Kinship Care

Resources

For Welfare Decisions

Vol. 5, No. 3 January 2001

Kinship Care

Background

Child welfare agencies increasingly are turning to kinship care for children in need of out-of-home placements. Kinship care, the living situation in which a grandparent, other close relative or someone else who is emotionally close to a child takes primary responsibility for the care of that child, also is increasing outside the formal child welfare system. Kinship care can be an effective alternative to foster care, providing numerous benefits for the child and family and reducing the growing need for foster care and adoptive homes. In recognition of these potential benefits, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996 encouraged states to consider kinship care as an option when placing a child outside the home. In addition, the 1997 Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA) gave states additional flexibility to use kinship care under certain circumstances.

Financial support provided to kinship care families varies depending upon the relationship of that family with the child welfare system, as well as upon the federal funding stream used by the state to provide the support. Kinship care families in all states are eligible for a foster care payment, if they meet a state-specified foster care standard. In some states, kinship care families may be eligible for TANF assistance. Under TANF, states may provide cash assistance solely to the child receiving care and avoid imposing burdensome work, time limits, and child support participation requirements on the relative caretakers. However, the level of assistance provided through these "child-only" grants is significantly lower than TANF assistance for the entire family unit. Federal, state and local policymakers continue to explore and identify alternative sources of financial support for kin caregivers. For more information on kinship care, visit http://www.welfareinfo.org/cwkinshipcare.htm.

Publications and Electronic Resources

Beeman, S., Boisen, L. "Child Welfare Professionals’ Attitudes Toward Kinship Foster Care." Child Welfare, 78(3): 315-337, May-June 1999. Contact 202/638-2952 or books@cwla.org.

Boots, Shelley Waters and Rob Geen. Family Care or Foster Care? How State Policies Affect Kinship Caregivers. Washington, D.C.: Urban Institute, July 1999. Available at http://newfederalism.urban.org/html/anf_34.html.

Child Welfare League of America. Washington, D.C.: Child Welfare League of America.

Kinship Care, Fact Sheet. December 1998. http://www.cwla.org/programs/kinship/factsheet.htm.

Kinship Care, Frequently Asked Questions. http://www.cwla.org/programs/kinship/faq.htm.

Legal Options Available to Relative Caregivers. November 3, 2000. http://www.cwla.org/programs/kinship/faq.htm.

Children's Defense Fund. The Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA) Regulations and Kinship Care Families. Frequently Asked Questions. Washington, D.C.: Children's Defense Fund, 2000. Available at http://www.childrensdefense.org/kinship_care_faqs.html.

DeParle, Jason. "As Welfare Rolls Shrink, Burden on Relatives Grows." New York Times, February 21, 1999. Available at http://www.nytimes.com/library/politics/022199wisconsin-welfare.html.

Generations United. Washington, D.C.: Generations United.

Grandparents and Other Relatives Raising Children: Challenges of Caring for the Second Family. August 2000. Available at http://www.gu.org/faqs3.pdf.

Grandparents and Other Relatives Raising Children: Subsidized Guardianship Programs. April 2000. Available at http://www.gu.org/faqs2.pdf.

Public Benefits Available to Grandparents and Other Relatives. December 14, 2000. Available at http://www.gu.org/projg&opubbene.htm.

Hegar, R. L. and M. Scannapieco (Editors). Kinship Foster Care: Policy, Practice, and Research. New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, 1999. For ordering information, visit http://www.oup-usa.org or contact 800/451-7556 or custserv@oup-usa.org.

Hushbeck, Claire. After Welfare Reform: How are Grandparent Caregivers Managing? Washington, D.C.: AARP. Available at http://www.aarp.org/grandparents/gpwelfarereform.html.

Jane Addams College of Social Work. The Kinship Care Practice Project. Chicago, Ill.: University of Illinois. Visit http://www.uic.edu/jaddams/college/kincare/index.html.

Leos-Urbel, Jacob, Roseana Bess and Rob Geen. State Policies for Assessing and Supporting
Kinship Foster Parents. Washington, D.C.: The Urban Institute, May 2000. Available at http://newfederalism.urban.org/html/discussion00-05.html.

Mullen, Faith and Monique Einhorn. The Effect of State TANF Choices on Grandparent-Headed Households. Washington, D.C.: Public Policy Institute, 2000. For ordering information,contact Vanessa Woodard-Kinnard at (202) 434-3860.

National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information. Out of Home Care: Kinship Care.
Selected Articles. Washington, D.C.: National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information, August 1999. Visit http://www.calib.com/nccanch/pubs/bibs/kinship.htm.

