(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)
Improving Services for Older Youth in Foster Care Act
(Sec. 2) This bill amends part E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of title IV of the Social Security Act to revise the John H. Chafee Foster Care Independence Program to:
[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2847 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
115th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2847
To make improvements to the John H. Chafee Foster Care Independence
Program and related provisions.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 8, 2017
Mr. Faso (for himself, Mr. Reed, and Ms. Bass) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To make improvements to the John H. Chafee Foster Care Independence
Program and related provisions.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Improving Services for Older Youth
in Foster Care Act''.
SEC. 2. IMPROVEMENTS TO THE JOHN H. CHAFEE FOSTER CARE INDEPENDENCE
PROGRAM AND RELATED PROVISIONS.
(a) Authority To Serve Former Foster Youth up to Age 23.--Section
477 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 677) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)(5), by inserting ``(or 23 years of
age, in the case of a State with a certification under
subsection (b)(3)(A)(ii) to provide assistance and services to
youths who have aged out of foster care and have not attained
such age, in accordance with such subsection)'' after ``21
years of age'';
(2) in subsection (b)(3)(A)--
(A) by inserting ``(i)'' before ``A
certification'';
(B) by striking ``children who have left foster
care'' and all that follows through the period and
inserting ``youths who have aged out of foster care and
have not attained 21 years of age.''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(ii) If the State has elected under section
475(8)(B) to extend eligibility for foster care to all
children who have not attained 21 years of age, or if
the Secretary determines that the State agency
responsible for administering the State plans under
this part and part B uses State funds or any other
funds not provided under this part to provide services
and assistance for youths who have aged out of foster
care that are comparable to the services and assistance
the youths would receive if the State had made such an
election, the certification required under clause (i)
may provide that the State will provide assistance and
services to youths who have aged out of foster care and
have not attained 23 years of age.''; and
(3) in subsection (b)(3)(B), by striking ``children who
have left foster care'' and all that follows through the period
and inserting ``youths who have aged out of foster care and
have not attained 21 years of age (or 23 years of age, in the
case of a State with a certification under subparagraph (A)(i)
to provide assistance and services to youths who have aged out
of foster care and have not attained such age, in accordance
with subparagraph (A)(ii)).''.
(b) Authority To Redistribute Unspent Funds.--Section 477(d) of
such Act (42 U.S.C. 677(d)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (4), by inserting ``or does not expend
allocated funds within the time period specified under section
477(d)(3)'' after ``provided by the Secretary''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(5) Redistribution of unexpended amounts.--
``(A) Availability of amounts.--To the extent that
amounts paid to States under this section in a fiscal
year remain unexpended by the States at the end of the
succeeding fiscal year, the Secretary may make the
amounts available for redistribution in the second
succeeding fiscal year among the States that apply for
additional funds under this section for that second
succeeding fiscal year.
``(B) Redistribution.--
``(i) In general.--The Secretary shall
redistribute the amounts made available under
subparagraph (A) for a fiscal year among
eligible applicant States. In this
subparagraph, the term `eligible applicant
State' means a State that has applied for
additional funds for the fiscal year under
subparagraph (A) if the Secretary determines
that the State will use the funds for the
purpose for which originally allotted under
this section.
``(ii) Amount to be redistributed.--The
amount to be redistributed to each eligible
applicant State shall be the amount so made
available multiplied by the State foster care
ratio (as defined in subsection (c)(4), except
that, in such subsection, `all eligible
applicant States (as defined in subsection
(d)(5)(B)(i))' shall be substituted for `all
States').
``(iii) Treatment of redistributed
amount.--Any amount made available to a State
under this paragraph shall be regarded as part
of the allotment of the State under this
section for the fiscal year in which the
redistribution is made.
``(C) Tribes.--For purposes of this paragraph, the
term `State' includes an Indian tribe, tribal
organization, or tribal consortium that receives an
allotment under this section.''.
(c) Expanding and Clarifying the Use of Education and Training
Vouchers.--
(1) In general.--Section 477(i)(3) of such Act (42 U.S.C.
677(i)(3)) is amended--
(A) by striking ``on the date'' and all that
follows through ``23'' and inserting ``to remain
eligible until they attain 26''; and
(B) by inserting ``, but in no event may a youth
participate in the program for more than 5 years
(whether or not consecutive)'' before the period.
(2) Conforming amendment.--Section 477(i)(1) of such Act
(42 U.S.C. 677(i)(1)) is amended by inserting ``who have
attained 14 years of age'' before the period.
