Text of US SB 961 (2011)

II 112TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 961 To create the income security conditions and family supports needed to ensure permanency for the Nation’s unaccompanied youth, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MAY 12, 2011 Mr. KERRY (for himself, Mrs. MURRAY, and Mr. BEGICH) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance A BILL To create the income security conditions and family supports needed to ensure permanency for the Nation’s unaccom- panied youth, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; ETC. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4 ‘‘Reconnecting Youth to Prevent Homelessness Act of 5 2011’’. 6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.— 7 Sec. 1. Short title; etc. TITLE I—PREVENTION OF UNACCOMPANIED SITUATIONS AMONG CHILD WELFARE GROUPS VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 2 •S 961 IS Sec. 101. Curtailment of involuntary separation of children from their families. Sec. 102. GAO report on unaccompanied youth access to the child welfare sys- tem. Sec. 103. Discharge from child welfare system. Sec. 104. Demonstration project for improving permanency for youth in foster care. Sec. 105. Expansion of eligibility to participate in Good Neighbor Next Door program for foster care alumni. Sec. 106. Demonstration project for improving family relationships and reduc- ing homelessness for LGBT youth. TITLE II—EXTENSION OF CHILD WELFARE SERVICES TO OLDER YOUTH Sec. 201. Eligibility for foster care maintenance payments, adoption assistance payments, and kinship guardianship assistance through age 20. Sec. 202. Improvements to John H. Chafee Foster Care Independence Pro- gram. TITLE III—YOUNG FAMILY CONCERNS Sec. 301. TANF State plan amendment. Sec. 302. Adult-supervised living arrangements. Sec. 303. Suspension of time limit for young adult parent involved in education or training. Sec. 304. Transitional compliance. Sec. 305. Sanction protections for minor parents. Sec. 306. Teen parent study and report. TITLE IV—WORK OPPORTUNITIES Sec. 401. Inclusion of homeless youth as qualified population for Work Oppor- tunity Credit. TITLE V—SOCIAL SECURITY AND SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME BENEFITS Sec. 501. Limitation on use of social security or supplemental security income benefits paid to representative payees on behalf of foster chil- dren for State costs. Sec. 502. Screening of foster children for eligibility for social security and sup- plemental security income benefits. Sec. 503. Notice to attorney or guardian ad litem for foster child of determina- tion to pay social security or supplemental security income ben- efits to representative payee. Sec. 504. Management of social security and supplemental security income ben- efits for foster children. Sec. 505. Support and maintenance furnished in cash or in kind disregarded in determining income of foster children under the supple- mental security income program. Sec. 506. Technical assistance for Child Welfare Agencies. Sec. 507. Effective dates. VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 3 •S 961 IS TITLE I—PREVENTION OF UNAC- 1 COMPANIED SITUATIONS 2 AMONG CHILD WELFARE 3 GROUPS 4 SEC. 101. CURTAILMENT OF INVOLUNTARY SEPARATION OF 5 CHILDREN FROM THEIR FAMILIES. 6 Section 471(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 7 671(a)) is amended— 8 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 9 (26); 10 (2) by striking the period at the end of para- 11 graph (27) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 12 (3) by adding at the end the following: 13 ‘‘(28) provides that the State shall have in ef- 14 fect such laws and procedures as are necessary to 15 ensure that— 16 ‘‘(A) a child may not be placed in foster 17 care under the responsibility of the State solely 18 because the family with which the child is living 19 is homeless (as defined in paragraph (2) of sec- 20 tion 725 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless As- 21 sistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11434a)) or living in 22 substandard housing (as defined in section 23 204(b)(11) of the National Housing Act) or a 24 dwelling unit that is experiencing severe phys- 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 4 •S 961 IS ical problems (as defined in subparagraph (F) 1 of such section); and 2 ‘‘(B) the State will work with the family 3 and State housing authorities to secure perma- 4 nent housing for any family that includes a 5 minor child and is homeless or at risk of becom- 6 ing homeless.’’. 7 SEC. 102. GAO REPORT ON UNACCOMPANIED YOUTH AC- 8 CESS TO THE CHILD WELFARE SYSTEM. 9 Not later than 12 months after the date of enactment 10 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 11 shall submit a report to the Committee on Ways and 12 Means of the House of Representatives and the Committee 13 on Finance of the Senate on the policies and practices of 14 States regarding access to child welfare services (including 15 services related to foster care and adoption) that are fi- 16 nanced pursuant to part B or E of title IV of the Social 17 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) by children who have 18 attained 13 years of age and that considers the use of 19 runaway and homeless situations, as well as status as do- 20 mestic minor victims of sex trafficking, as risk assessment 21 factors for determining the appropriateness of placement 22 in the child welfare system. Such report shall include— 23 (1) an inventory of such policies and practices; 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 5 •S 961 IS (2) an assessment of the effectiveness of such 1 policies and practices; and 2 (3) recommendations for such Federal or State 3 legislation or administrative action as the Comp- 4 troller General determines appropriate. 5 SEC. 103. DISCHARGE FROM CHILD WELFARE SYSTEM. 6 (a) STATE PLANS REQUIRED TO DESCRIBE STATE 7 POLICIES AND PROCEDURES REGARDING RUNAWAY OR 8 MISSING FOSTER CHILDREN.—Section 471(a) of the So- 9 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 671(a)), as amended by sec- 10 tion 101, is amended— 11 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 12 (27); 13 (2) by striking the period at the end of para- 14 graph (28) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 15 (3) by adding at the end the following: 16 ‘‘(29) describes the written policies and proce- 17 dures of the State that are designed to reduce the 18 incidence of children missing or running away from 19 foster care, and to locate and return such children 20 to foster placements.’’. 21 (b) JUDICIAL REVIEW OF PERMANENCY PLAN FOR 22 CHILD LEAVING FOSTER CARE.—Section 475(5)(C) of 23 such Act (42 U.S.C. 675(5)(C)) is amended— 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 6 •S 961 IS (1) by striking ‘‘and (iii)’’ and inserting ‘‘(iii)’’; 1 and 2 (2) by inserting before the semicolon at the end 3 the following: ‘‘; and (iv) procedural safeguards shall 4 be applied to assure that the final permanency hear- 5 ing regarding the transition of the child from foster 6 care to a planned, permanent living arrangement or 7 independent living is held in a family or juvenile 8 court or another court (including a tribal court) of 9 competent jurisdiction;’’. 10 (c) REVIEW OF STEPS TAKEN TO ENSURE APPRO- 11 PRIATE HOUSING FOR CHILDREN LEAVING FOSTER 12 CARE.—Section 475(5)(C)(iii) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 13 675(5)(C)(iii)) is amended by inserting ‘‘, and reviews all 14 documentation of the efforts to secure a permanent living 15 arrangement for the child upon emancipation from foster 16 care’’ before ‘‘; and’’. 17 (d) MODIFICATION OF CASE PLAN REQUIRE- 18 MENTS.