LINCOLN — Teresa Aernie didn't become a foster parent for the money.
But the Unadilla, Neb., woman came to the State Capitol on Thursday to push for a measure setting minimum payment rates for Nebraska foster parents.
She said she and her husband wind up buying diapers, clothes and other necessities for the children out of their own pockets.
"Someone's got to pay for these kids," Aernie said. "Someone's got to get their needs met."
Legislative Bill 926 would require the state to establish foster parent payment rates using a national study done in 2007.
The study looked at the cost of providing food, clothing, shelter, daily supervision, school supplies, personal incidentals, insurance and travel for visitation with a child's family.
The bill, introduced by State Sen. Annette Dubas of Fullerton, would require additional compensation for children with special needs or circumstances.
Relatives who serve as foster parents but are not licensed would have to be paid the same rates as licensed but unrelated foster parents.
Nebraska foster care payments ranked among the lowest in the nation in the 2007 study.
For many foster parents, payments were reduced when the state began privatizing child welfare services.
Bringing foster care payments up to the standard set in LB 926 would cost the state $3.6 million per year, according to legislative fiscal staff.
The legislation does not specify a rate, but the 2007 study suggested a base rate of $636 per month.
Kathy Bigsby Moore, interim director of the Foster Care Review Board, favored the bill. She said the state lost foster homes between November 2009, when the child welfare privatization effort began, and January 2011.
She said foster parents who had contact with the review board cited inadequate reimbursement as one of the top two reasons for dropping out.
Currently rates vary depending on who pays the foster parents and whether they are licensed or are relatives.
The lowest rate paid directly by the state is $246 per month, while KVC, one of the state's two lead child welfare contractors, pays its foster families a base rate of $608.40 per month, according to a legislative study.
The state, KVC and the Nebraska Families Collaborative, the other lead contractor, all contract with other agencies for foster care.
Those subcontractors typically keep 40 to 60 percent of the amount they receive. Their foster parents receive base rates that range from $350 to $608.40 per month.
Relatives serving as foster parents get much less than licensed foster families. KVC pays them a base rate of $304.20 per month while the collaborative pays $246 per month.
Several subcontractors testified in support of Dubas' bill but raised concerns about a provision that would require payments to be made directly to foster parents.
Karen Authier, executive director of the Nebraska Children's Home Society, said the direct payment provision would create financial problems for the subcontracting agencies.
She said the agencies use their share of the foster care payments to recruit, license, train and support foster families. The agencies already subsidize their costs with private fundraising.
Scot Adams, director of children and family services for the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, expressed similar concerns but testified as neutral on the bill.
Dubas said she is talking with private agencies and has assured them she does not want to threaten their financial status.
Contact the writer:
402-473-9583, martha.stoddard@owh.com
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