Supporting Kinship Connections Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 4352 To amend part B of title IV of the Social Security Act to provide grants to develop and enhance, or to evaluate, kinship navigator programs, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES SEPTEMBER 17, 2019 Ms. BASS (for herself, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. BACON, Mrs. LAWRENCE, and Mr. MITCHELL) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com- mittee on Ways and Means A BILL To amend part B of title IV of the Social Security Act to provide grants to develop and enhance, or to evaluate, kinship navigator programs, 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. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Supporting Kinship 4 Connections Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress makes the following findings: 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:15 Sep 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4352.IH H4352 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 4352 IH (1) 2,500,000 children in the United States are 1 living in kinship care with grandparents or other rel- 2 atives. 3 (2) With the rise of substance abuse, including 4 heroin and other opioid-use, more kin caregivers are 5 stepping up to raise children who are in need of fos- 6 ter care and permanent homes. 7 (3) Grandparents and relatives residing in 8 urban, rural, and suburban households in every 9 county of the United States have stepped forward 10 out of love and loyalty to care for children during 11 times in which parents are unable to do so. 12 (4) Kinship caregivers provide safety, promote 13 well-being, and establish stable households for vul- 14 nerable children. 15 (5) Kinship care enables a child to maintain 16 family relationships and cultural heritage and re- 17 main in the community of the child. 18 (6) Kinship care is a national resource that pro- 19 vides loving homes for children at risk. 20 (7) Kinship caregivers face daunting challenges 21 to keep countless children from entering foster care. 22 (8) Kinship navigator programs have been 23 shown to proactively provide support to kinship care- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:15 Sep 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4352.IH H4352 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 4352 IH givers in an effort to avert crises and potentially 1 prevent more costly services. 2 (9) Kinship placement decreases the likelihood 3 that children will run away and end up on the 4 streets where they are at risk of trafficking. 5 (10) Children in kinship placements are less 6 likely to be moved from placement to placement. 7 (11) Children in kinship placements are less 8 likely to struggle with behavioral health and less 9 likely to be maltreated. 10 SEC. 3. GRANTS TO DEVELOP, ENHANCE, OR EVALUATE 11 KINSHIP NAVIGATOR PROGRAMS. 12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 427 of the Social Security 13 Act (42 U.S.C. 627) is amended to read as follows: 14 ‘‘SEC. 427. KINSHIP NAVIGATOR PROGRAM GRANTS. 15 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary shall make grants 16 to States, to Indian tribes, tribal organizations, or tribal 17 consortia, and to community-based organizations to de- 18 velop and enhance kinship navigator programs, or to 19 evaluate such programs, in order to promote the use of 20 kinship navigator programs by all such entities, and to ad- 21 vance the knowledge and use of kinship navigator pro- 22 grams that meet— 23 ‘‘(1) the evidence-based practices criteria to 24 qualify for payments under section 474(a)(7); and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:15 Sep 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4352.IH H4352 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 4352 IH ‘‘(2) the requirements described in subsection 1 (b)(1) of this section. 2 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.— 3 ‘‘(1) MANDATORY REQUIREMENTS.—The re- 4 quirements described in this paragraph are the fol- 5 lowing: 6 ‘‘(A) The kinship navigator program is de- 7 signed to assist kinship caregivers in learning 8 about, finding, and using programs and services 9 to meet the needs of the children they are as- 10 sisting or raising, and their own needs, and to 11 promote effective partnerships among public 12 and private agencies to ensure kinship caregiver 13 families are served. 14 ‘‘(B) The kinship navigator program is co- 15 ordinated with other State or local agencies 16 that promote service coordination or provide in- 17 formation and referral services, including the 18 entities that provide 2–1–1 or 3–1–1 informa- 19 tion systems where available, to avoid duplica- 20 tion or fragmentation of services to kinship care 21 families. 22 ‘‘(C) The kinship navigator program is 23 planned and operated in consultation with kin- 24 ship caregivers and organizations representing 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:15 Sep 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4352.IH H4352 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 4352 IH them, youth raised by kinship caregivers, rel- 1 evant government agencies, and relevant com- 2 munity-based or faith-based organizations. 