—Section 475(1)(D) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 19 675(1)(D)) is amended to read as follows: 20 ‘‘(D) Where appropriate, for a child who 21 has attained 14 years of age (and, at State op- 22 tion, any other child), a written description of 23 the programs and services that will facilitate 24 the transition of the child from foster care to 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 7 •S 961 IS independent living, including age-appropriate 1 adolescent health services, which include serv- 2 ices to prevent pregnancy and sexually trans- 3 mitted infections, as part of a general health 4 plan, and a discussion of the appropriateness of 5 the services that have been provided to the child 6 under the plan. The plan for such child shall 7 also include documentation of the steps the 8 agency is taking to ensure a permanent place- 9 ment with a family or other adult connection 10 for the child, and a permanent living arrange- 11 ment. In the case of a child who has attained 12 17 years of age or with a permanency goal of 13 emancipation, the plan shall include documenta- 14 tion of the child’s permanent living arrange- 15 ment upon emancipation.’’. 16 SEC. 104. DEMONSTRATION PROJECT FOR IMPROVING PER- 17 MANENCY FOR YOUTH IN FOSTER CARE. 18 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall establish 19 a demonstration project to develop multi-State working 20 groups to conduct research and develop policy rec- 21 ommendations for the support and enhancement of long- 22 term permanency planning for children in foster care. 23 (b) DURATION AND SCOPE.— 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 8 •S 961 IS (1) DURATION.—The Secretary shall conduct 1 the demonstration project for a period of 5 years. 2 (2) SCOPE.—The Secretary shall designate not 3 more than 5 working groups to participate in the 4 demonstration project, with each working group to 5 be established by and operated between 2 or more 6 States. 7 (c) APPLICATION.—A group of 2 or more States that 8 desires to participate in the demonstration project shall 9 submit to the Secretary an application at such time, in 10 such manner, and containing such information as the Sec- 11 retary may require. 12 (d) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The recommendations de- 13 veloped by a working group participating in the dem- 14 onstration project shall include consideration of methods 15 for improvement and enhancement in the following areas: 16 (1) The home study process for screening of 17 prospective foster care parents, guardians, and adop- 18 tive parents, including the development of a stand- 19 ardized home study process. 20 (2) Visitation policies for children in foster care 21 and their biological parents. 22 (3) Standardization of temporary or provisional 23 licensing for foster care parents. 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 9 •S 961 IS (4) Streamlining the application process for 1 prospective foster care parents and reducing the 2 length of time required for approval through the ap- 3 plication process. 4 (5) Coordination of administrative processes, 5 including the development of a standard data ex- 6 change to allow for greater efficiency in the transfer 7 of relevant data, information, and paperwork be- 8 tween States, foster care agencies, and other rel- 9 evant State agencies. 10 (6) Any other areas determined appropriate by 11 the Secretary. 12 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For the 13 period of fiscal years 2012 through 2016, there is author- 14 ized to be appropriated a total of $50,000,000 to the Sec- 15 retary to carry out the demonstration project under this 16 section. 17 (f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 18 (1) DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.—The term 19 ‘‘demonstration project’’ means the demonstration 20 project conducted under this section. 21 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 22 the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 23 (3) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any of 24 the 50 States or the District of Columbia. 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 10 •S 961 IS SEC. 105. EXPANSION OF ELIGIBILITY TO PARTICIPATE IN 1 GOOD NEIGHBOR NEXT DOOR PROGRAM FOR 2 FOSTER CARE ALUMNI. 3 The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development 4 shall revise subpart F of part 291 of its regulations (24 5 C.F.R. 291) to provide that individuals who have been 6 under the responsibility of the State foster care system 7 but are no longer under the responsibility of the State due 8 to having attained the age of majority, and who have at- 9 tained a bachelor’s degree or higher from an institution 10 of higher education in the United States, qualify to pur- 11 chase a home through the Good Neighbor Next Door Sales 12 Program. 13 SEC. 106. DEMONSTRATION PROJECT FOR IMPROVING 14 FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS AND REDUCING 15 HOMELESSNESS FOR LGBT YOUTH. 16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 17 Human Services (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Sec- 18 retary’’) shall establish a demonstration project to develop 19 programs that are focused on improving family relation- 20 ships and reducing homelessness for lesbian, gay, bisexual, 21 and transgender youth, including— 22 (1) research-based behavioral interventions that 23 are designed to decrease rejecting behaviors and in- 24 crease supportive behaviors in families with lesbian, 25 gay, bisexual, or transgender youth in order to en- 26 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 11 •S 961 IS sure that such youth maintain residence in their 1 homes; 2 (2) research-based assessment tools to help 3 identify lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender 4 youth that are at risk for family conflict or ejection 5 from their homes; 6 (3) research-based family educational tools and 7 resources to help families learn about— 8 (A) behaviors that may place lesbian, gay, 9 bisexual, or transgender youth at risk; and 10 (B) alternative behaviors that promote 11 positive development for such youth; and 12 (4) multimedia educational tools and resources 13 that are— 14 (A) based on research regarding supportive 15 and rejecting behaviors in families with lesbian, 16 gay, bisexual, and transgender youth; and 17 (B) focused on helping a diverse range of 18 families understand how their words, actions, 19 and behaviors affect the survival and well-being 20 of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender 21 youth. 22 (b) DURATION.—The Secretary shall conduct the 23 demonstration project for a period of 5 years. 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 12 •S 961 IS (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 1 authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec- 2 essary for purposes of carrying out the demonstration 3 project under this section. 4 TITLE II—EXTENSION OF CHILD 5 WELFARE SERVICES TO 6 OLDER YOUTH 7 SEC. 201. ELIGIBILITY FOR FOSTER CARE MAINTENANCE 8 PAYMENTS, ADOPTION ASSISTANCE PAY- 9 MENTS, AND KINSHIP GUARDIANSHIP ASSIST- 10 ANCE THROUGH AGE 20. 11 (a) DEFINITION OF CHILD.—Effective as if included 12 in the enactment of the Fostering Connections to Success 13 and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 (Public Law 110– 14 351), section 475(8) of the Social Security Act (as added 15 by section 201(a) of the Fostering Connections to Success 16 and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008) is amended to read 17 as follows: 18 ‘‘(8) The term ‘child’ means— 19 ‘‘(A) a minor child; and 20 ‘‘(B) an individual who has reached the 21 legal age of majority but has not attained 21 22 years of age and is under the responsibility of 23 the State.’’. 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 13 •S 961 IS (b) FOSTER CARE MAINTENANCE PAYMENTS.—Sec- 1 tion 472 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 672) is 2 amended— 3 (1) in subsection (a)— 4 (A) by striking paragraph (1) and insert- 5 ing the following: 6 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBILITY.