I 118th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 8885 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES June 28, 2024 Mr. Davis of Illinois (for himself and Mr. Horsford ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means A BILL To amend part B of title IV of the Social Security Act to create a grant program to promote Federal, State, and local coordination to address substance use needs of families in the child welfare system, in order to improve child well-being and permanency.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Partnership Grants to Strengthen Families Affected by Parental Substance Use Disorder Act of 2024 . 2. Regional and statewide partnership grants (a) Eligible partnership defined; other definitions Section 437(f)(2) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629g(f)(2) ) is amended to read as follows: (2) Definitions In this subsection: (A) Eligible partnership (i) In general The term eligible partnership means a collaborative agreement (which may be established on an interstate or intrastate basis) entered into by, at a minimum, each of the following: (I) The State child welfare agency that is responsible for the administration of the State plan under this part and part E. (II) The State agency responsible for administering the substance use disorder prevention and treatment block grant provided under subpart II of part B of title XIX of the Public Health Service Act. (III) The Juvenile Court or Administrative Office of the Court that is most appropriate to oversee the administration of court programs in the region to address the population of families who come to the attention of the court due to child abuse or neglect. (ii) Additional partners An eligible partnership may include any of the following: (I) The State agency responsible for administering the State plan under title XIX. (II) The State agency responsible for administering the Maternal and Child Health Block Grant under title V of this Act. (III) The unit of State government responsible for administering the Community Mental Health Services Block Grant provided under subpart I of part B of title XIX of the Public Health Service Act. (IV) Any other State agency responsible for administering programs that promote child and family well-being, including programs that serve victims of domestic violence, early childhood education programs, elementary school and secondary school programs (as such terms are defined in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 7801 )), programs under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ( 20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq. ), hospital programs, early childhood home visitation programs using funds received under section 511(c) of this Act, and the program for block grants to States for temporary assistance for needy families under part A of this title. (V) An Indian tribe or tribal consortium. (VI) Community child welfare service providers. (VII) Community health service providers. (VIII) Community mental health service providers. (IX) Community domestic violence service providers. (X) Community housing authorities or providers. (XI) Local law enforcement agencies. (XII) Tribal child welfare agencies (or a consortia of such agencies). (XIII) Any other providers, agencies, personnel, officials, or entities that are related to the provision of child and family services under this subpart. (iii) Partnerships entered into by Indian tribes or tribal consortia Notwithstanding clause (i), if an Indian tribe or tribal consortium enters into a partnership for purposes of this subsection, the partnership shall be considered an eligible partnership regardless of whether the partnership includes any entity referred to in clause (i), unless the partnership consists solely of tribal child welfare agencies (or a consortium of such agencies). (B) State Notwithstanding section 431(a)(4), the term State means the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and each of the territories. (C) Territory The term territory means Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands. (D) Indian tribe; tribal organization The terms Indian tribe and tribal organization have the meanings given the terms in section 431(a). . (b) Authority To award grants Section 437(f)(3) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629g(f)(3) ) is amended— (1) by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting the following: (A) In general In addition to amounts authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section, the Secretary shall award, from the amounts reserved for each of fiscal years 2024 through 2030 under section 436(b)(5)— (i) regional partnership grants to eligible partnerships that satisfy the requirements of this subsection; and (ii) statewide partnership grants to eligible partnerships that satisfy the requirements of this subsection and demonstrate an ability to operate statewide, including jurisdictions that are urban, suburban, or rural. ; (2) in subparagraph (B)(i), by striking not less than 2, and not more than 5, and inserting 5 ; (3) in subparagraph (C), by inserting of a regional partnership grant before from applying ; and (4) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) and (C) as subparagraphs (E) and (F), respectively, and inserting after subparagraph (A) the following: (B) Regional partnership grants The Secretary shall provide to each eligible partnership awarded a regional partnership grant under this subsection— (i) not less than $250,000 per grant for each fiscal year during a planning phase not to exceed 1 year; and (ii) not less than $500,000 per grant for each fiscal year during the implementation phase of the grant. (C) State partnership grants The Secretary shall provide to each eligible partnership