Request for Public Comment Concerning the Redesign of Statewide Automated Child Welfare Information System (SACWIS) Requirements, 43188-43190 [2010-18038]
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43188
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 141 / Friday, July 23, 2010 / Notices
such as the Child and Family Services
Reviews?
• Is there data related to safety,
permanency and well-being that is
essential to monitoring activities that is
not collected currently?
Fostering Connections to Success and
Increasing Adoptions Act
Fostering Connections created a
number of new title IV–E plan
provisions and provided Federal funds
for agencies that choose to support older
youth up to age 21 and children in
guardianships.
4. What case level data would support
the monitoring of compliance by title
IV–E agencies and outcomes for
children in relation to the new
provisions?
• Fostering Connections requires that
an agency ensure that children receiving
title IV–E are enrolled in school or have
graduated, that an educational stability
plan is in place for children in foster
care; and, provides Federal
reimbursement of some costs to
transport a child in foster care to his/her
original school. What data would be
important to collect with regard to a
child’s education in relation to these
provisions?
• Fostering Connections allows
agencies to provide extended assistance
up to age 21 for youth in foster care, and
certain youth adopted or in
guardianships when such youth reach
age 18 if they participate in education
or employment activities or are unable
to do so. What data would be important
to collect with regard to these youth in
relation to these provisions?
• Fostering Connections requires
agencies to notify relatives when a child
is placed into foster care and offer them
information on how they can be a
placement resource for the child and
also encourages agencies to place
siblings together or facilitate frequent
contact, unless doing so is
inappropriate. What data is important to
collect with regard to relatives and
siblings in relation to these provisions?
WReier-Aviles on DSKGBLS3C1PROD with NOTICES
Circumstances Prior to Removal
In the 2008 NPRM, we proposed
detailed data describing the members of
the household or the facilities in which
children resided prior to entering foster
care.
5. What data, if any, should be
collected from child welfare agencies to
provide insight into from whom, or from
what environment a child is removed
for the purposes of foster care and the
circumstances that surround the child’s
removal?
VerDate Mar<15>2010
15:15 Jul 22, 2010
Jkt 220001
Circumstances During Stay in Foster
Care
In the 2008 NPRM, we requested that
agencies provide us detailed
information on circumstances, such as
lack of housing, substance abuse, and
mental health issues, facing a child and
family during several points during the
child’s stay in foster care.
6. What data, if any, should be
collected from child welfare agencies to
provide insight into why a child
remains in foster care or why a child’s
permanency plan is selected or
changed?
Caseworker Visits
The title IV–B, subpart 1 child welfare
services program requires agencies to
ensure that children are visited by
caseworkers at least monthly and that
the majority of those visits occur in the
child’s residence.
7. What information, if any, about
caseworker visits with a child is
essential to collect?
Please provide information on any
additional factors we should consider in
proposing revisions to AFCARS. ACF
will analyze the comments and utilize
them to determine the necessary next
steps to improve AFCARS.
Additional Consultation
Opportunities: In addition to this
opportunity to inform development of
the new NPRM, we plan to hold four inperson consultations in ACF Regions VI,
VII, VIII, and X and two webinars.
We invite State representatives and
Tribal leaders and/or their
representatives of federally recognized
Tribes to attend the in-person meetings
or webinars to provide their input on
the questions raised above.
Teleconference lines will also be
available during these in-person
sessions. Any person who would like to
attend one of the Regional consultation
sessions in-person or via phone must
register at least one week in advance of
the meeting date by contacting the
applicable Children’s Bureau (CB)
Regional Program Manager. Registered
participants for the consultation session
may submit written remarks in advance,
or present them in oral or written form
at the consultation session. Any person
who would like to participate in one of
the webinars should register via the
website for each webinar below. Persons
may also provide written comments as
noted in the ADDRESSES section,
regardless of their participation in an inperson session or webinar. Finally,
please note that Federal representatives
attending the consultation sessions will
not be able to respond directly during
the session to the concerns or questions
PO 00000
Frm 00052
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
raised by participants. The consultation
sessions and contact information are
listed below:
Webinar #1: September 8, 2010 2:30
EDT.
