I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1446 

To amend title IV of the Social Security Act to expand foster parent training 

and authorize new appropriations to support the obtainment of a driver’s 

license. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 8, 2023 

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois (for himself and Mr. BACON) introduced the following 

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

A BILL 

To amend title IV of the Social Security Act to expand 

foster parent training and authorize new appropriations 

to support the obtainment of a driver’s license. 

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 ‘‘Foster Youth and 

5 Driving Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FOSTER PARENT TRAINING RELATED TO PRE7 PARING A CHILD TO DRIVE. 

8 Section 471(a)(24) of the Social Security Act (42 

9 U.S.C. 671(a)(24)) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘and knowledge and skills’’ and 

2 inserting ‘‘knowledge and skills’’; and 

3 (2) by inserting before the semicolon at the end 

4 the following: ‘‘and, when appropriate to the age or 

5 other circumstance of the child, knowledge and skills 

6 related to preparing the child to drive, including as7 suring opportunity for practice driving hours and as8 sistance in obtaining a driver’s license and auto9 motive insurance and in applying as needed for driv10 ing and transportation assistance as described in 

11 section 477(k)’’. 

12 SEC. 3. REQUIREMENT TO INCLUDE A PLAN FOR DRIVING 

13 PREPARATION IN CASE PLAN. 

14 Section 475(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

15 675(1)) is amended— 

16 (1) in subparagraph (G)(ii), by moving the 

17 margin for subclause (II) 2 ems to the right; and 

18 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(H) A plan for assuring that the child, 

20 when appropriate to the age or other cir21 cumstance of the child, receives assistance, 

22 knowledge, and skills related to preparing to 

23 drive, including opportunity for practice driving 

24 hours and assistance in obtaining a driver’s li25 cense and automotive insurance and in applying 


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1 as needed for driving and transportation assist2 ance as described in section 477(k).’’. 

3 SEC. 4. DRIVING AND TRANSPORTATION ASSISTANCE PRO4 GRAM. 

5 (a) PURPOSE.—Section 477(a) of the Social Security 

6 Act (42 U.S.C. 677(a)) is amended— 

7 (1) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

8 end; 

9 (2) in paragraph (7), by striking the period at 

10 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

12 ‘‘(8) to provide driving and transportation as13 sistance to children in foster care and certain former 

14 foster care recipients who have attained the appro15 priate age and circumstances to begin receiving such 

16 assistance.’’. 

17 (b) DRIVING AND TRANSPORTATION ASSISTANCE.— 

18 Section 477 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 677) 

19 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(k) FUNDS FOR DRIVING AND TRANSPORTATION

21 ASSISTANCE.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The following conditions 

23 shall apply to a State driving and transportation as24 sistance program under this section: 


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1 ‘‘(A) Assistance under the program shall 

2 be available to youth who have experienced fos3 ter care at age 14 or older, as described in sub4 section (a)(1). 

5 ‘‘(B) The State may allow youths partici6 pating in the assistance program on the date 

7 they attain 21 years of age to remain eligible 

8 until they attain 26 years of age, as long as the 

9 State is satisfied that they are working or en10 rolled in a postsecondary education or other 

11 employment training program and are making 

12 satisfactory progress toward completion of that 

13 program. 

14 ‘‘(C) The assistance provided for an indi15 vidual under this section— 

16 ‘‘(i) may include vehicle insurance 

17 costs, driver’s education class and testing 

18 fees, practice lessons, practice hours, li19 cense fees, roadside assistance, deductible 

20 assistance, assistance in purchasing an 

21 automobile, and any other costs related to 

22 obtaining a driver’s license and driving le23 gally in the State; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) shall not exceed the lesser of 

25 $4,000 per year or the total cost of the 


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1 items described in clause (i), excluding the 

2 cost of a vehicle purchased as part of the 

3 program. 

4 ‘‘(D) The State shall ensure that, in the 

5 case of a youth in foster care under the age of 

6 18 participating in the assistance program, the 

7 youth’s foster parent (if any) may authorize an8 other adult to provide any authorization re9 quired by the State to be provided by a parent 

10 or guardian in order for such a youth to obtain 

11 a driver’s license or permit or take driving les12 sons. 

13 ‘‘(E) The State shall work to remove bar14 riers to obtaining a driver’s license and appro15 priate insurance for youth under the age of 18, 

16 such as addressing liability and insurance laws 

17 to allow minor youth to more easily obtain a li18 cense. 

19 ‘‘(F) The amount of assistance under this 

20 section— 

21 ‘‘(i) shall not, for purposes of the In22 ternal Revenue Code of 1986, be includible 

23 in the gross income of the individual with 

24 respect to whom such assistance is pro25 vided, and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) shall be disregarded for purposes 

2 of determining such individual’s eligibility 

3 for, or the amount of, any other Federal or 

4 federally supported assistance, except that 

5 the State agency shall take appropriate 

6 steps to prevent duplication of benefits 

7 under this and other Federal or federally 

8 supported programs. 

