Fostering Healthy Transitions into Adulthood Act of 2020

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 7591 To support the health and well-being of current and former foster care youth transitioning into adulthood. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JULY 13, 2020 Mr. LEWIS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committees on Education and Labor, the Judiciary, and Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee con- cerned A BILL To support the health and well-being of current and former foster care youth transitioning into adulthood. 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 ‘‘Fostering Healthy 4 Transitions into Adulthood Act of 2020’’. 5 SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 6 The purpose of this Act is to foster healthy adult out- 7 comes for current and former foster care youth aging out 8 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Aug 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7591.IH H7591 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 7591 IH of the foster care system and transitioning into adulthood. 1 This Act also strengthens the direct responsibility of the 2 Federal Government for foster care youth transitioning 3 out of care. 4 SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 5 Congress finds the following: 6 (1) Nearly 25,000 foster youth become too old 7 to receive foster care assistance and benefits—or 8 ‘‘age out’’—every year. 9 (2) Youth aging out of foster care and 10 transitioning to independent living require consider- 11 able support from local, State, and Federal Govern- 12 ment to ensure a smooth transition into healthy, 13 independent adulthood. 14 (3) Foster youth are more likely to have been 15 exposed to childhood and adolescent trauma, sub- 16 jected to multiple chronic health challenges, and di- 17 agnosed with poorer mental and physical health out- 18 comes than their peers. Additionally, foster youth 19 are more vulnerable to suffer from persistent anx- 20 iety, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, and 21 other severe challenges to their health. 22 (4) As a result, youth aging out of foster care 23 experience tremendous difficulty in completing edu- 24 cation, obtaining gainful employment, accessing and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Aug 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7591.IH H7591 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 7591 IH receiving basic health care, maintaining stable hous- 1 ing, and avoiding the criminal justice system. 2 (5) Studies indicate that more than 80 percent 3 of foster youth transitioning into adulthood are un- 4 able to support themselves financially. 5 (6) Only 4 percent of youth aging out of foster 6 care earn a college degree by age 26, as compared 7 to 36 percent of individuals who never experience 8 foster care. 9 (7) On average, youth aging out of foster care 10 earn approximately half the income of their similarly 11 educated peers and are employed at significantly 12 lower rates. 13 (8) Accordingly, individuals transitioning out of 14 foster care are often linked with homelessness and 15 housing instability. One national study estimated 16 that approximately 66 percent of former foster 17 youth experience a homeless episode within 6 18 months after transitioning out of care. 19 (9) Moreover, youth aging out of foster care are 20 less likely to seek health and mental care services 21 that are often desperately needed. 22 (10) Nearly 60 percent of young men who have 23 aged out of foster care and of emancipated young 24 men have been convicted of a crime. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Aug 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7591.IH H7591 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 7591 IH SEC. 4. MODIFICATIONS TO FEDERAL FOSTER CARE REIM- 1 BURSEMENT PROGRAM. 2 (a) EXPANSION OF AGE OF ELIGIBILITY.— 3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 475(8) of the Social 4 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 675(8)) is amended to read 5 as follows: 6 ‘‘(8) The term ‘child’ means— 7 ‘‘(A) an individual who has not attained 18 8 years of age; and 9 ‘‘(B) an individual who has attained 18 10 years of age but has not attained 21 years of 11 age, but only in the case of an individual— 12 ‘‘(i) who is in foster care under the 13 responsibility of the State; 14 ‘‘(ii) with respect to whom an adop- 15 tion assistance agreement is in effect 16 under section 473 if the child had attained 17 16 years of age before the agreement be- 18 came effective; or 19 ‘‘(iii) with respect to whom a kinship 20 guardianship assistance agreement is in ef- 21 fect under section 473(d) if the child had 22 attained 16 years of age before the agree- 23 ment became effective.’’. