A.B. 515
- *AB515*
ASSEMBLY BILL NO. 515–COMMITTEE ON
HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
(ON BEHALF OF THE JOINT INTERIM STANDING COMMITTEE
ON HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES)
MARCH 24, 2025
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Referred to Committee on Health and Human Services
SUMMARY—Revises provisions relating to adoption assistance
programs. (BDR 38-355)
FISCAL NOTE: Effect on Local Government: May have Fiscal Impact.
Effect on the State: Yes.
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EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.
AN ACT relating to the protection of children; revising provisions
relating to certain categorical grants to fund the adoption
assistance program; and providing other matters properly
relating thereto.
Legislative Counsel’s Digest:
Existing federal law requires each child welfare agency to calculate savings 1
realized from expanded eligibility for children under Title IV-E of the Social 2
Security Act, known as “adoption savings,” and reinvest an equal amount in the 3
state’s child welfare system. (42 U.S.C. § 673(a)(8)(D)) Existing law requires the 4
Division of Child and Family Services of the Department of Health and Human 5
Services to provide a categorical grant to each agency which provides child welfare 6
services in a county whose population is 100,000 or more (currently Clark and 7
Washoe Counties) for each fiscal year for its adoption assistance program. Existing 8
law requires the Division to base the amount of such a categorical grant on the 9
estimated cost of the projected growth in the adoption assistance program. (NRS 10
432B.219) This bill requires the Division to additionally base the amount of such a 11
categorical grant on the adoption savings calculated for the immediately preceding 12
fiscal year pursuant to federal law. 13
Under existing law, any money remaining from such a categorical grant that 14
has not been used or committed for expenditure by the agency by the end of the 15
fiscal year reverts to the State General Fund in most cases. However, existing law 16
provides that the portion of such money remaining at the end of a fiscal year that is 17
identified as adoption savings does not revert until the end of the immediately 18
following fiscal year. Existing law authorizes the agency which provides child 19
welfare services that received the categorical grant to use that money for any costs 20
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of providing child welfare services without restriction during that fiscal year. (NRS 21
432B.219) This bill authorizes an agency which provides child welfare services to 22
continue to use such money for any such costs for an additional fiscal year before 23
the money reverts to the State General Fund. 24
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN
SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. NRS 432B.219 is hereby amended to read as 1
follows: 2
432B.219 1. The Division of Child and Family Services shall 3
provide a categorical grant to each agency which provides child 4
welfare services for each fiscal year for its adoption assistance 5
program to the extent that money has been appropriated to the 6
Division for that purpose. The amount of the grant must be based 7
upon [the] : 8
(a) The estimated cost of the projected growth in the adoption 9
assistance program [.] ; and 10
(b) The amount identified as savings pursuant to the 11
calculation required under 42 U.S.C. § 673(a)(8)(A), reported at 12
the end of the immediately preceding fiscal year. 13
2. The amount of the grant awarded pursuant to subsection 1 14
must be determined for 2 years beginning on July 1 of each odd-15
numbered year and allocated each fiscal year. 16
3. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 4: 17
(a) An agency which provides child welfare services that 18
receives a grant pursuant to subsection 1 must use the money 19
allocated only for costs associated with the adoption assistance 20
program. 21
(b) Any money from the grant awarded pursuant to subsection 1 22
that has not been used or committed for expenditure by the agency 23
which provides child welfare services by the end of the fiscal year 24
reverts to the State General Fund. 25
4. The portion of any money remaining at the end of a fiscal 26
year from a grant awarded pursuant to subsection 1 that is identified 27
as savings pursuant to the calculation required under 42 U.S.C. § 28
[673(a)(8)(D)(ii)] 673(a)(8)(A) does not revert to the State General 29
Fund and may be carried forward to the next 2 fiscal [year] years 30
and used for any costs of providing child welfare services without 31
restriction. Any such money identified as savings that has not been 32
used or committed for expenditure by the agency which provides 33
child welfare services by the end of the second fiscal year to which 34
the money was carried forward reverts to the State General Fund. 35
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Sec. 2. This act becomes effective on July 1, 2025. 1
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