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Grandfamilies Act of 2023
4/2/2024, 12:47 PM
Summary of Bill S 3501
The Grandfamilies Act of 2023 seeks to address the unique challenges faced by grandfamilies, such as financial strain, legal issues, and access to healthcare and social services. The bill proposes a number of measures to support these families, including increased funding for kinship care programs, improved access to mental health services for both children and caregivers, and enhanced training and support for grandparents and other relatives who are raising children.
Additionally, the bill aims to strengthen the child welfare system to better support grandfamilies, by promoting family preservation and reunification whenever possible. It also seeks to improve data collection and research on grandfamilies to better understand their needs and challenges. Overall, the Grandfamilies Act of 2023 is a comprehensive piece of legislation that aims to provide much-needed support to grandparents and other relatives who are raising children. By recognizing the important role that these families play in the lives of children, the bill seeks to ensure that they have the resources and support they need to thrive.
Congressional Summary of S 3501
Grandfamilies Act of 2023
This bill expands access to specified programs for children living with grandparents or other family members who are not their legal guardian. Specifically, the bill provides that a child of a relative eligible for Old-Age and Survivors Insurance benefits is eligible for such benefit payments if that child (1) began living with such relative before age 18, (2) receives at least 50% of their support from such relative, and (3) has lived with such relative pursuant to a court order for at least 12 months.
Additionally, the bill revises the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) eligibility requirements for children living with specified caregiver relatives. First, the bill lessens the requirement for TANF applicants to assign their rights to child support when such assignment may impact the likelihood of reunifying the child with their noncustodial parent, such as where the noncustodial parent is working to gain financial stability so they may reunify with their child. Further, when a child, but not the caregiver relative, receives TANF benefits (i.e., child-only cases), or if the caregiver relative is 55 or older, the bill (1) excludes such caregiver’s income from that child’s eligibility determination, (2) removes the 5-year cap on assistance, and (3) exempts such caregiver relatives from TANF work requirements.
The bill also (1) encourages states to enact temporary guardianship laws, (2) provides grants for state plans to support caregiver relatives, and (3) requires the Administration for Community Living to provide grants for establishing cross-sector partnerships that support families with caregiver relatives.
