(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 408 of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 608), by subsection (d)(1), 
is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subsection: 
‘‘(i) STATE REQUIRED TO EXEMPT OLDER CARE-
TAKER RELATIVES FROM WORK PARTICIPATION WHERE 
CARETAKER RECEIVES ASSISTANCE.—A State shall not 
require an individual to engage in work, and, at the option 
of the State and on a case-by-case basis, may disregard 
such individual in determining the participation rates 
under section 407(a), if the individual— 
‘‘(1) is an older caretaker relative (as defined 
for purposes of subsection (a)(14)); and 
‘‘(2) directly receives assistance on the individ-
ual’s own behalf under the State program funded 
under this part or any other State program funded 
with qualified expenditures (as defined in section 
409(a)(7)(B)(i)).’’. 
(2) PENALTY.—Paragraph (18) of section 
409(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
609(a)), as added by subsection (d)(2), is amended 
by inserting ‘‘or (i)’’ after ‘‘subsection (h)’’. 
(3) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—402(a)(1)(A) 
of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 602(a)(1)(A)) 
is amended— 
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(A) in clause (ii), by inserting ‘‘and subject 
to subsection (h) and (i) of section 408’’ before 
the period; and 
(B) in clause (iii), by inserting ‘‘and sub-
ject to subsection (h) and (i) of section 408’’ 
before the period. 
(g) DISREGARD
OF INCOME, ASSETS, AND RE-
SOURCES FOR OLDER CARETAKER RELATIVES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 408(a) of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 608(a)), as previously 
amended by this section, is amended by adding at 
the end the following new paragraph: 
‘‘(14) DISREGARD
OF
INCOME, ASSETS, AND 
RESOURCES FOR OLDER CARETAKER RELATIVES.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—In determining the 
eligibility for, and amount of, assistance under 
the State program funded under this part or 
any other State program funded with qualified 
State expenditures (as defined in section 
409(a)(7)(B)(i)) for a family that includes an 
individual who is an older caretaker relative (as 
defined in subparagraph (B)), a State to which 
a grant is made under section 403 shall not 
take into account the income, assets, or re-
sources of that individual. 
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‘‘(B) DEFINITION.— 
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—For purposes of 
this paragraph, the term ‘older caretaker 
relative’ means an individual who— 
‘‘(I) subject to clause (ii), has at-
tained age 55; and 
‘‘(II) is the primary caretaker for 
a minor child who— 
‘‘(aa) is living with the indi-
vidual; 
‘‘(bb) does not have a parent 
living in the home; and 
‘‘(cc) is a relative of the in-
dividual. 
‘‘(ii) STATE OPTION TO MODIFY AGE 
CRITERION.—At the option of a State, 
such term shall include an individual who 
has not attained age 55. 
‘‘(iii) DETERMINATION TO BE MADE 
BY STATE.—The determination of whether 
an individual meets the criteria described 
in clause (i)(II) shall be made by the 
State.’’. 
(2) PENALTY.—Section 409(a) of the Social Se-
curity Act (42 U.S.C. 609(a)), as previously amend-
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ed by this section, is amended by adding at the end 
the following new paragraph: 
‘‘(20) PENALTY FOR FAILURE TO DISREGARD 
INCOME, ASSETS, AND
RESOURCES
FOR
OLDER 
CARETAKER
RELATIVES.—If the Secretary deter-
mines that a State to which a grant is made under 
section 403 in a fiscal year has violated section 
408(a)(14) during the fiscal year, the Secretary 
shall reduce the grant payable to the State under 
section 403(a)(1) for the immediately succeeding fis-
cal year by an amount equal to 3 percent of the 
State family assistance grant.’’. 
