Family First Prevention Services (FFPS) Program
What is the FFPS Program?
California has embraced the direction of the federal government and built upon it to add further flexibility and ensure a broader continuum of care can be in place for our families by establishing the Family First Prevention Services (FFPS) Program.
Per All County Information Notice I-73-21: Assembly Bill 153 (Chapter 86, Statutes of 2021) adds Sections 16585 through Section 16589 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, establishing the “Family First Prevention Services” (FFPS) program in State law. These provisions state California’s intent to opt into the Title IV-E prevention services program authorized by Part I of the federal FFPSA, incorporate definitions and requirements of the federal law, and further specify the State’s approach to implementation of the prevention services program established under the FFPSA.
Legislative declarations in Welfare and Institutions Code Section 16585:
- Articulate a commitment to a coordinated continuum of services amongst child and family serving systems;
- Establish the intent to improve outcomes for children and families, reduce entries into foster care, and reduce disparity and disproportionality in California’s foster care system; and
- Reaffirm the State’s commitments to Indian children, families, caregivers, and tribes, including implementation of prevention services consistent with the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). These commitments are included in WIC Section 16585 and are further articulated in the State’s Title IV-E Five-Year Prevention Services Plan submitted to the Administration for Children and Families (ACF).
What are the requirements for Title IV-E agencies to receive State FFPS Program Block Grant funding?
On March 10, 2021, the CDSS released All County Letter (ACL) 22-23: Family First Prevention Services Program Opt-In Process, State FFPS Program Block Grant Allocation Methodology and Allowable Activities.
- WIC Section 16587(a) specifies the requirement that Title IV-E agencies electing to opt-into the FFPS program must submit a three-year local comprehensive prevention plan (CPP) developed in consultation with relevant entities, including county agencies that serve families and children, Indian tribes, local community representatives, caseworkers, and individuals and families with lived experience with the child welfare system.
- The components in a CPP will include primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention and intervention strategies and services that support the ability of parents and families to provide safe, stable, and nurturing environments for their children.
- Interventions and strategies must include culturally appropriate and responsive services that are tailored to meet the needs of local families who are disproportionately represented in the child welfare system including Indian and Alaskan Native families, families of color, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/plus, children or youth.
Who can be served under the FFPS Program and what types of services can be funded using State FFPS Program Block Grant?
- Primary, secondary, and tertiary populations can be served under FFPS Program.
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Prevention Level
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Activities
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Primary
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These activities are directed at the general population to strengthen communities and improve child well-being by focusing on the social determinants of health, defined as the conditions into which people are born, grow, work, live, and age, and the wider set of forces and systems shaping the conditions of daily life.
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Secondary
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These activities are offered to populations that have one or more risk factors associated with compromised well-being or child maltreatment, such as poverty, parental substance abuse, young parental age, parental mental health concerns, exposure to violence, and parental or child disabilities. Programs seek to build protective factors and mitigate the risk factors.
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Tertiary
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These activities focus on families where child maltreatment has occurred, seeking to mitigate its trauma and reduce the negative consequences of the maltreatment and to prevent its recurrence.
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What is the opt-in process to receive State FFPS Block Grant funds?
- Title IV-E agencies were required to submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) to inform the state of their early intent to opt into the FFPS program and to begin accessing their local State Block Grant allocation.
- Title IV-E agencies that did not submit a LOI by the deadline of April 30, 2022, are eligible to receive State FFPS Program Block Grant funds upon submission of a CPP. The final due date for submission of a CPP is January 31, 2023.
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Date
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Activity
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April 30, 2022
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FFPS Program Letter of Intent to opt-in was due
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January 31, 2023
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Final due date for CPPs
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When will State FFPS Block Grant funds be allocated to Title IV-E agencies?