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Advocates urge preserving Social Security and veterans benefits for foster children; committee hears implementation report
Summary
Witnesses told the Children and Family Law Committee that preserving federal benefits for children in state custody — and conserving them for the child’s future — can reduce homelessness and improve post‑care outcomes. DCYF said a consultant report lays out implementation steps and funding needs.
Representative Mary Jane Wallner opened a Feb. 11 hearing on House Bill 661, which would require Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) practice to preserve Social Security, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and veterans benefits that belong to children in foster care, and to conserve those funds for the child’s current needs and future use rather than using them to reimburse the state for foster‑care costs.
Wallner noted a recent consultant report, the Child‑Centered Benefits Management Assessment, commissioned by DHHS with legislative funds in the previous session; she distributed the report’s findings to the committee and urged lawmakers to advance the bill so the House Finance Committee could consider the financing…
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