[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4909 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4909

To provide States with assistance in finding a permanent home for every 
                                 child.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 19, 2014

 Mr. Langevin introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
   Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on 
Education and the Workforce, 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 concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide States with assistance in finding a permanent home for every 
                                 child.

    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 ``Permanent Families for All Children 
Act''.

SEC. 2. 3-YEAR LIMIT ON FEDERAL REIMBURSEMENT OF FOSTER CARE 
              MAINTENANCE PAYMENTS FOR CHILD NOT IN A LEGAL 
              GUARDIANSHIP OR KINSHIP GUARDIANSHIP ARRANGEMENT.

    Section 474 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 674) is amended 
by adding at the end the following:
    ``(h) Limitation on Number of Months for Which Foster Care 
Maintenance Payments Made on Behalf of a Child Not in a Legal 
Guardianship or Kinship Guardianship Arrangement May Be Reimbursed.--
Notwithstanding any other provision of this part, a foster care 
maintenance payment made on behalf of a child shall not be taken into 
account for purposes of this section after such a payment has been made 
on behalf of the child for 36 months (whether or not consecutive) 
ending after the effective date of this subsection, unless the child is 
in a legal guardianship or kinship guardianship arrangement.''.

SEC. 3. 1-YEAR LIMIT ON FEDERAL REIMBURSEMENT OF FOSTER CARE 
              MAINTENANCE PAYMENTS FOR CHILD IN CHILD-CARE INSTITUTION.

    Section 474 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 674), as amended 
by section 2 of this Act, is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
    ``(i) Limitation on Number of Months for Which Foster Care 
Maintenance Payments Made to Child-Care Institutions on Behalf of a 
Child May Be Reimbursed.--Notwithstanding any other provision of this 
part, a foster care maintenance payment made to a child-care 
institution on behalf of a child residing in the institution shall not 
be taken into account for purposes of this section after such a payment 
has been made to 1 or more such institutions on behalf of the child for 
12 months (whether or not consecutive) ending after the effective date 
of this subsection.''.

SEC. 4. ELIMINATION OF AFDC ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENT FOR FOSTER CARE 
              MAINTENANCE PAYMENTS.

    (a) Elimination of Income Eligibility Requirement.--
            (1) In general.--Section 472(a) of the Social Security Act 
        (42 U.S.C. 672(a)) is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``if'' and all 
                that follows and inserting ``if the removal and foster 
                care placement met, and the placement continues to 
                meet, the requirements of paragraph (2).''; and
                    (B) by striking paragraphs (3) and (4).
            (2) Conforming amendments.--
                    (A) Section 470 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 670) is 
                amended by striking ``who otherwise would have been 
                eligible for assistance under the States plan approved 
                under part A (as such plan was in effect on June 1, 
                1995)''.
                    (B) Section 479B(c)(1)(C)(ii) of such Act (42 
                U.S.C. 679c(c)(1)(C)(ii)) is amended--
                            (i) by striking ``the following shall 
                        apply:'' and all that follows through ``Only'' 
                        and inserting ``only''; and
                            (ii) by striking subclause (II).
    (b) Replacement of Federal Matching Rate Applicable to Foster Care 
Maintenance Payments and Related Costs.--
            (1) In general.--Section 474(a)(1) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
        674(a)(1)) is amended to read as follows:
            ``(1) an amount equal to the foster care partnership rate 
        applicable to the State for the quarter, as determined under 
        subsection (k), of the total amount expended during the quarter 
        as foster care maintenance payments under section 472 for 
        children in foster family homes or child-care institutions (or, 
        with respect to such payments made during the quarter under a 
        cooperative agreement or contract entered into by the State and 
        an Indian tribe, tribal organization, or tribal consortium for 
        the administration or payment of funds under this part, an 
        amount equal to the Federal medical assistance percentage (as 
        defined in section 1905(b)) that would apply under section 
        479B(d) (in this paragraph referred to as the `tribal FMAP') if 
        the Indian tribe, tribal organization, or tribal consortium 
        made such payments under a program operated under that section, 
        unless the tribal FMAP is less than the Federal medical 
        assistance percentage that applies to the State); plus''.
            (2) Foster care partnership rate.--Section 474 of such Act 
        (42 U.S.C. 674), as amended by sections 2 and 3 of this Act, is 
        amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(k) The Secretary, in consultation with a State, shall determine 
the foster care partnership rate applicable to the State for a quarter 
so that the total of the amounts payable to the State under subsection 
(a)(1) for the fiscal year in which the quarter occurs equals the total 
of the amounts required to be paid to the State under subsection (a)(1) 
(as in effect just before the 1st quarter for which this subsection is 
in effect with respect to the State) for the 4 quarters preceding such 
1st quarter.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--
            (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
        amendments made by this section shall take effect on the 1st 
        day of the 1st calendar quarter that begins after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act.
            (2) State option to delay effective date.--A State may 
        elect to delay the effectiveness of the amendments made by this 
        section with respect to the State for not more than 3 years.

