DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families

Request for Public Comment Concerning the Impact of the Adoption

and Safe Families Act of 1997 on Adjudicated Juvenile Delinquents Whose

Foster Care Placements are Funded Through Title IV-E of the Social

Security Act

AGENCY: Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Administration

for Children and Families, Department of Health and Human Services.

ACTION: Notice of request for public comment.

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SUMMARY: The Children's Bureau, in the Administration on Children,

Youth and Families, administers the title IV-E

foster care maintenance program which provides funds to States to

assist them in meeting the needs of certain children who are removed

from their homes and placed in foster care. Federal financial

participation (FFP) is available for a portion of the costs States

incur in their placement and care responsibilities for title IV-E

eligible children. The Children's Bureau plans to issue guidance

clarifying policy and regulations for the foster care maintenance

program with respect to children who have been adjudicated delinquent.

We think it is critical that we receive input from a wide variety of

sources and perspectives prior to issuing any guidance. On July 28,

1998, Federal staff attended the National Juvenile Justice Roundtable

on the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997 (ASFA) in Arlington,

Texas to begin the consultation process for identifying and clarifying

the issues related to applying the ASFA to children who are adjudicated

delinquent. This notice invites public comment on issues and concerns

which have been identified in the course of examining the ASFA and its

implications for title IV-E eligible children who have been adjudicated

delinquent. These comments will assist the Children's Bureau in

clarifying the policy and regulatory framework within which title IV-E

operates and is administered.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the

ADDRESSES section below on or before January 6, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Mail written comments (in duplicate) to Kathy McHugh,

Director, Division of Policy, Children's Bureau, 330 C St., SW.,

Washington, DC 20447. Respondents may also provide comments

electronically at kmchugh@acf.dhhs.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joe Bock, Child Welfare Program

Specialist, Children's Bureau, 330 C St., SW., Washington, DC 20447;

(202) 205-9632. jbock@acf.dhhs.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Congress authorized the title IV-E program

with the intent that it would benefit children who were subjected to

abuse and/or neglect in their homes. Some children who have been

adjudicated delinquent, however, are appropriately served by the title

IV-E program, as well. Specifically, those children who meet the title

IV-E eligibility criteria and who present with child protection and/or

dependency issues, in addition to their delinquent status, may be

eligible for title IV-E foster care. States must meet all title IV-B

and IV-E program and/or eligibility requirements with respect to

children who are adjudicated delinquent, including the case plan and

case review protections afforded them at sections 422(b)(10) and

471(a)(16) of the Social Security Act (the Act).

Eligibility of the Child

States have been challenged in their attempts to meet the title IV-

B and IV-E requirements within a juvenile justice framework.

Particularly challenging for States are the statutory eligibility

requirements for a State to obtain judicial determinations to the

effect that:

Remaining at home is contrary to a child's welfare;

The State agency (or the juvenile justice agency with an

agreement that is in effect between it and the State child welfare

agency) has made reasonable efforts to prevent the child's removal;

The State agency (or the juvenile justice agency with an

agreement that is in effect between it and the State child welfare

agency) has made reasonable efforts to reunify the child and family;

and

The State agency (or the juvenile justice agency with an

agreement that is in effect between it and the State child welfare

agency) has made reasonable efforts to make and finalize an alternate

permanent placement if the child is not able to return home.

Yet, these judicial determinations embody the critical protections

that Congress requires with respect to children who are title IV-E

eligible and differentiate between the adjudicated delinquents who are

appropriately served through the title IV-E program and those who are

not.

Eligibility of the Facility

States have also experienced difficulty in meeting title IV-E

requirements in a juvenile justice framework with respect to claiming

reimbursement for foster care maintenance payments.

The statute, at section 472(c)(2), specifically excludes ``. . .

detention facilities, forestry camps, training schools, or any other

facility operated primarily for the detention of children who are

determined to be delinquent . . .'' from the definition of ``child-care

institution,'' thereby prohibiting the expenditure of title IV-E funds

for children placed in such facilities. Some States are inappropriately

claiming title IV-E reimbursement for children placed in facilities

that are not child-care institutions as defined at section 472(c)(2) of

the Act and are, therefore, ineligible facilities.

On November 19, 1997, the President signed into law the Adoption

and Safe Families Act of 1997, Public Law 105-89. The ASFA emphasizes

and seeks to strengthen the original goals of Public Law 96-272:

safety; permanency; and child and family well-being. It does so, in

part, by emphasizing individual parental responsibility and State

accountability for moving children to permanency in a timely manner

through accelerated statutory time frames for meeting certain case

review system requirements. These shorter time frames will increase the

challenges to States in meeting title IV-B and IV-E requirements for

the juvenile justice population.

The challenges presented in the ASFA have compelled us to review

our policies regarding the application of title IV-B and IV-E program

and/or eligibility requirements for children who are adjudicated

delinquent. We request comments that address issues stemming from the

following:

(1) The requirements to:

Obtain judicial determinations regarding contrary to the

welfare (section 472(a)(1) of the Act) and reasonable efforts (required

at section 472(a)(1) and defined at section 471(a)(15) of the Act);

and,

Develop case plans, hold six-month administrative reviews,

hold permanency hearings, and comply with the requirement to file a

petition to terminate parental rights when a child has been in foster

care for 15 out of the most recent 22 months (required at sections

422(b)(10) and 471(a)(16) of the Act and defined at sections 475(1),

(5), and (6) of the Act);

(2) The requirements for ensuring children's safety, both in their

homes and in foster care;

(3) The requirements for expediting permanency;

(4) Setting parameters for and defining appropriate child-care

facilities, from a title IV-E perspective, in which children who are

adjudicated delinquent may be placed; and

(5) The types of technical assistance States will need to implement

the ASFA for the juvenile justice population.

Dated: November 20, 1998.

James A. Harrell

Deputy Commissioner

Administration on Children, Youth and Families.