(d) Other Improvements.--Section 477 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 677),
as amended by subsections (a), (b), and (c) of this section, is
amended--
(1) in the section heading, by striking ``independence
program'' and inserting ``program for successful transition to
adulthood'';
(2) in subsection (a)--
(A) in paragraph (1)--
(i) by striking ``identify children who are
likely to remain in foster care until 18 years
of age and to help these children make the
transition to self-sufficiency by providing
services'' and inserting ``support all youth
who have experienced foster care at age 14 or
older in their transition to adulthood through
transitional services'';
(ii) by inserting ``and post-secondary
education'' after ``high school diploma''; and
(iii) by striking ``training in daily
living skills, training in budgeting and
financial management skills'' and inserting
``training and opportunities to practice daily
living skills (such as financial literacy
training and driving instruction)'';
(B) in paragraph (2), by striking ``who are likely
to remain in foster care until 18 years of age receive
the education, training, and services necessary to
obtain employment'' and inserting ``who have
experienced foster care at age 14 or older achieve
meaningful, permanent connections with a caring
adult'';
(C) in paragraph (3), by striking ``who are likely
to remain in foster care until 18 years of age prepare
for and enter postsecondary training and education
institutions'' and inserting ``who have experienced
foster care at age 14 or older engage in age or
developmentally appropriate activities, positive youth
development, and experiential learning that reflects
what their peers in intact families experience''; and
(D) by striking paragraph (4) and redesignating
paragraphs (5) through (8) as paragraphs (4) through
(7);
(3) in subsection (b)--
(A) in paragraph (2)(D), by striking
``adolescents'' and inserting ``youth''; and
(B) in paragraph (3)--
(i) in subparagraph (D)--
(I) by inserting ``including
training on youth development'' after
``to provide training''; and
(II) by striking ``adolescents
preparing for independent living'' and
all that follows through the period and
inserting ``youth preparing for a
successful transition to adulthood and
making a permanent connection with a
caring adult.'';
(ii) in subparagraph (H), by striking
``adolescents'' each place it appears and
inserting ``youth''; and
(iii) in subparagraph (K)--
(I) by striking ``an adolescent''
and inserting ``a youth''; and
(II) by striking ``the adolescent''
each place it appears and inserting
``the youth''; and
(4) in subsection (f), by striking paragraph (2) and
inserting the following:
``(2) Report to congress.--Not later than October 1, 2018,
the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Ways and Means
of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of
the Senate a report on the National Youth in Transition
Database and any other databases in which States report outcome
measures relating to children in foster care and children who
have aged out of foster care or left foster care for kinship
guardianship or adoption. The report shall include the
following:
``(A) A description of the reasons for entry into
foster care and of the foster care experiences, such as
length of stay, number of placement settings, case
goal, and discharge reason of 17-year-olds who are
surveyed by the National Youth in Transition Database
and an analysis of the comparison of that description
with the reasons for entry and foster care experiences
of children of other ages who exit from foster care
before attaining age 17.
``(B) A description of the characteristics of the
individuals who report poor outcomes at ages 19 and 21
to the National Youth in Transition Database.
``(C) Benchmarks for determining what constitutes a
poor outcome for youth who remain in or have exited
from foster care and plans the executive branch will
take to incorporate these benchmarks in efforts to
evaluate child welfare agency performance in providing
services to children transitioning from foster care.
``(D) An analysis of the association between types
of placement, number of overall placements, time spent
in foster care, and other factors, and outcomes at ages
19 and 21.
``(E) An analysis of the differences in outcomes
for children in and formerly in foster care at age 19
and 21 among States.''.
(e) Clarifying Documentation Provided to Foster Youth Leaving
Foster Care.--Section 475(5)(I) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 675(5)(I)) is
amended by inserting after ``REAL ID Act of 2005'' the following: ``,
and any official documentation necessary to prove that the child was
previously in foster care''.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Human Resources.
Mrs. Walorski moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H4951-4955)
DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 2847.
At the conclusion of debate, the Yeas and Nays were demanded and ordered. Pursuant to the provisions of clause 8, rule XX, the Chair announced that further proceedings on the motion would be postponed.
Considered as unfinished business. (consideration: CR H4978-4979)
Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 391 - 8 (Roll no. 309).(text: CR H4951-4952)
Roll Call #309 (House)On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 391 - 8 (Roll no. 309). (text: CR H4951-4952)
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Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.