—Each State with a plan ap- 7 proved under this part shall make foster care main- 8 tenance payments on behalf of— 9 ‘‘(A) each child who is an individual de- 10 scribed in section 475(8)(A) who has been re- 11 moved from the home of a relative specified in 12 section 406(a) (as in effect on July 16, 1996) 13 into foster care if the removal and foster care 14 placement met, and the placement continues to 15 meet, the requirements of paragraph (2) of this 16 subsection, and the child, while in the home, 17 would have met the AFDC eligibility require- 18 ment of paragraph (3); and 19 ‘‘(B) each child who is an individual de- 20 scribed in section 475(8)(B) who has entered 21 foster care under the responsibility of the State 22 if the child would have met the AFDC eligibility 23 requirement of paragraph (3) on the day before 24 the date on which the child reached the legal 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 14 •S 961 IS age of majority and the foster care placement 1 met and continues to meet the requirements of 2 paragraph (5) of this subsection.’’; 3 (B) in the heading of paragraph (2), by in- 4 serting ‘‘APPLICABLE TO MINORS’’ after ‘‘RE- 5 QUIREMENTS’’; and 6 (C) by adding at the end the following: 7 ‘‘(5) FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT REQUIRE- 8 MENTS APPLICABLE TO CHILDREN WHO HAVE AT- 9 TAINED THE AGE OF MAJORITY.—The foster care 10 placement of a child who is an individual described 11 in section 475(8)(B) meets the requirements of this 12 paragraph if— 13 ‘‘(A) the foster care placement is in ac- 14 cordance with a voluntary placement agreement 15 entered into by the individual; 16 ‘‘(B) the individual’s placement and care 17 meet the requirement of paragraph (2)(B) of 18 this subsection; and 19 ‘‘(C)(i) the individual has been placed in a 20 foster family home, child-care institution, or 21 dwelling described in subsection (b)(3)(C); or 22 ‘‘(ii) the individual has secured a dwelling 23 described in subsection (b)(3)(D).’’; 24 (2) in subsection (b)— 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 15 •S 961 IS (A) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of para- 1 graph (1); 2 (B) by striking the period at the end of 3 paragraph (2) and inserting ‘‘, or’’; and 4 (C) by adding at the end the following: 5 ‘‘(3) in the case of a child who is an individual 6 described in section 475(8)(B)— 7 ‘‘(A) in a home described in paragraph (1), 8 in accordance with the payment rules set forth 9 in paragraph (1); 10 ‘‘(B) in an institution described in para- 11 graph (2), in accordance with the payment rules 12 set forth in paragraph (2); 13 ‘‘(C) in a dwelling operated by an agency 14 that provides social services to children and 15 their families which supplements, supports, or 16 substitutes parental care and supervision for 17 the purpose of safeguarding and promoting the 18 welfare of children, and that meets such stand- 19 ards for licensure or approval as are established 20 by the State for the provision of the services, 21 whether the payments therefor are made to the 22 agency or directly to the individual; or 23 ‘‘(D) in housing rented or leased by the in- 24 dividual.’’; 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 16 •S 961 IS (3) in subsection (e), by inserting ‘‘minor’’ be- 1 fore ‘‘child who’’; and 2 (4) in subsection (f)— 3 (A) in paragraph (1)— 4 (i) by striking ‘‘a minor’’ and insert- 5 ing ‘‘a child’’; and 6 (ii) by striking ‘‘the minor’’ and in- 7 serting ‘‘the child (or, if the child has at- 8 tained 18 years of age, the child himself or 9 herself)’’; and 10 (B) in paragraph (2)— 11 (i) by striking ‘‘a minor child’’ and in- 12 serting ‘‘a child (or, if the child has at- 13 tained 18 years of age, the child himself or 14 herself)’’; and 15 (ii) by inserting ‘‘(if the child is a 16 minor)’’ after ‘‘obligations of the parents 17 or guardians’’. 18 (c) ADOPTION ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS.— 19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 473(a)(1)(A) of such 20 Act (42 U.S.C. 673(a)(1)(A)) is amended by insert- 21 ing ‘‘who have not attained 21 years of age’’ after 22 ‘‘special needs’’. 23 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Effective as if 24 included in the enactment of the Fostering Connec- 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 17 •S 961 IS tions to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 1 2008 (Public Law 110–351), section 473(a)(4) of 2 the Social Security Act (as amended by section 3 201(c) of the Fostering Connections to Success and 4 Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008) is amended to 5 read as follows: 6 ‘‘(4)(A) Notwithstanding any other provision of this 7 section, a payment may not be made pursuant to this sec- 8 tion to parents or relative guardians with respect to a 9 child— 10 ‘‘(i) who has attained 21 years of age; 11 ‘‘(ii) who has not attained 21 years of age, if 12 the State determines that the parents or relative 13 guardians, as the case may be, are no longer legally 14 responsible for the support of the child; or 15 ‘‘(iii) if the State determines that the child is 16 no longer receiving any support from the parents or 17 relative guardians, as the case may be. 18 ‘‘(B) Parents or relative guardians who have been re- 19 ceiving adoption assistance payments or kinship guardian- 20 ship assistance payments under this section shall keep the 21 State or local agency administering the program under 22 this section informed of circumstances which would, pur- 23 suant to this subsection, make them ineligible for the pay- 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 18 •S 961 IS ments, or eligible for the payments in a different 1 amount.’’. 2 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 474(a)(1) 3 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 674(a)(1)) is amended by striking 4 ‘‘under section 472 for children in foster family homes or 5 child-care institutions’’ and inserting ‘‘in accordance with 6 section 472’’. 7 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 8 this section shall take effect on October 1, 2011. 9 SEC. 202. IMPROVEMENTS TO JOHN H. CHAFEE FOSTER 10 CARE INDEPENDENCE PROGRAM. 11 (a) INCREASE IN ANNUAL AUTHORIZATION 12 LEVEL.—Section 477(h)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 13 U.S.C. 677(h)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘$140,000,000’’ 14 and inserting ‘‘$200,000,000’’. 15 (b) EXPANSION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR SERVICES.— 16 Section 477 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 677) is amended— 17 (1) in subsection (a)— 18 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘18’’ and 19 inserting ‘‘14’’; 20 (B) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘between 21 18 and 21’’ and inserting ‘‘who have attained 22 18 years of age, and who have not attained 25 23 years of age’’; and 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 19 •S 961 IS (C) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘16’’ and 1 inserting ‘‘14’’; 2 (2) in each of subsections (b)(3)(A) and 3 (b)(3)(B), by striking ‘‘21’’ and inserting ‘‘25’’; and 4 (3) in subsection (i)— 5 (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘youths 6 who, after attaining 16 years of age, are adopt- 7 ed from, or enter kinship guardianship from, 8 foster care’’ and inserting ‘‘youths in or exiting 9 from foster care after attaining 14 years of 10 age’’; and 11 (B) by striking paragraph (3) and redesig- 12 nating paragraphs (4) through (6) as para- 13 graphs (3) through (5), respectively. 14 (c) ELIGIBILITY OF PRIVATE SERVICE PROVIDERS 15 FOR FUNDS.—Section 477(b)(2) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 16 677(b)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 17 ‘‘(G) Distribute funds provided to the 18 State under this section among a diverse range 19 of qualified providers of services that are pri- 20 vate entities, and ensure that the entities have 21 equal opportunity to receive the funds.’’