On June 29, the House Ways and Means Committee approved, by voice vote, H.R. 5640, the Child and Family Services Improvement Act of 2006. The bill would reauthorize the Promoting Safe and Stable Families program (PSSFP), last reauthorized in 2001 (P.L. 107-133). The committee held a hearing on the PSSFP on May 23 (see The Source, 5/26/06).
“This bipartisan legislation improves child and family services and provides increased resources to support state efforts to promote safety, permanency, and well-being for at-risk children,” said Chair Bill Thomas (R-CA).
The legislation would reauthorize the PSSFP at $345 million per year in mandatory spending for FY2006-2011 and $200 million per year in discretionary funding. Included in mandatory spending, $40 million per year would be used for state efforts to ensure that children in foster care are visited by a caseworker on a monthly basis. According to a committee press release, “This responds to recent concerns by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Inspector General and other data indicating monthly visits [by caseworkers] were not occurring, despite state policy.” Beginning in FY2008, only states that show improvement in the number of monthly visits would continue receiving these funds.
The Child Welfare Services program (CWS) also would be reauthorized at $325 million per year for FY2006-2011. The legislation would require that states spend 10 percent or less of their CWS funds on administrative program expenses and require states to outline how they will ensure that physicians or other appropriate medical professionals are actively consulted and involved in assessing the health and well-being of foster children and in determining appropriate medical treatment for these children.
The bill also would reauthorize the Mentoring Children of Prisoners program for FY2006-2011 with “such sums as may be necessary.” The FY2007 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education spending bill (H.R. 5647) would appropriate $40 million for this program.
