H.R. 5583: Promoting Permanency Through Kinship Families Act

Summary of the Bill

This bill is titled the Promoting Permanency Through Kinship Families Act and aims to amend sections of the Social Security Act to enhance support for kinship care, which involves placing children with relatives or other important adults when they cannot stay with their parents. Here are the key components of the bill:

Findings and Purpose

• The bill recognizes that options such as reunification with parents, placement with extended family, and adoption are vital for children in or at risk of entering foster care.
• It highlights the financial and social burdens faced by youth aging out of foster care and the risks they encounter, such as homelessness and involvement with the criminal justice system.
• The bill states that promoting kinship placements can lead to better long-term outcomes for children.
• It aims to remove barriers that kinship caregivers face and to provide them with necessary resources and services.

Changes in State Requirements

• States will be required to actively involve relatives and fictive kin in case planning for children's placements.
• Efforts must be documented for finding and involving family members in child welfare processes.
• States must ensure barriers to kinship placements are addressed and that appropriate actions are documented when denying a kinship placement.

Criminal Record Checks

The bill mandates that all kinship caregivers undergo criminal background checks but also requires that past allegations of abuse or neglect should not automatically disqualify a caregiver unless there is current evidence of a safety threat.

Prohibiting Upper Age Limits

No upper age limits can be imposed on kinship caregivers, which means older relatives can also be eligible to care for children, recognizing that caregiving capabilities can exist regardless of age.

Kinship Guardianship Assistance Program

The bill makes participation in the kinship guardianship assistance program mandatory rather than optional for states and lowers the time a child must be in care for eligibility from six to three months.

Promoting Safe and Stable Families

The legislation adds provisions for support services for kinship placements within the promoting safe and stable families program. This includes crisis stabilization services, family finding efforts, and support for managing kinship placements.

Fiscal Requirements

States are required to maintain or increase expenditure efforts to support kinship placements over the fiscal years following the bill’s enactment.

Effective Dates and Implementation

The changes proposed by the bill would take effect in the first fiscal year following the legislation's enactment, with provisions allowing additional time for states and tribal organizations to comply with the new requirements where necessary.

Relevant Companies

None found