E9-5196. Proposed Information Collection Activity; Comment Request

Proposed Projects

Title: State Plan for Foster Care and Adoption Assistance—Title IV-E.

OMB No.: 0980-0141.

Description: A title IV-E plan is required by section 471 part IV-E of the Social Security Act (the Act) for each public child welfare agency requesting Federal funding for foster care, adoption assistance and guardianship assistance under the Act. The title IV-E plan provides assurances the programs will be administered in conformity with the specific requirements stipulated in title IV-E. The plan must include all applicable State statutory, regulatory, or policy references and citations for each requirement as well as supporting documentation. A title IV-E agency may use the pre-print format prepared by the Children's Bureau of the Administration for Children and Families or a different format, on the condition that the format used includes all of the title IV-E State plan requirements of the law.

Public Law 110-351, the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008, created a new title IV-E plan option to provide a Guardianship Assistance Program for relatives of children in foster care (section 471(a)(28) of the Act). The Guardianship Assistance program was made effective for States upon enactment of Public Law 110-351 (October 7, 2008).

Effective October 1, 2009, Public Law 110-351 will allow Tribes, Tribal organizations and Tribal consortia to directly operate title IV-E programs for foster care maintenance payments, adoption assistance and kinship guardianship assistance.

The law also made a number of other changes to title IV-E plan requirements and eligibility criteria. The law's provisions expanding the scope of the title IV-E program necessitates a revision of the preprint.

Respondents: State and Territorial Agencies (State Agencies) administering or supervising the administration of the title IV-E programs and Federally-recognized Tribes, Tribal organizations and Tribal consortia administering title IV-E programs.

Annual Burden Estimates

Instrument	Number of respondents	Number of responses per respondent	Average burden hours per response	Total burden hours
Title IV-E Plan	33	1	16	528

Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 528.

In compliance with the requirements of Section 506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Administration for Children and Families is soliciting public comment on the specific aspects of the information collection described above. Copies of the proposed collection of information can be obtained and comments may be forwarded by writing to the Administration for Children and Families, Office of Administration, Office of Information Services, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW., Washington, DC 20447, Attn: ACF Reports Clearance Officer. E-mail address: [e-mail]. All requests should be identified by the title of the information collection.

The Department specifically requests comments on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information; (c) the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology. Consideration will be given to comments and suggestions submitted within 60 days of this publication.

Dated: March 6, 2009.

Janean Chambers,

Reports Clearance Officer.