[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8555 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8555

 To amend the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act to provide for 
 better protections for children raised in kinship families outside of 
                        the foster care system.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 23, 2024

 Ms. Scanlon (for herself and Mr. Thompson of Pennsylvania) introduced 
 the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education 
                           and the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act to provide for 
 better protections for children raised in kinship families outside of 
                        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 ``Help Grandfamilies Prevent Child 
Abuse Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds as follows:
            (1) More than 2,400,000 children are being raised in 
        kinship families or ``grandfamilies'' by relatives or close 
        family friends without their parents in the home, and the vast 
        majority of such children are raised outside of the foster care 
        system.
            (2) The majority of kinship caregivers are grandparents.
            (3) For every child in foster care living with relatives, 
        there are 18 being raised by relatives outside of the foster 
        care system.
            (4) More than one-third of all children placed in foster 
        care because of parental drug or alcohol use are placed with 
        relatives.
            (5) Children who have been exposed to substance misuse in 
        the home may also experience abuse and neglect, and research 
        indicates that children in family foster care because of 
        substance use are more likely to be placed with relatives than 
        with nonrelatives.

SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS TO CAPTA.

    (a) Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect.--Section 102(c) of 
the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5102(c)) is 
amended--
            (1) in paragraph (13), by striking ``; and'' and inserting 
        a semicolon;
            (2) in paragraph (14), by striking the period and inserting 
        a semicolon; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(15) organizations providing services to kinship 
        families; and
            ``(16) birth parents, kinship caregivers, and foster care 
        alumni.''.
    (b) National Clearinghouse for Information Relating to Child 
Abuse.--Section 103(b) of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act 
(42 U.S.C. 5104(b)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (8)(B), by striking ``; and'' and 
        inserting a semicolon;
            (2) in paragraph (9), by striking the period and inserting 
        ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(10) coordinate with the Grandfamilies & Kinship Support 
        Network: A National Technical Assistance Center to disseminate 
        information about evidence-based, evidence-informed and 
        exemplary practices used to support children being raised in 
        kinship families within, or outside of, the child welfare 
        system.''.
    (c) Grants to States, Indian Tribes or Tribal Organizations, and 
Public or Private Agencies and Organizations.--Section 105(a)(4) of the 
Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5106(a)(4)) is 
amended by adding at the end the following: ``Such procedures used by 
recipients of a grant pursuant to this paragraph shall reflect equity 
for children placed with kin, recognize their unique circumstance, and 
include plans for prioritizing placement with kin as the first 
placement, identifying and engaging kin as supports for children 
throughout the child's involvement with the child welfare system, 
making it a priority to license kin as foster parents, supporting 
permanent families for children placed with kin, and creating a strong 
community network to support kin families.''.
    (d) Grants to States for Child Abuse or Neglect Prevention and 
Treatment Programs.--Section 106 of the Child Abuse Prevention and 
Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5106a) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (b)(2)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (B)(iv), by inserting ``, and 
                for how kinship placements will be prioritized'' before 
                the semicolon; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (D)(v), by inserting ``kinship 
                navigators,'' after ``substance abuse treatment 
                agencies,''; and
            (2) in subsection (d)(3)--
                    (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) and (C) as 
                subparagraphs (C) and (D), respectively;
                    (B) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the 
                following:
                    ``(B) the number that did not receive services 
                during the year under the State program funded under 
                this section or an equivalent State program because the 
                child was diverted from the child welfare system to 
                live with kin outside of the foster care system;''; and
                    (C) in subparagraph (D), as so redesignated, by 
                striking ``families'' and inserting ``parents''.
    (e) Community-Based Grants for the Prevention of Child Abuse and 
Neglect.--
            (1) Purpose.--Section 201(b)(1) of the Child Abuse 
        Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5116(b)(1)) is 
        amended--
                    (A) in subparagraph (G), by striking ``; and'' and 
                inserting a semicolon;
                    (B) in subparagraph (H), by adding ``and'' after 
                the semicolon; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(I) support the unique needs of kinship families 
                raising children inside or outside the foster care 
                system;''.
            (2) Local program requirements.--Section 205(a) of the 
        Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5116e(a)) 
        is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``and to parents 
                who are adult former victims of domestic violence or 
                child abuse or neglect'' and inserting ``to parents who 
                are adult former victims of domestic violence or child 
                abuse or neglect, and to families where children are 
                being raised by kin because their parents cannot raise 
                them'';
                    (B) in paragraph (3)(B)--
                            (i) in clause (viii), by striking ``and'';
                            (ii) in clause (ix), by striking the period 
                        and inserting a semicolon; and
                            (iii) by adding at the end the following:
                            ``(x) training to meet the specific needs 
                        of kinship caregivers, including training on 
                        caring for children with behavioral or mental 
                        health challenges and how to access services 
                        for which such caregivers may be eligible; and
                            ``(xi) training on understanding substance 
                        use disorders and the impact of trauma on 
                        children;''; and
                    (C) in paragraph (4), by inserting ``, kinship 
                caregivers, and foster care alumni'' after ``parents''.
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