106th Congress > House > Vote 254
Clerk session vote number: 256
Description: Foster Care Independence Act
Bill summary: Foster Care Independence Act of 1999 -
Title I: Improved Independent Living Program
-
Subtitle A: Improved Independent Living Program
- Amends title IV part E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to revise the program of grants to States for independent living programs providing education, training, employment services, and financial support for individuals between ages 16 and 18 leaving foster care for independent living. Requires the Secretary of Health and
(...show more)
Human Services to: (1) develop outcome measures to assess State performance in operating such programs; (2) identify data elements needed to track such performance, services, and the individuals served; and (3) develop and implement a plan to collect such data.
(Sec. 101) Authorizes appropriations.
Expresses the sense of Congress that States should provide medical assistance under the State plan approved under SSA title XIX (Medicaid) to 18-, 19-, and 20-year-olds who have been emancipated from foster care.
Subtitle B: Related Foster Care Provision
- Increases the amount of assets allowable for children in foster care in determining assistance eligibility under SSA title IV part E.
(Sec. 112) Mandates that State plans for foster care and adoption assistance include a certification that prior to foster care placement the prospective parents will be adequately prepared to provide for the needs of the child, and that such preparation will continue, as necessary, after placement of the child.
Subtitle C: Medicaid Amendments
- Amends SSA title XIX (Medicaid) to authorize a State to limit the eligibility of independent foster care adolescents to individuals for whom foster care maintenance payments or independent living services were furnished under the Improved Independent Living Program.
(Sec. 121) Provides for contingent coordination of this Act with the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999, if the latter is enacted.
Subtitle D: Adoption Incentive Payments
- Instructs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make supplemental grants to adoption incentive-eligible States. Increases the appropriations authorized for FY 2000 through 2003.
Title II: SSI Fraud Prevention
-
Subtitle A: Fraud Prevention and Related Provisions
- Amends SSA title II (Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) and title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI) to subject a representative payee to liability for overpayments made after the death of the individual on whose behalf the payments were made. Instructs the Commissioner of Social Security (the Commissioner) to establish an overpayment control record under the representative payee's social security account number.
(Sec. 202) Provides for recovery of overpayments of SSI benefits from lump sum SSI benefit payments.
(Sec. 203) Authorizes the Commissioner to employ certain statutory debt collection practices to collect delinquent accounts.
(Sec. 204) Changes from discretionary to mandatory the authority of States to provide State prisoner information to Federal and federally assisted benefit programs.
(Sec. 205) Sets forth a statutory mechanism for the treatment of assets held in trust for an individual in connection with eligibility for SSI benefits.
(Sec. 206) Revamps guidelines governing eligibility criteria in connection with disposal of resources for less than fair market value under the SSI program.
(Sec. 207) Prescribes administrative procedures for: (1) imposing penalties for false or misleading statements; and (2) excluding representatives and health care providers convicted of violations from participation in social security programs.
(Sec. 210) Directs the Commissioner to: (1) study and report to certain congressional committees on possible measures to improve fraud prevention and administrative processing; (2) include in the annual budget an itemization of the amount of funds required to support efforts to combat fraud committed by applicants and beneficiaries; and (3) conduct periodic computer matches with Medicare and Medicaid institutionalization data.
(Sec. 213) Authorizes the Commissioner to require applicants or beneficiaries to authorize access to information held by their financial institutions in order to ascertain benefits eligibility.
Subtitle B: Benefits for Certain World War II Veterans
- Amends the Social Security Act to add a new title VIII (Special Benefits for Certain World War II Veterans) to provide monthly benefits to certain qualified World War II veterans for each month such an individual resides outside the United States. Authorizes appropriations.
Subtitle C: Study
- Directs the Commissioner to: (1) study and report to certain congressional committees on the reasons why family farmers with resources of less than $100,000 are denied SSI benefits, including whether the deeming process unduly burdens and discriminates against family farmers who do not institutionalize a disabled dependent; and (2) determine the number of such farmers who have been denied such benefits during each of the preceding ten years.
Title III: Child Support
- Cites circumstances under which the State share of distribution of collected child support shall be increased by statutory formula. Repeals such formula, and the entire hold harmless provision for the State share of the distribution of collected child support, as of October 1, 2001.
Title IV: Technical Corrections
- Sets forth technical corrections relating to amendments made by the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996.
Click to hide full description.
Bill titles: To amend part E of title IV of the Social Security Act to provide States with more funding and greater flexibility in carrying out programs designed to help children make the transition from foster care to self-sufficiency, and for other purposes.
Links for more info on the vote: congress.gov
