PRINTER'S NO. 22
No. 19 Session of 1987
INTRODUCED BY KUKOVICH, J. L. WRIGHT, O'DONNELL, RICHARDSON,
WAMBACH, RYBAK, D. W. SNYDER, COY, STEIGHNER, RUDY, CARN,
TRELLO, KOSINSKI, COWELL, VEON, SWEET, STABACK, BELFANTI,
VAN HORNE, LANGTRY, BATTISTO, MORRIS, PISTELLA, BALDWIN,
CAPPABIANCA, BLAUM, SAURMAN, ITKIN, ARTY, PRESTON, GANNON,
BUNT, LaGROTTA, RAYMOND, E. Z. TAYLOR, BORTNER, DALEY,
FREEMAN, CAWLEY, FATTAH, LASHINGER, FISCHER, HALUSKA, TRUMAN,
LINTON, DAWIDA AND FOX, JANUARY 28, 1987
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND WELFARE, JANUARY 28, 1987
AN ACT
1 Providing for the establishment of the Children's Trust Fund,
2 for a governing board, and for the powers and duties of the
3 board; and prescribing the powers and duties of certain State
4 agencies.
5 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
6 hereby enacts as follows:
7 Section 1. Short title.
8 This act shall be known and may be cited as the Children's
9 Trust Fund Act.
10 Section 2. Purpose.
11 This act is intended to create a funding source for
12 community-based children's programs and services for child abuse
13 and neglect prevention.
14 Section 3. Definitions.
15 The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
16 have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
1 context clearly indicates otherwise:
2 "Board." The Children's Trust Fund Board.
3 "Child." A person under 18 years of age.
4 "Child abuse." As defined in section 3 of the act of
5 November 26, 1975 (P.L.438, No.124), known as the Child
6 Protective Services Law.
7 "Neglect." Harm to a child's health or welfare by a person
8 responsible for the child's health or welfare which occurs
9 through negligent treatment, including the failure, whether or
10 not intentional, to provide adequate food, clothing, shelter or
11 medical care.
12 "Program." A community-based program for children of direct
13 provision of services for child abuse and neglect prevention.
14 The term includes, but is not limited to, educational services
15 in parenting, prenatal care, perinatal bonding, child
16 development, basic child care, care of children with special
17 needs, coping with family stress, personal safety and sexual
18 abuse prevention training for children, self-care training for
19 latchkey children, crisis care, aid to parents, child-abuse
20 counseling, peer support groups for abusive or potentially
21 abusive parents and their children, lay health visitors, respite
22 or crisis child care and early identification of families where
23 the potential for child abuse and neglect exists.
24 "Public member." A person who is appointed to the board by
25 the Governor and who holds no Federal, State or local appointed
26 or elected government position. The term does not include a
27 person holding a position on a State or local human services
28 advisory committee.
29 "Trust fund." The Children's Trust Fund established by
30 section 8.
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1 Section 4. Children's Trust Fund Board.
2 (a) Board created.--The Children's Trust Fund Board is
3 created in the Office of Children, Youth and Families of the
4 Department of Public Welfare. The board shall function
5 autonomously within the department and shall exercise its powers
6 and duties related to administering and awarding grants
7 independently of the Secretary of Public Welfare. Budgetary,
8 accounting, procurement and other support services shall be
9 performed by the department.
10 (b) Board composition.--The board shall consist of 15
11 members. Three shall be members of the Senate appointed by the
12 President pro tempore of the Senate, and three shall be members
13 of the House of Representatives appointed by the Speaker of the
14 House of Representatives. In no case shall more than two members
15 from either the Senate or the House of Representatives be from
16 the same political party. The Governor shall appoint nine public
17 members, to be confirmed by majority vote of the Senate. Public
18 members appointed under this subsection shall demonstrate
19 knowledge in the area of children's services; be representative
20 of the demographic composition of this Commonwealth; and, to the
21 extent possible, be representative of parents, the educational
22 community, the religious community, organized labor, the
23 business community, the legal community, and professionals and
24 volunteers in the field of children's or victims' services.
25 (c) Term of office.--The term of each public member shall be
26 three years; however, of the public members first appointed,
27 three shall serve for three years, three shall serve for two
28 years and three shall serve for one year. A public member shall
29 serve no more than two consecutive terms, whether partial or
30 full. A vacancy shall be filled for the balance of the unexpired
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1 term in the same manner as the original appointment.
2 (d) Votes.--No member of the board may delegate his vote.
