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SF0034 • 2020

Child welfare-QRTP accreditation assistance program.

AN ACT relating to child welfare; making legislative findings; authorizing the department of family services to operate a program to support care providers' accreditation as qualified residential treatment programs under the federal Family First Act; authorizing the use of a nonprofit entity to operate the program as specified; authorizing payments to be made on behalf of individual care provider organizations; placing limits on payments; and providing for an effective date.

Children
Inactive

Wyoming marks this bill as inactive, which usually means it is no longer moving in the current session.

Sponsor
Labor
Last action
2020-03-11
Official status
inactive
Effective date
3/1/2020

Plain English Breakdown

The bill is inactive as it died in committee on March 11, 2020.

Child Welfare-QRTP Accreditation Assistance Program

This act allows the Department of Family Services to create a program that helps child care providers get and keep accreditation as Qualified Residential Treatment Programs (QRTP) under federal law, with financial support up to 50%.

What This Bill Does

  • The bill lets the Wyoming Department of Family Services make rules for a new program to help child care organizations become QRTPs.
  • It allows the department to work with nonprofit groups to run this program and provide technical help to care providers.
  • The program can pay up to 50% of costs for accreditation fees and other services needed to get or keep QRTP status.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Child care organizations in Wyoming that want to become QRTPs under federal law.
  • The Department of Family Services which will manage the program.
  • Nonprofit entities that may be hired by the department to run parts of the program.

Terms To Know

Qualified Residential Treatment Program (QRTP)
A type of care facility for children with special needs, recognized under federal law as providing high-quality treatment services.
Family First and Prevention Services Act
Federal legislation that aims to improve child welfare by funding certain therapeutic services and residential treatments.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill only provides $45,000 from the general fund for two years until June 30, 2022.
  • It is currently inactive as it died in committee on March 11, 2020.

Bill History

  1. 2020-03-11 Senate

    S:Died in Committee Returned Bill Pursuant to SR 5-4

  2. 2020-02-27 Senate

    S No report prior to CoW Cutoff

  3. 2020-02-11 Senate

    S Introduced and Referred to S10 - Labor 29-0-1-0-0

  4. 2020-02-10 Senate

    S Received for Introduction

  5. 2020-01-10 LSO

    Bill Number Assigned

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
20LSO-0285
2020
STATE OF WYOMING
20LSO-0285
Introduced
2.0

SENATE FILE NO. SF0034

Child welfare-QRTP accreditation assistance program.

Sponsored by: Joint Labor, Health & Social Services Interim Committee

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to child welfare; making legislative findings; authorizing the department of family services to operate a program to support care providers' accreditation as qualified residential treatment programs under the federal Family First Act; authorizing the use of a nonprofit entity to operate the program as specified; authorizing payments to be made on behalf of individual care provider organizations; placing limits on payments; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1
.

The legislature finds:

(a) That there are compelling health, safety and financial benefits which will result from implementation of the Family First and Prevention Services Act, P.L. 115-123. The Act enhances the state's child welfare interests by augmenting therapeutic services that promote family reunification and that avoid placement of a child outside the child's home. Specifically, care organizations that become and remain accredited under the Act as Qualified Residential Treatment Programs (QRTP) qualify for federal funding and can provide children whose needs cannot be met in a family setting with high quality residential treatment services that help them transition back to family care. QRTP services are highly beneficial to the wellbeing of Wyoming's children, to the reunification and health of Wyoming's families and offer a fiscally advantageous way for Wyoming to meet its child welfare obligations.

(b) The costs and technical demands of becoming QRTP accredited and maintaining QRTP accreditation are significant. Without the availability of technical and financial support, there is a significant risk that an insufficient number of Wyoming's care provider organizations will be QRTP accredited and Wyoming's
children and families will not receive the services that are available through the Family First and Prevention Services Act.

Section 2
.

(a) Upon legislative appropriation for the operation of the program, the department of family services shall promulgate reasonable rules necessary for the creation of a program to provide financial and other support to organizations that become accredited as qualified residential treatment programs (QRTP) under the Family First and Prevention Services Act, P.L. 115-123, and to organizations that must maintain that accreditation. In operating the program, the department may enter into an agreement with a nonprofit entity to establish and operate the program and the nonprofit entity or the department shall:

(i) Provide technical assistance to organizations that engage in the process of becoming QRTP accredited or who must maintain QRTP accreditation;

(ii) Provide payments directly to a QRTP accrediting body on behalf of an organization that becomes QRTP accredited or is seeking to maintain QRTP accreditation but payments shall not exceed fifty percent (50%) of the fees charged by the accrediting body for QRTP accreditation;

(iii) Pursuant to standards adopted by the department, provide payments directly to other persons on behalf of an organization that becomes QRTP accredited or who seeks continuing QRTP accreditation for up to fifty percent (50%) of the value of services rendered by those persons that were reasonably necessary to obtain accreditation or to retain accreditation.

(b) Rules promulgated pursuant to subsection (a) of this section shall provide reasonable eligibility standards for the organizations who apply to receive program benefits and shall provide a method for applying for program benefits. The rules also shall define circumstances under which an organization receiving benefits shall be required to repay those benefits, including circumstances where the organization does not satisfy its financial obligations,
does not become QRTP accredited, does not maintain QRTP accreditation for a reasonable period of time, or does not provide an established quantity of relevant services in Wyoming.

(c) The legislature may appropriate funds to the department of family services to implement the program authorized by subsection (a) of this section. No funds appropriated by the legislature shall be distributed by the department to any nonprofit entity with whom the department has entered into an agreement to operate a program until the nonprofit entity has contributed to the program an amount equal to any amounts that it will distribute as direct payments under paragraphs (a)(ii) and (iii) of this section. The department shall ensure that state funds and funds the nonprofit entity provides to the program shall be accounted for separately.

(d) Any agreement entered into between the department of family services and any nonprofit entity shall require annual reporting by the nonprofit entity to the department.

(e) No program shall be operated under the authority provided by this section until the program is reviewed by the attorney general's office for compliance with Wyoming law.

Section 3.
There is appropriated forty-five thousand dollars ($45,000.00) from the general fund to the department of family services for the purpose of operating the program authorized in section 2 of this act and providing funds to any nonprofit entity retained pursuant to section 2 of this act. This appropriation shall be for the period beginning with the effective date of this act and ending June 30, 2022. This appropriation shall not be transferred or expended for any other purpose and any unexpended, unobligated funds remaining from this appropriation shall revert as provided by law on June 30, 2022.

Section 4
. This act is effective immediately upon completion of all acts necessary for a bill to become law as provided by Article 4, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constitution.

(END)

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