Safe and Timely Interstate Placement of Foster Children Act of 2006
P.L. 109-239
Overview
H.R. 5403
Enacted July 3, 2006
Purpose: To improve protections for children and to hold States accountable for the safe and timely placement of children across State lines
Major Provisions of the Act
- Required each title IV-E State plan for foster care and adoption assistance to provide that the State shall achieve the following:
- Have in effect procedures for orderly and timely interstate placement of children
- Complete home studies requested by another State within a specified period, which is 60 days in most cases but up to 75 days if specified circumstances warrant an extension
- Accept such studies received from another State within 14 days, unless reliance on the report would be contrary to the child's welfare
- Authorized grants for timely interstate home study incentive payments to States that have approved plans and that have completed such studies within 30 days
- Increased the required frequency of State caseworker visits for children in out-of-State foster care placements without imposing restrictions on either State's ability to contract with a private agency to perform those visits
- Amended the definition of 'case review system' to include the following:
- Require a child's health and education record to be supplied to the foster parent or foster care provider at the time of placement and to provide it to the child at no cost when he or she leaves foster care by reason of having attained the age of majority
- Provide for a relative caregiver's, foster parent's, and preadoptive parent's right to be heard in certain proceedings respecting their child in foster care
- Included among the purposes of grants to the highest State courts the assessment of the court's role in carrying out State laws requiring proceedings that determine the best strategy to use to expedite the interstate placement of children
- Required State courts to ensure foster parents, preadoptive parents, and relative caregivers of a child in foster care are notified of certain proceedings held with respect to that child
- Provided for consideration of out-of-State placements in permanency hearings, case plans, and case reviews
- Required each plan for child welfare services to include the assurance that the State will eliminate legal barriers to facilitate timely adoptive or permanent placements for children