3 (e) Officers and rules.--The board shall elect a chairperson
4 every two years from among the public members and may elect
5 other officers and establish committees as it deems necessary
6 and has provided for in the regulations it promulgates. Business
7 transacted by the board shall be conducted in accordance with
8 the act of July 3, 1986 (P.L.388, No.84), known as the Sunshine
9 Act.
10 (f) Meetings.--The board shall meet not less than three
11 times annually at the call of the chairperson.
12 (g) Compensation.--Board members shall serve without
13 compensation but shall be reimbursed for actual and reasonable
14 expenses incurred in the performance of their official duties.
15 Reimbursements shall be allocated from funds available from the
16 trust fund, under this act.
17 Section 5. Powers and duties of board.
18 The board has the following powers and duties:
19 (1) Develop, within one year of its establishment and
20 biennially thereafter, a State plan for the availability and
21 coordination of programs and for the distribution of funds
22 from the trust fund. In developing the plan, the board shall
23 review existing programs and shall assure that an equal
24 opportunity exists for the establishment of programs and the
25 receipt of trust fund money among all geographic areas in
26 this Commonwealth and shall encourage the development of new
27 and innovative programs. The board shall notify the Governor
28 and the General Assembly that the plan is available.
29 (2) Provide for the coordination and exchange of
30 information on the establishment and maintenance of programs.
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1 (3) Develop and publicize criteria for the granting of
2 trust fund money to eligible programs.
3 (4) Publicize programs in order to solicit funding from
4 private sources.
5 (5) Administer and award trust fund money and monitor
6 the expenditure of trust fund money by eligible programs.
7 Funds shall be awarded to programs deemed eligible by the
8 board if the organization or agency sponsoring the program
9 meets the following criteria:
10 (i) The organization or agency demonstrates the
11 ability to match, through money or in-kind services,
12 trust fund money received. In-kind services may not
13 exceed 50% of the required match. In the first year the
14 organization receives trust fund money, it must be able
15 to match at least 25%; in the second year and every year
16 thereafter, it must be able to match 50%. The money match
17 may be derived from either private or local government
18 sources.
19 (ii) The organization or agency demonstrates the
20 willingness and ability to provide program models and
21 consultation to other organizations and the community
22 regarding program development and maintenance.
23 (6) Prepare an annual report for the Governor and the
24 General Assembly, including recommendations for legislative
25 action and regulatory change when needed and appropriate.
26 (7) Accept Federal funds granted by Congress and accept
27 State funds granted by the General Assembly for the purposes
28 of this act, as well as gifts and donations from individuals,
29 private organizations or foundations. Funds received shall be
30 transmitted to the State Treasurer for deposit in the trust
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1 fund. Federal funds accepted under this paragraph may not be
2 used to provide a match for other Federal funds.
3 Section 6. Powers and duties of Department of Public Welfare.
4 The Deputy Secretary of the Office of Children, Youth and
5 Families of the Department of Public Welfare shall serve as
6 executive director to the board and shall carry out the duties
7 and responsibilities assigned by the board through staff
8 employed by the office. The executive director shall receive no
9 compensation for carrying out the duties and responsibilities
10 assigned by the board. There shall be employed by the office
11 sufficient staff to carry out the activities of the board.
12 Section 7. Powers and duties of State Treasurer.
13 On an annual basis, the State Treasurer shall make available
14 to the board for its use, consistent with section 5, an amount
15 equal to one-half of the funds received by the trust in the
16 previous fiscal year until the principal of the trust equals
17 $20,000,000, at which time the State Treasurer shall make
18 available to the board the total interest earned on the assets
19 of the trust fund during the prior 12-month period. The actual
20 and necessary expenses incurred by the board in performing its
21 duties shall be paid out of the trust fund allocation made
22 available by the State Treasurer. The annual allocation from the
23 trust fund to the board may not be an amount greater than 5% of
24 its most recent annual allocation.
25 Section 8. Children's Trust Fund created; powers and duties of
26 the Department of Health.
27 The Department of Health shall collect a surcharge of $4 for
28 certified copies of records of birth and a surcharge of $5 for
29 copies of transcripts of marriage license applications
30 pertaining to executed marriage license certificates under
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1 section 601 of the act of June 29, 1953 (P.L.304, No.66), known
2 as the Vital Statistics Law of 1953. These surcharges shall be
3 paid into a special nonlapsing Children's Trust Fund, which is
4 established for the purposes described in this act. Funding for
5 existing or ongoing services of State or local agencies shall
6 not be replaced by the trust fund.
7 Section 9. Effective date.
8 This act shall take effect in 90 days.
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