Kinship first for Foster kids

Petition for Legislation Petition to the Tennessee General Assembly for Comprehensive Child Welfare Reform “The Tennessee Kinship First Act of 2026” Sponsors sought – To be filed in the 115th General Assembly (2026 session) Petitioners • Maternal grandmother of Willow B. (age 6) and her infant sister, both currently in non-kin foster care in Rutherford County despite repeated kinship requests • Tennessee-licensed Registered Nurse with pediatric and correctional experience • Supported by concerned citizens, kinship caregivers, parent advocates, and taxpayers across the state Preamble WHEREAS Tennessee law and federal policy (42 U.S.C. § 671(a)(19); T.C.A. § 37-2-415) declare a clear preference for kinship care as the least restrictive, most family-like placement for children who cannot safely remain with their parents; and WHEREAS private contractors in Tennessee now provide approximately 70% of all foster homes and nearly 100% of therapeutic and congregate care beds, billing the state $50–$400+ per day per child, creating a direct financial incentive to label children as “high-needs,” prolong out-of-home placement, and discourage kinship placement and reunification; and WHEREAS this privatized, per-diem reimbursement model has produced chronic shortages of therapeutic homes, children sleeping in DCS offices and hotels, out-of-state placements, and the highest per-capita removal rate in the nation in some counties; and WHEREAS the current system socializes all risk and cost onto Tennessee taxpayers while privatizing profits to a small number of contractors, resulting in a hybrid system that combines the worst inefficiencies of centralized planning with the worst profit-driven distortions of the market; and WHEREAS continued refusal to place children with willing, qualified relatives—including grandparents able and eager to care for medically fragile children—inflicts unnecessary trauma on Tennessee families and wastes millions in taxpayer dollars annually; NOW, THEREFORE, the undersigned respectfully petition the Tennessee General Assembly to enact the following reforms: SECTION 1. Absolute Kinship Preference (Amend T.C.A. § 37-2-415 and § 37-1-129) No child shall be placed in non-relative foster care until every grandparent, aunt, uncle, adult sibling, and fictive kin has been identified, notified in writing within 72 hours of removal, and fully assessed. Qualified kinship caregivers shall receive presumptive placement unless the Department proves by clear and convincing evidence in an adjudicatory hearing that placement would create imminent danger to the child. Provisional/conditional kinship placement shall be ordered pending completion of the home study, which must be completed within 14 calendar days. SECTION 2. Financial Parity for Kinship Caregivers All kinship caregivers—whether formally licensed or provisionally placed—shall immediately receive the full board rate, Medicaid coverage, respite care, and supportive services equal to or greater than rates paid to licensed non-relative foster parents for a child with comparable needs. SECTION 3. Elimination of Perverse Financial Incentives (a) Tennessee shall permanently opt out of all federal Title IV-E adoption incentive “bounty” payments tied to terminations of parental rights rather than reunification. (b) All future contracts with private child-placing agencies shall be performance-based: reimbursement shall increase only for documented increases in kinship placement, timely reunification, and permanency within 12 months, and shall decrease for prolonged stays, severity-label inflation, or low kinship utilization. SECTION 4. Independent Pre-Removal and Early Review Within 72 hours of any emergency removal, an independent review panel (excluding current DCS employees and contractors) consisting of at least one parent advocate, one licensed kinship caregiver, and one attorney or retired judge shall review the removal petition and either ratify the removal or order immediate return or kinship placement. SECTION 5. Higher Threshold for Removal Removal from the home shall be authorized only upon clear and convincing evidence of imminent danger of serious physical harm or sexual abuse that cannot be mitigated by reasonable in-home services or immediate kinship placement. Poverty alone, treatable mental illness, or substance-use disorder in early remission shall never constitute sufficient grounds for removal. SECTION 6. Early Appointment of Counsel Indigent parents and any proposed kinship caregiver contesting non-placement shall be appointed counsel at the first investigative contact or removal, not merely at the preliminary hearing. SECTION 7. Three-Year Transition to Kinship-First Contracting By July 1, 2029, all private child-placing agency contracts shall be re-bid or renegotiated to eliminate per-diem billing based on length of stay or severity labeling and replace it with outcome-based payments that reward kinship placement and rapid, safe reunification. SECTION 8. Severability and Effective Date If any provision is held invalid, the remainder shall remain in full force. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026. Relief Sought Passage of the Tennessee Kinship First Act of 2026 will end the financial conflicts that currently reward contractors for keeping children away from loving family members, dramatically reduce unnecessary trauma to Tennessee children, save tens of millions in taxpayer funds, and restore public trust in our child welfare system. Respectfully submitted this 24th day of November, 2025, for immediate legislative consideration and introduction in the 2026 session. Hi all, we've reached 35 signatures on this petition—thank you so much for your support! Would you help us keep the momentum going by sharing? Posting to Facebook groups, Instagram stories, WhatsApp, or sending it directly via text or email all make a big difference. Thanks for being part of this!