THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

SENATE BILL

INTRODUCED BY WASHINGTON, O'PAKE, TARTAGLIONE, WILLIAMS, HUGHES, COSTA AND FONTANA, JANUARY 8, 2010

REFERRED TO JUDICIARY, JANUARY 8, 2010  

AN ACT

Amending Title 42 (Judiciary and Judicial Procedure) of the

Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, in juvenile matters,

further providing for disposition of dependent child.

The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:

(1)  When compared to youth without disabilities, foster

youth with disabilities are more likely to be

institutionalized, to lack sufficient education and to have

higher incidences of homelessness and mental health problems

following discharge from foster care.

(2)  Key to transition planning for disabled foster youth

is ensuring that qualified youth are approved for all

benefits, most importantly Federal Supplemental Security

Income (SSI) benefits, and that they are able to accumulate

some level of savings to aid in their transition to

independent living.

(3)  Foster youth with disabilities gain significant

advantages at the time of emancipation if their eligibility

for SSI benefits has been established prior to their

emancipation.

(4)  Unfortunately, Federal law and regulations prohibit

a child who receives a federally funded Aid to Families with

Dependent Children - Foster Care (AFDC-FC) benefit in excess

of the Federal SSI benefits from applying for SSI until the

month prior to the Federal AFDC-FC benefits ending. In order

to apply for SSI benefits, a child may not be receiving

federally funded AFDC-FC benefits in the month of application

or, depending on the timing of the application, the month

after the application is filed. After the application for SSI

benefits is accepted by the Social Security Administration,

Federal rules indicate that the child may receive federally

funded AFDC-FC benefits during the remainder of the

application process. Upon approval for SSI benefits, these

benefits may be suspended for up to 12 months, during which

time a child may receive federally funded AFDC-FC benefits

without losing eligibility for SSI benefits. Using this

flexibility will allow for applications to be made on behalf

of federally eligible youth who are nearing emancipation from

foster care.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1.  Section 6351 of Title 42 of the Pennsylvania

Consolidated Statutes is amended by adding a subsection to read:

§ 6351.  Disposition of dependent child.

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(g.1)  Screening prior to termination of jurisdiction.--

(1)  Prior to the required court hearing to terminate

jurisdiction over a dependent child who is 18 years of age or

older, the county agency shall do the following:

(i)  Subject to paragraph (2), every youth who is in

foster care and nearing termination of jurisdiction shall

be screened by the county agency for potential

eligibility for the Federal Supplemental Security Income

(SSI) program utilizing the guidelines established under

the Social Security Act (49 Stat. 620, 42 U.S.C. § 301 et

seq.).

(ii)  The screening required shall occur when the

foster youth is at least 16 years and six months of age

and not older than 17 years and six months of age. An

application shall be submitted to the Federal Social

Security Administration on behalf of a youth who is

screened as being likely to be eligible for Federal SSI

benefits. To the extent possible, the application shall

be timed to allow for a determination of eligibility by

the Social Security Administration prior to the youth's

emancipation from care, including, if appropriate, the

suspension of SSI benefits for no more than 12 months.

(2)  In carrying out the requirements of paragraph (1)

for a youth receiving federally funded Aid to Families with

Dependent Children - Foster Care (AFDC-FC) benefits, the

county shall, if necessary, forgo federally funded AFDC-FC

and instead use State AFDC-FC resources to fund the placement

in the month of application or in the month after making an

application, and to subsequently reclaim federally funded

AFDC-FC, in order to ensure that the youth meets all of the

SSI eligibility requirements in a single month while the

application is pending, as provided by Federal law and

regulation. This section shall apply to a foster youth

regardless of his or her Federal AFDC-FC eligibility.

(3)  Prior to the implementation of paragraph (2), the

Department of Public Welfare shall obtain clarification from

the Social Security Administration and the United States

Department of Health and Human Services by January 1, 2010,

that the funding mechanism described in paragraph (2) is

consistent with Federal law and regulation.

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Section 2.  This act shall take effect in 60 days.