CONNECT Act
Bill: S.1033 | Sponsor: Sen. Peters, Gary C. (D-MI)
Policy area: Social Welfare

Summary:
Childhood Outcomes Need New Efficient Community Teams or the CONNECT Act
This bill authorizes the Department of Health and Human Services, in collaboration with the Department of Justice, to award grants jointly to state child welfare and juvenile justice agencies to collaborate on data collection related to, and address the needs of, dual-status youth and their families. These are children who have come into contact with both child welfare and juvenile justice systems.
Among other application requirements, the agencies must identify senior officials from their agencies and other relevant youth- and family-serving entities that will manage and oversee grant activities.

To amend title IV of the Social Security Act to allow the Secretary of 
   Health and Human Services to award competitive grants to enhance 
collaboration between State child welfare and juvenile justice systems.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Childhood Outcomes Need New 
Efficient Community Teams'' or the ``CONNECT Act''.

SEC. 2. AUTHORITY TO AWARD COMPETITIVE GRANTS TO ENHANCE COLLABORATION 
              BETWEEN STATE CHILD WELFARE AND JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEMS.

    (a) In General.--Subpart 1 of part B of title IV of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 621 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 
the following new section:

``SEC. 429A. GRANTS TO STATES TO ENHANCE COLLABORATION BETWEEN STATE 
              CHILD WELFARE AND JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEMS.

