[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 144 (Tuesday, September 17, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H5257-H5259]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
FIND AND PROTECT FOSTER YOUTH ACT
Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the bill (S. 1146) to amend part E of title IV of the Social
Security Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to
identify obstacles to identifying and responding to reports of children
missing from foster care and other vulnerable foster youth, to provide
technical assistance relating to the removal of such obstacles, and for
other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
S. 1146
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 ``Find and Protect Foster
Youth Act''.
SEC. 2. ELIMINATING OBSTACLES TO IDENTIFYING AND RESPONDING
TO REPORTS OF CHILDREN MISSING FROM FOSTER CARE
AND OTHER VULNERABLE FOSTER YOUTH.
Section 476 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 676) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(f) Evaluation of Protocols Relating to Children Missing
From Foster Care and Other Vulnerable Youth; Technical
Assistance.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall conduct an
evaluation of the protocols established by States in
accordance with the requirements of section 471(a)(35) and,
to the extent applicable, by Indian tribes or tribal
organizations (as defined in section 479B(a)) or tribal
consortia with a plan approved under section 471 in
accordance with section 479B.
``(2) Requirements.--The evaluation shall include the
following:
``(A) A review of relevant aspects of reports submitted by
States, Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and tribal
consortia under this part and part B, and data and other
information reported pursuant to the system established under
section 479.
``(B) Analysis of the extent to which States, Indian
tribes, tribal organizations, and tribal consortia comply
with, and enforce, the protocols required by section
471(a)(35).
``(C) Analysis of the effectiveness of such protocols.
``(D) Identification of obstacles for States, Indian
tribes, tribal organizations, and tribal consortia to
identifying and responding to reports of children missing
from foster care and other vulnerable foster youth.
``(E) Identification of best practices for identifying such
children and youth and intervening with effective services.
``(3) Technical assistance.--The Secretary shall provide
States, Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and tribal
consortia with information, advice, educational materials,
and technical assistance relating to eliminating identified
obstacles to identifying and responding to reports of
children missing from foster care and other vulnerable foster
youth and providing such children and youth with effective
services. Such assistance may include dissemination of--
``(A) processes and tools to identify and examine risk
factors and potential trends related to children who go
missing from foster care and other vulnerable youth;
``(B) best practices for runaway tracking and recovery; and
``(C) guidelines for intervention, including with respect
to services, types of providers, and placement settings.
``(4) Report.--Not later than 5 years after the date of
enactment of this subsection, the Secretary shall submit a
report to Congress on the results of the evaluation conducted
under this subsection and the technical assistance provided
in accordance with paragraph (3).''.
SEC. 3. IMPROVING SCREENING AND ASSESSMENT OF CHILDREN
RETURNED TO FOSTER CARE AFTER GOING MISSING TO
DETERMINE WHETHER THEY WERE, OR ARE AT RISK OF
BECOMING, VICTIMS OF SEX TRAFFICKING.
Section 476 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 676), as
amended by section 2, is further amended by adding at the end
the following:
``(g) Improving Identification of, and Services for,
Children Who Return to Foster Care After Running Away or
Otherwise Being Absent From Foster Care and Who Are, or Are
at Risk of Being, Victims of Sex Trafficking.--
``(1) Assistance.--
``(A) Screening after a return to foster care.--The
Secretary shall provide States, Indian tribes, tribal
organizations, and tribal consortia, with information,
advice, educational materials, and technical assistance to
improve compliance with section 471(a)(35)(A)(iii).
``(B) Improving other requirements.--The information,
advice, educational materials, and technical assistance
provided may include information, advice, educational
materials, and technical assistance to improve or modify
policies and procedures (including relevant training for
caseworkers) developed by States, Indian tribes, tribal
organizations, and tribal consortia under section
471(a)(9)(C), including the following:
``(i) Identifying, through screening, whether the State has
reasonable cause to believe the child or youth is, or is at
risk of being, a victim of sex trafficking.
``(ii) Documenting the results of such screening in agency
records.
``(iii) Determining appropriate services for a child or
youth for whom the State determines there is reasonable cause
to identify the child or youth as a victim of sex
trafficking, or as at risk of being a victim of sex
trafficking.
``(iv) Documenting in agency records the determination of
appropriate services for a child or youth described in clause
(iii).
``(2) Forms of assistance.--The assistance provided under
this subsection shall include the following:
[[Page H5258]]
``(A) Assisting States, Indian tribes, tribal
organizations, and tribal consortia, with developing
oversight mechanisms to assess their compliance with section
471(a)(35)(A)(iii).
``(B) Assisting States, Indian tribes, tribal
organizations, and tribal consortia in developing--
``(i) assessments for screening children who return to
foster care after running away or otherwise being absent from
foster care for risk of becoming victims of sex trafficking;
and
``(ii) effective and robust policies relating to the use of
the assessments.
``(C) Working with States, Indian tribes, tribal
organizations, and tribal consortia to improve or modify
policies and procedures developed under section 471(a)(9)(C).
``(D) Providing technical assistance on how States, Indian
tribes, tribal organizations, and tribal consortia may best
use data collected pursuant to section 479 for oversight of,
and to ensure compliance with, the requirements of paragraphs
(9)(C) and (35)(A)(iii) of section 471(a).
``(3) Consultation.--The Secretary shall, to the extent
practicable, consult with internal and external offices with
expertise on sex trafficking, including the Office on
Trafficking in Persons of the Administration for Children and
Families, on the development and dissemination to States,
Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and tribal consortia of
the assistance required under this subsection.''.
