PD 23-17: EFC New Federal Eligibility Determination

Date:	June 12, 2023
To:	Foster Care Eligibility (FCE)
From:	Maria Torres, SSA BPIS
Reference:	All County Letter 22-72, Assembly Billl (AB) 640

Background

When a foster care (FC) youth turns 18 years old and decides to remain in FC, a new federal eligibility determination is not made. This means a non-federally eligible youth remains non-federally eligible under the EFC program. A new determination of federal eligibility can only be made when a youth re-enters EFC.

Change

Effective September 7, 2022, AB 640 allows a county, with the consent of the non-minor dependent (NMD) who was non-federally eligible prior to turning 18 years old, to file a petition (JV-469) with the Juvenile Court to dismiss dependency or transition jurisdiction and immediately resume that jurisdiction in order to establish the NMD’s eligibility for a new federal eligibility determination. This new process also applies to existing non-federally eligible NMDs (going back to 9/7/22).

Ineligible NMDs

The County will not file a JV-469 petition to dismiss dependency if:

The NMD is categorically ineligible for federal Aid to Families with Dependent Children-Foster Care (AFDC-FC) benefits (such as non-realtive guardianships wich may only receive state funding).
The NMD is a member of a tribe or eligible for enrollment in a tribe and would likely become ineligible for services or supports, or have benefits disrupted if the county sought to establish eligibility for Federal Financial Participation.

Documents

The documents below are necessary in the process of establishing a new federal eligibility determination for NMDs.

A new "Voluntary Re-Entry Agreement for Extended Foster Care Participation" form (SOC 163) is needed to establish consent of the NMD to file the petition.
"Petition and Order to Exit and Reenter Jurisdiction Non-Minor Dependent" form (JV-469). The juvenile court may grant this petition without the need for a hearing. Foster Care Eligibility (FCE) will not receive this document.
Once the petition is granted, a new "Mutual Agreement for Extended Foster Care" form (SOC 162) and "Statement of Facts Supporting Eligibility for AFDC-Extended Foster Care" form (FC 2NM) shall jointly be signed by the SW/PO and the NMD for the NMD's placement and care.
"Reentry Findings and Order" form (JV-471). This form validates the court's approval of the JV-469 and will be sent to the EW.
Placement change forms are not required unless there is a placement change.
If the NMD had an established a transitional independent living plan prior to the granting of the petition, a new one is not necessary.

Payment

There must not be a break in payment or services before, during, or after the filing or granting of the JV-469 petition.

Initial Implementation

The FC Intake Unit will screen existing non-federal NMDs to ensure that cases will meet federal eligibility requirements. After the case backlog has been cleared, FCE will move to full implementation to include foster youths whose 18th birthday falls within the current calendar year so that a JV-469 petition can be filed as they turn 18.

Workflow

Step	Who	Action
1	FC Program	Emails listing of non-federally eligible NMDs to Clerical at fostercareprocessing@ssa.sccgov.org in-box for intake case assignment.
2	FC Clerical	Clerical receives listing and assigns task to Intake Eligibility Worker (EW).
3	Intake EW	Reviews case to ensure it will meet federal eligibility requirements.
		If...	Then...
		The case does meet federal requirements	Sends County Counsel an email (hilary.kerrigan@ssa.sccgov.org and kevin.hammon@ssa.sccgov.org) containing case information noting that this NMD will pass a federal determination. The Intake EW should request that all documents be sent to them (the EW). NOTE: The following people must be copied on the email: Program, assigned SW/PO and Placement Tracking Team (PTT) or JPD Clerical. Enters CalSAWS Journal summarizing actions taken.
		The case does not meet federal requirements	Sends County Counsel an email (hilary.kerrigan@ssa.sccgov.org and kevin.hammon@ssa.sccgov.org) containing case information and note that this NMD will not pass a federal determination. NOTE: The following people must be copied on the email: Program, SW/PO and Placement Tracking Team (PTT) or JPD Clerical. Does not change the existing aid code. Enters CalSAWS Journal summarizing actions taken.
4	Social Worker/Probation Officer (SW/PO)	Receives EW email indicating that the youth meets federal eligibility. Notifies the youth about the eligibility for JV- 469 petition via the SCZ 469 form. Obtains consent from the youth to file the JV-469 petition via a new SOC 163 form. Submit copies of the completed SOC 163 to County Counsel and FCE.
5	County Counsel	Receives emai indicating that the youth meets federal eligibility. Issues appropriate notificatin to the youth's attorney. Consults with assigned SW to coordinate prerequiste tasks. Prepares JV-469 petition. Forwards the JV-471 to FCE.
6	SW/PO	Emails newly completed SOC 162 and FC2NM forms to FCE. Subject Line: "Fed Screening" and copies Intake EW and County Counsel.
7	FC Clerical or Intake EW	Receives SOC 162 and FC2 NM forms. If Clerical receives the forms, then forwards to assigned Intake EW.
8	Intake EW	Ensures all necessary documents have been received. Processes re-entry EFC application per existing workflow. NOTE: Since there cannot be a break in aid, the effective payment begin date is the date of the JV-469 petition as validated by the JV 471. This means there may be two different aid codes for payments in the same month. Sends Fiscal Claiming an email informing them of the aid code change with the following information: Case name and number, Date of aid code change, and Reason for change (reentry). Enters CalSAWS Journal summarizing actions taken.

Implementation

This Program Directive is effective immediately.

Supervisors

Foster Care Eligibility Worker Supervisors must review the content of this PD at their next scheduled unit meeting.