Children's Bureau Express

Children's Bureau Adds Prevention Focus to Child Welfare Demonstration Projects

The Department of Health and Human Services has included prevention as one of several topics of interest that States may choose to address in applying for a waiver under the Child Welfare Demonstration Program for fiscal years 2000 and 2001.

The Child Welfare Demonstration Program involves the waiver of certain requirements of Titles IV-B and IV-E of the Social Security Act in order to provide the States with an opportunity to design and test a wide range of approaches to improve and reform child welfare.

Among the topics of interest, the Children's Bureau identified projects aimed at decreasing the number of children placed in foster care through effective prevention and early intervention services. "Such a project would enhance resources or organizational capacity to identify and provide support to children, youth and families before problems become crises and children enter into foster care," the Children's Bureau wrote in an Information Memorandum on the availability of child welfare demonstration projects. "Under this project, States would use their Title IV-E funds to develop and apply multi-level assessments and services to families to test a coordinated, prevention/early intervention model with the goals of reducing the need for out-of-home care and increasing voluntary access to less intensive, less costly community-based options."

Under a"rolling" application process, States may apply at any point during a fiscal year for a child welfare demonstration project. To ensure that an application is considered during FY 2000, States were asked to submit letters of intent by March 3, 2000 and proposals by April 21, 2000. For fiscal year 2001, letters of intent should be submitted by January 26, 2001 and proposals by March 30, 2001.

For more information, see the ACF website at http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/laws_policies/policy/im/im0001.htm, or contact:

Patricia Campiglia
Children's Bureau
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
330 C St., SW
Room 2428
Washington, DC 20447
Tel.: 202-205-8060

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