Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA) Part I

The passage of FFPSA has shifted the focus of the child welfare system from a reactionary approach to incidences of child maltreatment to a preventative and early intervention approach. The primary objective of FFPSA is reduce entries into foster care and increase the number of children and youth who can remain safely at home with their families. The FFPSA Part I places an emphasis on improving access to evidence-based, trauma informed services in the categories of mental health, substance abuse treatment, in-home parenting skills and kinship navigation programs. This legislation has elevated the role of community-based providers as the primary access point for prevention and early intervention services.

The FFPSA has altered the federal financial structure of Title IV-E. It is the first-time states and Tribes are eligible to claim Title IV-E funds for prevention services. The FFPSA allows funds to be directed towards prevention services identified in the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse for parents, children, youth, and caregivers within the following categories:

• Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment
• Mental Health
• In-Home Parenting Skills
• Kinship Navigation Services

States electing to receive Title IV-E funds are required to submit a prevention plan to the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) for approval which includes a list of the evidence-based and trauma informed practices that the state plans to implement. Within California’s Five-Year State Prevention Plan are ten (10) well-supported evidence-based programs that California counties and Tribes electing to opt-into the state’s Family First Prevention Services Program (FFPS) Program may select.

It is these well-supported evidence-based programs and other prevention services that the county cross-sector collaborative recognizes as important to meet community needs that will assist in the development of primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention strategies to support children and youth at imminent risk for entry into foster care. However, tertiary strategies alone are only a part of the larger vision for prevention in California. Through FFPSA, the State has selected 10 EBPS that counties can select to implement secondary and tertiary prevention strategies. The establishment of the FFPS Program gives counties and Tribes the option to fund services across the spectrum to support the needs of primary, secondary, and tertiary populations.

Further information regarding the provisions of FFPSA Part I are described within several Program Instructions issued by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF).

Highlights of FFPSA Part I:

• States have the option to opt-into FFPSA Part I, California has elected to opt-in.
• Prevention services can be offered to a child or youth, parents, or caregivers, if the child or youth is at imminent risk for entry into foster care (deemed a candidate) and prevention services would allow the child or youth to remain safely at home.
• Eligible prevention services are listed within the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse, these include mental health, substance abuse prevention and treatment services, and in-home parent skill-based services.
• California has selected ten well-supported, evidence-based programs from the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse for implementation.