[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1070 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1070
To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to fund
demonstration projects to improve recruitment and retention of child
welfare workers.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
April 9, 2019
Mr. Kaine introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to fund
demonstration projects to improve recruitment and retention of child
welfare workers.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Child Welfare Workforce Support
Act''.
SEC. 2. PURPOSE.
The purpose of this Act is to demonstrate the impact of recruitment
and retention strategies in the child welfare workforce and identify
effective evidence-based strategies for improved worker recruitment,
retention, and advancement.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act--
(1) the term ``caseworker'' means an individual employed or
contracted by a State who works in the field of prevention,
identification, and treatment of child abuse and neglect;
(2) the term ``child welfare workforce'' means professional
and paraprofessional personnel employed by, or affiliated with,
a State in the fields of health care, medicine, law
enforcement, judiciary, social work and child protection,
education, child care, and other relevant fields, or
individuals such as court appointed special advocates or
guardian ad litem, who are engaged in, or intend to work in,
the field of prevention, identification, and treatment of child
abuse and neglect;
(3) the term ``Indian Tribe'' has the meaning given the
term ``Indian tribe'' in section 4 of the Indian Self-
Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b);
(4) the term ``secondary trauma'' means the secondary
traumatic stress or vicarious trauma that can occur when a
professional experiences stress or symptoms of trauma when
working with children and families who are experiencing abuse,
neglect, or family violence;
(5) the term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Health
and Human Services; and
(6) the term ``State'' has the meaning given such term in
section 3 of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42
U.S.C. 5101 note).
SEC. 4. DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--The Secretary shall conduct a 5-year demonstration
program under which the Secretary awards, on a competitive basis,
grants to eligible entities to plan and implement activities to achieve
the strategic objectives described in subsection (d) with respect to
the child welfare workforce.
(b) Eligible Entities.--To be eligible to receive a grant under
this section, an entity shall be a State or local governmental agency,
Indian Tribe or Tribal organization, a nonprofit entity, or the lead
entity administering a grant to the applicable State or Indian Tribe
under title II of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42
U.S.C. 5116 et seq.).
(c) Applications.--An eligible entity desiring a grant under this
section shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in
such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may
require, including--
(1) a description of the strategic objectives described in
subsection (d) that the eligible entity intends to strengthen
the child welfare workforce;
(2) a description of the eligible entity and evidence of
the eligible entity's capacity to carry out activities to
achieve the strategic objectives as described under paragraph
(1);
(3) an analysis of child welfare workforce needs of the
State, and barriers to recruitment and retention of such
workforce, including the impact of caseloads, salaries, and
workplace violence prevention plans on retention, and which may
include consideration of any employee surveys on the
organizational structure of relevant entities;
(4) a description of the current or prospective employees
that will be targeted or recruited by the strategic objectives
selected from subsection (d), including an analysis of the
demographic characteristics of the child welfare workforce;
(5) a description of the activities the eligible entity
intends to undertake to sustainable progress towards achieving
such strategic objectives;
(6) a description of the performance measures the eligible
entity intends to use to measure progress towards achieving
such strategic objectives;
(7) a description of the eligible entity's pre-service
training and continuum of support that such entity intends to
use for the child welfare workforce, including
professionalization of the supervisory workforce;
(8) a description of the Federal and non-Federal resources,
available under provisions of law other than this section and
the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5101 et
seq.), that will be leveraged in support of the activities
under the grant;
(9) a timeline for implementing and making progress towards
achieving such strategic objectives, and assurances that the
eligible entity will provide periodic reports to the Secretary
on such progress, as the Secretary may require; and
(10) an identification of technology infrastructure updates
the eligible entity intends to employ in order to improve case
worker support.
(d) Strategic Objectives.--The activities to be carried out under
each grant awarded under this section shall be designed to achieve
strategic objectives that--
(1) include--
(A) analysis of the child welfare workforce needs
in the applicable State, in order to reduce barriers to
recruitment, development, and retention of such
workforce, which may include conducting a time study to
determine how the child welfare workforce allocated
working hours toward required work activities;
(B) planning for the recruitment, hiring, and pre-
service training of prospective caseworkers and other
members of the child welfare workforce, utilizing
evidence-based, evidence-informed, or other promising
practices;
(C) planning for ongoing professional development
opportunities and continuum of support to improve
retention of child welfare workforce; and
(D) consideration of best practices to meet the
unique needs and development of infants, children, and
youth, including such individuals with disabilities and
children under the age of 3; and
(2) may include updating technology infrastructure in child
welfare work systems and data sharing across child-serving
systems.
(e) Award Requirements.--
(1) Duration.--Each grant awarded under this section shall
be for a period not to exceed 5 years, subject to the
availability of funds.
(2) Amount.--Each grant awarded under this section shall be
in an amount that is not more than $100,000 per year for the
duration of the grant period. An eligible entity receiving a
grant under this section may allocate not more than 5 percent
of the funds awarded through a grant under this section to
administrative expenses.
(3) Allocation of awards.--The Secretary shall award up to
10 grants to States or counties and up to 3 grants to Indian
Tribes, and shall ensure that grantees are regionally diverse
and serve both rural and urban populations.
(4) Priority.--In awarding grants under this section, the
Secretary shall give priority to eligible entities that have
high rates of child welfare workforce turnover.