. 22 (d) EXPANSION OF PROGRAM EVALUATIONS.—Sec- 23 tion 477(g)(1) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 677(g)(1)) is 24 amended— 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 20 •S 961 IS (1) in the first sentence, by inserting ‘‘, and of 1 model programs that focus on improving outcomes 2 for youth aging out of care in the areas of edu- 3 cation, employment, personal development, financial 4 asset development, financial management skills, and 5 housing’’ after ‘‘significance’’; 6 (2) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘and 7 personal development’’ and inserting ‘‘mental and 8 physical health, healthy relationships, personal devel- 9 opment, and housing, and on the use of room and 10 board services and how the use of the services im- 11 prove housing outcomes for youth’’; and 12 (3) in the third sentence, by inserting ‘‘, where 13 practicable,’’ before ‘‘random assignment’’. 14 (e) IMPROVING AWARENESS OF AVAILABLE SERV- 15 ICES.— 16 (1) DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY.—Section 477 17 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 677) is amended by adding 18 at the end the following new subsection: 19 ‘‘(k) DISTRIBUTION OF INFORMATION ABOUT OTHER 20 RELATED PROGRAMS.—To improve access to the array of 21 services available to youth transitioning out of foster care 22 and assist States in leveraging available resources, the 23 Secretary shall provide for the efficient distribution to 24 States and local areas of information about Federal pro- 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 21 •S 961 IS grams, other than the program established by this section, 1 that may assist youth in their transition to self-sufficiency 2 and provide guidance on how to access services under the 3 programs.’’. 4 (2) DUTIES OF THE STATE.—Section 477(b)(3) 5 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 677(b)(3)) is amended— 6 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (G) 7 through (K) as subparagraphs (H) through (L), 8 respectively; and 9 (B) by inserting after subparagraph (F) 10 the following: 11 ‘‘(G) A certification by the chief executive offi- 12 cer that, when or before a child leaves foster care 13 under the responsibility of the State, the State will 14 inform the child of the full range of available finan- 15 cial asset development, financial management, hous- 16 ing, counseling, health, public benefit employment, 17 and education services, and other appropriate sup- 18 port and services for which the child is eligible.’’. 19 TITLE III—YOUNG FAMILY 20 CONCERNS 21 SEC. 301. TANF STATE PLAN AMENDMENT. 22 Section 402(a)(1)(A) of the Social Security Act (42 23 U.S.C. 602(a)(1)(A)) is amended by adding at the end the 24 following new clause: 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 22 •S 961 IS ‘‘(vii) Identify the education and 1 training, living arrangement, and other 2 services needs of individuals described in 3 section 408(a)(5)(B)(ii) who are potentially 4 eligible to receive assistance under the 5 State program funded under this part and 6 establish policies, procedures, and strate- 7 gies to address the needs.’’. 8 SEC. 302. ADULT-SUPERVISED LIVING ARRANGEMENTS. 9 Section 408(a)(5)(B) of the Social Security Act (42 10 U.S.C. 608(a)(5)(B)) is amended— 11 (1) by striking clause (i) and inserting the fol- 12 lowing: 13 ‘‘(i) PROVISION OF ADULT-SUPER- 14 VISED LIVING ARRANGEMENT.—In the case 15 of an individual who is described in clause 16 (ii), the State agency referred to in section 17 402(a)(4) shall provide or ensure the pro- 18 vision of a second chance home, maternity 19 group home, transitional living youth 20 project, or other appropriate adult-super- 21 vised supportive living arrangement, taking 22 into consideration the needs, concerns, and 23 wishes of the individual, unless the State 24 agency determines that the individual’s 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 23 •S 961 IS current living arrangement is appropriate, 1 and therefore, shall require that the indi- 2 vidual and the minor child referred to in 3 subparagraph (A)(ii)(II) reside in such liv- 4 ing arrangement as a condition of the con- 5 tinued receipt of assistance under the 6 State program funded under this part at- 7 tributable to funds provided by the Federal 8 Government (or in an alternative appro- 9 priate arrangement, should circumstances 10 change and the current arrangement cease 11 to be appropriate).’’; 12 (2) in clause (ii)— 13 (A) by redesignating subclauses (III) and 14 (IV) as subclauses (V) and (VI), respectively; 15 and 16 (B) by inserting after subclause (II) the 17 following: 18 ‘‘(III) the individual is a home- 19 less youth; 20 ‘‘(IV) the individual is a street 21 youth;’’; 22 (3) by redesignating clause (iii) as clause (vi) 23 and inserting after clause (ii) the following: 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 24 •S 961 IS ‘‘(iii) DISCLOSURE OF ADULT-SUPER- 1 VISED LIVING ARRANGEMENT OPTIONS TO 2 INDIVIDUAL.—The State agency shall en- 3 sure that individuals described in subpara- 4 graph (A)(ii) who are applicants or recipi- 5 ents of assistance are fully informed of all 6 adult-supervised living arrangement op- 7 tions that satisfy the requirement of this 8 subsection, and provide the individual the 9 opportunity to request a specific adult-su- 10 pervised living arrangement. 11 ‘‘(iv) DETERMINATION OF ADULT-SU- 12 PERVISED LIVING ARRANGEMENT.—In de- 13 termining the appropriateness of the indi- 14 vidual’s current living arrangement in 15 clause (i) and considering the individual’s 16 request for a specific adult-supervised liv- 17 ing arrangement in clause (iii), the State 18 agency shall provide a written explanation 19 of the determination, including a statement 20 regarding the right to appeal the deter- 21 mination under clause (v), to the indi- 22 vidual, if the determination is other than 23 the adult-supervised living arrangement re- 24 quested by the individual. 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 25 •S 961 IS ‘‘(v) RIGHT TO APPEAL ADULT-SU- 1 PERVISED LIVING ARRANGEMENT.—If the 2 State agency’s determination of appro- 3 priate adult-supervised living arrangement 4 in clause (i) is other than the adult-super- 5 vised living arrangement requested by the 6 individual in clause (iii), the individual 7 shall have a right to appeal the State agen- 8 cy’s decision through appeal and dispute 9 resolution mechanisms available in the 10 State.’’; and 11 (4) by adding at the end the following: 12 ‘‘(vi) DEFINITIONS.—In this subpara- 13 graph: 14 ‘‘(I) TRANSITIONAL LIVING 15 YOUTH PROJECT.—The term ‘transi- 16 tional living youth project’ has the 17 same meaning as provided in section 18 387(6) of the Juvenile Justice and 19 Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974. 20 ‘‘(II) HOMELESS YOUTH.—The 21 term ‘homeless youth’ has the same 22 meaning as provided in section 387(3) 23 of the Juvenile Justice and Delin- 24 quency Prevention Act of 1974. 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 26 •S 961 IS ‘‘(III) STREET YOUTH.—The 1 term ‘street youth’ has the same 2 meaning as provided in section 387(5) 3 of the Juvenile Justice and Delin- 4 quency Prevention Act of 1974.’’. 5 SEC. 303. SUSPENSION OF TIME LIMIT FOR YOUNG ADULT 6 PARENT INVOLVED IN EDUCATION OR TRAIN- 7 ING. 8 Section 408(a)(7)(B) of the Social Security Act (42 9 U.S.C. 608(a)(7)(B)) is amended— 10 (1) in the heading, by striking ‘‘MINOR CHILD 11 EXCEPTION’’ and inserting ‘‘AGE EXCEPTIONS’’; and 12 (2) by striking clauses (i) and (ii) and inserting 13 the following: 14 ‘‘(i) a minor child, and not the head 15 of a household or married to the head of 16 a household; or 17 ‘‘(ii) was pregnant or a parent, and— 18 ‘‘(I) had not attained 20 years of 19 age, and was meeting all program re- 20 quirements relating to education, 21 training and living arrangements; or 22 ‘‘(II) had attained 20 but not 21 23 years of age, and was scheduled to 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 27 •S 961 IS complete all program requirements re- 1 lating to education or training.’’