Title: Caring Homes and Improved Lives for Dependents (CHILD) Act
Policy area: Families

Summary:
Caring Homes and Improved Lives for Dependents (CHILD) Act
This bill requires states to consider foster family homes or cottage homes to be the least restrictive setting for children who have attained six years of age and have been removed from their homes, if suitable relatives or other designated caregivers are not available. A cottage home is a residential operation:
The bill makes cottage homes eligible for foster care maintenance payments.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4983 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4983

   To amend part E of title IV of the Social Security Act to require 
  States to provide for the placement of a foster child in a cottage 
     home, and to make a child so placed eligible for foster care 
                         maintenance payments.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            February 8, 2018

 Mr. Meadows 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 provide for the placement of a foster child in a cottage 
     home, and to make a child so placed eligible for foster care 
                         maintenance payments.

    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 ``Caring Homes and Improved Lives for 
Dependents (CHILD) Act''.

SEC. 2. PLACEMENT OF FOSTER CHILDREN IN COTTAGE HOMES.

    (a) State Plan Requirement.--Section 471(a) of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 671(a)), as amended by the Family First Prevention 
Services Act, is amended--
            (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (36);
            (2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (37) and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(38) provides that, with respect to a child who has 
        attained 6 years of age and who is removed from the child's 
        home, if a suitable relative or other designated caregiver is 
        not available as a placement for the child, placing the child 
        in a foster family home or a cottage home shall be considered 
        the least restrictive setting for the child.''.
    (b) Eligibility for Foster Care Maintenance Payments of Certain 
Children Placed in a Cottage Home.--Section 472(a)(2)(C) of such Act 
(42 U.S.C. 672(a)(2)(C)) is amended by striking ``home or child-care 
institution'' and inserting ``home, a child-care institution, or (if 
the child has attained 6 years of age and a suitable relative or other 
designated caregiver is not available as a placement for the child) a 
cottage home that is not a foster family home or child-care 
institution''.
    (c) Definition of Cottage Home.--Section 472(c) of such Act (42 
U.S.C. 672(c)), as amended by the Family First Prevention Services Act, 
is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) Cottage home.--The term `cottage home' means a 
        residential operation--
                    ``(A) in which not more than 12 children reside;
                    ``(B) that has and implements a trauma-informed 
                treatment plan for its residents;
                    ``(C) that involves family members of a child in 
                the treatment for the child, and maintains contact with 
                the family of the child, if available and if the 
                involvement is clinically appropriate for the well-
                being of the child;
                    ``(D) that is licensed by the State in which it is 
                situated or has been approved, by the agency of such 
                State responsible for licensing or approval of 
                institutions of this type; and
                    ``(E) that is accredited by the Council on 
                Accreditation or another national accrediting body.''.
    (d) Effective Date.--
            (1) In general.--The amendments made by this section shall 
        take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act, and shall 
        apply to payments under part E of title IV of the Social 
        Security Act for calendar quarters beginning on or after such 
        date.
            (2) Delay permitted if state legislation required.--If the 
        Secretary of Health and Human Services determines that State 
        legislation (other than legislation appropriating funds) is 
        required in order for a State plan under part E of title IV of 
        the Social Security Act to meet the additional requirements 
        imposed by the amendments made by this section, the plan shall 
        not be regarded as failing to meet any of the additional 
        requirements before the first day of the first calendar quarter 
        beginning after the first regular session of the State 
        legislature that begins after the date of the enactment of this 
        Act. For purposes of the preceding sentence, if the State has a 
        2-year legislative session, each year of the session is deemed 
        to be a separate regular session of the State legislature.
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