3 ‘‘(D) The kinship navigator program estab- 4 lishes information and referral systems that 5 link (via toll-free access) kinship caregivers, 6 kinship support group facilitators, and kinship 7 service providers to— 8 ‘‘(i) each other; 9 ‘‘(ii) eligibility and enrollment infor- 10 mation for Federal, State, and local bene- 11 fits; 12 ‘‘(iii) relevant training to assist kin- 13 ship caregivers in caregiving and in obtain- 14 ing benefits and services; and 15 ‘‘(iv) relevant legal assistance and 16 help in obtaining legal services. 17 ‘‘(E) The kinship navigator program pro- 18 vides outreach to kinship care families, includ- 19 ing by establishing, distributing, and updating a 20 kinship care website, or other relevant guides or 21 outreach materials. 22 ‘‘(F) The kinship navigator program pro- 23 motes— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:15 Sep 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4352.IH H4352 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 4352 IH ‘‘(i) partnerships between public and 1 private agencies, including schools and uni- 2 versities, community-based or faith-based 3 organizations, and relevant government 4 agencies, to increase their knowledge of the 5 needs of kinship care families and other in- 6 dividuals who are willing and able to assist 7 parents to help prevent children from en- 8 tering foster care or to be foster parents; 9 and 10 ‘‘(ii) improved services for such fami- 11 lies and individuals. 12 ‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES.—In addition to 13 meeting the requirements described in paragraph 14 (1), a grant under this section may be used to assist 15 a kinship navigator program in— 16 ‘‘(A) establishing and supporting a kinship 17 care ombudsman with authority to intervene 18 and help kinship caregivers access services; 19 ‘‘(B) supporting any other activities de- 20 signed to assist kinship caregivers in obtaining 21 benefits and services to improve their caregiv- 22 ing, including in-person supportive services; 23 ‘‘(C) negotiating, managing, and imple- 24 menting agreements to enable the kinship navi- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:15 Sep 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4352.IH H4352 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 4352 IH gator program obtain data from the informa- 1 tion systems used to carry out a State program 2 funded under part A, or a State plan developed 3 in accordance with this subpart, or approved 4 under subpart 2 of this part; and 5 ‘‘(D) public education and awareness of 6 kinship placement and processes. 7 ‘‘(c) APPLICATIONS.—In order to receive a grant 8 under this section, a State, Indian tribe, tribal organiza- 9 tion, tribal consortium, or community-based organization 10 shall submit to the Secretary an application, at such time 11 and in such manner as the Secretary shall require, that 12 contains the following: 13 ‘‘(1) A description of how the grant will be used 14 to develop, enhance, or evaluate kinship navigator 15 programs that meets the requirements of subsection 16 (b)(1), and whether the State or tribal entity intends 17 to carry out any of the activities described in sub- 18 section (b)(2). 19 ‘‘(2) A description of how kinship caregivers 20 and the children they care for will be identified and 21 an initial projection of the number of children and 22 kin caregivers that will be served. 23 ‘‘(3) A description of how the State or tribal 24 entity intends to make its kinship navigator program 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:15 Sep 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4352.IH H4352 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 4352 IH available as broadly as possible, including on a state- 1 wide (or, in the case of a tribal entity, multi-State) 2 basis whenever possible. 3 ‘‘(4) A description of how the State intends to 4 sustain the kinship navigator program after the end 5 of the grant funding, including through use of fund- 6 ing available under section 474(a)(7). 7 ‘‘(5) An assurance that the State, Indian tribe, 8 tribal organization, tribal consortium, or community- 9 based organization will cooperate fully with any eval- 10 uation provided for by the Secretary with respect to 11 grants made under this section. 12 ‘‘(6) Any other information that the Secretary 13 may require. 14 ‘‘(d) GRANT ALLOTMENTS AND PAYMENTS.— 15 ‘‘(1) ALLOTMENTS TO STATES, TRIBES, OR 16 COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS.