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Coloradowants:• All kids who need services to have access toservices and to be served in their family’s homeor in a relative’s home whenever possible• Families to have what they need to keep theirfamily safe and together, and• Services available without requiring the family tobe involved in the child welfare system

Counties will continue to use Child Welfare Block, Core and County-onlyfunding to provide services that best meet the needs of theircommunities

Federal Funding In 2018 the United Stated Department of Health and Human Services, Children’s Bureau, has interpreted administrative costs for foster care to include costs for children’s and parents’ attorneys. (Child Welfare Policy Manual, Section 8.1B, Question 30). For the first time, jurisdictions can seek federal reimbursement for the cost of legal representation for eligible children and their parents.  The resources listed below provide information about claiming federal Title IV-E Funds of the Social Security Act to pay for legal representation for children and parents.

What research shows:A landmark May 2019 study17 foundproviding parents multidisciplinaryrepresentation in child welfareproceedings significantly improvedcase outcomes. The multiyear studyin New York City compared out-comes for 9,582 families and their18,288 children, looking at differ-ences based on representation type:solo panel attorneys vs. multidis-ciplinary legal teams that includedattorneys, social workers, and parentadvocates. The study found multi-disciplinary representation promot-ed swift permanency outcomes by:■ reducing the time childrenspend in care,■ producing plans that allowedparents to safely care for theirchildren,■ reuniting families sooner, and■ increasing kin placements andguardianships.

Is there a way for legal organizations in a given locality to access this funding in the eventthe local IV-E agency decides not to seek federal funds for representation for children andparents?o No. Funds must be claimed through the state IV-E agency. If you are an individualattorney or attorney organization interested in learning if your jurisdiction isplanning to take advantage of this funding opportunity, your best first step is tocontact your state court improvement program (CIP).

Will jurisdictions have to redirect IV-E funds from current programs or give up somethingto support legal representation for parents and children?o No. Title IV-E funds are an open-ended entitlement. The federal policy changemeans that new/additional IV-E dollars are now available to support high-qualitylegal representation for children and parents.

he Children’sBureau has been clear that their preference is that newly available federal fundssupport improved representation for parents and children – not act as a substitutefor state investment. The new federal funds should be used to invest in improvedrepresentation

Generally, representing parents and children in child welfareproceedings requires that attorneys are competent in the relevant laws andlitigation skills

Can jurisdictions submit a claim for federal reimbursement for costs for non-attorneymembers of an interdisciplinary legal representation team for children and parents?o Yes. The Child Welfare Policy Manual clarifies that the Title IV-E agency may claimadministrative costs for the parent and/or child legal representation team, includingparalegals, investigators, peer partners or social workers that support attorneysproviding independent legal representation for children who are candidates for titleIV-E foster care or are in title IV-E foster care, and their parents, to prepare for andparticipate in all stages of foster care legal proceedings, and for office support staffand overhead expenses. See Child Welfare Policy Manual, Section 8.1B, Question 32

Title IV-E funds available to reimburse jurisdictions for attorneys for parents andchildren are separate and distinct from IV-E funds available for prevention servicesunder FFPSA.

he Children’sBureau has been clear that their preference is that newly available federal fundssupport improved representation for parents and children – not act as a substitutefor state investment. The new federal funds should be used to invest in improvedrepresentation

Will jurisdictions have to redirect IV-E funds from current programs or give up somethingto support legal representation for parents and children?o No. Title IV-E funds are an open-ended entitlement. The federal policy changemeans that new/additional IV-E dollars are now available to support high-qualitylegal representation for children and parents.

Title IV-E funds available to reimburse jurisdictions for attorneys for parents andchildren are separate and distinct from IV-E funds available for prevention servicesunder FFPSA.

Can jurisdictions submit a claim for federal reimbursement for costs for non-attorneymembers of an interdisciplinary legal representation team for children and parents?o Yes. The Child Welfare Policy Manual clarifies that the Title IV-E agency may claimadministrative costs for the parent and/or child legal representation team, includingparalegals, investigators, peer partners or social workers that support attorneysproviding independent legal representation for children who are candidates for titleIV-E foster care or are in title IV-E foster care, and their parents, to prepare for andparticipate in all stages of foster care legal proceedings, and for office support staffand overhead expenses. See Child Welfare Policy Manual, Section 8.1B, Question 32

