Family Preservation and Support Services Program Act of 1993 - P.L. 103-66

Overview

H.R. 2264
Enacted August 10, 1993
 

Major Provisions of the Act

• Encouraged States to use funds to create a continuum of family-focused services for at-risk children and families
• Required States to engage in a comprehensive planning process to develop more responsive family support and preservation strategies
• Encouraged States to do the following:
  • Use funds to integrate preventive services into treatment-oriented child welfare systems
  • Improve service coordination within and across State service agencies
  • Engage broad segments of the community in program planning at State and local levels
• Broadened the definition of 'family' to include people needing services regardless of family configuration: biological, adoptive, foster, extended, or self-defined
• Defined services to be provided by the States, including the following:
  • Preservation services that include activities designed to assist families in crisis, often when the child is at risk of being placed in out-of-home care because of abuse and/or neglect
  • Support services that include preventive activities (typically provided by community-based organizations) designed to improve the nurturing of children and to strengthen and enhance stability of families
• Provided grants to the highest court of each State to (1) conduct assessments of the roles, responsibilities, and effectiveness of State courts in handling child welfare cases, and (2) implement changes deemed necessary as a result of the assessments (known as the Court Improvement Program)