Bill > HB661

This bill establishes new rules for how the Department of Health and Human Services manages federal benefits, such as Social Security payments and veterans benefits, for children in foster care. It requires the department to identify if a child is receiving these benefits within 60 days of entering their care and to apply for them if the child is eligible but not receiving them. The bill prioritizes keeping the child's current representative payee, who is the person appointed to manage their benefits, unless that person is found unsuitable. If no suitable payee is available, the department can be appointed as the representative payee. Crucially, if the department is the representative payee, it will no longer be allowed to use the child's federal benefits to pay for the child's care, with a phased-in schedule starting in July 2028 where a percentage of the benefits must be conserved for the child, increasing to 100% by July 2034. The department will be able to use these conserved funds for the child's unmet needs beyond basic care and must establish accounts, such as ABLE (Achieving a Better Life Experience) accounts, to manage these funds for the child's current and future needs. The department will also be required to provide annual accounting of how these benefits are used and to notify relevant parties about any decisions regarding the benefits, including information on how to appeal denials. The bill also mandates the department to develop necessary procedures and policies for these changes, with a deadline of June 30, 2028, and allows them to seek additional funding from the fiscal committee for establishing ABLE accounts.