awarded a statewide partnership grant under this subsection— (i) not less than $250,000 per grant for each fiscal year during a planning phase not to exceed 2 years; and (ii) not less than $750,000 per grant for each fiscal year during the implementation phase of the grant. (D) Limitation on payment for a fiscal year No payment shall be made under subparagraph (B) or (C) for a fiscal year until the Secretary determines that the eligible partnership has made sufficient progress in meeting the goals of the grant and that the members of the eligible partnership are coordinating to a reasonable degree with the other members of the eligible partnership. . (c) Application requirements Section 437(f)(4) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629g(f)(4) ) is amended to read as follows: (4) Application requirements (A) In general To be eligible for a grant under this subsection, an eligible partnership shall submit to the Secretary a written application containing the following: (i) With respect to the planning phase of the grant, each of the following: (I) A description of the nature and extent of the problem of substance use disorders among families who come to the attention of the State child welfare agency, including any recent evidence demonstrating that substance abuse has had a substantial impact on the number of out-of-home placements for children, or the number of children who are at risk of being placed in an out-of-home placement, in the partnership region or State. (II) A description of any joint activities being undertaken among the entities described in paragraph (2)(A)(i) and other State agencies or regional partners on behalf of families with substance use disorder problems who come to the attention of the State child welfare agency, including any data on the effects of the joint activities, such as activities relating to— (aa) establishing standardized screening protocols, or other methods to identify families in need of substance abuse prevention and treatment services; (bb) ensuring early access to assessment and treatment services such as securing expert consultation on cases involving substance use disorders, conducting outreach and methods to engage and retain parents in treatment, and providing priority access to assessment and treatment of families in the child welfare system; (cc) increasing management and treatment of recovery services and monitoring compliance such as co-location of services, specialized recovery case management services, and ensuring comprehensive treatment programs tailored to individual parent and child needs; (dd) ensuring access to family-centered services, including effective parenting programs focused on enhancing the parent and child relationship and the prevention needs of children; (ee) ensuring appropriate judicial oversight including providing more frequent judicial or administrative reviews of treatment access and compliance with case plans regarding participation in substance use disorder treatment; (ff) having a system for appropriate response to behavior of participants, such as evidence-based contingency management approaches using appropriate incentives and sanctions; and (gg) improving collaboration between courts and child welfare and substance abuse treatment agencies providing services to families with substance abuse issues, including— (AA) cross-training of staff; (BB) data collection and information sharing that is capable of monitoring outcomes of children and families receiving services from the agencies; (CC) arrangements for addressing confidentiality and sharing of information; (DD) identification by the State agencies or Indian tribal agencies, as the case may be, of funding barriers and how Federal, State, and local resources are being used to sustain programs of the agencies; and (EE) consultation to ensure that programmatic approaches reflect the advice of community members and persons in recovery. (III) With respect to infants with prenatal substance exposure, a description of any special efforts to identify and assess the extent of the problem and any joint activities between 2 or more members of the eligible partnership that focus specifically on the needs of the infants, such as efforts to monitor and reduce infant fatalities among families affected by parental substance use disorders. (IV) A description of the goals and outcomes to be achieved during the funding period for the grant that will— (aa) enhance the well-being of children, parents, and families receiving services or taking part in activities conducted with funds provided under the grant; (bb) lead to safety, permanent caregiving relationships for the children, and the well-being of the children and their families; (cc) improve the substance abuse treatment outcomes for parents including retention in treatment and successful completion of treatment; and (dd) decrease the number of out-of-home placements for children, or the number of children who are at risk of being placed in an out-of-home placement, in the partnership region or State. (V) A description of a plan for sustaining the services provided by or activities funded under the grant after the conclusion of the grant period, including through the use of other funds provided to the State for child welfare and substance abuse prevention and treatment services. (VI) Assurances that— (aa) substance use disorder treatment services provided using funds provided during the implementation phase of a grant made under this subsection shall be licensed, certified, or otherwise approved by the appropriate State substance use disorder prevention and treatment agencies, the State agency responsible for administering the State plan approved under title XIX, or other designated licensing agency; (bb) the activities funded during the implementation phase