Bill > SB436

This bill mandates that the Department of Human Services (DoHS) create and put into action a statewide prevention plan by January 1, 2027, to offer services to children under 18 and their families, including kinship and foster parents. The plan must include trauma-informed and evidence-based services for children at risk, such as those with existing child protective services or youth services safety plans, open child welfare or youth service cases, or families identified as needing preventative services due to economic or other needs even without an open case. It also requires services for pregnant and parenting youth, youth aging out of foster care for 12 months after turning 21, youth post-adoption, and youth transitioning between different levels of care. The DoHS must ensure a network of providers with a mix of telehealth and physical locations for convenient access, directly link youth and families to services, track encounter data and outcomes, and report annually to the Legislative Oversight Commission on Health and Human Resources Accountability on program costs and outcomes, starting December 1, 2027. Services developed under this plan will be submitted to the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse for potential federal funding, and the DoHS must file an amended state plan by July 1, 2028, to maximize federal dollars under the Family First Prevention Services Act, with the plan's implementation no later than February 1, 2027.