UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 1965
Page 1 of 2
XXXX 2/19/2025 1:56 PM Jacketed
AN ACT relating to relative and fictive kin caregivers. 1
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky: 2
ď˘Section 1. KRS 605.120 is amended to read as follows: 3
(1) The cabinet is authorized to expend available funds to provide for the board, 4
lodging, and care of children who would otherwise be placed in foster care or who 5
are placed by the cabinet in a foster home or boarding home, or may arrange for 6
payments or contributions by any local governmental unit, or public or private 7
agency or organization, willing to make payments or contributions for such 8
purpose. The cabinet may accept any gift, devise, or bequest made to it for its 9
purposes. 10
(2) The cabinet shall establish a reimbursement system, within existing appropriation 11
amounts, for foster parents that comes as close as possible to meeting the actual 12
cost of caring for foster children. The cabinet shall consider providing additional 13
reimbursement for foster parents who obtain additional training, and foster parents 14
who have served for an extended period of time. In establishing a reimbursement 15
system, the cabinet shall, to the extent possible within existing appropriation 16
amounts, address the additional cost associated with providing care to children with 17
exceptional needs. 18
(3) The cabinet shall review reimbursement rates paid to foster parents and shall issue a 19
report upon request comparing the rates paid by Kentucky to the figures presented 20
in the Expenditures on Children by Families Annual Report prepared by the United 21
States Department of Agriculture and the rates paid to foster parents by other states. 22
To the extent that funding is available, reimbursement rates paid to foster parents 23
shall be increased on an annual basis to reflect cost of living increases. 24
(4) The cabinet is encouraged to develop pilot projects both within the state system and 25
in collaboration with private child caring agencies to test alternative delivery 26
systems and nontraditional funding mechanisms. 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 25 RS BR 1965
Page 2 of 2
XXXX 2/19/2025 1:56 PM Jacketed
(5) (a) The cabinet shall track and analyze data on relative and fictive kin caregiver 1
placements. The data shall include but not be limited to: 2
1. Demographic data on relative and fictive kin caregivers and children in 3
their care; 4
2. Custodial options selected by the relative and fictive kin caregivers; 5
3. Services provisioned to relative and fictive kin caregivers and children 6
in their care; and 7
4. Permanency benchmarks and outcomes for relative and fictive kin 8
caregiver placements. 9
(b) By September 30, 2020, and annually[upon request] thereafter, the cabinet 10
shall submit a report to the Governor, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, 11
and the director of the Legislative Research Commission for automatic 12
distribution to the Interim Joint Committee on Families and Children relating 13
to the data tracking and analysis established in this subsection and post the 14
report to the cabinet website for public view no later than February 28 of 15
the following year. 16
(6) Foster parents shall have the authority, unless the cabinet determines that the child's 17
religion, race, ethnicity, or national origin prevents it, to make decisions regarding 18
haircuts and hairstyles for foster children who are in their care for thirty (30) days 19
or more. 20