—Subject to the 17 succeeding paragraphs of this subsection, from the 18 amounts appropriated to carry out this section for a 19 fiscal year, after the application of the amounts re- 20 served under subsection (e) for the fiscal year, the 21 Secretary shall allot to each State that has sub- 22 mitted an application for a grant under this section 23 (and to each Indian tribe, tribal organization, or 24 tribal consortium that has submitted an application 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:15 Sep 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4352.IH H4352 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •HR 4352 IH for a grant to be paid from an allotment under this 1 paragraph) for the fiscal year an amount equal to 2 the sum of— 3 ‘‘(A) $200,000; and 4 ‘‘(B) the product of— 5 ‘‘(i) the amount remaining after mak- 6 ing the reservations required under sub- 7 section (e), and allotting the amount de- 8 scribed in subparagraph (A) to each such 9 State and each such Indian tribe, tribal or- 10 ganization, or tribal consortium, for the 11 fiscal year; and 12 ‘‘(ii) the proportion that the number 13 of children in the State, Indian tribe, tribal 14 organization, or tribal consortium for the 15 fiscal year bears to the total number of 16 children for all the States (and all the In- 17 dian tribes, tribal organizations, and tribal 18 consortia provided with a grant paid from 19 an allotment under this paragraph) for the 20 fiscal year. 21 ‘‘(2) ALLOTMENTS TO CERTAIN TERRI- 22 TORIES.—In the case of an allotment determined 23 under paragraph (1) for the United States Virgin Is- 24 lands, Guam, American Samoa, or the Northern 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:15 Sep 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4352.IH H4352 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •HR 4352 IH Mariana Islands, the Secretary may reduce the 1 amount of the allotment based on the need of the 2 territory, but not below a minimum amount that the 3 Secretary determines is sufficient to enable the terri- 4 tory to carry out the purposes of a grant made 5 under this section. 6 ‘‘(3) INDIAN TRIBES OR TRIBAL CONSORTIA.— 7 From the amount reserved under subsection (e)(1) 8 for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall allot to each In- 9 dian tribe, tribal organization, and tribal consortium 10 that has submitted an application for a grant under 11 this section (other than from an allotment under 12 paragraph (1)) for the fiscal year an amount that 13 bears the same ratio to such reserved amount as the 14 number of children in the Indian tribe, tribal organi- 15 zation, or tribal consortium for the fiscal year bears 16 to the total number of children in all Indian tribes 17 and tribal organizations that have submitted an ap- 18 plication for a grant under this section (other than 19 from an allotment under paragraph (1)) for the fis- 20 cal year, as determined by the Secretary on the basis 21 of the most current and reliable information avail- 22 able to the Secretary. If a consortium of Indian 23 tribes applies and is approved for a grant under this 24 section, the Secretary shall allot to the consortium 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:15 Sep 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4352.IH H4352 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •HR 4352 IH an amount equal to the sum of the allotments deter- 1 mined for each Indian tribe and tribal organization 2 that is part of the consortium. 3 ‘‘(4) PAYMENTS.—Payments of grants under 4 this section may be made in advance or by way of 5 reimbursement, and in such installments, as the Sec- 6 retary may determine, and shall be made on such 7 conditions as the Secretary finds necessary to carry 8 out the purposes of the grants. 9 ‘‘(5) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Amounts allot- 10 ted under this subsection to a State, an Indian tribe, 11 a tribal organization, a tribal consortium, or a com- 12 munity-based organization for a fiscal year shall re- 13 main available for expenditure through the end of 14 the succeeding fiscal year. 15 ‘‘(6) NO MATCHING PAYMENT REQUIRED.—No 16 matching payment shall apply to the grants made 17 under this section. 18 ‘‘(e) RESERVATIONS OF FUNDS.— 19 ‘‘(1) INDIAN TRIBES, TRIBAL ORGANIZATIONS, 20 OR TRIBAL CONSORTIA.—The Secretary shall reserve 21 5 percent of the funds appropriated for a fiscal year 22 to carry out this section, for grants to Indian tribes, 23 tribal organizations, or tribal consortia not provided 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:15 Sep 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4352.IH H4352 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •HR 4352 IH a grant from an allotment under subsection (d)(1) 1 for the fiscal year. 2 ‘‘(2) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, EVALUATIONS, 3 AND GUIDANCE.—The Secretary shall reserve 5 per- 4 cent of the funds appropriated for a fiscal year to 5 carry out this section to provide technical assistance, 6 evaluations emphasizing community-based participa- 7 tory methods that align programs with local knowl- 8 edge and community values, and guidance to grant- 9 ees, and to carry out, by grant, contract, or inter- 10 agency agreement, cross-site evaluations for pur- 11 poses of identifying evidence-based practices criteria 12 that will qualify for payment under section 13 474(a)(7). 1 [Text truncated for display. 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