Webinar #2: September 15, 2010 2:30
EDT.
Register for the webinar of your
choice by contacting the National
Resource Center for Data and
Technology at https://www.nrccwdt.org.
Region VI—October 5, 2010, 9:30–11:30
CDT
1301 Young Street, Room 1119,
Dallas, TX 75202; Contact: Janis Brown,
CB Regional Program Manager, phone
(214) 767–9648 or e-mail
janis.brown@acf.hhs.gov.
Region VII—September 17, 2010, 9:30–
11:30 CDT
601 E 12th Street, Kansas City, MO
64106; Contact: Rosalyn Wilson, CB
Regional Program Manager, phone (816)
426–3981 or e-mail
rosalyn.wilson@acf.hhs.gov.
Region VIII—September 22, 2010, 9:30–
11:30 MDT
Byron Rogers Federal Building, 1961
Stout Street, Denver, CO 80294; Contact:
Marilyn Kennerson, CB Regional
Program Manager, phone (303) 844–
3100 or e-mail
marilyn.kennerson@acf.hhs.gov.
Region X—September 23, 2010, 9:30–
11:30 PDT
2201 Sixth Avenue, Seattle, WA
98121–1827; Contact: Tina Minor, CB
Regional Program Manager, phone (206)
615–2482 or e-mail
tina.minor@acf.hhs.gov.
Dated: July 15, 2010.
Bryan Samuels,
Commissioner, Administration on Children,
Youth and Families.
[FR Doc. 2010–18042 Filed 7–22–10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184–25–P
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
Administration for Children and
Families
Request for Public Comment
Concerning the Redesign of Statewide
Automated Child Welfare Information
System (SACWIS) Requirements
Department of Health and
Human Services, Administration for
Children and Families, Administration
on Children, Youth and Families,
Children’s Bureau.
ACTION: Request for Public Comment
Concerning the Redesign of Statewide
AGENCY:
E:\FR\FM\23JYN1.SGM
23JYN1
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 141 / Friday, July 23, 2010 / Notices
Automated Child Welfare Information
System (SACWIS) Requirements.
Sections 474(a)(3)(C) and (D)
of the Social Security Act (the Act)
provide States with the opportunity to
access additional funding through title
IV–E to plan, design, develop,
implement, and operate a Statewide
Automated Child Welfare Information
System (SACWIS). The regulations at 45
CFR 1355.50–1355.57 were established
in response to this legislation and were
issued on December 22, 1993.
Several major legislative initiatives,
including the Fostering Connections to
Success and Increasing Adoptions Act
of 2008 (Pub. L. 110–351), hereafter
referred to as Fostering Connections,
have been enacted since SACWIS
regulations were finalized, and have had
a significant impact on child welfare
practice and the Information
Technology (IT) systems used to support
these programs. Given the breadth of
these changes, we believe it is time to
review and consider whether we should
amend the current regulations at 45 CFR
1355.50–1355.57 to ensure that they
comport with requirements in titles IV–
B and IV–E of the Act, support title IV–
E agencies seeking to use new
technological tools to meet legislative
requirements, and support
programmatic initiatives, while
providing additional flexibility to title
IV–E agencies as permitted under law.
DATES: Written comments must be
submitted to the office listed in the
ADDRESSES section below on or before
October 21, 2010.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons may
submit written comments by any of the
following methods:
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://
www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
• E-mail: DSSComments@acf.hhs.gov.
Please include ‘‘Comments on SACWIS
Federal Register Notice’’ in the subject
line of the message.
• Mail or Courier Delivery: Terry
Watt, Director, Division of State
Systems, Children’s Bureau,
Administration on Children, Youth and
Families, Administration for Children
and Families, 1250 Maryland Avenue,
SW., 8th Floor, Washington, DC 20024.
