Indiana Gov. Mike Braun on Wednesday ordered the Department of Child Services to preserve all of the earned federal survivors’ benefits available to some wards of the state.
The agency has been diverting funds to reimburse the state for the cost to care for those children — potentially leaving them with little when they age out of state custody.
“Survival benefits belong to children, not the government,” Braun told reporters at a news conference held in his Statehouse office.
“This executive order is about making sure dollars intended for a child are protected and used to support that child’s future,” he said.
The average benefit in Indiana is almost $800 per month until children turn 18, according to DCS. An estimated 342 kids are currently receiving benefits, adding up to a budgetary hit of $3.2 million annually.
The directive takes effect immediately, but isn’t retroactive.
DCS must now screen every child currently in or entering state care to determine whether they’re receiving or are eligible for survivor’s benefits through the federal Social Security Administration, Veterans Affairs Department or Railroad Retirement Board.
The agency will have to notify the child, legal representative and caseworker of any application for benefits and the result. DCS will manage the money and provide an annual accounting to the child.
The agency will set procedures for children to request distribution of their money while still in state custody. By default, the money will be released once young people exit state custody, in accordance with federal regulations, according to the executive order.
Alex Adams, the U.S. assistant secretary of administration for children and families, praised the change as “extraordinary,” adding, “Too many states tax orphans, in the most literal sense.”
Indiana also became the 20th state to join the federal “a home for every child” initiative.
Braun and Adams jointly signed a proclamation affirming the state’s commitment to the program, which is intended to decrease the number of children entering foster care and increase the number of foster homes available to those that must.
“When a state like Indiana joins, we renegotiate our program improvement plan. We give them record red tape relief,” Adams told reporters. “The team in Indiana will no longer have to submit to us 300 page reports that are exercises in compliance, and instead, they can redirect that time and energy to efforts that actually improve child welfare outcomes. In return, we’ll get monthly data on the ratio of foster homes to foster kids.”
The Administration for Children and Families is set to announce on Thursday performance benefits for the states with the best ratios and most improved ratios, according to Adams.
He wanted to “get past the tipping point” and get more than half of the states to sign on.
“When we put out those bonuses, we’re going to ask other states to join by June 30,” Adams said.
States that join by June 30 will generally start reporting their data by Oct. 1. Federal officials hope to have a website comparing monthly state updates up and running by that date.
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