Bill Text: VA HB27 | 2024 | Regular Session | Prefiled
Bill Title: Kinship foster care; placement of child with foster parent.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-2)
Status: (Passed) 2024-04-08 - Governor: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0629) [HB27 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2024-HB27-Prefiled.html
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That the Code of Virginia is amended by adding in Chapter 15 of Title 63.2 an article numbered 7, consisting of a section numbered 63.2-1531, as follows:
§63.2-1531. Kinship as Foster Care Prevention Program.
A. The Kinship as Foster Care Prevention Program (the Program) is established to promote and support kinship care placements and alternative living arrangements made by a local board in accordance with §63.2-900 to keep children out of foster care.
B. A child is eligible for the Program if the local board determines that:
1. The child is at imminent risk of being removed from his home and a preliminary protective order pursuant to §16.1-253 is, in the local board's discretion, insufficient to address the child's immediate safety concerns; and
2. The child's parent or guardian consents to the placement of the child with a relative pursuant to an agreement with the local board developed in accordance with subsection C.
C. In order to receive payments under the Program, the child's parent or guardian and the relative with whom the child will be placed shall enter into a written agreement with the local board. Such agreement shall:
1. Document the need for the child's placement with the relative, including a description of the reasons the local board determined that the child was at imminent risk of removal;
2. Identify the services and support that will be provided by the local board to the child, the relative with whom the child will be placed, and the child's parent or guardian;
3. Include a statement that the local board has notified the child's parent or guardian and the relative with whom the child will be placed of the option for the child to enter foster care and the potential for the relative to become an approved kinship foster parent;
4. Ensure the child's parent or guardian provides to the relative any authority necessary to ensure the child is able to receive basic health care, attend school, and engage in other basic life activities;
5. Describe the requirements that the child's parent or guardian shall meet in order for the child to return home. Such provisions shall include a safety plan that establishes requirements that the child's parent or guardian shall comply with in the event the child is returned home, which may include requirements for continued services;
6. Describe the visitation arrangements for the child's parent or guardian;
7. Establish an expiration date for the agreement, which shall be no more than 90 days after execution of the agreement;
8. Establish provisions for extending the agreement, including provisions that prohibit the agreement from being extended for more than one 90-day period and that require the reasons for the extension to be included in the case record;
9. Include a statement that the agreement may be terminated by any party, at any time, and for any reason and a statement that, upon such termination, the local board may take actions to protect the child, including removal of the child pursuant to the provisions of this title;
10. Describe (i) the amount of each Program payment that will be provided to the relative with whom the child will be placed, which shall be no more than the foster care maintenance payment that the relative would receive if the relative was the child's foster parent, reduced by any monthly payments received through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program and the Relative Maintenance Support Payment Program and (ii) the manner in which such payments will be provided;
11. Include a statement that the child's parent or guardian may seek legal counsel prior to entering into the agreement and information regarding a process established by the Department for referral of the parent or guardian to legal counsel; and
12. Establish any other requirements deemed necessary by the local board.
D. The Department shall determine whether each child receiving payments through the Program is eligible to participate in the Relative Maintenance Support Payment Program. If a child receiving payments through the Program is expected to remain in the care of the relative on a long-term basis, the local board shall provide information to the relative regarding the opportunity and process to petition the appropriate court for custody of the child, including the options for joint legal or joint physical custody.
E. The Department may require local boards to report to the Department all agreements entered into pursuant to subsection C and the final case outcome. The Department may include nonidentifying information from such records in its child-protective services and foster care statistical reports.
F. For purposes of this section, "relative" means an adult who is (i) related to the child by blood, marriage, or adoption or (ii) fictive kin of the child.
2. That the State Board of Social Services (the Board) shall promulgate regulations to implement the provisions of this act by January 1, 2025, which may include provisions governing the manner in which Kinship as Foster Care Prevention Program payments are calculated and prioritized based on available funding. The Board's initial adoption of regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this act shall be exempt from the Administrative Process Act (§2.2-4000 et seq. of the Code of Virginia), except that the Board shall provide an opportunity for public comment on such regulations prior to adoption.
