HF 260 (LSB 1907YH (2) 87)

HOUSE FILE 260

BY  HEATON

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to subsidized guardianships.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  SUBSIDIZED GUARDIANSHIP PROGRAM —— ELIGIBILITY.  In determining eligibility requirements for financial assistance to guardians under the subsidized guardianship program, the department of human services shall amend its administrative rules to provide the following:
   1.  The child who is the subject of the guardianship has lived in continuous placement with a relative of the child who is a licensed foster family home provider for a period of at least six months prior to the subsidized guardianship application.
   2.  The child who is the subject of the guardianship may be of any age and need not be part of a sibling group.
   3.  The child who is the subject of the guardianship has been the subject of a child abuse or family assessment report and has been in the custody of the department of human services.
    Sec. 2.  TITLE IV-E GUARDIANSHIP ASSISTANCE STATE PLAN AMENDMENT —— SUBSIDIZED GUARDIANSHIP PROGRAM.  The department of human services shall submit a Title IV-E guardianship assistance state plan amendment to the United States department of health and human services to allow Title IV-E funding to be used for a subsidized guardianship program to enable children in the care of grandparents and other relatives to exit state care and be placed in permanent homes.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill requires the department of human services to amend its administrative rules contained in 441 IAC ch. 204 relating to eligibility requirements for guardians under the subsidized guardianship program. The bill requires the child who is the subject of a guardianship to have lived in continuous placement with a relative of the child who is a licensed foster family home provider for at least six months prior to the guardianship. The child who is the subject of the guardianship may be of any age regardless of whether the child is part of a sibling group, and must have been the subject of a child abuse or family assessment report and in the custody of the department of human services.
   The bill requires the department of human services to submit a Title IV-E guardianship assistance state plan amendment to the United States department of health and human services to allow Title IV-E funding through the federal Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 (Pub. L. No. 110-351) to be used for a subsidized guardianship program to enable children to remain in the care of grandparents and other relatives to avoid placement in state care.