. 2 SEC. 304. TRANSITIONAL COMPLIANCE. 3 Section 408(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 4 608(a)) is amended— 5 (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘if’’ and all 6 that follows and inserting ‘‘if— 7 ‘‘(A) the individual does not participate 8 in— 9 ‘‘(i) educational activities directed to- 10 ward the attainment of a high school di- 11 ploma or its equivalent; or 12 ‘‘(ii) an alternative educational or 13 training program that has been approved 14 by the State; and 15 ‘‘(B) 91 days have elapsed since the State 16 has notified the individual that the individual is 17 in violation of this paragraph. During the 91- 18 day period described in the preceding sentence, 19 if the individual is otherwise (but for this para- 20 graph) eligible for assistance under the State 21 program funded under this part, the State shall 22 treat such individual’s application for such ben- 23 efits as if the individual satisfied the require- 24 ments of subparagraph (A).’’; and 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 28 •S 961 IS (2) in paragraph (5)(A)(i), by inserting ‘‘, and 1 91 days have elapsed since the State has notified the 2 individual that the individual is in violation of this 3 paragraph. During the 91-day period described in 4 the preceding sentence, if the individual is otherwise 5 (but for this paragraph) eligible for assistance under 6 the State program funded under this part, the State 7 shall treat such individual’s application for such ben- 8 efits as if the individual satisfied the residence re- 9 quirements of the preceding sentence’’ before the pe- 10 riod. 11 SEC. 305. SANCTION PROTECTIONS FOR MINOR PARENTS. 12 Section 408(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 13 608(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 14 ‘‘(12) A State to which a grant is made under 15 section 403 of this Act shall not impose a sanction 16 on a recipient of assistance under the State program 17 funded under this part who is an individual de- 18 scribed in paragraph (4) or (5)(B)(ii) of this sub- 19 section and whose household includes a minor who 20 has received assistance under the State program 21 funded under this part, under the Supplemental Nu- 22 trition Assistance Program authorized by the Food 23 and Nutrition Act of 2008, or under any other State 24 program funded with qualified State expenditures 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 29 •S 961 IS (as defined in section 409(a)(7)(B)(i)), unless the 1 State has established procedures that help recipients 2 of assistance under the State program funded under 3 this part understand, avoid, or end sanctions, and 4 has applied the procedures to the recipient.’’. 5 SEC. 306. TEEN PARENT STUDY AND REPORT. 6 Section 413 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 7 613) is amended by adding at the end the following: 8 ‘‘(k) TEEN PARENT STUDY AND REPORT.— 9 ‘‘(1) STUDY OF TANF RECIPIENTS.—The Sec- 10 retary shall conduct a study of recipients of assist- 11 ance under State programs funded under this part 12 who are parents and have not attained 20 years of 13 age to determine the following: 14 ‘‘(A) Whether State data on the number of 15 such recipients is accurately reflected in Fed- 16 eral data, including an examination of the ex- 17 tent to which such recipients who are members 18 of a family are not reflected in the data, and 19 an examination of the extent to which Federal 20 estimation methods do not reflect the number 21 of such recipients in a State. 22 ‘‘(B) What assessment procedures are uti- 23 lized with such recipients, and whether there 24 appear to be best practices that consider such 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00029 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 30 •S 961 IS issues as whether the recipient has an edu- 1 cational barrier such as a learning disability or 2 mental health problem. 3 ‘‘(C) Whether localities appear to have 4 adequate and appropriate services that meet the 5 needs of such recipients in areas such as infant 6 care, age-appropriate adolescent health, edu- 7 cation, training, and mental health, for services 8 such as appropriate housing, mental health, and 9 alternative education, whether staff assist teen 10 parents in researching and locating such serv- 11 ices including an appropriate living arrange- 12 ment, and the extent to which such recipients 13 who have not completed high school or the 14 equivalent are encouraged to engage in edu- 15 cation or work. 16 ‘‘(D) How State rules providing that, in 17 determining the eligibility of such recipients for 18 such assistance, the income of the recipient is 19 deemed to include the income of any parents 20 with whom such recipient is living appear to 21 have affected the extent to which such recipi- 22 ents who are members of a family with income 23 less than 200 percent of the poverty line (as de- 24 fined in section 673(2) of the Omnibus Budget 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 31 •S 961 IS Reconciliation Act of 1981, including any revi- 1 sion required by such section, applicable to a 2 family of the size involved) are able to partici- 3 pate in State programs funded under this part. 4 ‘‘(E) Demographic information such as— 5 ‘‘(i) the age of such recipients; 6 ‘‘(ii) the amount of time such recipi- 7 ents received such assistance in a given 8 year; 9 ‘‘(iii) the number of children that 10 such recipients have; 11 ‘‘(iv) school attainment by such recipi- 12 ents, by age; 13 ‘‘(v) the employment status of such 14 recipients, such as whether a recipient has 15 ever worked or has worked while in school; 16 ‘‘(vi) the child care arrangements of 17 such recipients; and 18 ‘‘(vii) the living arrangements of such 19 recipients. 20 ‘‘(2) STUDY OF LOW-INCOME TEEN PARENTS 21 WHO ARE NOT TANF RECIPIENTS.—The Secretary 22 shall conduct a study of a representative sample of 23 low-income (as determined by the Secretary) teen 24 parents who are not recipients of assistance under a 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 32 •S 961 IS State program funded under this part, to determine 1 the following: 2 ‘‘(A) Whether the teen parent sought to 3 apply for such assistance. 4 ‘‘(B) Whether a teen parent who indicated 5 to a State a desire to apply for such assistance 6 received an application for such assistance. 7 ‘‘(C) Whether a teen parent who applied 8 for such assistance was subsequently contacted 9 by the State agency responsible for operating a 10 State program funded under this part. 11 ‘‘(3) REPORT TO CONGRESS.— 12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years 13 after the date of enactment of this subsection, 14 the Secretary shall submit a report to Congress 15 that contains the findings of the studies re- 16 quired by this subsection and recommendations 17 regarding such issues as how to improve data 18 reporting, State plans, State ‘best practice’ in- 19 formation sharing, and assessments. 20 ‘‘(B) ADVISORY GROUP.—The Secretary 21 shall establish an advisory group consisting of 22 representatives from organizations that work 23 with parents who have not attained 20 years of 24 age, to provide advice to the Secretary on ques- 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 33 •S 961 IS tions relating to such parents that should be in- 1 vestigated and to provide comments to accom- 2 pany the recommendations contained in the re- 3 port under subparagraph (A).’’. 4 TITLE IV—WORK 5 OPPORTUNITIES 6 SEC. 401. INCLUSION OF HOMELESS YOUTH AS QUALIFIED 7 POPULATION FOR WORK OPPORTUNITY 8 CREDIT. 