(h) ENSURING EQUITABLE TREATMENT FOR OLDER 
CARETAKER RELATIVES UNDER TANF.— 
(1) STATE
NOTIFICATIONS
TO
OLDER
CARE-
TAKER RELATIVES OF CHILD TANF RECIPIENTS.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Section 408(a) of the 
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 608(a)), as pre-
viously amended by this section, is amended by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(15) STATE REQUIREMENTS REGARDING NO-
TICE TO RELATIVE CARETAKERS.—A State to which 
a grant is made under section 403 shall— 
‘‘(A) ensure that the State agency respon-
sible for administering the State program fund-
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ed under this part employs a resource employee 
who is trained to provide guidance to an older 
caretaker relative of a minor child if the child 
is a recipient of assistance under the program 
(or under a State program funded with quali-
fied State expenditures (as defined in section 
409(a)(7)(B)(i))), on legal options regarding 
custody and guardianship of the child, including 
explaining to the relative caretaker how each 
legal option corresponds to the availability of 
benefits and services, and who serves as a liai-
son with other agencies and community organi-
zations that provide resources and assistance to 
relative caretakers; and 
‘‘(B) ensure that the State agency provides 
to any older caretaker relative of a minor child 
if the child is a recipient of assistance under 
the State program funded under this part (or 
under a State program funded with qualified 
State expenditures (as defined in section 
409(a)(7)(B)(i))), written notice that— 
‘‘(i) explains the options of the older 
caretaker relative under Federal, State, 
and local law to participate in the care and 
placement of the child, including the finan-
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cial ramifications of the options and any 
options that may be lost by choosing cer-
tain benefits; 
‘‘(ii) describes the requirements under 
section 471(a)(10) to become a foster fam-
ily home and the additional services and 
supports that are available for a child 
placed in such a home; 
‘‘(iii) if the State has elected the op-
tion to make guardianship assistance pay-
ments under section 471(a)(28), describes 
how the relative caretaker may enter into 
an agreement with the State to receive the 
payments; 
‘‘(iv) describes policies under the 
State program funded under this part that 
are designed to help older caretaker rel-
atives, including income, asset, and re-
source exemptions in determining program 
eligibility, ‘good cause’ exemptions to child 
support enforcement policies, and work re-
quirement exemptions; 
‘‘(v) provides direct contact informa-
tion for other agencies and community or-
ganizations that provide resources and as-
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sistance, such as housing, supplemental 
nutrition assistance, health care, and child 
care; and 
‘‘(vi) provides direct contact informa-
tion for the resource employee described in 
subparagraph (A).’’. 
(B) INCLUSION IN STATE PLAN.—Section 
402(a)(1)(B) 
of 
such 
Act 
(42 
U.S.C. 
602(a)(1)(B)) is amended by adding at the end 
the following: 
‘‘(vi) The document shall provide a 
detailed explanation of how the State in-
tends to comply with section 408(a)(15).’’. 
(C) PENALTY.—Section 409(a) of such Act 
(42 U.S.C. 609(a)) is amended by adding at the 
end the following: 
‘‘(21) FAILURE
TO
NOTIFY
RELATIVE
CARE-
TAKERS.—If the Secretary determines that a State 
to which a grant is made under section 403 for a 
fiscal year has violated section 408(a)(15) during 
the fiscal year, the Secretary shall reduce the grant 
payable to the State under section 403(a)(1) for the 
immediately succeeding fiscal year by an amount 
equal to 4 percent of the grant.’’. 
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(2) STATE
TREATMENT
OF
RELATIVE
CARE-
TAKERS
OF
CHILD
TANF
RECIPIENTS.—Section 
402(a)(1)(B) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
602(a)), as amended by paragraph (2)(B), is further 
amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(vii) The document shall provide a 
detailed explanation of the State’s treat-
ment of older caretaker relatives of minor 
children, in cases in which the child is a 
recipient of assistance under the State pro-
gram funded under this part (or under a 
State program funded with qualified State 
expenditures 
(as 
defined 
in 
section 
409(a)(7)(B)(i))), including— 
‘‘(I) information regarding how 
the State defines terms such as ‘rel-
ative’, ‘fictive kin’, and ‘caretaker’; 
‘‘(II) a description of the training 
received by caseworkers of the State 
agency responsible for administering 
the program in relation to older care-
taker relatives of minor children, in 
cases in which the child is such a re-
cipient; 
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‘‘(III) an explanation of the ways 
in which assistance available under 
the program to an older relative care-
taker of a minor child is affected by 
the temporary presence in the home of 
a biological parent of the child; and 
‘‘(IV) an explanation of how ben-
efits are adjusted for older caretaker 
relatives including income, asset, and 
resource exemptions in determining 
program eligibility, ‘good cause’ ex-
emptions to child support enforcement 
policies, and work requirement exemp-
tions.’’. 
