On June 12, 2025, the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Work and Welfare held a hearing, “Aging Out is Not a Plan: Reimagining Futures for Foster Youth,” which explored recommendations to reform and improve the John H. Chafee Foster Care Program for Successful Transition to Adulthood (the Chafee program). The purpose of Chafee is
Congress continues to move forward with the budget reconciliation process, with multiple House committees marking up their versions of the bill last week. As a reminder, both the House and the Senate have passed identical budget resolutions, but the instructions for the House and the Senate are very different, with the House receiving instructions to
In the last weeks of the Biden Administration, Executive offices pushed out numerous new rules, policies, and information memoranda. The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) released the following: Best Practices for Serving Young People Transitioning From Foster Care This Information Memorandum (IM) provides information on best practices for providing quality programs and services to
On June 12, 2024, the Senate Judiciary Committee convened for a hearing on combatting the youth vaping epidemic by enhancing enforcement against illegal e-cigarettes. Committee Chair, Senator Dick Durbin (D- IL), noted an alarming level of youth using e-cigarettes and the failure of federal agencies to protect children from the addiction associated with use. A
The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) hosted a hearing on June 12, 2024, titled “The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act: Supporting Efforts to Meet the Needs of Youth, Workers, and Employers” to discuss the reauthorization of The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). The opening statement provided by Chair Bernie Sanders
On May 22, 2024, the Senate Finance Committee held a hearing, “The Family First Prevention Services Act: Successes, Roadblocks, and Opportunities for Improvement.” Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR), one of the original sponsors and champions of the legislation, opened the hearing with some of the history of the passage of the bipartisan Family First Prevention Services
The Biden Administration has published a number of new regulations in the past few weeks, moving at a very quick pace. The Congressional Review Act allows Congress to disapprove of a final rule, but the resolution must be introduced within a specific time frame: during a 60-days-of-continuous-session period beginning on the day Congress receives the
On May 7, 2024, Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Senator Mike Braun (R-IN), Representative Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-CA), and Representative Erin Houchin (R-IN) reintroduced the Higher Education Access and Success for Homeless and Foster Youth Act to remove barriers to higher education for homeless and foster youth and help ensure they can pursue a higher education and
This year the President’s budget was released on Monday, March 11, 2024. The fiscal year (FY) 2025 budget begins on October 1, 2024. This is the fourth budget for the Biden Administration. Due to the unusual FY 2024 budget situation, it was delayed by one month from the statutory first Monday in February outlined under
Representatives Judy Chu (D-CA) and Erin Houchin (R-IN) introduced H.R. 7010, the Increasing Access to Foster Care Through 21 Act on January 17, 2024, ahead of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee hearing on supporting older youth in foster care. The bill would provide an incentive for all states to extend child welfare support and
