Title: Family First Transition Assistance Act of 2019
Policy area: Social Welfare

Summary:
Family First Transition Assistance Act of 2019
This bill makes changes to federal foster care programs, including by appropriating funding through FY2024 for certain competitive grants for states, tribes, or tribal consortia. These grants focus on recruiting and retaining foster families and providing substance abuse treatment and mental health services in specified settings.
Other changes include temporarily increasing federal matching funds for data collection and information systems.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3017 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3017

   To amend parts B and E of title IV of the Social Security Act to 
 provide resources to implement the programmatic changes necessary to 
meet the requirements of the Family First Prevention Services Act, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 23, 2019

 Mr. Wenstrup introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend parts B and E of title IV of the Social Security Act to 
 provide resources to implement the programmatic changes necessary to 
meet the requirements of the Family First Prevention Services Act, and 
                          for other purposes.

    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 ``Family First Transition Assistance 
Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. FINDING.

    The Congress finds that the Department of Health and Human Services 
has full authority to execute section 50711 of Public Law 115-123, 
giving certainty to States and expediting help to children and 
families.

SEC. 3. PHASE-IN OF 50 PERCENT WELL-SUPPORTED PREVENTION PRACTICES 
              REQUIREMENT.

    Section 474(a)(6)(A)(ii) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
674(a)(6)(A)(ii)) is amended to read as follows:
                            ``(ii)(I) not less than the applicable 
                        percentage of the total amount expended by a 
                        State under clause (I) for a fiscal year shall 
                        be for the provision of services or programs 
                        specified in subparagraph (A) or (B) of section 
                        471(e)(1) that are provided in accordance with 
                        well-supported practices; and
                            ``(II) for purposes of subclause (I), the 
                        term `applicable percentage' means--
                                    ``(aa) 0 percent, in the case of 
                                each of fiscal years 2020 through 2023;
                                    ``(bb) 20 percent, in the case of 
                                fiscal years 2024 and 2025;
                                    ``(cc) 35 percent, in the case of 
                                fiscal years 2026 and 2027; and
                                    ``(dd) 50 percent, in the case of 
                                fiscal year 2028 and each succeeding 
                                fiscal year; plus''.

SEC. 4. SUPPORT FOR FOSTER FAMILY HOMES.

    Section 436(c) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 629f(c)) is 
amended to read as follows:
    ``(c) Support for Foster Family Homes.--Out of any money in the 
Treasury of the United States not otherwise appropriated, there are 
appropriated to the Secretary for each of fiscal years 2020 through 
2024 $20,000,000 for the Secretary to make competitive grants to 
States, Indian tribes, or tribal consortia to support the recruitment 
and retention of high-quality foster families to increase their 
capacity to place more children in family settings. The grants shall be 
focused on States, Indian tribes, or tribal consortia with the highest 
percentage of children in non-family settings.''.

SEC. 5. SUPPORT TO INCREASE QUALITY FAMILY AND RESIDENTIAL CARE 
              SETTINGS.

    Section 436 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 629f) is amended 
by adding at the end the following:
    ``(d) Support To Increase Quality Family and Residential Care 
Settings.--Out of any money in the Treasury of the United States not 
otherwise appropriated, there are appropriated to the Secretary for 
each of fiscal years 2020 through 2024 $20,000,000 for the Secretary to 
make competitive grants to States, Indian tribes, or tribal consortia 
to improve State capacity to offer therapeutic treatment foster family 
homes and licensed residential family-based facilities for substance 
abuse treatment and mental health care. The grants shall be focused on 
States, Indian tribes, or tribal consortia with the greatest need for 
services, accreditation, and capacity.''.

SEC. 6. TEMPORARY ENHANCED MATCH FOR PLANNING, DESIGN, DEVELOPMENT, OR 
              INSTALLATION OF STATEWIDE DATA COLLECTION AND INFORMATION 
              RETRIEVAL SYSTEMS.

    (a) In General.--Section 474(a)(3)(C) of the Social Security Act 
(42 U.S.C. 674(a)(3)(C)) is amended by striking ``50'' each place it 
appears and inserting ``75''.
    (b) Elimination.--Effective October 1, 2022, section 474(a)(3)(C) 
of such Act (42 U.S.C. 674(a)(3)(C)), as amended by subsection (a) of 
this section, is amended by striking ``75'' each place it appears and 
inserting ``50''.

SEC. 7. PAY-FOR.

    Section 403(b)(2) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 603(b)(2)) 
is amended by striking ``2018 such sums as are necessary for payment to 
the Fund in a total amount not to exceed $608,000,000'' and inserting 
``2020 such sums as are necessary for payment to the Fund in a total 
amount not to exceed $568,000,000''.

SEC. 8. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    (a) In General.--Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the 
amendments made by this Act shall take effect on October 1, 2019.
    (b) In General.--In the case of a State plan under part B or E of 
title IV of the Social Security Act which the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services determines requires State legislation (other than 
legislation appropriating funds) in order for the plan to meet the 
additional requirements imposed by the amendments made by this Act, the 
State plan shall not be regarded as failing to comply with the 
requirements of such part solely on the basis of the failure of the 
plan to meet the additional requirements before 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 the 
enactment of this Act. For purposes of the preceding sentence, in the 
case of a State that has a 2-year legislative session, each year of the 
session shall be deemed to be a separate regular session of the State 
legislature.
    (c) Application to Programs Operated by Indian Tribal 
Organizations.--In the case of an Indian tribe, tribal organization, or 
tribal consortium which the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
determines requires time to take action necessary to comply with the 
additional requirements imposed by the amendments made by this Act 
(whether the tribe, organization, or tribal consortium has a plan under 
section 479B of the Social Security Act or a cooperative agreement or 
contract entered into with a State), the Secretary shall provide the 
tribe, organization, or tribal consortium with such additional time as 
the Secretary determines is necessary for the tribe, organization, or 
tribal consortium to take the action to comply with the additional 
requirements before being regarded as failing to comply with the 
requirements.
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