of a grant made under this subsection will be coordinated, to the extent feasible and appropriate, with the services or benefits provided under other Federal or federally assisted programs that serve families with substance use disorders who come to the attention of the State child welfare agency, including health, Medicaid, mental health, domestic violence, housing, and employment programs, the State program funded under part A of this title, other child welfare and substance use disorder prevention and treatment programs, and the courts; (cc) not more than 10 percent of funds provided under the grant for any fiscal year shall be used for administrative costs; (dd) Federal funds provided to the State during the implementation phase of a grant made under this subsection will not be used to supplant Federal or non-Federal funds for services and activities that, as of September 30, 2015, are provided to assist families with substance use disorder services who come to the attention of the State child welfare agency; and (ee) in the case of a statewide partnership grant, the Governor of the State endorses the plan. (VII) A description of a plan that demonstrates the capability of the partnership to participate in a rigorous evaluation of program effectiveness. (VIII) Such other information as the Secretary may require. (ii) With respect to the implementation phase of the grant, each of the following: (I) A description of how the partnership will use any funds provided during the implementation phase of a grant to address comprehensively and in a timely manner the needs of families with substance use disorders to improve child safety, family stability, parent-child relationships, permanence in children’s living arrangements, and family well-being, including by— (aa) improving services and procedures in the areas detailed in clause (i)(II); (bb) improving services with respect to infants with prenatal substance exposure as described in clause (i)(III); (cc) satisfying the goals and outcomes described in clause (i)(IV); (dd) providing sustainability of services and activities after the conclusion of the grant period as described in clause (i)(V); (ee) affirming each of the assurances described in clause (i)(VI); (ff) in the case of a statewide partnership grant, expanding the number of jurisdictions in the State (including urban, suburban, and rural jurisdictions) where the activities under the plan will be implemented, and describing the plans for expanding the activities to other parts of the State during the implementation phase of the grant and the methods to measure programs toward these goals; (gg) measuring the performance of the State agencies in implementing the plan in accordance with performance and evaluation requirements established by the Secretary in paragraph (8) of this subsection and section 435, and assessing remaining barriers to meeting the needs of families with substance use disorders who come to the attention of the State child welfare agency; and (hh) developing additional supports and program outreach in areas with service availability gaps. (II) A description of how the partnership will use any funds awarded under this subsection to improve implementation of services and programs specified in section 471(e)(1) and increase access to substance use disorder services for families who touch the child welfare system. (III) Such other information as the Secretary may require. (B) Special rule In the case of a State with county-based child welfare systems or agencies and a population of at least 2,000,000 that elects not to apply for a grant under this subsection, the Secretary may accept and approve an application submitted pursuant to this subsection that is submitted by a county in the State. . (d) Use of funds Section 437(f)(5) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629g(f)(5) ) is amended— (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by inserting and in accordance with the approved application for the grant before and may ; (2) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) through (F) as subparagraphs (C) through (F) and (H), respectively; (3) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following: (B) Medication-assisted treatment. ; and (4) by inserting after subparagraph (F), as so redesignated by paragraph (2) of this subsection, the following: (G) Domestic violence advocacy and services. . (e) Matching requirement Section 437(f)(6) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629g(f)(6) ) is amended by adding at the end the following: (C) Indian tribes In the case of a grant awarded to a partnership that includes an Indian tribe, tribal consortium, tribal child welfare agency, or a consortium of such agencies, the payment required by subparagraph (A) may be made directly, through donated funds, through nonpublic third-party in-kind contributions, or from Federal funds received under any of the following provisions of law: (i) The Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 ( 25 U.S.C. 1901 et seq. ). (ii) The Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act ( 25 U.S.C. 450b et seq. ). (iii) Title I of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 ( 42 U.S.C. 5301 et seq. ). . (f) Waiver of certain requirements Section 437(f)(7) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629g(f)(7) ) is amended to read as follows: (7) Waiver of certain requirements To the extent the Secretary determines that any requirement under this paragraph would be inappropriate to apply to an eligible partnership that includes a territory, an Indian tribe, tribal consortium, tribal child welfare agency, or a consortium of such agencies, the Secretary may exempt the eligible partnership from the requirement. . (g) Review of performance indicators Section 