What funding is available to support legal representation forparents and children?A recent federal policy change provides a new funding source for legalrepresentation for parents and children.9 The change allows states to seekfederal reimbursement under Title IV-E of the Social Security Act for thecost of providing legal representation to eligible children and parents. Thepurpose of the funding is to invest in improving legal representation forchildren and parents.10Excellent resources exist explaining the details of this new funding.11Becoming knowledgeable about this funding source, raising awarenesswithin the child welfare legal community, and supporting efforts to lever-age it to improve representation quality in your jurisdiction are key judi-cial roles. However, elements of high-quality legal representation do notdepend on new funding sources, so it is equally key to ensure attorneysadhere to fundamental representation standards that guide their practice.1

Building a Multidisciplinary Legal Team: The role of social workers and peermentors in representing parents and children could be eligible for reimbursement whena multidisciplinary team addresses prevention. Funding is available for time-limitedprevention services for mental health, substance abuse disorder, and in-home parentskill-based programs for children or youth who are candidates for foster care

Pre-Petition Legal Advocacy: Funding is available to reimburse expenses forattorneys, paralegals, social workers, peer partners, investigators, support staff, andoverhead for independent child and parent legal representation prior to the filing of adependency petition

Pre-Petition Legal Advocacy: Funding is available to reimburse expenses forattorneys, paralegals, social workers, peer partners, investigators, support staff, andoverhead for independent child and parent legal representation prior to the filing of adependency petition

Building a Multidisciplinary Legal Team: The role of social workers and peermentors in representing parents and children could be eligible for reimbursement whena multidisciplinary team addresses prevention. Funding is available for time-limitedprevention services for mental health, substance abuse disorder, and in-home parentskill-based programs for children or youth who are candidates for foster care

We now are thrilled to report on remarkable developments which should focus the field on the importance and ability of providing high-quality legal representation to parents in dependency cases. We have long believed two things about parental representation in child welfare cases:

Until now, we could rely only on personal experiences and anecdotes. No longer. In May 2019, a study commissioned by Casey Family Programs and jointly investigated by Casey, New York University, and Action Research was published validating this belief.[2]

Despite its importance in terms of the consequences poor parents and children suffer from coercive intervention in their families, the field has been undervalued for far too long.

Giving parents free representation by lawyers does more than advance social justice. It is a smart investment because it furthers the state’s goal of reducing the time children spend in foster care. The study showed

Despite its importance in terms of the consequences poor parents and children suffer from coercive intervention in their families, the field has been undervalued for far too long.

We are long past the time of regarding a parent’s lawyer as an antagonist to be tolerated only because the statute requires one. It’s now time to recognize parents’ lawyers and other members of the multidisciplinary legal team as allies to the system, committed to the identical values that drive it: Keep no child from his or her parents, for even one night, except when necessary to protect the child from a risk of serious harm.

Lawyering really matters and providing parents the right kind of legal representation in child welfare cases can mean the difference between preserving a family and seeing it permanently destroyed.

“A CASA is appointed by a judge to provide information directly to the judge—not to provide legal representation,” Milner said. “The policy specifically covers attorneys … and support staff that help prepare attorneys for the legal representation of a child or parent as part of an independent legal team.”

American Bar AssociationStandards of Practice for Attorneys RepresentingParents in Abuse and Neglect Cases

American Bar AssociationStandards of Practice for Attorneys RepresentingParents in Abuse and Neglect Cases

earn about funding options to pay for precourt legal advocacy andassociated cost-savings. Early legal advocacy programs tend to relyon several funding sources, including:■ federal funding under Title IV-E of and Title IV-B the SocialSecurity Act,■ state funding,■ private foundation grants,■ court improvement program funding,■ contracts with child welfare agencies or legal aid offices, and■ donations.

earn about funding options to pay for precourt legal advocacy andassociated cost-savings. Early legal advocacy programs tend to relyon several funding sources, including:■ federal funding under Title IV-E of and Title IV-B the SocialSecurity Act,■ state funding,■ private foundation grants,■ court improvement program funding,■ contracts with child welfare agencies or legal aid offices, and■ donations.

You submit the first grant, youpropose the novel thing. You know damn well any study section that’s evenmildly conservative is going give you, ‘‘Well, it sounds promising.’’ Theymight give you a good score, you hope for a good score, but it’s not going toget funded, because it’s too novel, it’s too risky, it’s too blah blah. But youalready have the damn data. You know on the second resubmit, you’re goingto say, ‘‘Good point! We took that to heart. Oh, what a wonderful suggestion!We will worry about this too. Guess what? Here’s the data!’’ Shove it downtheir throat. And then it’s funded. Because, wow, you flagged them, yousucker-punched them. They said, ‘‘This is really novel, blah, blah. Boy if youcould only do that, that would be a great grant.’’ Well, you alreadydiddo it,and that’s the point. And you basically sucker-punch the study section intogiving you the money by default. They have to at that point. They don’t havea choice.