Commissioner details foster care budget reductions from surpluses
Jones-Gaston explains $1.4M CTL reduction in Preparing Youth for Adulthood services due to surplus, $233K CTL reduction for adoption recruitment contracts no longer maintained since 2015, and $97.5M CTL to address the Title IV-E budget gap from federal reimbursement ineligibility.
All residential and specialized family foster care providers receive $3,500 for each youth ages 14 to 21 in their care for independent living services, referred to as preparing youth for adulthood.
These services help youth develop life skills through workshops and programs such as financial literacy, resume writing, college applications, grocery shopping, banking, and driver's education.
The executive budget includes an annual reduction of 1.4 million CTL, 3.75 million gross, due to a surplus in the budget code.
There will be no impact on providers or youth.
Providers will continue to receive the $3,500 for each youth age 14 to 21.
The executive budget also includes 233,000 CTL, 1.1 million gross.
reduction for adoption recruitment contracts, which ACS no longer maintains and has not since 2015.
Adoption and foster parent recruitment is now managed by our foster care providers and their current contracts include recruitment funding.
Thus, there is no interruption in service and we do not anticipate any impact on providers or families.
The executive budget includes $97.5 million in CTL funding to address the Title IV-E budget gap the ACS has been carrying due to the way the federal government reimburses for foster care.
Specifically, while federal Title IV-E funding for foster care is a federal entitlement, it is only an entitlement for those children and youth who are federally eligible.
While there are a number of eligibility requirements, family income is the one that causes most children to be ineligible for federal reimbursement.
To be eligible, current income of the child's family must be such that they would have been eligible for AFDC, which was the predecessor of TANF, in 1996.
This has never been adjusted to inflation, nor the current public assistance program.
There was a period of time where the gap was being filled by federal government funds through the 4E waiver, but that ended in 2018.
This addition
This additional funding fills the baselines, the gap ACS has been carrying.