The mission of The disAbility Law Center of Virginia is to advance independence, choice, and self-determination; protect legal, human, and civil rights; and eliminate abuse, neglect and discrimination of people with disabilities through zealous and uncompromising legal advocacy and representation. We are available to educate policy makers about the potential impact of legislative proposals. Email us at ga@dlcv.org
Several important bills are under consideration that would benefit children with disabilities who are in foster care. The most significant of those bills, HB 578 (Glass), was approved by the House Social Services subcommittee of Health and Human Services yesterday. If it is approved by the full committee, it will move to House Appropriations. The Administration has estimated that the bill will cost the Commonwealth approximately 3 million dollars each year. In other words, the Commonwealth admits it generates 3 million dollars in revenue at the expense of children with disabilities.
The disAbility Law Center of Virginia supports HB578. Children in foster care usually receive Social Security benefits for two main reasons: because a parent has died or because they are disabled. Currently, Virginia takes the entirety of each foster child’s monthly social security benefit to pay for foster care services. All children receive the same foster care services regardless of whether they qualify for a federal benefit, so we question why children who are disabled or who have lost a parent must pay for those services.
When those children age out of foster care, instead of being able to rely on the benefits that they are entitled to, they are left with nothing.
Many states across the country have already taken action to stop this predatory practice. dLCV had hoped that Virginia would join them.
We note that Senator Favola has asked for an amendment to the state budget that would also address this problem. Her proposed amendment states: The Board of Social Services shall amend its regulations by July 1, 2027, to require local DSS agencies to apply for federal disability and death benefits on behalf of eligible foster youth; prohibit use of those benefits to cover state foster care costs; require benefits to be conserved in a trust and available to the youth upon exiting the system; and provide guidance to the youth on continued access to entitled federal benefits.
Some other bills that would affect foster care services include:
HB 76 (Keys-Gamarra) asks the Department of Social Services to have a supply of new luggage to be used to transport the personal belongings of a child in foster care. The bill was amended in the subcommittee on Social Services to create a pilot program in one part of the state to launch this effort. The Bill was approved in subcommittee yesterday and now goes to the full House Committee on Health and Human Services next week. Although the price tag has been significantly reduced by converting it to a pilot program, it would still need to be considered by House Appropriations.
HB 1174 (Carroll) increases the supplemental clothing allowance for children in foster care by 30%. The bill was approved by the Social Services subcommittee yesterday and now moves to the full of Committee on Health and Human Services. If approved there, it will move to Appropriations, because the Administration has said the bill will cost the state 1 million dollars a year.