9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) of section 51(d) of 10 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking 11 ‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph (H), by striking the pe- 12 riod at the end of subparagraph (I) and inserting ‘‘, or’’, 13 and adding at the end the following new subparagraph: 14 ‘‘(J) a qualified homeless youth.’’. 15 (b) QUALIFIED HOMELESS YOUTH.—Subsection (d) 16 of section 51 of such Code is amended by redesignating 17 paragraphs (11) through (13) as paragraphs (12) through 18 (14), respectively, and by inserting after paragraph (10) 19 the following new paragraph: 20 ‘‘(11) QUALIFIED HOMELESS YOUTH.—The 21 term ‘qualified homeless youth’ means any individual 22 who is certified by the designated local agency— 23 ‘‘(A) as having attained age 16 but not age 24 25 on the hiring date; and 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00033 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 34 •S 961 IS ‘‘(B) as being described in paragraph (2) 1 of section 725 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless 2 Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11434a), as in effect 3 on the date of the enactment of this paragraph, 4 on the hiring date.’’. 5 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 6 this section shall apply to individuals who begin work for 7 the employer after the date of the enactment of this Act. 8 TITLE V—SOCIAL SECURITY AND 9 SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY 10 INCOME BENEFITS 11 SEC. 501. LIMITATION ON USE OF SOCIAL SECURITY OR 12 SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME BENE- 13 FITS PAID TO REPRESENTATIVE PAYEES ON 14 BEHALF OF FOSTER CHILDREN FOR STATE 15 COSTS. 16 (a) AMENDMENTS TO TITLE II.— 17 (1) EXCEPTION TO PROHIBITION ON ASSIGN- 18 MENTS, ETC.—Section 207 of the Social Security 19 Act (42 U.S.C. 407) is amended by adding at the 20 end the following: 21 ‘‘(d) Subsection (a) of this section shall not apply to 22 a payment made by a representative payee to reimburse 23 a State as described in section 205(j)(9)(B)(i), but only 24 to the extent that the payment is— 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00034 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 35 •S 961 IS ‘‘(1) not prohibited by section 205(j)(9)(B)(i); 1 and 2 ‘‘(2) made available, distributed, and applied in 3 accordance with section 205(j)(9)(B)(iii).’’. 4 (2) LIMITATION ON USE OF SOCIAL SECURITY 5 BENEFITS.—Section 205(j)(9) of such Act (42 6 U.S.C. 405(j)(9)) is amended— 7 (A) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘(9)’’; and 8 (B) by adding at the end the following: 9 ‘‘(B)(i) A State or local government agency serving 10 in any State as a representative payee under this sub- 11 section with respect an individual who is in foster care 12 under the responsibility of the State shall not use any (or, 13 if the individual has not attained 14 years of age, more 14 than 50 percent of any) benefits paid to the representative 15 payee pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection to re- 16 imburse the State for— 17 ‘‘(I) foster care maintenance payments made 18 pursuant to section 472; or 19 ‘‘(II) other payments made by the State or po- 20 litical subdivision of the State to cover any other 21 cost or expense for an individual who is in foster 22 care under the responsibility of the State. 23 ‘‘(ii) An expense described in paragraph (4)(A)(i) of 24 this subsection or section 1631(a)(2)(D) shall not be con- 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00035 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 36 •S 961 IS sidered a cost or expense for purposes of clause (i) of this 1 subparagraph. 2 ‘‘(iii) In any case in which the State or local govern- 3 ment agency referred to in clause (i) determines that any 4 portion of such individual’s benefit under this title which 5 is held by such agency in accordance with this subsection 6 would be available under the provisions of this subsection 7 (other than this clause) to reimburse government costs in 8 connection with such foster care, any amount of such por- 9 tion of such benefit shall be available for such reimburse- 10 ment only to the extent that such amount is made avail- 11 able to supplement, and not to replace, any amounts oth- 12 erwise available from non-Federal sources to meet such 13 government costs. Any amount of such reimbursement 14 shall not be distributed into the general funds of the agen- 15 cy or the State or local government and may be applied 16 only so as to increase funding for foster care services pro- 17 vided by the State or local government.’’. 18 (b) AMENDMENTS TO TITLE XVI.— 19 (1) APPLICABILITY OF TITLE II EXCEPTION TO 20 PROHIBITION ON ASSIGNMENTS, ETC.—Section 21 1631(d)(1) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1383(d)(1)) is 22 amended— 23 (A) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘(1)’’; 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00036 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 37 •S 961 IS (B) by striking ‘‘The provisions of’’ and in- 1 serting ‘‘Subject to subparagraph (B), the pro- 2 visions of’’; and 3 (C) by inserting at the end the following 4 new subparagraph: 5 ‘‘(B) Subsection (a) of section 207 shall not apply 6 to a payment made by a representative payee to reimburse 7 a State as described in subsection (a)(2)(A)(iv)(II) of this 8 section, but only to the extent that such payment is— 9 ‘‘(i) not prohibited by subsection 10 (a)(2)(A)(iv)(II) of this section; and 11 ‘‘(ii) made available, distributed, and applied in 12 accordance with subsection (a)(2)(A)(iv)(IV) of this 13 section.’’. 14 (2) LIMITATION ON USE OF SSI BENEFITS.— 15 Section 1631(a)(2)(A)(iv) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 16 1383(a)(2)(A)(iv)) is amended— 17 (A) by inserting ‘‘(I)’’ after ‘‘(iv)’’; and 18 (B) by inserting at the end the following 19 new subclauses: 20 ‘‘(II) Subject to subclauses (III) and (IV), a State 21 or local government agency serving in any State as a rep- 22 resentative payee under this subsection with respect an eli- 23 gible individual who is in foster care under the responsi- 24 bility of the State shall not use any (or, if the individual 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00037 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 38 •S 961 IS has not attained 14 years of age, more than 50 percent 1 of any) benefits paid to the representative payee pursuant 2 to clause (ii) to reimburse the State for— 3 ‘‘(aa) foster care maintenance payments made 4 pursuant to section 472; or 5 ‘‘(bb) other payments made by a State or polit- 6 ical subdivision of a State to cover any other cost or 7 expense for an individual who is in foster care under 8 the responsibility of the State. 9 ‘‘(III) For purposes of subclause (II)(bb), an expense 10 described in subparagraph (D) or section 205(j)(4)(A)(i) 11 shall not be considered a cost or expense. 12 ‘‘(IV) For purposes of subclause (II), if a State or 13 local government agency determines that an amount of an 14 individual’s benefit under this title that is held by the 15 agency in accordance with this paragraph would be avail- 16 able under the provisions of this paragraph (other than 17 this subclause) to reimburse government costs in connec- 18 tion with the foster care, such amount shall be available 19 for such reimbursement only to the extent that the amount 20 is made available to supplement, and not to replace, any 21 amounts otherwise available from non-Federal sources to 22 meet the government costs. Any amount of the reimburse- 23 ment shall not be distributed into the general funds of the 24 agency or the State or local government and may be ap- 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00038 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 39 •S 961 IS plied only so as to increase funding for foster care services 1 provided by such State or local government.’’. 2 SEC. 502. SCREENING OF FOSTER CHILDREN FOR ELIGI- 3 BILITY FOR SOCIAL SECURITY AND SUPPLE- 4 MENTAL SECURITY INCOME BENEFITS. 