The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was signed into law on March 11, 2021. Properly utilized and implemented, these funds have the potential to substantially support and transform child welfare services to children and families, assist with the implementation of the Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA), and stabilize your critical child welfare workforce.

The information within this article, originally published on the PCG website in March 2019, was updated on April 14, 2022, to reflect program changes and new developments as a result of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) public health emergency (PHE).

In September 2021, the Children’s Bureau (CB) of the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) released the Comprehensive Child Welfare Information System (CCWIS) Technical Bulletins (TBs) #7 (CCWIS Technical Assistance, Self-Assessment Tools, and Monitoring Reviews) and #8 (CCWIS Data Exchange Standards), providing important tools to help title IV-E agencies think about the evolving landscape of the CCWIS journey.

The Family First Prevention Services Act (Family First) authorized new federal Title IV-E funding for evidence-based programs (EBPs) that have been rated and approved by the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse.