Foster Care Eligibility Toolkit
Included links go to external sites.
Resources for Questions
Questions
Policy questions: [email protected]
Resource family approval inquiries: [email protected]
Eligibility questions: [email protected]
Foster Care Rates Bureau: [email protected] or [email protected]
Title IV-E Review Guide
Title IV-E Review Guide
This section contains the Title IV-E Foster Care Eligibility Review Guide, which is a resource to county agencies and reflects the changes in Title IV-E eligibility requirements enacted through the Family First Prevention Act of 2018. This resource also includes other technical clarifications and provides an update on the Children’s Bureau’s plans for resuming Title IV-E Foster Care Eligibility Reviews using the revised IV-E Review Instrument (located in Appendix A and Appendix B of the document).
Title IV-E Review Tool
Title IV-E of the SSA
Abbreviations and Acronymns
Below are a list of common abbreviations and acronyms used in the Foster Care program. For additional information, refer to the CDSS website at www.cdss.ca.gov/cdssweb/entres/pdf/EnglishGlossary.pdf.
| Abbreviation or Acronym | Definition |
|---|---|
| AB | Assembly Bill |
| ACF | Administration for Children and Families |
| ACIN | All County Information Notice |
| AFDC | Aid to Families with Dependent Children |
| AFDC-FC | Aid to Families with Dependent Children-Foster Care |
| AFDC-FG | Aid to Families with Dependent Children-Family Group |
| AFDC-U | Aid to Families with Dependent Children-Unemployed Parent |
| ARC | Approved Relative Caregiver |
| CalSAWS | California Statewide Automated Welfare System (Statewide by 2023) |
| C-IV | Consortium IV (Phase Out by 2023) |
| CalWIN | CalWORKs Information Network (Phase Out by 2023) |
| CalWORKs | California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids |
| CCL | Community Care Licensing |
| CDSS | California Department of Social Services |
| CFR | Code of Federal Regulations |
| CWDA | County Welfare Directors Association |
| CWS | Child Welfare Services |
| CWS/CMS | Child Welfare Services/Case Management System |
| EAS Manual | Eligibility and Assistance Standards Manual |
| EDD | Employment Development Department |
| EFC | Extended Foster Care |
| FFP | Federal Financial Participation |
| FC | Foster Care |
| FET | Financial Eligibility Test |
| FFA | Foster Family Agency |
| FFH | Foster Family Home |
| FH | Foster Home |
| ICP | Inter-County Placement |
| ICT | Inter-County Transfer |
| ICPC | Inter-State Compact on the Placement of Children |
| ILP | Independent Living Program |
| IM | Income Maintenance |
| IEVS | Income and Eligibility Verification System |
| ISFC | Intensive Services Foster Care |
| J/D | Jurisdictional/Dispositional Hearing |
| JPD | Juvenile Probation Department |
| JRTA | Judicial Review and Technical Assistance |
| Kin-GAP | Kinship Guardian Assistance Program |
| LOC | Level of Care |
| MEDS | Medi-Cal Eligibility Data System |
| NMD | Non-Minor Dependent |
| NMFD | Non-Minor Former Dependent |
| NOA | Notice of Action |
| NREFM | Non-Relative Extended Family Member |
| PO | Probation Officer |
| POEM | Preponderance of Evidence Model |
| PP | Permanency Planning |
| PPH | Permanency Planning Hearing |
| PPR | Permanency Planning Review |
| PRWORA | Personal Responsibility & Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 |
| RFA | Resource Family Approval |
| SAWS | Statewide Automated Welfare System |
| SSA | Social Security Administration |
| SSI | Supplemental Security Income |
| SSP | State Supplemental Payment |
| SW | Social Worker |
| TAH | Tribally Approved Home |
| THPP | Transitional Housing Placement Program |
| TFH | Therapeutic Foster Home |
| TILP | Transitional Independent Living Plan |
| UIP | Unemployment Insurance Benefits |
| W&IC | Welfare & Institutions Code |
Definitions
Below are definitions for some of the most pertinent terms used in AFDC-FC and the Foster Care System.
Policy: WIC 11400, Division 45 AFDC-FC (MPP 45-100)
| AFDC-FC | Aid to Families with Dependent Children – Foster Care. It is the aid provided on behalf of needy children in foster care who meet the eligibility requirements as specified in department regulations and in applicable state and federal law. |
| Applicant Child | A child for whom aid has been requested but whose eligibility has not yet been determined. |
| Assessment | A written document in the service/probation case record that states the reason for the child’s placement and identifies the child’s problems or needs. |
| Authority for Placement | The legal basis under which a child is residing in foster care placement. |
| Case Plan | A written document in the services case record. The social worker or probation officer develops this in partnership with the child and family team, including the Tribe when applicable, and is based on of the child’s and family’s identified needs. This document outlines, at a minimum, the behavior that needs to change for the safety goal to be met as well as the identified services that will support that behavior change. |
| Case Plan Update | Case plans get updated at least every six months throughout the life of the court case. It will contain specific information about the current conditions of the child and family’s progress in their goals, well-being, and safety. |
| Certified Out-of-State Short Term Residential Treatment Program (STRTP) | A facility located outside of the State of California which would meet the definition of an STRTP if located within California and has been certified by the department as meeting licensure standards required to operate in California or been granted a waiver. |
| Child Welfare Policy Manual | Contains policy questions and answers applicable to child welfare programs operated by the Children’s Bureau. |
| Child Placing Agencies | Children can be placed in different types of eligible placements by the County Child Welfare Agency, Probation Department or Tribe. Throughout this course these different entities will be referred to as “Child Placing Agencies.” |
| Children | All dependents and wards of the court ages 0 - 18. Does not include any child over the age of 18 years old. |
| Community Care Licensing Agency | The department or agency authorized by the State of California to license STRTPs. |
| Court Order | The judicial determinations made by the juvenile court or Indian Tribal Court. The filing of a petition starts the proceedings. If the petition is not dismissed the following two categories of judicial orders apply: ― Detention order is the order issued by the juvenile court that permits detention of a child pending a hearing to determine if the child is to be made a dependent or ward of the court. ― Jurisdictional and Dispositional orders are the orders issued by juvenile court that declare the child a dependent or ward and designate to whom the child is to be released. |
| Crisis Nursery | A facility licensed to provide short-term, 24-hour non-medical residential care and supervision for children under six who are either voluntarily placed or placed by a county child welfare services agency. |
| Date of Application | The date the applicant or applicant’s representative signs the application; or the date the county receives the signed application whichever is later. |
| Dependents | Children who have court orders due to neglect, abuse or maltreatment as described in Welfare and Institutions Code section 300, are referred to as “dependents” and fall under the jurisdiction of juvenile court and dependency proceedings. |
| Delinquent | A youth who has committed a crime or status offense. |
| Eligible Home | This is a home (RFA) that meets the requirements of the AFDC-FC program and in which an eligible child may be placed. |
| Extended Foster Care (EFC) | The law that extends foster care to age 21 in California. If a youth is in a foster care placement (Child Welfare Services and/or Probation) on their 18th birthday, they may be eligible for Extended Foster Care. |
| Family Home | The family residence of a licensee in which 24-hour care and supervision are provided for children and which is licensed by the appropriate community care licensing agency, or a family residence which is approved and which provides such care and supervision. |
| Federal Financial Participation (FPP) | When a child is removed from the home and placed in out of home care (foster care), they may be eligible to receive federal funds. These federal financial programs are known as Federal Financial Participation (FFP), Title IV-E funding, and Federal Aid to Families with Dependent Children-Foster Care (AFDC-FC). Note that all these terms can be used interchangeably, and all describe the same federal funds. When a child is not eligible for federal funds, county funds are used to pay for the child’s care. |
| Former Relative | A person related to the child by birth or adoption when legal rights to the child are terminated by court action or relinquishment. |
| Foster Care | Used to refer to all types of eligible placements. There are a variety of homes where a child can be placed: foster care, placement with relatives, group care, specialized foster care homes, resource homes. We will use the term foster care when we refer to all these placement types. |
| Foster Family Agency | An organization engaged in recruiting, approving, training and providing professional support to resource parents or are engaged in finding homes for children/youth who require that level of care. |
| Foster Family Agency Approved Family Home | A family residence approved by a licensed foster family agency as meeting Resource Family Approval standards and used only by that foster family agency for placements. |
| Independent Living Program (ILP) | A federally funded program which assists current and former foster youth between the ages of 16 and 21 achieve self-sufficiency prior to, and after, exiting the foster care system. |