437(f)(8) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629g(f)(8) ) is amended— (1) in subparagraph (A)— (A) by striking of this subsection and inserting of subparagraph (C) of this paragraph ; (B) by inserting child permanency, reunification , re-entry into care, before parental recovery ; and (C) by inserting to serve families with substance use disorder including those that are overrepresented in foster care, difficult to place, or have disproportionately low permanency rates before the period at the end; (2) in subparagraph (B)— (A) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking regional partnership ; and (B) by striking clause (iii) and inserting the following: (iii) The Administrator of the National Institute on Drug Abuse. (iv) Representatives of States in which a State agency described in clause (i) or (ii) of paragraph (2)(A) is a member of a partnership that is a recipient of a regional partnership grant under this subsection. (v) Representatives of Indian tribes, tribal consortia, or tribal child welfare agencies that are members of a partnership that is a recipient of a regional partnership grant under this subsection. ; and (3) by adding at the end the following: (C) Review of performance indicators (i) In general Not later than 9 months after the date of enactment of this subparagraph, the Secretary shall review the performance indicators established under subparagraph (A) and the knowledge gained from other grant programs, and establish a set of core indicators. (ii) Core indicators The set of core indicators shall include the following: (I) Safety, including whether children remain at home and any occurrence of child maltreatment. (II) Permanency, including the average length of stay in foster care, re-entries to foster care placement, timeliness of reunification, and timeliness of permanency. (III) Recovery, including access to treatment, retention in substance abuse treatment, substance use. (IV) Child, adult, and family well-being, including parenting capacity, family relationships and functioning. (iii) Consultation required In establishing the set of core indicators, the Secretary shall consult with the following: (I) The Assistant Secretary for the Administration for Children and Families. (II) The Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (D) Evaluations In assessing the performance of grant recipients as described in subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall— (i) use each of the core indicators established under subparagraph (C) and any other performance indicators the Secretary considers appropriate; (ii) whenever possible, use existing data systems and appropriate comparison groups to monitor outcomes; and (iii) assist grantees in establishing and analyzing performance indicators to ensure local capacity to examine outcomes. . (h) Reports to Congress Section 437(f)(9)(B) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629g(f)(9)(B) ) is amended— (1) by striking and at the end of clause (ii); (2) by striking the period at the end of clause (iii) and inserting a semicolon; and (3) by adding at the end the following: (iv) the progress that has been made on the national goals relating to substance abuse and child protection that were established in the report, entitled Blending Perspectives and Building Common Ground. A Report to Congress on Substance Abuse and Child Protection, published by the Department of Health and Human Services in 1999; (v) efforts to address the financing mechanisms available to States; (vi) information from the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, each agency with principal responsibility for carrying out activities funded through the block grants for prevention and treatment of substance abuse under subpart II of part B of title XIX of the Public Health Service Act, and State child welfare agency directors on how to better meet the needs of families affected by substance use disorders; (vii) how the grants made under this subsection have contributed to the evidence base for serving families in, or at risk of entering, the child welfare system who are affected by substance use disorders; (viii) whether any programs funded by the grants were submitted to the clearinghouse established under section 476(d) for review and the results of any such review; (ix) which evidence-based practices were fully implemented through the use of grants made under this subsection; (x) any changes in programs or practices that led to positive outcomes for the population of children and families served, resulting from the use of grants made under this subsection; and (xi) the extent to which activities pursuant to this subsection are meeting the needs of child welfare families affected by substance use disorders. . (i) Evaluations; technical assistance (1) Amendments to part B Section 435 of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629e ) is amended— (A) in subsection (c)(2)— (i) by striking evaluations, research, and providing and inserting evaluations and research, with a priority for local evaluation to meet the goal of publishing and submitting evaluation findings to the Title IV–E Prevention Evidence-Based Clearinghouse, which may include augmenting local evaluations to publish findings, and for the provision of ; and (ii) by inserting after section 437(f) the following: , including by conducting an annual technical assistance and training meeting and an annual grantee meeting so that grantees can learn from the experiences of other grantees ; and (B) in subsection (d)— (i) by striking and at the end of paragraph (4); (ii) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (5) and inserting ; and ; and (iii) by adding at the end the following: (6) use grants under section 437 in coordination with other Federal funds to better serve families