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OCFS home > Child Welfare > Independent Living > State Plan > Status - Housing Support

Status of Current Independent Living Efforts (continued)

graphic of a person at a crossroads

Housing Support for Older Youth in Care and Quality Assurance:

The Department intends to set aside up to $36,800 of the Chafee program's funds for each FFY year from 2001 through 2004 for use for apartment security deposits, monthly rent, and other apartment living expenses for those youth who have aged out of Departmental custody at age 18 and are in need of assistance. Some of these funds will also be used for dormitory and meal plan costs for youth who are in a post-secondary program if other free financial aid is not sufficient to cover those costs. In certain situations, these funds may be used to cover apartment security deposits and the first month's rent if other resources are unavailable. Because of the Department's continued financial support for older youth in care under the Extended Care Agreement Program, we expect to have minimal need for use of Chafee program funds for housing support. We do not anticipate needing to use a substantial amount of Chafee funds for room and board because our Bureau supports the living costs for older youth in care between age 18 and up to age 21 using state dollars.

Our Department's Life Skills caseworkers are particularly adept at linking older youth in care with housing support programs offered by federal, state, and non-profit agency programs as well as working directly with local landlords to secure an apartment for some older youth in care. The rental arrangements with local landlords usually consist of the Department paying for at least half of the monthly rent with an expectation that the youth pay the remaining portion of their apartment living costs. We are particularly careful not to create financial hardship, or stress for the youth. However, we do expect that our older youth in care who are living in an apartment situation, particularly after the age of 18 and up to the age of 21, gradually assume more of the financial responsibility for their living costs. It is expected that our contracted agency's apartment living programs also have a built in component of expecting older youth in their program to gradually assume more financial responsibility for paying their own bills.

The Department has been providing funding support for a number of years for older youth in care after the age of 18 and up to the age of 21 who are living in apartments if they are continuing in care on the Department's Voluntary Extended Care Agreement. (V9) In most cases, state child welfare funds are being used to support these type of living arrangements because these youth are no longer eligible for Title IV-E reimbursement. Many youth who are living in their own apartments are paying a portion of their apartment living costs through their part-time employment earnings. Some of the Department's apartment payments are being made directly to landlords and other payments are being made on a per diem basis through an agency's apartment living program. We are committed to continuing to provide financial support for youth after the age of 18 and up to the age of 21 to prevent youth from leaving care and being in a "homeless," or a "transient" living situation. The new Chafee law provision that allows for Independent Living program dollars to be utilized for room and board will enable us to assist youth with their living costs, if needed.

We continue to utilize one specialized Department Quality Assurance staff position to provide additional program support for the Independent Living Program's major initiatives. This staff person will provide additional Independent Living Program support for program initiatives such as the mentoring program, youth leadership development activities, working with service providers to address independent living training needs, and other tasks as assigned. The Department's Independent Living Program Manager, Director of Bureau Operations and Quality Assurance Supervisor consult on a regular basis with regard to effective use of the Quality Assurance staff person. As part of the quality assurance effort, the Quality Assurance staff person will also continue to evaluate the quality and content of the life skills assessment and independent living case planning of contracted agency programs and department caseworkers.