[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2341 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2341

To provide Individual Development Accounts to support foster youths who 
             are transitioning from the foster care system.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           November 13, 2007

   Mr. Reid (for Mrs. Clinton (for herself, Mr. Rockefeller, and Ms. 
  Landrieu)) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
  referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide Individual Development Accounts to support foster youths who 
             are transitioning from the foster care system.

    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 ``Focusing Investments and Resources 
for a Safe Transition Act'' or as the ``FIRST Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Research has shown that foster youths face a unique set 
        of challenges, including a lack of financial and emotional 
        support systems throughout their early adult years, as well as 
        limited educational, employment, housing, and permanency 
        options.
            (2) When foster youths exit or age out of the foster care 
        system, foster youths often lack emotional, social, 
        professional, and financial guidance to guide foster youths 
        through the transition to adulthood.
            (3) While Congress has passed legislation to increase 
        support for foster youths, research shows that foster youths 
        still need greater assistance supporting their transition to 
        adulthood.
            (4) A 2005 study found that foster youths fare poorly 
        relative to their counterparts in the general population on the 
        following outcome measures:
                    (A) Employment.
                    (B) Education.
                    (C) Homelessness.
                    (D) Mental health.
                    (E) Medical insurance coverage.
                    (F) Criminal activity.
                    (G) Early pregnancy.
            (5) Nationwide, over 20,000 youth age out of foster care 
        each year.

SEC. 3. INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT ACCOUNTS FOR FOSTER YOUTH.