Instructions: Please be aware that mail
sent to us may take an additional 3–4
days to process due to changes in mail
handling resulting from the anthrax
crisis of October 2001. If you choose to
use an express, overnight, or other
special delivery method, please ensure
first that they are able to deliver to the
above address during the normal
workweek. We urge you to submit
comments electronically to ensure they
WReier-Aviles on DSKGBLS3C1PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
VerDate Mar<15>2010
15:15 Jul 22, 2010
Jkt 220001
are received in a timely manner. All
comments received will be posted
without change to https://
www.regulations.gov including any
personal information provided.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Terry Watt, Director, Division of State
Systems, Children’s Bureau, 1250
Maryland Ave, SW., 8th Floor,
Washington, DC 20024; (202) 690–8177.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
SACWIS Background
Sections 474(a)(3)(C) and (D) of the
Act provide Federal funding for the
planning, development and operation of
a SACWIS. This funding was prompted
by a critical need to provide: (1) More
efficient, economical, and effective
administration of the programs under
titles IV–B and IV–E; and (2) support for
automated systems in a comprehensive
fashion to improve practices and
ultimately result in better service
delivery to children and families served
by title IV–E agencies.
Current SACWIS regulations mandate
that:
• Title IV–E agencies must build or
have a comprehensive IT case
management system with centralized,
uniform functionality in order to qualify
for a favorable cost allocation
methodology and additional Federal
Financial Participation (FFP).
• The system must collect and
maintain the information needed for the
Adoption and Foster Care Annual
Reporting System (AFCARS) report.
• To the extent practicable, the
system must provide for an interface
with the title IV–E agency’s child abuse
and neglect data system and the systems
used to support the title IV–A, IV–D,
and XIX programs.
An Interim Final Rule concerning the
requirements for States seeking to
pursue enhanced funding for the
development and operation of SACWIS
systems was published in the Federal
Register on December 22, 1993 (58 FR
67939). The Final Rule was published
on May 19, 1995 and codified in Federal
regulations at 45 CFR 1355.50–1355.57.
Limitations of Current SACWIS
Regulations
Federal child welfare laws have
changed considerably since the SACWIS
regulations were issued fifteen years ago
due to the enactment of several major
child welfare legislative initiatives. For
example, the Fostering Connections
legislation made a number of changes to
the title IV–E program including an
option for Tribes to directly operate
their own title IV–E programs. The
resulting changes in statutes and policy
PO 00000
Frm 00053
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
43189
have significantly influenced child
welfare practices and the supporting
automated systems. Title IV–E agency
practice models have also changed, with
some agencies using a mix of public and
private agencies to provide services to
children and families.
In addition to the legislative changes
previously noted, information
technology (IT) has grown more flexible.
IT strategies, such as data
standardization, Enterprise Architecture
and Service Oriented Architecture have
the potential to help title IV–E agencies
integrate data and functions from
disparate systems to meet program
goals. However, current SACWIS
regulations, as written, may limit IT
options for meeting program needs of
State and Tribal title IV–E agencies.
Opportunity to Comment
The Children’s Bureau is committed
to providing title IV–E agencies with
additional flexibility to implement
technological options they need to build
economical, efficient, and effective
information systems that support child
welfare policy and practice. We are
beginning the process of reviewing
SACWIS regulations to consider
providing title IV–E agencies with
increased flexibility to design
information systems to support child
welfare policy and practice. Therefore
we are soliciting comments from
interested parties. Please comment on
any aspects of SACWIS that you wish.
We are particularly interested in
obtaining input on:
1. What requirements in current
SACWIS regulations inhibit or support
the development of efficient, effective,
and economical case management
systems?
2. How can States and Tribes
maintain the consistency of data that is
defined, collected, and maintained in
multiple systems to ensure a common
understanding of the families’ history
and circumstances across the different
systems, including the system(s) used to
submit Federal reports?
3. What data do States and Tribes
consider critical to their business
practice model? Are there data needs for
managing the title IV–E program that are
not easily met by SACWIS systems and
how are those data needs currently
being addressed?
4. How can the systems used by States
or Tribes be designed to support the
seamless management of data across
multiple systems over time? (e.g., when
systems are replaced; when provider
contracts expire or are terminated; or
when families move from one provider
to a different provider using a different
system.)