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Aug 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7591.IH H7591 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 7591 IH (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Part E of 1 title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 670 2 et seq.) is amended— 3 (A) by amending section 473(a)(4)(A)(i) of 4 such Act (42 U.S.C. 673(a)(4)(A)(i)) to read as 5 follows: 6 ‘‘(i) who has attained 21 years of 7 age;’’; 8 (B) in section 471(a)(9)(C)(i)(I) of such 9 Act (42 U.S.C. 671(a)(9)(C)(i)(I)), by striking 10 ‘‘18 years of age or such older age as the State 11 has elected under section 475(8) of this Act’’ 12 and inserting ‘‘21 years of age’’; 13 (C) in section 472(c)(2) of such Act (42 14 U.S.C. 672(c)(2)), by striking ‘‘18’’ and insert- 15 ing ‘‘21’’; and 16 (D) in section 475(5)(I) of such Act (42 17 U.S.C. 675(5)(I)), by striking ‘‘18 years of age 18 or such greater age as the State has elected 19 under paragraph (8)’’ and inserting ‘‘21 years 20 of age’’. 21 (b) PLACEMENT AND INTERACTION OF SIBLINGS IN 22 FOSTER CARE.—Section 471(a)(31) of the Social Security 23 Act (42 U.S.C. 671(a)(31)) is amended— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Aug 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7591.IH H7591 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 7591 IH (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), 1 by striking ‘‘reasonable’’ and inserting ‘‘all avail- 2 able’’; and 3 (2) by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting 4 the following: 5 ‘‘(B) in the case of siblings removed from 6 their home who are not so jointly placed— 7 ‘‘(i) to place each such sibling at a 8 distance that is in close proximity to the 9 placement location of, and permits fre- 10 quent, in-person contact with, all other sib- 11 lings; and 12 ‘‘(ii) to provide for frequent visitation 13 or other ongoing interaction between the 14 siblings, including by making available to 15 each such sibling at all times detailed up- 16 to-date contact information for each other 17 sibling who is or has previously been in 18 foster care in the State, 19 unless the State documents that such placement 20 or interaction would be contrary to the safety or 21 well-being of any of the siblings; and 22 ‘‘(C) to provide adults who were formerly 23 in foster care and removed from their homes 24 with assistance in locating siblings and to facili- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Aug 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7591.IH H7591 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 7591 IH tate contact between siblings if both parties 1 consent to contact.’’. 2 (c) REQUIREMENTS FOR OLDER FOSTER YOUTH.— 3 Section 475(1)(D) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 4 675(1)(D)) is amended to read as follows: 5 ‘‘(D) For a child who has attained 14 6 years of age or over, a written description, de- 7 veloped in consultation with the child, updated 8 on an annual basis until the child attains 17 9 years of age, and, if necessary, coordinated with 10 a transition plan under subparagraph (5)(H), 11 of the programs and services which will help 12 such child prepare for the transition from foster 13 care to a successful adulthood, including spe- 14 cific options on— 15 ‘‘(i) education, including identifying 16 personalized goals for the child in terms of 17 academic performance, course selection, 18 and college admission as well as any coun- 19 seling, tutoring, or other support needed to 20 meet those goals; 21 ‘‘(ii) extracurricular activities and op- 22 portunities, including those offered both at 23 the child’s school and in the child’s com- 24 munity; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Aug 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7591.IH H7591 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 7591 IH ‘‘(iii) local opportunities for mentors 1 and other continuing support services; 2 ‘‘(iv) behavioral or mental health serv- 3 ices, including trauma-informed counseling; 4 and 5 ‘‘(v) assistance, if requested by the 6 child, in finding a part-time job, that does 7 not require more than 10 hours of work 8 per week when school is in session or 20 9 hours of work per week when school is not 10 in session.’’. 11 (d) REQUIREMENTS FOR TRANSITION PLANNING.— 12 Section 475(5) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 13 675(5)) is amended— 14 (1) by amending subparagraph (H) to read as 15 follows: 16 ‘‘(H) on an annual basis during each year 17 of the period beginning on the date the child at- 18 tains 17 years of age and ending on the date 19 the child is discharged from foster care, a case- 20 worker on the staff of the State agency, and, as 21 appropriate, other representatives of the child 22 provide the child with assistance and support in 23 developing a transition plan that— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Aug 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7591.IH H7591 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 7591 IH ‘‘(i) is personalized at the direction of 1 the child and is as detailed as the child 2 may elect; 3 ‘‘(ii) includes specific options on hous- 4 