5 (a) STATE PLAN REQUIREMENT.—Section 471(a) of 6 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 671(a)) is amended— 7 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 8 (32); 9 (2) by striking the period at the end of para- 10 graph (33) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 11 (3) by adding at the end the following: 12 ‘‘(34) provides that, not later than 36 months 13 after the date of enactment of the Reconnecting 14 Youth to Prevent Homelessness Act of 2011, the 15 State agency described in paragraph (2) shall— 16 ‘‘(A) develop and implement procedures to 17 ensure that, within 60 days after the status of 18 a child who is in foster care under the responsi- 19 bility of the State is first reviewed pursuant to 20 the procedures described in section 475(5)(B), 21 the child is screened to determine their poten- 22 tial eligibility for benefits under title II and for 23 supplemental security income benefits under 24 title XVI; and 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00039 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 40 •S 961 IS ‘‘(B) if such screening results in a deter- 1 mination that the child is potentially eligible for 2 any such benefits— 3 ‘‘(i) provide the child with assistance 4 in applying for and, as necessary, appeal- 5 ing any decisions made with respect to 6 such benefits; and 7 ‘‘(ii) if there is no other suitable can- 8 didate available, apply to become the rep- 9 resentative payee for the child with respect 10 to such benefits.’’. 11 (b) GAO STUDY.— 12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of 13 the United States shall conduct a study to determine 14 whether States have substantially complied with the 15 amendments made by this section during the 6-year 16 period following enactment of this Act, including 17 whether States have— 18 (A) established successful procedures that 19 screen all foster children under the responsi- 20 bility of the States for their potential eligibility 21 for benefits under title II of the Social Security 22 Act and for supplemental security income bene- 23 fits under title XVI of such Act; 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00040 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 41 •S 961 IS (B) provided all such potentially eligible 1 foster children assistance in applying for, and 2 appealing decisions made with respect to, the 3 benefits; and 4 (C) implemented procedures to identify 5 suitable nongovernmental candidates to serve as 6 representative payees for children in foster care 7 with respect to the benefits. 8 (2) REPORT TO THE CONGRESS.—Not later 9 than 1 year after completion of the study described 10 in paragraph (1), the Comptroller General of the 11 United States shall submit to the Congress a report 12 containing the results of such study. 13 SEC. 503. NOTICE TO ATTORNEY OR GUARDIAN AD LITEM 14 FOR FOSTER CHILD OF DETERMINATION TO 15 PAY SOCIAL SECURITY OR SUPPLEMENTAL 16 SECURITY INCOME BENEFITS TO REP- 17 RESENTATIVE PAYEE. 18 (a) AMENDMENT TO TITLE II.—Section 19 205(j)(2)(E)(ii) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 20 405(j)(2)(E)(ii)) is amended by inserting ‘‘, except that, 21 in the case of an individual who is in foster care under 22 the responsibility of a State, such notice shall also be pro- 23 vided to the attorney or guardian ad litem appointed to 24 represent the individual pursuant to section 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00041 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 42 •S 961 IS 106(b)(2)(A)(xiii) of the Child Abuse Prevention and 1 Treatment Act and, if the individual has attained 14 years 2 of age, to the individual’’ before the period. 3 (b) AMENDMENT TO TITLE XVI.—Section 4 1631(a)(2)(B)(xii) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 5 1383(a)(2)(B)(xii)) is amended by inserting ‘‘, except 6 that, in the case of an individual who is in foster care 7 under the responsibility of a State, such notice shall also 8 be provided to the attorney or guardian ad litem appointed 9 to represent the individual pursuant to section 10 106(b)(2)(A)(xiii) of the Child Abuse Prevention and 11 Treatment Act and, if the individual has attained 14 years 12 of age, to the individual’’ before the period. 13 SEC. 504. MANAGEMENT OF SOCIAL SECURITY AND SUP- 14 PLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME BENEFITS 15 FOR FOSTER CHILDREN. 16 (a) PLAN FOR ACHIEVING SELF-SUPPORT.—Section 17 471(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 671(a)), as 18 amended by section 502(a) of this Act, is amended— 19 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 20 (33); 21 (2) by striking the period at the end of para- 22 graph (34) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 23 (3) by adding at the end the following: 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00042 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 43 •S 961 IS ‘‘(35) provides that, with respect to each child 1 in foster care under the responsibility of the State 2 who is a recipient of benefits under title II or sup- 3 plemental security income benefits under title XVI, 4 the State agency shall develop a plan is individually 5 designed to best meet the current and future needs 6 of the child and enable the child to achieve self-sup- 7 port after leaving foster care, in accordance with the 8 following requirements: 9 ‘‘(A)(i) The plan shall set forth a strategy 10 to conserve benefits not necessary for the imme- 11 diate needs of the child, as determined pursuant 12 to clause (ii), in a manner that best meets the 13 future needs and educational and employment 14 interests of the child, and for the placement of 15 any such benefits in an account of the type de- 16 scribed in section 1631(a)(2)(F). 17 ‘‘(ii) The plan shall provide for a deter- 18 mination as to whether the child has immediate 19 needs for which such benefits should be used 20 consistent with sections 205(j)(10)(B) and 21 1631(a)(2)(A)(iv). 22 ‘‘(iii) The plan shall provide that any as- 23 sets set aside under the plan shall be conserved, 24 remain inaccessible to the child (with the excep- 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00043 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 44 •S 961 IS tion of any allowable expenses described in sec- 1 tion 1631(a)(2)(F)(ii)(II) or any other use ap- 2 proved by the Secretary as being in the best in- 3 terests of the child), and placed in the account 4 described in clause (i) of this subparagraph, 5 until the later of the date that the child attains 6 18 years of age or ceases to be under the re- 7 sponsibility of the State, at which time any as- 8 sets subject to the plan shall be accessible to 9 the child to— 10 ‘‘(I) secure and maintain stable hous- 11 ing; 12 ‘‘(II) pursue educational opportuni- 13 ties, including job training, vocational 14 training, or obtaining a professional li- 15 cense; 16 ‘‘(III) purchase a vehicle; 17 ‘‘(IV) operate a business; 18 ‘‘(V) pay for employment-related 19 costs, including the cost of uniforms, insur- 20 ance, licenses, or complying with licensing 21 requirements; 22 ‘‘(VI) pay for medical or health-re- 23 lated expenses; or 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00044 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 45 •S 961 IS ‘‘(VII) pay for any expenses reason- 1 ably expected to assist the child in becom- 2 ing self-sufficient. 3 ‘‘(B) The State agency shall— 4 ‘‘(i) develop and implement the plan 5 in collaboration with the child (on an age- 6 appropriate basis), the social worker for 7 the child, the person acting as the rep- 8 resentative payee for the child pursuant to 9 section 205(j) or 1631(a)(2), and the at- 10 torney or guardian ad litem appointed to 11 represent the child pursuant to section 12 106(b)(2)(A)(xiii) of the Child Abuse Pre- 13 vention and Treatment Act; and 14 ‘‘(ii) in developing and implementing 15 the plan, make reasonable efforts to seek 16 input from the parents and caretakers of 17 the child. 