E:\FR\FM\23JYN1.SGM
23JYN1
43190
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 141 / Friday, July 23, 2010 / Notices
5. How can the SACWIS regulations
be modified to encourage flexibility and
support different practice models while
ensuring standardized data is available
as needed?
ACF will consider the comments after
the comment period closes to further
assess SACWIS regulations.
Dated: July 15, 2010.
Bryan Samuels,
Commissioner, Administration on Children,
Youth and Families.
[FR Doc. 2010–18038 Filed 7–22–10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184–25–P
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention
Statement of Organization, Functions,
and Delegations of Authority
WReier-Aviles on DSKGBLS3C1PROD with NOTICES
Part C (Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention) of the Statement of
Organization, Functions, and
Delegations of Authority of the
Department of Health and Human
Services (45 FR 67772–76, dated
October 14, 1980, and corrected at 45 FR
69296, October 20, 1980, as amended
most recently at 75 FR 34465, dated
June 9, 2010) is amended to reflect the
substructure of the National Center for
Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious
Diseases, Office of Infectious Diseases,
Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention.
Section C–B, Organization and
Functions, is hereby amended as
follows:
After the title and functional statements for
the National Center for Immunization and
Respiratory Diseases (CVG), insert the
following:
National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic
Infectious Diseases (CVL). The National
Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious
Diseases (NCEZID) works to prevent and
control a broad range of infectious diseases
through public leadership, partnerships,
science, and systems. In carrying out these
activities, NCEZID: (1) Works collaboratively
across CDC and with external partners to
conduct, coordinate, support, and evaluate
public health efforts to prevent and minimize
morbidity and mortality due to infectious
diseases, promoting a One Health approach
involving the interface of animal, human,
and environmental factors; (2) develops,
evaluates, and advances science, programs,
management, and operations toward meeting
the agency’s infectious disease related
mission and goals; (3) conducts
epidemiologic and laboratory science and
applied research aimed at identifying risk
factors and disease burdens and developing
and implementing public health programs,
practices, and policies for infectious disease
VerDate Mar<15>2010
15:15 Jul 22, 2010
Jkt 220001
prevention and control; (4) works with
domestic and global partners to provide
technical and subject matter expertise in
responding to outbreaks and in establishing,
maintaining, and evaluating disease control
and prevention programs; (5) supports a
broad range of cross-cutting and collaborative
programs aimed at enhancing public health
capacity at the local, State, and national
levels; (6) works to improve the quality and
safety of healthcare through efforts to reduce
healthcare associated infections and
antimicrobial resistance and to ensure the
safety of medical products, including
vaccines; (7) conducts activities to improve
the safety of food and water and reduce
related enteric illnesses; (8) administers a
national quarantine program to prevent U.S.
importation and spread of infectious
diseases; (9) works with CDC colleagues and
external partners to improve public health
preparedness at the local, State, and national
levels; and (10) works to increase public
health prevention efforts for populations at
increased risk for infectious diseases.
Office of the Director (CVL1). (1) Provides
leadership in developing, prioritizing,
advancing, and evaluating the center’s
science, programs, management, and
operations toward meeting agency mission
and goals; (2) advises the CDC Director and
Deputy Director for Infectious Diseases on
priority issues affecting the center; (3)
identifies and facilitates synergies within
NCEZID, across CDC, and with external
partners for addressing emerging and
zoonotic infectious diseases domestically and
globally; (4) enhances collaborations and
partnerships across multiple disciplines,
including human and animal health; (5)
ensures scientific quality and ethical and
regulatory compliance of center activities; (6)
provides leadership, guidance, and technical
assistance on policy and communication
issues affecting the center; (7) serves as
liaison with CDC counterparts, CDC/OD,
other government agencies, and external
partners on policy, program, legislative,
communication, and budgetary issues related
to NCEZID; (8) recruits and supports a strong
center-wide workforce and builds leadership
at the division and branch levels; (9) ensures
that programmatic goals are achieved with
measurable impact; and (10) ensures effective
administrative services for NCEZID as well as
effective cross-cutting scientific and program
services for all CDC’s infectious disease
national centers.
