Permanency

Child Trends Child Welfare Spending Report Out, TANF Reporting Adds to Picture

Child Trends has released the new biennial report on state spending on child welfare, Child Welfare Financing SFY 2018, and it shows little dramatic difference from previous years. Total child welfare agency expenditures increased by 6 percent from SFY 2016 to SFY 2018, but only by 2 percent over the past decade. That may not be

Child and Youth Homelessness Relief in the American Rescue Plan Act

SchoolHouse Connection and National Network for Youth hosted a webinar on Wednesday, March 16, that discussed the American Rescue Plan Act and what it means for children and youth experiencing homelessness. This webinar was meant to think through pieces of this package and how to help children and youth access all the support they can.   

New Guidance & Instructions to the Supporting Foster Youth and Families through the Pandemic Act

On Wednesday, March 10, 2021, the Children’s Bureau released guidance on implementing funds appropriated by The Supporting Foster Youth and Families through the Pandemic Act, included in the Consolidated Appropriations Act that passed in December 2020 by Congress. The Program Instruction, ACYF-CB-PI-21-04, provides guidance and instructions for the John H. Chafee Foster Care Programs for Successful Transition to

Temporary Flexibilities for Title IV-E Kinship Navigator Program

The Children’s Bureau released the program instructions, ACYF-CB-PI-21-05, for IV-E agencies authorizing programmatic flexibilities from April 1, 2020, to September 30, 2021, for Kinship Navigator Programs. Currently, none of the kinship navigator program models have received an evidence-based standard of practice from the IV-E Clearinghouse, and agencies have not been able to draw down IV-E prevention

The American Rescue Act: What’s In It (Part 1)

The $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief measure has a lot in it that directly and indirectly addresses the impact of this year-long pandemic. It includes several issues that have received increased focus because of this past year’s struggles (for example, the racial and regional inequities within the economy and health care system). There are limited added funds specific

Senators Introduce Bill to Focus on Reducing Child Poverty

On Wednesday, March 10, 2021, Senators Bob Casey (D-PA), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) introduced the Child Poverty Reduction Act (H.R. 1588/ S. 643), which commits to cutting child poverty in half in 10 years, just as the pandemic pushes child poverty toward record levels. The legislation also creates national, evidence-based benchmarks and monitoring

Senate Work on Recovery Package

After an initial delaying tactic by Senator Ron Johnson (R-WS) that called for a reading of the bill throughout Thursday, the Senate moved on the American Rescue Plan on Friday morning. A CWLA description of the still-changing package can be found here. Earlier in the week, the Senate Democratic leadership was negotiating various alterations from the

ACF Fails to Monitor States’ Compliance in Implementing the CAPTA GAL Requirement

Last week, the Health and Human Service (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) released a new report confirming that HHS's Administration for Children and Families (ACF) cannot ensure that all children who have been abused or neglected have court representation during judicial proceedings. The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) mandates that a State

Many Other Critical Positions at HHS Filled

In addition to the Children’s Bureau, other critical appointments included Katie Hamm, Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary for Early Childhood Development; Dr. Bernadine Futrell, Director Office of Head Start; Cindy Huang, Director Office of Refugee Resettlement; and Dr. Lanikque Howard, Director Office of Community Services.   Hamm has a lengthy resume in the child care arena.

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