretaker relative of

4 the child, before completing the processing of any other

5 application to adopt the child if—

6 ‘‘(1) a court has approved a permanent plan for

7 adoption of the child, or the child has been freed for

8 adoption; and

9 ‘‘(2) the agency with authority to place the

10 child for adoption determines that—

11 ‘‘(A) the child has substantial emotional

12 ties to the foster parent or caretaker relative, as

13 the case may be; and

14 ‘‘(B) removal of the child from the foster

15 parent or caretaker relative, as the case may be,

16 would be seriously detrimental to the well-being

17 of the child.’’.

18 SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.

19 The amendments made by this Act shall apply to pay20 ments under part E of title IV of the Social Security Act

21 for quarters beginning after the date of the enactment of

22 this Act.

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