Food Safety Office (CVL12). (1) Provides
leadership in preventing and controlling
foodborne illness by coordinating related
activities within CDC and with other local,
State, Federal, and international
organizations; (2) directs the activities related
to development of long-term NCEZID, OID,
and CDC strategies, policies, and budgets for
foodborne disease prevention activities; (3)
allocates and tracks interagency resources
within CDC for foodborne disease
surveillance, outbreak response, applied
research, education and training; (4)
administers and tracks resources for
foodborne disease prevention and control
activities of State and local health
departments and other organizations; (5)
represents NCEZID and CDC programs and
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
prevention policies in meetings with
governmental, non-governmental, private,
and international organizations; (6) reviews,
prepares, and coordinates congressional
testimony and briefing documents related to
foodborne diseases, and analyzes
programmatic and policy implications of
legislative proposals; and (7) provides
direction and administrative support to the
World Health Organization (WHO)
Collaborating Center for Foodborne Disease
Surveillance.
Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and
Environmental Diseases (CVLB). The mission
of the Division of Foodborne, Waterborne,
and Environmental Diseases (DFWED) is to
improve public health nationally and
internationally through the prevention and
control of disease, disability, and death
caused by foodborne, waterborne, and
environmentally-transmitted infections. In
carrying out its mission, DFWED: (1)
Conducts surveillance, investigations, and
studies of foodborne bacterial diseases,
waterborne bacterial and parasitic diseases,
and mycotic diseases to define disease
etiology and develop effective methods for
diagnosis, prevention, and control; (2)
conducts or participates in clinical, field, and
laboratory research to develop, evaluate, and
improve laboratory methodologies, materials,
and therapeutic practices used for
environmental detection, diagnosis,
treatment, investigation, and control of
foodborne bacterial diseases, waterborne
bacterial and parasitic diseases, and mycotic
diseases; (3) fosters and coordinates
environmental microbiology research
activities at CDC through the Environmental
Microbiology Workgroup, partnerships, and
advocacy activities to promote research on
preventing infectious disease transmission
from the environment to humans; (4)
provides epidemic aid and epidemiologic
consultation, upon request, to State and local
health departments, other Federal agencies,
and national and international health
organizations; (5) provides reference/
diagnostic services for foodborne bacterial
diseases, waterborne bacterial and parasitic
diseases, and mycotic diseases to State and
local health departments, other Federal
agencies, and national and international
health organizations; (6) provides scientific
and technical assistance to other CDC
components when the work requires unique
expertise or specialized equipment not
available in other components; (7) provides
intramural and extramural technical
expertise and assistance in professional
training and proficiency testing activities; (8)
serves as appropriately designated national
and international reference centers for
various foodborne bacterial diseases,
waterborne bacterial and parasitic diseases,
and mycotic diseases and disease groups; and
(9) develops clear health promotion
strategies, campaigns, and messages to
promote prevention.
Office of the Director (CVLB1). (1) Directs
and manages the programs and activities of
DFWED; (2) provides leadership and
guidance on policy, program planning and
development, program management, and
operations; (3) coordinates or assures
coordination with the appropriate CDC and
E:\FR\FM\23JYN1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 141 (Friday, July 23, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43188-43190]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-18038]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Administration for Children and Families
Request for Public Comment Concerning the Redesign of Statewide
Automated Child Welfare Information System (SACWIS) Requirements
AGENCY: Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for
Children and Families, Administration on Children, Youth and Families,
Children's Bureau.
ACTION: Request for Public Comment Concerning the Redesign of Statewide
[[Page 43189]]
Automated Child Welfare Information System (SACWIS) Requirements.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: Sections 474(a)(3)(C) and (D) of the Social Security Act (the
Act) provide States with the opportunity to access additional funding
through title IV-E to plan, design, develop, implement, and operate a
Statewide Automated Child Welfare Information System (SACWIS). The
regulations at 45 CFR 1355.50-1355.57 were established in response to
this legislation and were issued on December 22, 1993.