(3) ENHANCED
DATA
REPORTING.—Section 
411(a)(7) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
611(a)(7)) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: ‘‘The Secretary shall also prescribe regula-
tions to improve the reporting of data on the eco-
nomic well-being and circumstances of families with 
older relative caretakers of minor children, including, 
to the extent practicable, information relating to— 
‘‘(A) all adults in the family, including 
whether or not such adults are recipients of as-
sistance under the State program funded under 
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this part (or under a State program funded 
with qualified State expenditures (as defined in 
section 409(a)(7)(B)(i))); 
‘‘(B) all minor children in the family, in-
cluding whether any such minor child— 
‘‘(i) is required to be included in the 
foster care reporting population for pur-
poses of the Adoption and Foster Care 
Analysis Reporting System (AFCARS) es-
tablished pursuant to section 479; or 
‘‘(ii) is not required to be so included 
in such foster care reporting population, 
but— 
‘‘(I) is receiving services in the 
home of the relative caretaker that 
are supervised or administered by the 
State agency responsible for admin-
istering the State plan approved 
under part B; 
‘‘(II) was placed with the relative 
caretaker to prevent the need for fos-
ter care as a result of an intervention 
on behalf of the child which was car-
ried out or supervised by the State 
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agency administering the State plans 
under parts B and E; or 
‘‘(III) was placed with the rel-
ative caretaker upon formal discharge 
from the care and placement responsi-
bility of the State agency admin-
istering the plans under part B or E; 
‘‘(iii) all families who applied for a 
good-cause exemption to the State’s child 
enforcement cooperation policies; and 
‘‘(iv) all families who received a good- 
cause exemption to the State’s child en-
forcement cooperation policies.’’. 
(i) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), the amendments made by this section 
shall take effect on the first day of the first fiscal 
year that begins after the date of enactment of this 
Act. 
(2) DELAY PERMITTED.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—Before the date de-
scribed in subparagraph (B), a State plan 
under title IV of the Social Security Act shall 
not be regarded as failing to comply with an ad-
ditional requirement imposed on the plan by 
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this section if the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services determines that such addi-
tional requirement— 
(i) requires State legislation (other 
than legislation appropriating funds) in 
order for the plan to meet such additional 
requirement; or 
(ii) could not practicably be met by 
the plan before such date. 
(B) DATE DESCRIBED.—For purposes of 
subparagraph (A), the date described in this 
subparagraph is, with respect to a State, the 
first day of the first calendar quarter beginning 
after the close of the first regular session of the 
State legislature that begins after the date of 
enactment of this section. For purposes of the 
previous sentence, in the case of a State that 
has a 2-year legislative session, each year of 
such session shall be deemed to be a separate 
regular session of the State legislature. 