| Indian Child | An unmarried person under 18 who is a member of an Indian tribe or who is eligible for tribal membership and is the biological child of a tribe member. |
| Indian Tribal Court | A court with jurisdiction over an Indian child’s custody proceedings. |
| Kin-GAP | A permanency option for children in appropriate, long-term foster care placements with relative caregivers who are unable or unwilling to adopt a child in foster care with another option for the child exiting the child welfare system. |
| Legal Guardian | An individual appointed permanent or temporary guardian of a child by a California court. |
| Medi-Cal | California's state Medicaid program. |
| Non-Minor Dependent | A person who is a current dependent child or ward of the juvenile court, who attained age 18 while under an order of foster care placement, is under 21 years of age, is under the responsibility of the county welfare or probation department or Tribal IV-E Agency and has a transitional independent living case plan. |
| Non-Relative Extended Family Member | An adult caregiver who has an established familial or mentoring relationship with the child as verified by the County Welfare Department (CWD). |
| Probation Officer | Works for a county Probation Department. |
| Periodic Review/Hearing | A review of the child’s status conducted by the juvenile court, an Indian Tribal court, or an administrative panel. Such hearings include: .21e (6-month court review for reunification cases; .21f (12-month court review for reunification cases); .22 (18-month review for reunification cases) and .26 (hearing to implement the recommended Permanent Plan of Adoption, Guardianship or Long-Term Foster Care). |
| Permanency Placement Services | Services provided to the child for purposes of locating and maintaining a placement that can be expected to be permanent. |
| Permanency Placement Review or Permanency Placement Hearing | A hearing conducted by juvenile court or an Indian Tribal court for the purpose of establishing or maintaining a plan for the child’s permanent living arrangement. This could include family reunification, adoption, legal guardianship, fit and willing relative or Another Planned Permanent Living Arrangement. |
| Pre-Placement Preventive Services | Services provided to the child and their family prior to placement into foster care for the purposes of eliminating the need for removal. |
| Provider | Any individual or corporation that provides foster care to a child. |
| Qualified Individual (QI) | A licensed mental health professional who conducts an assessment to determine the child’s behavioral health needs and goals when a recommendation is made to place the child in a higher level of care such as a Short Term Residential Therapeutic Program or a Community Treatment Facility (CTF) or a Community Treatment Facility (CTF). |
| Relative | A person related by blood or law to the child within 5th degree of separation including divorced parents. |
| Relinquished Child | A child who has been given up for adoption by one or both parents. |
| Resource Family Approval (RFA) | Family-friendly and child-centered caregiver approval process that combines elements of the current foster parent licensing, relative approval, and approvals for adoption and guardianship processes and replaces those processes. |
| Short Term Residential Therapeutic Program (STRTP) | Intended to provide short-term, high quality intensive interventions, which is part of the continuum of care available to children in foster care. |
| Social Security Act Title IV-E | Provides federal payments for Foster Care, Prevention, and Permanency. Section 472 [42 U.S.C. 672] provides AFDC eligibility. |
| Social Worker (SW) | Social workers are case managers. They specialize in building upon strengths and protective factors within a family and community to help ensure children have a safe and loving environment. Social workers are called upon to support families in times of need when there are concerns of maltreatment, abuse or neglect in the home. A social worker can either work for a county Child Welfare Department (CWD) or a Tribal Agency. |
| Supervised Independent Living Placement | Type of placement that is designed for young adults (ages 18 to 21) who are ready to live on their own with limited financial and emotional support. |
| Title IV-E Funding | Federal funding for children in the care of the Child Placing Agency. It is part of the federal Social Security Act in Title IV-E. |
| Transitional Housing Placement Facility | A community care facility licensed by the Department as part of the Transitional Housing Placement Program (THPP). |
| Transitional Housing Placement Program (THPP) | A program that provides supervised housing opportunities to eligible foster care youth. |
| Transitional Independent Living Plan (TILP) | A document that the youth creates with their social worker or probation officer to help them establish a vision for their future and a plan to get there. |
| Voluntary Placement | An out-of-home placement of a child by the county welfare department (CWD) after the parents or guardians have requested the assistance of the CWD and have signed a voluntary placement agreement. (See Section III d for further information.) |
| Ward | Children who have court orders due to crimes or status offenses as described in Welfare and Institutions Code section 600 are referred to as “wards” and fall under the jurisdiction of juvenile court and juvenile justice or probation proceedings. |
| Youth | Refers to all dependents and wards of the juvenile court regardless of age and including non-minors. |
Common Forms
Listed below are some of the most common forms that are required to determine, maintain, and document eligibility for AFDC-FC benefits. For a complete list of forms and the most recent version see the California Department of Social Services Alphabetic Form List.