    Section 105 of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 
U.S.C. 5106) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by adding at the end the following:
            ``(6) Opportunity grants to create individual development 
        accounts for foster youths.--
                    ``(A) Grants authorized.--The Secretary may make 
                grants and enter into contracts, on a competitive 
                basis, to States to enable the States (or State 
                partners) to establish Individual Development Accounts 
                for foster youths, to be accessed by the youths when 
                the youths meet the requirements of subparagraph 
                (D)(iii).
                    ``(B) Application and plan.--The Governor of each 
                State desiring a grant or contract under this paragraph 
                shall submit an application to the Secretary at such 
                time, in such manner, and containing such information 
                as the Secretary may require. Each such application 
                shall contain a plan, developed by the appropriate 
                State agency, for the State's Individual Development 
                Account program that describes how the program--
                            ``(i) best suits the current and future 
                        needs of the State's foster youth community;
                            ``(ii) enables foster youth to achieve 
                        self-support after leaving foster care; and
                            ``(iii) establishes public or private 
                        partnerships to create a pool of funding from 
                        which foster youth deposits in Individual 
                        Development Accounts can be matched.
                    ``(C) Priority for states.--In making grants and 
                entering into contracts under this paragraph, the 
                Secretary shall give priority to States that permit 
                foster youths under age 13 to become account holders in 
                programs carried out by the States under this 
                paragraph.
                    ``(D) Individual development accounts.--
                            ``(i) In general.--Each State receiving a 
                        grant or contract under this paragraph shall 
                        carry out a program in which the State 
                        establishes, or enters into an agreement with a 
                        public or private partnership to establish, 
                        Individual Development Accounts for foster 
                        youths, including foster youths in kinship or 
                        guardianship placements and foster youths who 
                        are transitioning from the foster care system.
                            ``(ii) Deposits.--Each Individual 
                        Development Account shall consist of--
                                    ``(I) amounts deposited into the 
                                Individual Development Account by the 
                                foster youth;
                                    ``(II) matching funds deposited 
                                into the Individual Development Account 
                                that are provided by a public or 
                                private partnership in an amount that 
                                does not exceed $2 for every $1 
                                deposited by the foster youth; and
                                    ``(III) funds deposited into the 
                                Individual Development Account from 
                                amounts provided through grants or 
                                contracts awarded under this paragraph.
                            ``(iii) Qualified youth.--To be qualified 
                        to withdraw funds from an Individual 
                        Development Account under this paragraph, an 
                        individual shall be the individual for whom the 
                        account was established under this paragraph 
                        and an individual who--
                                    ``(I) is not younger than age 18, 
                                and is adopted or in a guardianship 
                                placement;
                                    ``(II) is not younger than age 18, 
                                and has moved to a permanent living 
                                arrangement not described in subclause 
                                (I);
                                    ``(III) is not younger than age 18 
                                and is transitioning from the foster 
                                care system; or
                                    ``(IV) has a waiver from the State 
                                involved permitting the withdrawal for 
                                extenuating circumstances.
                            ``(iv) Withdrawals.--Funds in an Individual 
                        Development Account--
                                    ``(I) may be withdrawn by a 
                                qualified individual--
                                            ``(aa) to secure and 
                                        maintain stable housing;
                                            ``(bb) to pursue 
                                        educational opportunities;
                                            ``(cc) to obtain vocational 
                                        training; and
                                            ``(dd) after the youth has 
                                        used funds in the account for 
                                        each of the objectives 
                                        described in items (aa) through 
                                        (cc), to operate a business or 
                                        purchase a car; and
                                    ``(II) at the election of the State 
                                involved, may be withdrawn by the 
                                qualified individual to purchase 
                                essential items such as work uniforms 
                                and car insurance, in order to assist 
                                the individual in becoming self-
                                sufficient.
                            ``(v) Money management training.--In 
                        carrying out the program, the State shall 
                        ensure that--
                                    ``(I) a public or private 
                                partnership shall provide a small 
                                amount of seed money to each foster 
                                youth selected to become an account 
                                holder through the program, to enable 
                                the youth to attend money management 
                                training; and
                                    ``(II) the youth shall complete the 
                                training before receiving access to the 
                                account.
                            ``(vi) Name on account.--If an account is 
                        established under this paragraph for an 
                        individual while the individual is a foster 
                        youth, and the individual subsequently moves to 
                        a permanent living arrangement, the account 
                        shall remain in the individual's name.'';
            (2) in subsection (c)--
                    (A) by striking ``In making'' and inserting the 
                following:
            ``(1) In general.--In making''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) Evaluations of individual development account 
        programs.--
                    ``(A) Evaluation.--In the case of programs carried 
                out by States under subsection (a)(6), the Secretary 
                shall conduct independent evaluations of the 
                effectiveness of the programs.
                    ``(B) Reports.--
                            ``(i) Contents.--The Secretary shall 
                        prepare interim and final reports containing 
                        the results of the evaluations and related 
                        recommendations, including--
                                    ``(I) information describing how 
                                individuals with Individual Development 
                                Accounts spend the funds withdrawn from 
                                the accounts;
                                    ``(II) information describing how 
                                the State programs impact quality of 
                                life indicators for such individuals, 
                                after the individuals are eligible to 
                                withdraw funds from the accounts;
                                    ``(III) information describing the 
                                effectiveness of the money management 
                                training described in subsection 
                                (a)(6)(D)(v), including the effects of 
                                the training on program performance, 
                                and information describing the 
                                collaboration between the States and 
                                the partners described in subsection 
                                (a)(6)(B)(iii); and
                                    ``(IV) recommendations on 
                                strengthening or modifying the programs 
                                carried out under subsection (a)(6).
                            ``(ii) Submission.--
                                    ``(I) Interim report.--Not later 
                                than 2 years after the date of 
                                enactment of the FIRST Act, the 
                                Secretary shall submit the interim 
                                report described in clause (i) to the 
                                Committee on Education and Labor of the 
                                House of Representatives and the 
                                Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 
                                and Pensions of the Senate.
                                    ``(II) Final report.--Not later 
                                than 3 years after that date of 
                                enactment, the Secretary shall submit 
                                the final report described in clause 
                                (i) to the committees described in 
                                subclause (I).''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(d) No Reduction in Benefits.--Notwithstanding any other 
provision of Federal law (other than the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) 
that requires consideration of one or more financial circumstances of 
an individual, for the purpose of determining eligibility to receive, 
or the amount of, any assistance or benefit authorized by such law to 
be provided to or for the benefit of such individual, funds (including 
interest accruing) in an Individual Development Account under 
subsection (a)(6) shall be disregarded for such purpose with respect to 
any period during which such individual maintains or makes 
contributions into such an account.''.

SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    Section 112(a) of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 
U.S.C. 5106h(a)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``(other than section 
        105(a)(6))'' after ``this title'';
            (2) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3); and
            (3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
            ``(2) Authorization of appropriations for individual 
        development account programs.--There are authorized to be 
        appropriated to carry out section 105(a)(6) such sums as may be 
        necessary for fiscal year 2008 and each of the 4 succeeding 
        fiscal years.''.
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