9 ‘‘(G) The State shall coordinate the pro10 gram with other appropriate programs, includ11 ing those described under subsection (b)(3)(F), 

12 to support current and former youth in their 

13 transition to adulthood. 

14 ‘‘(H) The State shall work to streamline 

15 processes for communicating program eligibility 

16 and shall conduct public awareness efforts to 

17 ensure that foster youth are aware of the assist18 ance available under the program. 

19 ‘‘(I) The State agrees to submit such an20 nual data to the Secretary as the Secretary may 

21 require, including data specifying the number of 

22 individuals, of those in foster care or formerly 

23 in foster care who have attained from 15 to 26 

24 years of age, who (as appropriate to the age 

25 and other circumstances of the individual)— 


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1 ‘‘(i) are eligible for a driver’s license; 

2 ‘‘(ii) have completed a driver’s edu3 cation course; 

4 ‘‘(iii) have completed driver’s training 

5 hours; 

6 ‘‘(iv) have obtained a learner’s permit; 

7 ‘‘(v) have obtained a driver’s license; 

8 ‘‘(vi) own a vehicle or otherwise have 

9 access to a vehicle to drive; and 

10 ‘‘(vii) have automotive liability insur11 ance. 

12 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—The Secretary shall annually 

13 submit a report to the Committee on Ways and 

14 Means of the House of Representatives and the 

15 Committee on Finance of the Senate on the State 

16 driving and transportation assistance program under 

17 this subsection, and shall make such report publicly 

18 available. Such report shall include a compilation of 

19 the State data submitted to the Secretary under 

20 paragraph (1)(I).’’. 

21 (c) CERTIFICATION.—Section 477(b)(3) of the Social 

22 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 677(b)(3)) is amended by adding 

23 at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(L) A certification by the chief executive 

25 officer of the State that the State driving and 


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1 transportation assistance program under this 

2 section is in compliance with the conditions 

3 specified in subsection (k)(1), including a state4 ment describing methods the State will use— 

5 ‘‘(i) to ensure that the total amount 

6 of driving and transportation assistance to 

7 a youth under this section and under other 

8 Federal and federally supported programs 

9 does not exceed the limitation specified in 

10 subsection (k)(1)(C)(ii); and 

11 ‘‘(ii) to avoid duplication of benefits 

12 under this and any other Federal or feder13 ally assisted benefit program.’’. 

14 (d) INCREASED AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIA15 TIONS.—Section 477(h) of the Social Security Act (42 

16 U.S.C. 677(h)) is amended— 

17 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

18 end; 

19 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at 

20 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

22 ‘‘(3) an additional $36,000,000, which are au23 thorized to be available for payments to States for 

24 driving and transportation assistance in accordance 

25 with subsection (k)(1).’’. 


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1 (e) ALLOTMENTS TO STATES.—Section 477(c) of the 

2 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 677(c)) is amended— 

3 (1) by redesignating paragraph (4) as para4 graph (5); and 

5 (2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(4) DRIVING AND TRANSPORTATION ASSIST8 ANCE ALLOTMENT.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—From the amount, if 

10 any, appropriated pursuant to subsection (h)(3) 

11 for a fiscal year and remaining after the res12 ervation described in subparagraph (B), the 

13 Secretary may allot to each State with an appli14 cation approved under subsection (b) for the 

15 fiscal year an amount equal to the State foster 

16 care ratio multiplied by the amount so specified. 

17 ‘‘(B) RESERVATIONS FOR INDIAN TRIBES

18 AND TRIBAL ORGANIZATIONS.—The Secretary 

19 shall reserve up to 3 percent of the amount ap20 propriated each year pursuant to subsection 

21 (h)(3) for payments to Indian tribes and tribal 

22 organizations to be used in accordance with 

23 subsection (k).’’. 

24 (f) DISCRETIONARY GRANTS.—Section 474 of the 

25 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 674) is amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (e)(1), by striking ‘‘section 

2 477(a)(6)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 477(a)(5)’’; 

3 (2) by redesignating subsections (f) and (g) as 

4 subsections (g) and (h), respectively; and 

5 (3) by inserting after subsection (e) the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(f) DISCRETIONARY GRANTS FOR DRIVING AND

8 TRANSPORTATION ASSISTANCE.—From amounts appro9 priated pursuant to section 477(h)(3), the Secretary may 

10 make a grant to a State with a plan approved under this 

11 part, for a calendar quarter, in an amount equal to the 

12 lesser of— 

13 ‘‘(1) 80 percent of the amounts expended by 

14 the State during the quarter to carry out programs 

15 for the purposes described in section 477(a)(8); or 

16 ‘‘(2) the amount, if any, allotted to the State 

17 under section 477(c)(4)(A) for the fiscal year in 

18 which the quarter occurs, reduced by the total of the 

19 amounts payable to the State under this subsection 

20 for such purposes for all prior quarters in the fiscal 

21 year.’’. 