    ``(a) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is to authorize the 
Secretary, in collaboration with the Attorney General and the 
Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency 
Prevention of the Department of Justice, to make grants to State child 
welfare and juvenile justice agencies to collaborate in the collection 
of data relating to dual status youth and to develop practices, 
policies, and protocols to confront the challenges presented and 
experienced by dual status youth.
    ``(b) Authority To Award Grants.--
            ``(1) In general.--Subject to the availability of 
        appropriations, from amounts reserved under section 423(a)(2) 
        for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall award competitive grants 
        jointly to a State child welfare agency and a State juvenile 
        justice agency to facilitate or enhance collaboration between 
        the child welfare and juvenile justice systems of the State in 
        order to carry out programs to address the needs of dual status 
        youth and their families.
            ``(2) Length of grants.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A grant shall be awarded under 
                this section for a period of not less than 2, and not 
                more than 5, fiscal years, subject to subparagraph (B).
                    ``(B) Extension of grant.--On application of the 
                grantee, the Secretary may extend for not more than 2 
                fiscal years the period for which a grant is awarded 
                under this section.
    ``(c) Additional Requirements.--
            ``(1) Application.--In order for a State to be eligible for 
        a grant under this section, it shall submit an application, to 
        be approved by the Secretary, that includes--
                    ``(A) a description of the proposed leadership 
                collaboration group (including the membership of such 
                group), and how such group will manage and oversee a 
                review and analysis of current practices while working 
                to jointly address enhanced practices to improve 
                outcomes for dual status youth;
                    ``(B) a description of how the State proposes to--
                            ``(i) identify dual status youths;
                            ``(ii) identify individuals who are at risk 
                        of becoming dual status youths;
                            ``(iii) identify common characteristics 
                        shared by dual status youths in the State; and
                            ``(iv) determine the prevalence of dual 
                        status youths in the State;
                    ``(C) a description of current and proposed 
                practices and procedures that the State intends to use 
                to--
                            ``(i) screen and assess dual status youths 
                        for risks and treatment needs;
                            ``(ii) provide targeted and evidence-based 
                        services, including educational, behavioral 
                        health, and pro-social treatment interventions 
                        for dual status youths and their families; and
                            ``(iii) provide for a lawful process to 
                        enhance or ensure the abilities of the State 
                        and any relevant agencies to share information 
                        and data about dual status youths while 
                        maintaining confidentiality and privacy 
                        protections under State and Federal law; and
                    ``(D) a certification that the State has involved 
                local governments, as appropriate, in the development, 
                expansion, modification, operation, or improvement of 
                proposed policy and practice reforms to address the 
                needs of dual status youths.
            ``(2) No supplantation of other funds.--Any amounts paid to 
        a State under a grant under this section shall be used to 
        supplement and not supplant other State expenditures on dual 
        status youths or children involved with either the child 
        welfare or juvenile justice systems.
            ``(3) Evaluation.--Up to 10 percent of the amount made 
        available to carry out this section for a fiscal year shall be 
        made available to the Secretary to evaluate the effectiveness 
        of the projects funded under this section, using a methodology 
        that--
                    ``(A) includes random assignment whenever feasible, 
                or other research methods that allow for the strongest 
                possible causal inferences when random assignment is 
                not feasible; and
                    ``(B) generates evidence on the impact of specific 
                projects, or groups of projects with identical (or 
                similar) practices and procedures.
            ``(4) Report.--A State child welfare agency and a State 
        juvenile justice agency receiving a grant under this section 
        shall jointly submit to the Secretary, the Attorney General, 
        and the Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and 
        Delinquency Prevention of the Department of Justice, a report 
        on the evaluation of the activities carried out under the grant 
        at the end of each fiscal year during the period of the grant. 
        Such report shall include--
                    ``(A) a description of the scope and nature of the 
                dual status youth population in the State, including 
                the number of dual status youth;
                    ``(B) a description of the evidence-based practices 
                and procedures used by the agencies to carry out the 
                activities described in clauses (i) through (iii) of 
                paragraph (1)(C); and
                    ``(C) an analysis of the effects of such practices 
                and procedures, including information regarding--
                            ``(i) the collection of data related to 
                        individual dual status youths;
                            ``(ii) aggregate data related to the dual 
                        status youth population, including--
                                    ``(I) characteristics of dual 
                                status youths in the State;
                                    ``(II) case processing timelines; 
                                and
                                    ``(III) information related to case 
                                management, the provision of targeted 
                                services, and placements within the 
                                foster care or juvenile justice system; 
                                and
                            ``(iii) the extent to which such practices 
                        and procedures have contributed to--
                                    ``(I) improved educational outcomes 
                                for dual status youths;
                                    ``(II) fewer delinquency referrals 
                                for dual status youths;
                                    ``(III) shorter stays in intensive 
                                restrictive placements for dual status 
                                youths; or
                                    ``(IV) such other outcomes for dual 
                                status youths as the State child 
                                welfare agency and State juvenile 
                                justice agency may identify.
    ``(d) Training and Technical Assistance.--The Secretary may support 
State child welfare agencies and State juvenile justice agencies by 
offering a program, developed in consultation with organizations and 
agencies with subject matter expertise, of training and technical 
assistance to assist such agencies in developing programs and protocols 
that draw on best practices for serving dual status youth in order to 
facilitate or enhance--
            ``(1) collaboration between State child welfare agencies 
        and State juvenile justice agencies; and
            ``(2) the effectiveness of such agencies with respect to 
        working with Federal agencies and child welfare and juvenile 
        justice agencies from other States.
    ``(e) Report.--Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment 
of this section, and every 3 years thereafter, the Secretary, the 
Attorney General, and the Administrator of the Office of Juvenile 
Justice and Delinquency Prevention of the Department of Justice shall 
jointly submit to the Committee on Finance and the Committee on the 
Judiciary of the Senate and the Committee on Ways and Means and the 
Committee on Education and Labor of the House of Representatives, a 
report on the grants provided under this section.
    ``(f) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Dual status youth.--The term `dual status youth' 
        means a child who has come into contact with both the child 
        welfare and juvenile justice systems and occupies various 
        statuses in terms of the individual's relationship to such 
        systems.
            ``(2) Leadership collaboration group.--The term `leadership 
        collaboration group' means a group composed of senior officials 
        from the State child welfare agency, the State juvenile justice 
        agency, and other relevant youth and family-serving public 
        agencies and private organizations, including, to the extent 
        practicable, representatives from the State judiciary branch.
            ``(3) State juvenile justice agency.--The term `State 
        juvenile justice agency' means the agency of the State or 
        Indian tribe responsible for administering grant funds awarded 
        under the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 
        1974 (34 U.S.C. 11101 et seq.).
            ``(4) State child welfare agency.--The term `State child 
        welfare agency' means the State agency responsible for 
        administering the program under this subpart, or, in the case 
        of a tribal organization that is receiving payments under 
        section 428, the tribal agency responsible for administering 
        such program.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--Section 423(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
623(a)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``The sum appropriated'' and inserting the 
        following:
            ``(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the sum 
        appropriated''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) Grants to states to enhance collaboration between 
        state child welfare and juvenile justice systems.--For each 
        fiscal year beginning with fiscal year 2022 for which the 
        amount appropriated under section 425 for the fiscal year 
        exceeds $270,000,000--
                    ``(A) the Secretary shall reserve from such excess 
                amount such sums as are necessary for making grants 
                under section 429A for such fiscal year; and
                    ``(B) the remainder to be applied under paragraph 
                (1) for purposes of making allotments to States for 
                such fiscal year shall be determined after the 
                Secretary first allots $70,000 to each State under such 
                paragraph and reserves such sums under subparagraph (A) 
                of this paragraph.''.
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