H.R.2702: Family First Transition and Support Act of 2019

The Family First Prevention Services Act (Family First) was a landmark piece of legislation that will allow Title IV-E funding to be used for certain foster care prevention services such as substance use disorder treatment, mental health care, and in-home parenting skills. The law takes effect in 2020. The Family First Transition and Support Act aims to aid states in their transition to the new law. Specifically, it would:

1) Remove the eligibility link between Title IV-E foster care benefits and the 1996 Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) law. Federal funding currently only supports foster care placements if the home of removal would have been eligible under the 1996 AFDC program, which only covers 40 percent of children in foster care;
2) Expand funding under Promoting Safe and Stable Families (Title IV-B part 2) by $200 million, and allow those funds to be used to assist kinship families;
3) Provide states and tribes with more time to develop the research base for prevention programs they want to use by delaying the FFPSA 50% well-supported requirement until 2026;
4) Enhance funding for caseworker training and development;
5) Provide $15 million in additional funds for State-directed research to develop interventions to meet Family First evidenced-based requirements, strengthen families, improve service delivery for youth victims of trafficking, and reduce inter-generational poverty;
6) Boost funding for by $40 million for Regional Partnership Grants to allow more local and regional groups to address parental substance use and child well-being;
7) Enhance funding by $30 million for the child welfare Court Improvement Program and Tribal Court Improvement Program;
8) Provide $75 million in new time-limited resources to support foster parent recruitment and increasing quality family residential care settings.
9) Provide short-term Federal support to help States meet Family First licensing and accreditation standards for quality residential treatment programs and therapeutic foster care settings;

S. 1376 is the Senate companion bill introduced by Sen. Sherrod Brown