ing, health insurance, education, local op- 5 portunities for mentors and continuing 6 support services, and work force supports 7 and employment services; 8 ‘‘(iii) includes information about join- 9 ing the Armed Services, AmeriCorps, the 10 Peace Corps, or Job Corps, or partici- 11 pating in any program under the Work- 12 force Innovation and Opportunity Act or 13 section 10 of the Fostering Healthy Tran- 14 sitions into Adulthood Act of 2020; 15 ‘‘(iv) includes information about the 16 importance of designating another indi- 17 vidual to make financial and health care 18 treatment decisions on behalf of the child 19 if the child becomes unable to participate 20 in such decisions and the child does not 21 have, or does not want, a relative who 22 would otherwise be authorized under State 23 law to make such decisions; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Aug 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7591.IH H7591 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 7591 IH ‘‘(v) provides the child with the option 1 to execute a durable power of attorney for 2 finances, and a health care power of attor- 3 ney, health care proxy, or other similar 4 document recognized under State law; 5 and’’; and 6 (2) in subparagraph (I), by inserting after 7 ‘‘REAL ID Act of 2005,’’ the following: ‘‘certified 8 copies of any legal documents pertaining to custody 9 of the child or the child’s status in foster care, bank- 10 ing and financial information related to any ac- 11 counts opened by the child or on behalf of the 12 child,’’. 13 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 14 this section shall take effect on October 1, 2020. 15 SEC. 5. MODIFICATIONS TO CHAFEE FOSTER CARE INDE- 16 PENDENCE PROGRAM. 17 (a) EXPANSION OF AGE OF ELIGIBILITY.—Section 18 477 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 677) is amend- 19 ed— 20 (1) in subsection (a)(6), by striking ‘‘16’’ and 21 inserting ‘‘14’’; 22 (2) by striking ‘‘18’’ each place it appears (ex- 23 cept in subsection (b)(3)(C)) and inserting ‘‘21’’; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Aug 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7591.IH H7591 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 7591 IH (3) by striking ‘‘21’’ each place it appears (ex- 1 cept in subsection (f)) and inserting ‘‘26’’; and 2 (4) by striking ‘‘23’’ each place it appears and 3 inserting ‘‘28’’. 4 (b) IN-STATE TUITION RATES FOR QUALIFYING 5 FOSTER YOUTH.—Section 477(b)(3) of such Act (42 6 U.S.C. 677(b)(3)) is amended by adding at the end the 7 following: 8 ‘‘(L) A certification by the chief executive 9 officer of the State that the State will not 10 charge youths eligible for services under the 11 State program of any State under this section 12 tuition for attendance at a public institution of 13 higher education (as defined in section 101 of 14 the Higher Education Act of 1965) or a post- 15 secondary vocational institution (as defined in 16 section 102(c) of such Act) in the State at a 17 rate that is greater than the rate charged for 18 residents of the State for such attendance.’’. 19 (c) IMPROVED SERVICES FOR TRANSITIONING 20 YOUTH.—Section 477(b)(3) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 21 677(b)(3)), as amended by subsection (b), is further 22 amended— 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Aug 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7591.IH H7591 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 7591 IH (1) in subparagraph (F), by striking ‘‘absti- 1 nence education programs’’ and inserting ‘‘com- 2 prehensive sexual education programs’’; 3 (2) in subparagraph (K)— 4 (A) by inserting ‘‘financial and’’ before 5 ‘‘health care treatment’’; and 6 (B) by inserting ‘‘a durable power of attor- 7 ney for finances, and’’ before ‘‘a health care 8 power of attorney’’; and 9 (3) by adding at the end the following: 10 ‘‘(M) A certification by the chief executive 11 officer of the State that the State will— 12 ‘‘(i) ensure that each youth partici- 13 pating in the program under this section is 14 provided with— 15 ‘‘(I) a financial education that 16 helps the youth understand basic fi- 17 nancial topics, including budgeting, 18 managing bank accounts, interest 19 rates, savings, credit, retirement, in- 20 vestment, insurance, mortgages, loans, 21 and identity theft and protection; 22 ‘‘(II) assistance with establishing 23 a checking account and a savings ac- 24 count at no cost to the youth; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Aug 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7591.IH H7591 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 13 •HR 7591 IH ‘‘(III) information about partici- 1 pating, and assistance with enrolling, 2 in an individual development account 3 (as defined in section 404(5) of the 4 Assets for Independence Act (42 5 U.S.C. 604(5)); and 6 ‘‘(ii) designate at least 10 percent of 7 the amount paid [Text truncated for display. 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