U.S. Administration for Children and Families. IV-E Waiver Information. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, February 9, 2000. Visit http://www.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/cb/waivers/cww.htm.

U.S. Administration for Children and Families. Report to the Congress on Kinship Foster Care. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, June 2000. Available at http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/kinr2c00/index.htm.

University of Wisconsin Extension Cooperative Extension. Grandparents Raising Grandchildren: Implications for Professionals and Agencies. National Satellite Videoconference. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin, January 1999. Available at http://www.uwex.edu/ces/gprg/qandas.html#leg&fin.

Resource Contacts

AARP Grandparent Information Center, 202/434-2296 or gic@aarp.org or http://www.aarp.org/confacts/programs/gic.html.

Child Welfare League of America, Mattie L. Satterfield, 202/662-4286 or msatterfield@cwla.org.

Children's Defense Fund, 202/628-8787 or http://www.childrensdefense.org.

Generations United, Grandparents and Other Relatives Raising Children Project, Ana Beltran, 202/638-1263 or abeltran@gu.org; or Maggie Troope, 202/638-1263 or mtroope@gu.org; or http://www.gu.org/projg&o.htm.

The Brookdale Foundation Relatives as Parents Program, http://www.ewol.com/brookdale/rapp1.html or BkdlFdn@aol.com.

What States are Doing

California. The Kinship Education, Preparation and Support Program in Los Angeles County combines education with experiential activities to address the needs of relative caregivers, the children in their care, and the birth parents of the children. Sponsored by the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), the program’s nine-meeting sessions help relative caregivers recognize the range of challenges they will experience in their caregiving roles and provide them with information about available community resources. The meeting structure fosters peer support among the participants and assists DCFS in its permanency planning process by allowing for in-depth assessments of the family caregivers’ strengths and needs. Contact Peter Ligre at 213/351-5602.

Florida. The Kinship Care Warmline, a toll-free listening line, is available to all kinship caregivers in Florida. The service provides emotional and psychological support, as well as information and referral services, to grandparents and other relatives raising children in Florida. The Warmline provides information to caregivers regarding medical services, child care, support groups, housing, and educational services, as well as other local resources. Contact Kerry Krisman at 813/974-8414 or kerrykrisman@yahoo.com. Louisiana. The Kinship Care Subsidy Program provides a monthly subsidy to relatives with legal custody or guardianship of a child living in their home and a family income that is less than 150 percent of the federal poverty level. The subsidy is provided for each eligible child residing with a grandparent, aunt, uncle, brother, sister, first cousin, niece or nephew. The payment level is approximately one-half of the state's foster care rate and about $150 more than the child-only TANF grant. To receive the subsidy, kinship care providers must cooperate with child support enforcement efforts. TANF block grant monies are used to fund the program. Contact Jerry Geier at 225/342-2342 or visit http://www.dss.state.la.us/offofs/html/kinship_care_subsidy_program.html.Maryland. Kinship caregivers have the option of becoming legal guardians while continuing to receive ongoing financial assistance and support services. Guardians receive a subsidy of $300 per month and are granted priority to receive support services from local social services offices, including individual and family counseling, parent training, medical support and mental health assessment. To be eligible, children must be under the age of 18 and be living in stable relative homes for a minimum of six months or be under the age of 21 and enrolled in a formal education program. In addition, adoption or family reunification cannot be a viable possibility. Contact Gail Fulton at 410/767-7534.

Massachusetts. GrandFamilies House in Boston is the nation's first housing program specifically for grandparent-headed families. GrandFamilies House is comprised of 26 two, three and four bedroom apartments with extensive communal program space. The House has an on-site resident services coordinator and house manager who provide educational programs and referrals to outside services. In addition, Generations Learning Together, a YWCA-sponsored program, offers an on-site preschool and after-school care program. The after-school program provides residents with access to a computer learning center, homework assistance, and senior fitness activities. Contact Hope Holley at 617/266-2257 x205 or bacyou@mindspring.com.

Wisconsin. The Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Partnership is a statewide network of individuals, agencies, organizations, and professionals who provide services to or for grandparents raising their grandchildren and/or children and their families. The Partnership is working to train local agencies and organizations on how to establish support groups for grandparent caregivers so they can provide technical assistance to tribes, counties and communities in their area. In addition, the Partnership is identifying funding sources for seed money to enable communities, counties and tribes to establish local support groups. Contact Laurie J. Boyce at 608/263-1095 or ljboyce@facstaff.wisc.edu or visit http://www.uwex.edu/ces/flp/grgp/over.html.

The Welfare Information Network is supported by grants from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the U.S. Department of Labor.