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[Current Status: Withdrawn in January 2001 by PA-01-01]
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Administration on Children, Youth and Families
TO: Regional Administrators, HDS Regions I to X
Regional Program Directors, ACYF Regions I to X
SUBJECT: Eligibility for Title IV-E Adoption Assistance of Children Placed for Adoption by Private Nonprofit Agencies
STATEMENT OF REPLY:
Title IV-E of the Social Security Act (the Act) permits adoption assistance payments to be made on behalf of children eligible for the Aid to Families with Dependent Children program (AFDC) or the Supplemental Security Income program (SSI), in addition to children eligible for the title IV-E foster care maintenance payments program. As long as the child meets the requirements in section 473 (a) of the Act and has been determined by the State agency to be a child with special needs, adoption assistance payments may be made on his or her behalf. Neither the Act nor the implementing regulations prohibit an otherwise eligible child from being eligible for title IV-E adoption assistance when responsibility for placement and care is with a private nonprofit agency.
LEGAL AND RELATED REFERENCES:
Sections 472 (a), 473 and 475 (3) of the Social Security Act; 45 CFR 1356.40
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BACKGROUND:
Several States have raised a question about a child's eligibility for adoption assistance under title IV-E when the child is placed for adoption by a private nonprofit agency.
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In order for a child to be eligible to have title IV-E foster care payments paid on his behalf, he must meet the requirements of section 472(a) of the Act. One of these requirements is that the responsibility for placement and care of the child must be under the State agency administering the title IV-E plan, or any other public agency with whom the State agency has a currently effective agreement. However, since there is no such specific eligibility requirement under the title IV-E adoption assistance program, private nonprofit adoption agencies have questioned the policy in some States which prohibits the provision of title IV-E adoption assistance to otherwise eligible children for whom a private nonprofit agency has placement and care responsibility for purposes of adoption.
Question #l:
Does a (non-SSI eligible) child who is otherwise eligible for title IV-E adoption assistance meet the requirements under section 473(a)(l)(A)(i) of the Act if the responsibility for placement and care of the child is not with the State or other public agency, but with a private nonprofit agency?
Answer # l:
Yes, a child whose placement and care are the responsibility of a private nonprofit agency may be eligible for title IV-E adoption assistance payments. The child must meet the eligibility requirements in section 473(a)(l) and be determined by the State to be a child with special needs in accordance with section 473(c) of the Act.
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An otherwise (non-SSI) eligible child may be eligible for title IV-E adoption assistance payments if, at the time adoption proceedings were initiated, he met the definition of "dependent" child under section 406 (a) or 407 of the Act or would have met the requirements except for his removal from the home of a specified relative. The removal must have been (l) as the result of a judicial determination or (2) pursuant to a voluntary placement agreement with respect to which Federal foster care maintenance payments were made. There is no requirement that the child be under the responsibility of the State agency or be receiving foster care maintenance payments under title IV-E at the time adoption proceedings are initiated.
Requirements in regard to removal under section 473(a)(l)(A)(i) of the Act can be met when a child is under the responsibility of a private nonprofit agency in any of the following situations:
(l) The child is removed from his home as the result of a judicial determination and responsibility for placement and care is given to a private nonprofit agency;
(2) The child is removed from his home as the result of a judicial determination and placed under the responsibility of the State agency with subsequent transfer of responsibility for placement and care to a private nonprofit agency;
(3) The child is removed from his home pursuant to a voluntary placement agreement with the State agency, and title IV-E foster care maintenance payments are paid on the child's behalf. Subsequently, responsibility for placement and care is given to the private nonprofit agency; or
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(4) The child is placed in foster care through a voluntary arrangement between the parents or relatives and the private nonprofit agency and there is a subsequent judicial determination to the effect that continuation in the home would be contrary to the welfare of such child.
Question # 2:
When a title IV-E eligible child is placed for adoption by a private, non-profit agency, what are the procedures for negotiating and signing the adoption assistance agreement?
Answer #2:
The adoption assistance agreement is a written agreement, negotiated by and binding on all parties to the agreement, including the State title IV-E agency, the prospective adoptive parents and other relevant agencies. The agreement must specify, among other things, the services to be provided by the State and must be signed by all parties prior to the date of the interlocutory or final decree. If the private agency is a party to the agreement, it should also specify the services to be provided by that agency.
Dodie Livingston
Commissioner