SEC. 4. IMPROVING THE COLLECTION OF CHILD SUPPORT 
FOR FAMILIES RECEIVING TANF ASSISTANCE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 454 of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 654) is amended— 
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(1) by redesignating paragraphs (30) through 
(34) as paragraphs (31) through (35), respectively; 
and 
(2) by inserting after paragraph (29) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(30) include a description of— 
‘‘(A) the methods used by the State to de-
termine whether an individual who has applied 
for or is receiving assistance under the State 
program funded under part A, the State pro-
gram under part E, the State program under 
title XIX, or the supplemental nutrition assist-
ance program, as defined under section 3(h) of 
the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 
2012(h)), is cooperating in good faith with the 
State in establishing paternity or in estab-
lishing, modifying, or enforcing a support order, 
as provided in paragraph (29); 
‘‘(B) the State’s process for determining in 
a timely manner whether such an individual 
satisfies the cooperation requirement described 
in subparagraph (A) due to the individual’s 
participation in another State or Federal assist-
ance program; 
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‘‘(C) the good cause or other exceptions to 
the cooperation requirement that the State rec-
ognizes, including an explanation of any special 
requirements or considerations for an older rel-
ative caretaker seeking to apply for such an ex-
ception; and 
‘‘(D) how the State makes clear to an indi-
vidual who has applied for or is receiving assist-
ance under a program referred to in subpara-
graph (A)— 
‘‘(i) what, if anything, the individual 
needs to do in order to satisfy the coopera-
tion requirement, including explaining to 
the individual how the individual might 
satisfy the requirement through participa-
tion in another State or Federal assistance 
program; 
‘‘(ii) the effect on the individual’s eli-
gibility to receive assistance under a pro-
gram referred to in subparagraph (A), and 
under other State or Federal assistance 
programs, if the individual fails to satisfy 
the cooperation requirement; and 
‘‘(iii) the good cause or other excep-
tions to the cooperation requirement for 
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which the individual may be eligible, in-
cluding the standard of proof required to 
qualify for each exception and an expla-
nation of any special requirements or con-
siderations for older caretaker relatives;’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Title IV of the So-
cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is amended— 
(1) in section 452(k)(1), by striking ‘‘section 
454(31)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 454(32)’’; and 
(2) in section 454, in the matter following para-
graph (35) (as redesignated by subsection (a)) by 
striking ‘‘paragraph (33)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph 
(34)’’. 
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
this section shall take effect on the first day of the first 
fiscal year that begins after the date of enactment of this 
Act. 
SEC. 5. ENCOURAGING STATES TO ADOPT TEMPORARY 
GUARDIANSHIP LAWS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 474(a)(7) of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 674(a)(7)) is amended by insert-
ing ‘‘(or, in the case of a State that has in effect for the 
quarter a temporary guardianship law (as defined in sec-
tion 475(14)), 75 percent)’’ after ‘‘50 percent’’. 
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(b) DEFINITION.—Section 475 of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 675) is amended by adding at the end the 
following new paragraph: 
‘‘(14)(A) The term ‘temporary guardianship law’ 
means a State law that allows for the establishment, by 
operation of such law and through an easily navigable sim-
ple civil process of a relationship between a child and a 
nonparent caretaker who has taken responsibility for car-
ing for the child in the absence of the child’s parents in 
which some of the parental rights with respect to the child 
are transferred to the caretaker for a specified period of 
time which may be extended or renewed, except that the 
total period of time for which such rights are transferred 
to the caretaker (including any extensions or renewals) 
shall not exceed a maximum period of time (as established 
by the State). 
‘‘(B) Under the process established under a law de-
scribed in subparagraph (A)— 
‘‘(i) court fees shall be waived or reduced; and 
‘‘(ii) any court forms or filings related to the 
process are easy enough to understand that a non-
parent caretaker who has taken responsibility for 
caring for the child in the absence of the child’s par-
ents could reasonably complete such forms or filings 
without legal assistance.’’. 
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(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
this section shall take effect on the first day of the first 
fiscal year that begins after the date of enactment of this 
Act. 
SEC. 6. GUIDANCE. 
(a) GUIDANCE TO STATES ON ENSURING AWARE-
NESS
OF CHILD WELFARE SYSTEM AMONG KINSHIP 
CAREGIVERS.—Not later than the first day of the first fis-
cal year that begins after the date of enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall 
issue guidance to States on ways to ensure that kinship 
caregivers who receive assistance under a State program 
funded under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act 
(42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) or any other State program fund-
ed with qualified State expenditures (as defined in section 
409(a)(7)(B)(i) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 609(a)(7)(B)(i))) 
are— 
(1) provided with information about any appro-
priate assistance and services available to them 
through the child welfare system of the State, in-
cluding eligibility for foster care licensure and path-
ways to guardianship assitance programs or adop-
tion subsidies, and how to access such assistance 
and services; and 
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