18 ‘‘(C)(i) The State agency shall complete 19 the plan not later than 60 days after the status 20 of the child is first reviewed pursuant to the 21 procedures described in section 475(5)(B). 22 ‘‘(ii) The State agency shall ensure that 23 each subsequent review of the status of the 24 child includes consideration of an updated 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00045 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 46 •S 961 IS version of the plan and a report on the progress 1 made in implementing such plan. 2 ‘‘(D)(i) Following completion of the plan, 3 the State agency shall provide a copy of the 4 plan to the attorney or guardian ad litem ap- 5 pointed to represent the child pursuant to sec- 6 tion 106(b)(2)(A)(xiii) of the Child Abuse Pre- 7 vention and Treatment Act no later than 30 8 days prior to the subsequent review of the sta- 9 tus of the child under the procedures described 10 in section 475(5)(B). 11 ‘‘(ii) Not later than 30 days prior to each 12 subsequent review, the State agency shall pro- 13 vide an updated copy of the plan to the attor- 14 ney or guardian ad litem so appointed. 15 ‘‘(E)(i) The child may request the plan to 16 be modified as part of a review of their status 17 under the procedures described in section 18 475(5)(B), through a separate hearing, or as 19 part of a permanency hearing under the proce- 20 dures described in section 475(5)(C). 21 ‘‘(ii) For purposes of any administrative or 22 judicial review proceeding, the plan shall not be 23 treated as meeting the requirements of this 24 paragraph with respect to a child unless the 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00046 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 47 •S 961 IS plan is determined by the reviewer to be the 1 best available means of meeting the current and 2 future needs and educational and employment 3 interests of the child.’’. 4 (b) PROVISIONS RELATING TO REPRESENTATIVE 5 PAYEES.— 6 (1) AMENDMENTS TO TITLE II.—Section 205(j) 7 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(j)), as 8 amended by sections 501(a)(2) and 503(a), is fur- 9 ther amended— 10 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (8), (9), 11 and (10) as paragraphs (9), (10), and (11), re- 12 spectively; and 13 (B) by inserting after paragraph (7) the 14 following new paragraph: 15 ‘‘(8) For purposes of benefits paid to a representative 16 payee under paragraph (1) on behalf of an individual who 17 is in foster care under the responsibility of a State, the 18 representative payee shall manage such benefits in accord- 19 ance with the plan developed for the individual pursuant 20 to section 471(a)(35).’’. 21 (2) AMENDMENT TO TITLE XVI.—Section 22 1631(a)(2) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1383(a)(2)) is 23 amended by adding at the end the following: 24 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00047 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 48 •S 961 IS ‘‘(J) For purposes of benefits paid to a representative 1 payee under subparagraph (A)(ii) on behalf of an indi- 2 vidual who is in foster care under the responsibility of a 3 State, the representative payee shall manage such benefits 4 in accordance with the plan developed for the individual 5 pursuant to section 471(a)(35).’’. 6 (c) EXCLUSION FROM RESOURCES UNDER THE SSI 7 PROGRAM.—Section 1613(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 8 1382b(a)) is amended— 9 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 10 (15); 11 (2) by striking the period at the end of para- 12 graph (16) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 13 (3) by inserting after paragraph (16) the fol- 14 lowing: 15 ‘‘(17) any assets managed on behalf of an eligi- 16 ble individual in accordance with a plan developed 17 for such individual pursuant to section 471(a)(35).’’. 18 (d) EXCLUSION FROM RESOURCE LIMITATION.— 19 Subparagraph (B) of section 472(a)(3) of the Social Secu- 20 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 672(a)(3)) is amended by inserting 21 ‘‘, and excluding any assets held in an account that has 22 been established pursuant to paragraph (35) of section 23 471(a) and managed in accordance with a plan developed 24 under such paragraph’’ after ‘‘as so in effect’’. 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00048 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 49 •S 961 IS SEC. 505. SUPPORT AND MAINTENANCE FURNISHED IN 1 CASH OR IN KIND DISREGARDED IN DETER- 2 MINING INCOME OF FOSTER CHILDREN 3 UNDER THE SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY IN- 4 COME PROGRAM. 5 Section 1612(a)(2)(A) of the Social Security Act (42 6 U.S.C. 1382a(a)(2)(A)) is amended— 7 (1) by striking ‘‘another nonprofit organization, 8 and’’ and inserting ‘‘another nonprofit organiza- 9 tion,’’; and 10 (2) by inserting ‘‘, and (iv) clause (i) shall not 11 apply in the case of a child who is in foster care 12 under the responsibility of a State’’ before the semi- 13 colon at the end. 14 SEC. 506. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR CHILD WELFARE 15 AGENCIES. 16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Pursuant to a request by a State 17 agency that is responsible for administering, or super- 18 vising the administration of, the program authorized by 19 part E of title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 20 670 et seq.), the Secretary of Health and Human Services 21 shall provide such agency with technical assistance in car- 22 rying out the amendments made by this Act. 23 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 24 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section, 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00049 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 50 •S 961 IS $4,500,000 for fiscal year 2013, and such sums as may 1 be necessary for each of fiscal years 2014 through 2018. 2 SEC. 507. EFFECTIVE DATES. 3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 4 (b) or as otherwise provided, the amendments made by 5 this Act shall apply to benefits payable for months begin- 6 ning after the date of the enactment of this Act. 7 (b) STATE PLAN REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO 8 PLANS FOR ACHIEVING SELF-SUPPORT.— 9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amendments made by 10 section 504(a) of this Act shall take effect on the 11 first day of the first calendar quarter beginning 12 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and shall 13 apply to payments under part E of title IV of the 14 Social Security Act for calendar quarters beginning 15 after such first day. 16 (2) DELAY PERMITTED IF STATE LEGISLATION 17 REQUIRED.—If the Secretary of Health and Human 18 Services determines that State legislation (other 19 than legislation appropriating funds) is required in 20 order for a State plan approved under part E of title 21 IV of the Social Security Act to meet the additional 22 requirements imposed by the amendments made by 23 section 504(a) of this Act, the plan shall not be re- 24 garded as failing to meet any of the additional re- 25 VerDate Mar 15 2010 01:11 May 19, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00050 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS 51 •S 961 IS quirements before the first day of the first calendar 1 quarter beginning after the first regular session of 2 the State legislature that begins after the date of the 3 enactment of this Act. If the State has a 2-year leg- 4 islative session, each year of the session is deemed 5 to be a separate regular session of the State legisla- 6 ture. 7 Æ VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:02 May 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00051 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S961.IS S961 srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS