This bill amends federal child welfare law to prioritize and support kinship care—placing children with relatives or close family friends when they cannot safely remain with their parents. The legislation removes barriers that have made kinship placements difficult, including age limits for caregivers and past abuse allegations that don't pose current safety risks. States would be required to make mandatory, active efforts to identify and involve relatives and fictive kin in child placement decisions, and kinship guardianship assistance would become mandatory rather than optional. The bill eliminates a requirement that families receiving foster care payments must have qualified for welfare under past AFDC rules, which significantly expands eligible families. The legislation also expands support services available to kinship families, including crisis assistance, cash payments for immediate needs, and family-finding services. States must maintain their fiscal year 2024 spending levels on kinship placements going forward. These changes take effect on the first day of the first fiscal year after enactment, with flexibility for states needing time to pass implementing legislation.
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