About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

1 1 (June 30, 2021)

handle is hein.crs/govedwr0001 and id is 1 raw text is: ress I Research Service Infoijninu this Ie~jisiativ~ d~b4a srn >e fl14 Updated June 30, 2021 Child Welfare: Purposes, Federal Programs, and Funding The Work of Child Welfare Agencies Children depend on adults-usually their parents-to protect and support them. The broadest mis sion of public child welfame agencies is to stirengthen families s o that children can depend on their p arents to provide themwith a s afe and loving home. More specifically, child welfare agencies workto prevent abuse or neglect of children by their parents/caregivers. If abuse orneglecthas already happened, theagencies are expected to provide aid, services, or referrals as needed to ensure children do not re-expeiience maltreatment. For some children, this meansplacementin foster care. Federal child welfare policy has three primary goals: ensuring children's safety, enablingpermanencyfor children, and promoting the well-being of children and their families. Fos ter care is understood as a temporary living situation. The first task of a child welfare agency is to provide services to enable children to s afely reunite with their families. If th at is notpossible, thenthe agency works to find a newpermanent family for the child via adoption or guardianship. Youth in care who are neither reunited nor placed witha new pernnnent family are typically emancipated at their state's legal age of majority. These youth are s aid to have aged out of care. Children Served During FY2019, public child protection agencies screened alleg ations of abuse or neglect involving 7.9 million children, carried out investigations or other protective responses involving 3.5 million of those children, and provided follow- up services in the homes of some 1.1 million of those children. Following a child protective services investigation, some children are removed to foster care. During FY2019, more than 251,000 children entered care. The circumstances most often associated with children's entry to foster care are neglect and/orparental drug abuse. Among the 424,000 children who were in foster care on the last day of FY2019, the majority (82%) lived in family homes (nonrelative or relative foster family homes and pre-adoptive homes), 10% lived in a group home or institution, about 7% were on trial home visits or in supervised independent living, and close to 1% had run away. Among the 249,000 children who formally left foster care during FY2019, more thanhalfreturnedtotheirparentsor went to live informally with a relative (53%), while 37% left care for a new permanent family via adoption or guardianship. At the s ame time, 8% aged out ofcare, whilemost of the remainder(1%) were transfered to the care of another agency. Who Bears Public Responsibility for This Work? Under the U.S. Constitution, states are considered to bear the primary public responsibility for ensuring the well-being of children and their families. Public child welfare agencies at the state and local levels work with an array of private and public entities-including the courts and social service, health, nrental health, education, and law enforcement agencies-to carry out child welfare activities. This work is done consistent with state laws and policies. At the same time the federal governnrenthas long provided technical support and funding that is intended to improve state child welfare work. By providing this funding, the federal govemment compels s tates to meet certain program rules, such as requiring permanency planning for all children in foster care. Compliance with these child welfare requirements is monitored via federal plan approvals, audits, and reviews. The Children's Bureau within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) administers most federal child welfare programs. State level administration may be housed in the statehuman services department, or by anindependent, state-levelchild and family services agency. Some stateshave county-administered programs supervised by the state agency. Child Welfare Spending and Programs State child welfare agencies spent about $33 billion on child welfare purposes during s tate FY2018, according to a survey by researcheis at Child Trends. Most ofthat spending drew fromstate and local coffers (56%).Oftheremainder, 26% was s upplied by federal child welfare programs-including those authorized in Title IV-E and Title IV-B of the Social Security Act (SSA) and the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA)-and 18% came fromother federal programs not solely child welfare-focused (principally, the Social Services Block Grant and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families). For FY2021, about $12.6 billion was provided for federal programs that are wholly dedicated to child welfare. Figure I. Federal Child Welfare Funding by Purpose (FY2021 total: -$12.6 billion) Dollars shown in millions Source: Pre pared by CR5 using funding levels provide d in P.L. 11I6-260, P.L. 11I7-2, and, per HHS, ACF, amount paid in FY202 I (for FY202D) funding certaintygrants P.L. 16-94 (Div.N, §602).Amountsforfoster care, adopion and guardianship reflectGincreasedfederal V-E cost-sharingauthorizedinP.L. 11I6-127 (§6008) due to the COVID-l 9 public health emergency. Per HHS, ACF, of the foster care and prevention amount, $13 million is for prevention. *FY2020 funding certainty grants were made to 1 8 e ligible age ncies in s pring 2021. Awards may be adjusted. See HHS, ACF, ACYF, CB, P-216-04, p 23. ** Includes regular and additional COVID- 9-related or othervfunds. https://crs reports.congress.gov

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most