22 (g) PAYMENTS TO INDIAN TRIBAL ORGANIZA23 TIONS.—Section 477 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

24 677), as amended by subsection (b), is further amended 

25 by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(l) PAYMENTS TO INDIAN TRIBES AND TRIBAL OR2 GANIZATIONS FOR DRIVING AND TRANSPORTATION AS3 SISTANCE PROGRAMS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An Indian tribe or tribal 

5 organization (as such terms are defined for purposes 

6 of section 428(c)) which has a plan for child welfare 

7 services approved under subpart 1 of part B of this 

8 title and which operates a foster care program may 

9 apply for an allotment out of any amounts reserved 

10 for a fiscal year under subsection (c)(4)(B) to carry 

11 out programs for the purposes described in sub12 section (a)(8). 

13 ‘‘(2) APPLICATION.—An Indian tribe or tribal 

14 organization desiring an allotment under paragraph 

15 (1) of this subsection shall submit an application to 

16 the Secretary to directly receive such allotment that 

17 includes a plan which— 

18 ‘‘(A) satisfies such requirements of sub19 sections (b)(3) and (k) as the Secretary deter20 mines are appropriate in consultation with the 

21 tribe or tribal organization; 

22 ‘‘(B) contains a description of the Indian 

23 tribe or tribal organization’s consultation proc24 ess regarding the programs to be carried out 


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1 under the plan with each State in which the In2 dian tribe or tribal organization is located; and 

3 ‘‘(C) contains an explanation of the results 

4 of such consultation, particularly with respect 

5 to— 

6 ‘‘(i) determining the eligibility for 

7 driving and transportation assistance bene8 fits and services of Indian children to be 

9 served under the programs to be carried 

10 out under the plan; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) the process for consulting with 

12 the State in order to ensure the continuity 

13 of such benefits and services for such chil14 dren who will transition from receiving 

15 such benefits and services under programs 

16 carried out under a State plan under sub17 section (b)(2) to receiving such benefits 

18 and services under programs carried out 

19 under a plan under this subsection. 

20 ‘‘(3) PAYMENTS.—The Secretary shall pay an 

21 Indian tribe or tribal organization with an applica22 tion approved under this subsection from the allot23 ment determined for the Indian tribe or tribal orga24 nization under paragraph (4) in the same manner as 

25 is provided in section 474(f) with respect to a State, 


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1 or in such other manner as is determined appro2 priate by the Secretary, except that in no case shall 

3 an Indian tribe or tribal organization receive a lesser 

4 proportion of such funds than a State is authorized 

5 to receive under such section. 

6 ‘‘(4) ALLOTMENT.—From the total amount re7 served for a fiscal year under subsection (c)(4)(B), 

8 the Secretary shall allot to the Indian tribes or tribal 

9 organizations with an application approved under 

10 this subsection for that fiscal year an amount based 

11 on each Indian tribe or tribal organization’s share of 

12 the total tribal child population among all such 

13 tribes and tribal organizations with an application so 

14 approved. 

15 ‘‘(5) DATA AND EVALUATION.—The Secretary 

16 shall consult with tribes and tribal organizations to 

17 determine the tribally relevant data needed to under18 stand how the driving and transportation assistance 

19 program helps tribal youth and if any policies would 

20 improve tribal youth access to drivers’ licenses and, 

21 to the extent practicable, the number and demo22 graphic data of tribal youth served. 

23 ‘‘(6) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.—In deter24 mining the amounts expended by an Indian tribe or 

25 tribal organization for purposes of section 474(f)(1), 


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1 the Secretary may take into account in-kind expendi2 tures of the Indian tribe or tribal organization.’’. 

3 (h) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—Section 477(g)(2) of 

4 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 677(g)(2)) is amend5 ed— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘the amount specified in sub7 section (h)’’ and inserting ‘‘each of the amounts 

8 specified in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection 

9 (h), and up to 5 percent of the amount specified in 

10 paragraph (3) of such subsection,’’; and 

11 (2) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘With 

12 respect to such reservations of amounts specified in 

13 paragraph (3) of subsection (h), the Secretary— 

14 ‘‘(A) shall consider a higher reservation of 

15 funds for initial fiscal years to the extent nec16 essary to support States in establishing a new 

17 program in each State; and 

18 ‘‘(B) shall not consider an entity an appro19 priate entity unless the entity has demonstrated 

20 the capacity to successfully administer a State21 mandated program to provide driver’s licenses 

22 to youth under the age of 18 who are in State 

23 foster care and to increase the number of such 

24 foster youth who obtain a driver’s license.’’. 

Æ 


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