(f) Demonstration Project Activities.--
(1) Required activities.--To achieve the strategic
objectives identified in an eligible entity's application under
subsection (c)(3), each eligible entity receiving a grant under
this section shall carry out the following activities, in a
manner that integrates services and funding sources to ensure
effectiveness of the activities and that uses the grant funds
efficiently:
(A) Recruitment and hiring efforts.--The eligible
entity shall provide services to expand awareness of,
interest in, and preparation for, careers in the child
welfare workforce, which--
(i) shall include prioritizing recruitment
of nontraditional candidates (such as older
workers transitioning from other fields or
reentering the workforce after raising
families; candidates whose race, ethnicity, and
language capacity are reflective of communities
they will be serving; or students); and
(ii) may include--
(I) updating child welfare
workforce marketing and recruitment
materials;
(II) developing partnerships
between the State and institutions of
higher education to implement training
programs specific to the needs of the
child welfare workforce of the State;
(III) providing internship and job
shadowing opportunities for individuals
considering careers in the child
welfare workforce;
(IV) developing a competency-based
recruitment, screening, and selection
process that may include completion of
realistic caseworker exercises;
(V) developing and using simulation
activities to share with potential new
caseworkers during the application
process;
(VI) creating materials depicting
real job experiences and interactions
with clients, emphasizing the direct
impact that caseworker turnover has on
children; and
(VII) developing publicly available
career opportunity hub and offer
position matching services.
(B) Support services.--The eligible entity shall
provide services to support the success of individuals
employed by a child welfare agency, which shall include
the following:
(i) Early employment services.--Services
provided to such individuals who are in their
first 6 months of employment in the child
welfare workforce, to ensure that such
individuals succeed in such careers,
including--
(I) mentoring from colleague with 2
or more years of child welfare work
experience and may include compensation
for mentors;
(II) phased training and
orientation over initial 6 months of
employment, including explicit training
related to identifying traumatic stress
and secondary traumatic stress and
support resources available to
employees;
(III) joint field visits with
experienced child welfare worker; and
(IV) low-risk initial caseload
assignment with gradual increase in
caseload size and difficulty.
(ii) Employment services.--Services to
ensure that such individuals employed by the
State for more than 6 months have access to
ongoing professional development and support to
increase job sustainability and long-term
retention, which--
(I) shall include--
(aa) providing peer
mentoring, a crisis helpline,
and onsite crisis response to
address traumatic stress and
secondary traumatic stress for
caseworkers;
(bb) providing support for
supervisory personnel,
including by conducting
interviews, to assist employees
in long-term career planning
and discuss opportunities for
advancement within the child
welfare workforce;
(cc) developing best
practices to address caseworker
burnout and other areas known
to increase turnover; and
(dd) providing a system of
career advancement with wage
progression and opportunities
to attain further education and
professional development; and
(II) may include--
(aa) creating additional
positions to achieve manageable
caseloads that reflect industry
standards such as coaches,
mental health specialists,
substance abuse specialists,
homelessness specialist,
developmental disability
specialists, and child
psychiatrists;
(bb) safety awareness
training and supports in the
field;
(cc) providing multi-modal
training opportunities (such as
eLearning, blended classroom,
video, webinar, and tools and
job aids); and
(dd) providing employee
wellness programs and
educational leave.
(2) Technology infrastructure.--In addition to the
activities under paragraph (1), an eligible entity receiving a
grant under this section may use such grant funds to identify
and act upon opportunities for technology infrastructure
updates to State systems to support the child welfare
workforce, which may include--
(A) ensuring technological accessibility for child
welfare workers and other systems serving children and
families;
(B) equipping caseworkers with smart phones,
tablets, or laptop computers;
(C) providing technology professional development;
(D) improving mobile and remote access capabilities
for use of telehealth or similar services; and
(E) addressing other needs within States.
(g) Evaluation and Progress Reports.--Not later than 2 years after
receiving a grant under this section, and annually thereafter until the
grant period ends, each eligible entity shall submit a report to the
Secretary and to the governor of the State in which the eligible entity
serves, that describes--
(1) the activities funded by the grant; and
(2) the progress the eligible entity has made towards
achieving the strategic objectives identified under subsection
(d)(3).
(h) Administration by the Secretary.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary may use not more than 10
percent of the amount appropriated under subsection (i) for
each fiscal year for administrative expenses to carry out this
section, including the expenses of providing the technical
assistance and oversight activities under paragraph (2).
(2) Technical assistance; oversight.--The Secretary shall
provide technical assistance and oversight to assist eligible
entities in applying for grants under this section and carrying
out programs using grants awarded under this section.
(3) Evaluation and report.--
(A) In general.--The Secretary shall conduct an
evaluation of each grant awarded under this section and
submit to Congress a report on such evaluation. Such
report shall--
(i) examine the results of the recruitment
and retention initiatives supported by the
States on the outcomes of the activities under
subsection (f); and
(ii) be completed not later than 180 days
after the date on which the Secretary receives
the report under subsection (g) from an
eligible entity.
(B) Data.--Recipients of grants under this section
shall submit to the Secretary any data the Secretary
may require for the evaluation and report under this
paragraph.
(i) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section.
<all>
Child Welfare Workforce Support Act
#1070 | S Congress #116
Policy Area: Social Welfare
Last Action: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S2331) (4/9/2019)
Bill Text Source: Congress.gov
Summary and Impacts
Original Text