| Form | Definition |
|---|---|
| CW 2.1Q | Support Questionnaire |
| CW 5 | Veterans Benefits Verification and Referral |
| CW 51 | Child Support – Good Cause Claim for Non-Cooperation |
| CW 371 | Referral to Local Child Support Agency (LCSA) |
| EA 1 | Emergency Assistance Application for Child Welfare Services |
| FC 2 | Statement of Facts Supporting Eligibility for AFDC-Foster Care (FC) |
| FC 2NM | Statement of Facts Supporting Eligibility for AFDC-Extended Foster Care (EFC) |
| FC 3 | Determination of Federal AFDC-FC Eligibility |
| FC 3A (Supplemental) | AFDC-FG/U Worksheet |
| FC18 | Notification of AFDC – Foster Care Transfer |
| IPC 100A | Interstate Compact Placement Request |
| ICPC 100B | Interstate Compact Report on Child’s Placement Status |
| LIC 203 | FFA License |
| LIC 229 | Certificate of Approval (for Certified Family Homes) |
| RFA 05 | Resource Family Approval Certificate |
| SAWS 1 | Application for Cash Aid, Food Stamps, and/or Medi-Cal/State CMSP |
| SAWS 2 Plus | Statement of Facts for Cash Aid, Food Stamps, and Medi-Cal/34-County Medical Services Program |
| SOC 154 | Agency-Group Home Agreement |
| SOC 154A | Agency-Foster Family Agency Agreement – Child Placed by Agency in Foster Family Agency |
| SOC 155 | Voluntary Placement Agreement – Placement Request |
| SOC 155B | Mutual Agreement For 18-Year-Olds |
| SOC 155C | Voluntary Placement Agreement Parent/Agency (Indian Child) |
| SOC 156 | Agency – Foster Parents Agreement – Child Placed by Agency in Foster Home |
| SOC 158A | Foster Child’s Data Record and AFDC-FC Certification |
| SOC 161 | Six-Month Certification of Extended Foster Care Participation |
| SOC 162 | SOC 162 – Mutual Agreement for Extended Foster Care |
| SOC 163 | Voluntary Re-Entry Agreement for Extended Foster Care |
| TILP 1 | Transitional Independent Learning Plan and Agreement |
| ICWA 030 | Proceedings for An Indian Child (Juvenile Court) |
| 300 Petition | Court form to initiate dependency |
| 342 Petition | Petition to report new facts to the court |
| 387 Petition | Supplemental Petition for More Restrictive Placement |
| 388 Petition | Request to Change Court Order |
| 602 Petition | Court form used to initiate delinquency/wardship status |
| JV 410 | Findings and Order After Detention Hearing |
| JV 415 | Findings and Facts After Dispositional Hearing |
| JV 412 | Findings and Orders After Jurisdictional Hearing |
| JV 430 | Findings and Orders After Six-Month Review Hearing |
| JV 674 | Findings and Orders After Permanency Hearing |
| JV 678 | Findings and Orders After Post-Permanency Hearing: Delinquency |
| JV 445 | Findings and Orders After Post-Permanency Hearing – Parental Rights Terminated: Permanency Plan of Adoption |
| JV 462 | Findings and Orders After Nonminor Dependent Status Review Hearing |