SEC. 5. ELIGIBILITY OF CHILD IN RESIDENTIAL TREATMENT PROGRAM FOR HALF 
              OF REGULAR FOSTER CARE MAINTENANCE PAYMENTS.

    Section 472(b) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 672(b)) is 
amended by inserting ``, except that, while the child is in a 
residential treatment program, the payments may continue to be made on 
behalf of the child at 50 percent of the level at which the payments 
that would otherwise be made'' before the period.

SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    (a) In General.--Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the 
amendments made by this Act shall take effect on the 1st day of the 
12th month beginning on or after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
and shall apply to payments under part E of title IV of the Social 
Security Act for calendar quarters ending on or after such date.
    (b) Delay Permitted if State Legislation Required.--If the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services determines that State 
legislation (other than legislation appropriating funds) is required in 
order for a State plan developed pursuant to part E of title IV of the 
Social Security Act to meet the additional requirements imposed by the 
amendments made by this Act, the plan shall not be regarded as failing 
to meet any of the additional requirements before the 1st day of the 
1st calendar quarter ending after the first regular session of the 
State legislature that begins after the date of the enactment of this 
Act. For purposes of the preceding sentence, if the State has a 2-year 
legislative session, each year of the session is deemed to be a 
separate regular session of the State legislature.

SEC. 7. INCREASED FUNDING FOR CASEWORKER TRAINING ON CHILD-FOCUSED 
              RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION.

    The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall increase the 
proportion of the amounts expended by a State for caseworker training 
on child-focused recruitment and retention with respect to which the 
State is entitled to a payment under section 474(a)(3)(B) of the Social 
Security Act for each of fiscal years 2015 through 2019, so that the 
aggregate of the additional amounts required to be paid by reason of 
this section for the fiscal year involved equals the amount that the 
Director of the Office of Management and Budget determines is the net 
amount of reduced mandatory spending for the fiscal year as a result of 
the enactment of the preceding provisions of this Act.

SEC. 8. UNUSED SAVINGS TO BE SPENT ON CHILD WELFARE PROGRAMS.

    The amount specified in section 425 of the Social Security Act for 
each of fiscal years 2015 through 2019 shall be increased by the 
savings from the preceding provisions of this Act for the then 
preceding fiscal year, as computed using the most recent baseline of 
the Congressional Budget Office.

SEC. 9. PUBLIC SERVICE LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR SOCIAL WORKERS.

    Section 455(m) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1087e(m)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(5) Loan cancellation for certain social workers.--In the 
        case of a borrower who works in social work in a public child 
        or family service agency, paragraph (1) shall be applied--
                    ``(A) by substituting `60' for `120' both places it 
                appears; and
                    ``(B) by striking `after October 1, 2007' and 
                inserting `after the date of enactment of the Permanent 
                Families for All Children Act'.''.
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