in the child welfare system that are affected by a substance use disorder. . (2) Amendment to part E Section 476(a) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 676(a) ) is amended by inserting including by providing technical assistance to the State agency operating the State plan approved under this part and, in States to which a grant is made under section 437(f), to eligible entities, during all phases of the grant cycle described in section 437(f)(3)(B), on how children placed with a parent in a licensed residential family based treatment facility in accordance with section 472(j) could be eligible for foster care maintenance payments by reason of section 472(a)(2)(C), so that States may better understand how to access the funds and grantees may better understand, communicate with, and share data with the State agency operating the State plan approved under this part, before and shall periodically . (j) Funding (1) In general Section 436(a) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629f(a) ) is amended by striking 2017 through 2023 and inserting 2024 through 2029 . (2) Reservation for partnership grants Section 436(b)(5) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629f(b)(5) ) is amended by striking $20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 through 2023 and inserting $60,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2024 through 2029— (A) of which $30,000,000 shall be used for regional partnership grants under such section; and (B) of which $30,000,000 shall be used for statewide partnership grants under such section. . (3) Technical assistance Section 435(c)(2) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629e(c)(2) ), as amended by subsection (h) of this section, is further amended by striking $1,000,000 and inserting $3,000,000 . (4) Conforming amendment Section 437(f)(10) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629g(f)(10) ) is amended by striking each of fiscal years 2017 through 2023 and inserting each fiscal year . (k) Conforming amendments Section 437(f) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629g(f) ) is amended— (1) in the subsection heading— (A) by striking , and improve the and inserting and support partnerships that increase ; and (B) by striking abuse and inserting use ; (2) in paragraph (1), by striking regional ; and (3) in paragraph (9)(A)(i), by striking regional . (l) References to substance abuse changed to substance use disorder Section 437(f) of such Act is amended— (1) in each of paragraphs (1), (5)(F), and (9)(B)(iii), by striking substance abuse and inserting substance use disorder ; and (2) in paragraph (5)(A), by striking abuse and inserting use . (m) Effective date The amendments made by this section shall apply with respect to partnership grants awarded after the date of the enactment of this Act. 3. Report to Congress The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall prepare and submit to the Congress a report that— (1) addresses progress on the national goals relating to substance abuse and child protection that were established in the report, entitled Blending Perspectives and Building Common Ground. A Report to Congress on Substance Abuse and Child Protection , published by the Department of Health and Human Services in 1999; (2) addresses the financing mechanisms available to States; and (3) has input from the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, each agency with principal responsibility for carrying out activities funded through the block grants for prevention and treatment of substance abuse under subpart II of part B of title XIX of the Public Health Service Act, and State child welfare agency directors on how to better meet the needs of families affected by substance abuse disorders. 4. Requirement that States coordinate substance abuse prevention and treatment services and child welfare services (a) State plan requirement Section 432(a) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 629b(a) ) is amended— (1) by striking and at the end of paragraph (9); (2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (10) and inserting a semicolon; and (3) by adding at the end the following: (11) provides that the child welfare agencies of the State shall have in effect a protocol for coordinating substance abuse prevention and treatment services with child welfare services, which shall, at a minimum, provide for— (A) meeting the need for timely access to services; (B) reporting on the effects of parental substance use disorders on the child welfare agencies; (C) how the child welfare agencies will address parental substance abuse treatment needs; and (D) the establishment of a safe care plan for all infants affected by prenatal substance exposure, under which the provision of substance use treatment services will be coordinated with health care providers; and (12) contains descriptions of— (A) all Federal funding sources used, or that are planned to be used, to support family-centered treatment substance use disorder programs for families with children who are in, or at risk of entering or re-entering, the child welfare system; and (B) how the State agency is partnering with, or plans to partner with, public or private agencies providing substance use disorder treatment services for families in, or at risk of entering, the child welfare system. . (b) Effective date (1) In general The amendments made by this section shall take effect on the 1st day of the 1st calendar quarter that begins 1 year or more after the date of the enactment of this Act, and shall apply to payments under part B 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 developed pursuant to part B 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 1st day of the 1st 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.