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary
such sums as are necessary to carry out this Act for fiscal
year 2024 through fiscal year 2027.
SEC. 5. IDENTIFYING AND ADDRESSING CONDITIONS THAT LEAD TO
YOUTH RUNNING AWAY FROM FOSTER CARE.
The Comptroller General of the United States shall submit
to the Congress a written report that--
(1) contains a rigorous analysis of administrative data to
determine the characteristics of youth who run away from
foster care and other relevant information about foster care
runaway episodes;
(2) includes information from interviews with recent foster
youth runaways regarding their reasons for running away and
what happened after they ran away, including any screening or
other protocol followed by the State;
(3) includes a systematic review of research and evidence
related to foster youth runaways;
(4) sets forth best practices for making foster care safe
for youth and reducing the number of foster youth runaways;
and
(5) makes recommendations to advance child welfare
practices, after convening and consulting with a group of
child welfare practitioners and professionals to inform the
recommendations.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Missouri (Mr. Smith) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Missouri.
General Leave
Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their
remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under
consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Missouri?
There was no objection.
Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, every year, thousands of families open their hearts and
welcome into their homes children who have suffered abuse, neglect, and
abandonment. Right now, there are nearly 400,000 children in foster
care.
Youth in the foster care system often have experienced serious trauma
and are at high risk of going missing or running away from their foster
care placements, which increases their likelihood of experiencing
homelessness, human trafficking, and other exploitation.
Over the past year, the Committee on Ways and Means has been hard at
work reforming aspects of our child welfare programs. The Find and
Protect Foster Youth Act, introduced by Senator John Cornyn and
Representative Tony Gonzales, will bring us one step closer to
realizing that goal.
This legislation requires the Department of Health and Human Services
and States to improve tracking for children in the foster care system
who have run away or gone missing at some point, including screening
youth for signs of human trafficking or other trauma.
Under Federal law, States are required to report missing foster
children within 24 hours to law enforcement, yet some States still
struggle to implement those protocols. This means that in some cases,
kids missing from foster care are not being tracked or reported as
missing in a timely manner.
This legislation also requires HHS to evaluate State protocols for
shortcomings and share that information with Congress so we can
implement the changes to better track and protect youth in our foster
care system.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 1146, the Find and Protect
Foster Youth Act, as amended.
This bill builds on existing HHS guidance to ensure that States
understand their grave responsibilities when youth go missing from
foster care. It would require HHS to determine whether States are in
full compliance with the law and guidance and also to identify best
practices and provide technical support to States so that they can do
better by our youth.
Our committee worked closely with HHS to update the original guidance
and then advanced, last year, the bipartisan House companion bill, H.R.
2426.
Taking a child into foster care is a last resort, something that we
should do only if a child cannot live safely at home even with services
or support. Once a State takes custody of a child, they must keep that
child safe and act in the child's best interest. There is no higher
obligation than keeping a child safe in our care.
We know that children who run away from foster care are not safe.
They are disproportionately likely to be homeless or to fall prey to
sex traffickers and other predators. They often struggle with mental
health challenges or substance abuse.
To our shame, many youth who run away from foster care also were not
safe before they ran away. They ran away because they were placed in an
unsafe home or separated from siblings and other family members.
This amended version of S. 1146 addresses that issue by requiring HHS
to study and learn more about how to prevent the situation that causes
youth to flee.
In crafting this bipartisan additional study requirement, I was
fortunate to consult Bryan Samuels and the able team at Chapin Hall in
my city of Chicago. Their deep expertise and prior work on this topic
informed our thinking.
I take great pride in our committee's bipartisan work to strengthen
families and protect vulnerable foster youth over the years, including
the landmark Family First Prevention Services Act and the strong bill
to reauthorize and invest in child welfare services that we are also
considering today.
Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to support the Find and Protect
Foster Youth Act and continue to work together to advance thoughtful
legislation to help our most vulnerable youth and families.
Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she might
consume to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Brown).
{time} 1545
Ms. BROWN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Find and
Protect Foster Youth Act.
Every day 55 foster youth in the United States go missing. Their
average age is 15. Missing means we don't know where they are or if
they are safe, and all too often they are not safe.
Right now, the system is failing foster youth. So often, people say:
They fell through the cracks. It is our job to find where those cracks
are and to fill them.
That is what this bill does. It requires the Federal Government to
coordinate with States to find the gaps and fill them so that we can
keep foster youth safe.
Mr. Speaker, 55 new foster youth missing each day is 55 too many, and
I urge my colleagues to pass this bill for foster youth in Ohio and
across the country.
Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance
of my time.
Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my
time.
[[Page H5259]]
In closing, Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Smith and Chairman LaHood
for their work and their assistance in moving this bill that would
require HHS to determine whether States are in full compliance with the
law when youth go missing from foster care, and also to identify best
practices and provide technical support to States so that they can
better serve these young people in our care and need our help.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, our foster care system is a
lifeline for thousands of children who have been displaced, abused, and
neglected. Many of these children are at risk for going missing or
running away from their foster homes, which puts them at risk of
experiencing homelessness and human trafficking.
As Members of Congress, our responsibility to protect foster youth
doesn't end once they are placed in a home. We must ensure that States
have the tools and guidance to locate these children when they go
missing in a timely manner and work to make sure every child has a safe
and loving home.
This legislation will strengthen communication between States and the
Federal Government to help them find and protect missing foster youth
who are in crisis.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I yield
back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Smith) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, S. 1146, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and
nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
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