Contacts
Needed To Preserve Funding For Title IV-E
Child Welfare Training Program
Background
On July 19, 2004 , Representative Wally Herger (R-CA) introduced
the Child Safety, Adoption, and Family Enhancement (SAFE) Act
(H.R. 4856). Herger is the Chairman of the Human Resources
Subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee, which has
primary jurisdiction over the Title IV-E program. Many of the
bill's cosponsors are also members of the subcommittee, including
Reps. Nancy Johnson (R-CT), Dave Camp (R-MI), Ron Lewis (R-KY),
and Eric Cantor (R-VA). Rep. Tom DeLay (R-TX) is also a co-sponsor.
The Child SAFE Act incorporates some of the Bush Administration's
recommendations on increasing funding flexibility for Title
IV-E Foster Care and some of the recommendations of the Pew
Commission on Children in Foster Care. A short summary of the
bill follows. The bill, itself, is available on the Library
of Congress legislative Web site at thomas.loc.gov\
Title IV-E Training
Herger's Child SAFE Act would jeopardize the continuation
of the Title IV-E training program and its agency-university
training partnerships by eliminating the program's entitlement
funding and the 75 percent federal matching rate.
Instead, the bill would combine IV-E training and administration
with Title IV-B services into a Safe Children, Strong Families
grant program. Funding for the grant would be capped, which
would pit training and staffing expenditures against expenditures
for programs currently funded through the Promoting Safe and
Stable Families program and other child welfare services.
Timing
Chairman Herger's goal is for the House to pass the Child
SAFE Act prior to adjournment. Adjournment is tentatively set
for early October, but many believe Congress will return for
a lame duck session after the November elections. In order
to protect the Title IV-E training program, changes must be
made in the bill prior to House passage or, if not passed,
prior to its re-introduction in the next Congress in 2005.
The good news, is that at present, no companion bill has been
introduced in the Senate.
ACTION NEEDED
Contacts should be made with all members of the House. Those
members should be encouraged to contact Rep. Herger and the
ranking member of the Human Resources Subcommittee, Rep. Ben
Cardin (D-MD), to make the necessary changes.
A draft letter/e-mail to send to your Representative is posted
on NASW's Congress Web advocacy page at http://63.66.87.48/cweb4/index.cfm?orgcode=NASW
For additional information on the Title IV-E training program,
please visit NASW's child welfare advocacy page at https://www.socialworkers.org/advocacy/issues/child_welfare.asp
To receive future child welfare updates and alerts, join NASW's
child welfare advocacy listserv
at http://www.socialworkers.org/advocacy/networkNew.asp
For additional information, contact:
SHORT SUMMARY OF THE CHILD SAFE ACT
(H.R. 4856)
(1) Creates a new Safe Children, Strong Families Grant Program
that consolidates and caps funding for Title IV-E training
and administration and Title IV-B child welfare services, including
the Promoting Safe and Stable Families Program. Would maintain
separate funding stream for Title IV-B, 426 training grants.
Adds $200 million beyond the funding baseline.
Impact: Pits need for new funding for prevention, substance
abuse, mental health, and other specialized services against
ongoing funding needs for training, administration, child placement
activities, and current child welfare services. An increase
of $200 million is not much more than the increase the state
of New Jersey alone committed for this year to implement system
improvements and is far less than the estimated $1.1 billion
a year that would be needed just to provide basic services
to children who were abused or neglected in 2002, but received
no services at all.
(2) Caps funding for the Title IV-E Foster Care Maintenance
Program, which is currently an entitlement. Eliminates the
IV-E eligibility link to AFDC, but does so by reducing the
federal match for states by 35 percent.
Impact: Jeopardizes children's safety by giving states little
opportunity to access additional federal funds for foster care
beyond the capped amount. There is broad support for "delinking" eligibility,
but not when it comes with a reduction in the federal match.
(3) Establishes a new Challenge Grant Program, with a separate
$100 million funding authorization, to reward states that significantly
exceed a national standard in effect for outcomes measured
in the Child and Family Services Reviews (CRSRs).
Impact: Sets the bar out of reach of most states, which to
date have failed to meet federal outcomes, much less exceed
them. States need up-front resources to increase system capacity
to meet or exceed national standards.
(4) Maintains entitlement funding for Title IV-E Adoption
Assistance. Eliminates the IV-E eligibility link to AFDC, but
reduces the federal match by 15 percent. Adoption administration
and training would be transferred into the new Safe Children,
Strong Families Grant Program.
(5) Expands current child welfare waiver authority by eliminating
the limit on the number of states that may be granted waivers
to conduct the same or similar demonstration projects and eliminating
the limit on the number of waivers that may be granted to a
single state.
(6) Maintains the current authorization for the Mentoring
Program for Children of Prisoners.
(7) Maintains entitlement funding for the State Adoption and
Child Welfare Information System (SACWIS).
(8) Makes Indian tribes eligible to directly receive funds
under Title IV-E.
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