[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 197 (Wednesday, October 13, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Page 62840]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-25719]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families


Award of a Single-Source Expansion Supplement to the University 
of Southern Maine, Muskie School of Public Service

AGENCY: Children's Bureau, ACYF, ACF, HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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    CFDA Number: 93.658.
    Legislative Authority: Section 476(c)(2)(iii) of the Social 
Security Act, as amended by the Fostering Connections to Success and 
Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 (Pub. L. 110-351).
    Amount of Award: $200,000.
    Project Period: September 30, 2010 to September 29, 2011.
SUMMARY: In order to provide more intensive technical assistance to 
Tribes, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Children's 
Bureau (CB) is awarding a single-source expansion supplement to the 
University of Southern Maine, Muskie School of Public Service, 
Portland, ME, to assist Tribes in building their capacity to operate 
their own foster care and adoption assistance agencies (title IV-E) 
program. The University of Southern Maine is a recipient of a 
cooperative agreement to administer the National Resource Center for 
Organizational Improvement, which is charged with building the 
organizational capacity of State, local, Tribal and other publicly 
supported child welfare agencies in order to improve the outcomes of 
child welfare activities and to achieve the Adoption and Safe Families 
Act of 1997 goals of safety, permanency and well-being of children and 
youth.
    The supplemental funding will support Regional Roundtables and 
build Tribal capacity in the following areas:
    1. An overview of the Social Security Act and title IV-E provisions 
that provide foster care and adoption service funds. This presentation 
will be developed to be responsive to the cultural issues and needs of 
the audience.
    2. Training for Tribal caseworkers on title IV-E requirements in 
order to continue the eligibility and funding of IV-E eligible 
children. Workers must be aware of the provisions of Fostering 
Connections to assure that all appropriate services are provided to 
children in care.
    3. Proper foster care recruitment, training and retention is needed 
because placement of title IV-E eligible children must be made with 
licensed foster/kin families. It is important for Tribal leaders, child 
welfare and court staff to understand the link between licensing and 
maintaining title IV-E eligibility when children are placed.
    The Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act 
of 2008 (Pub. L. 110-351) added Sec.  479B to the Act, which allows 
Indian Tribes the option to receive Federal funding to support the 
administration of their own foster care, adoption assistance, and 
guardianship assistance programs under title IV-E of the Social 
Security Act (the Act). The law also amended the Act at Sec.  
476(c)(2)(iii) to allow Indian Tribes to receive one-time development 
grants to be used to offset the cost of developing a title IV-E plan to 
carry out the requirements of new Sec.  479B of the Act.
    As the designated National Resource Center for Organizational 
Improvement, the University of Southern Maine is qualified to provide 
training and technical assistance to Tribes because of their 
demonstrated commitment to meaningful stakeholder involvement by 
involving Tribes and other relevant stakeholders in program planning, 
implementation and evaluation and other systems change initiatives.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jane Morgan, Children's Bureau, 1250 
Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20024. Telephone: 202-205-8807; E-
mail: [email protected].

    Dated: October 4, 2010.
Bryan Samuels,
Commissioner, Administration on Children, Youth and Families.
[FR Doc. 2010-25719 Filed 10-12-10; 8:45 am]
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