Several major legislative initiatives, including the Fostering
Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 (Pub. L.
110-351), hereafter referred to as Fostering Connections, have been
enacted since SACWIS regulations were finalized, and have had a
significant impact on child welfare practice and the Information
Technology (IT) systems used to support these programs. Given the
breadth of these changes, we believe it is time to review and consider
whether we should amend the current regulations at 45 CFR 1355.50-
1355.57 to ensure that they comport with requirements in titles IV-B
and IV-E of the Act, support title IV-E agencies seeking to use new
technological tools to meet legislative requirements, and support
programmatic initiatives, while providing additional flexibility to
title IV-E agencies as permitted under law.
DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the
ADDRESSES section below on or before October 21, 2010.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons may submit written comments by any of the
following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
E-mail: DSSComments@acf.hhs.gov. Please include ``Comments
on SACWIS Federal Register Notice'' in the subject line of the message.
Mail or Courier Delivery: Terry Watt, Director, Division
of State Systems, Children's Bureau, Administration on Children, Youth
and Families, Administration for Children and Families, 1250 Maryland
Avenue, SW., 8th Floor, Washington, DC 20024.
Instructions: Please be aware that mail sent to us may take an
additional 3-4 days to process due to changes in mail handling
resulting from the anthrax crisis of October 2001. If you choose to use
an express, overnight, or other special delivery method, please ensure
first that they are able to deliver to the above address during the
normal workweek. We urge you to submit comments electronically to
ensure they are received in a timely manner. All comments received will
be posted without change to https://www.regulations.gov including any
personal information provided.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Terry Watt, Director, Division of
State Systems, Children's Bureau, 1250 Maryland Ave, SW., 8th Floor,
Washington, DC 20024; (202) 690-8177.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
SACWIS Background
Sections 474(a)(3)(C) and (D) of the Act provide Federal funding
for the planning, development and operation of a SACWIS. This funding
was prompted by a critical need to provide: (1) More efficient,
economical, and effective administration of the programs under titles
IV-B and IV-E; and (2) support for automated systems in a comprehensive
fashion to improve practices and ultimately result in better service
delivery to children and families served by title IV-E agencies.
Current SACWIS regulations mandate that:
Title IV-E agencies must build or have a comprehensive IT
case management system with centralized, uniform functionality in order
to qualify for a favorable cost allocation methodology and additional
Federal Financial Participation (FFP).
The system must collect and maintain the information
needed for the Adoption and Foster Care Annual Reporting System
(AFCARS) report.
To the extent practicable, the system must provide for an
interface with the title IV-E agency's child abuse and neglect data
system and the systems used to support the title IV-A, IV-D, and XIX
programs.
An Interim Final Rule concerning the requirements for States
seeking to pursue enhanced funding for the development and operation of
SACWIS systems was published in the Federal Register on December 22,
1993 (58 FR 67939). The Final Rule was published on May 19, 1995 and
codified in Federal regulations at 45 CFR 1355.50-1355.57.
Limitations of Current SACWIS Regulations
Federal child welfare laws have changed considerably since the
SACWIS regulations were issued fifteen years ago due to the enactment
of several major child welfare legislative initiatives. For example,
the Fostering Connections legislation made a number of changes to the
title IV-E program including an option for Tribes to directly operate
their own title IV-E programs. The resulting changes in statutes and
policy have significantly influenced child welfare practices and the
supporting automated systems. Title IV-E agency practice models have
also changed, with some agencies using a mix of public and private
agencies to provide services to children and families.
In addition to the legislative changes previously noted,
information technology (IT) has grown more flexible. IT strategies,
such as data standardization, Enterprise Architecture and Service
Oriented Architecture have the potential to help title IV-E agencies
integrate data and functions from disparate systems to meet program
goals. However, current SACWIS regulations, as written, may limit IT
options for meeting program needs of State and Tribal title IV-E
agencies.
Opportunity to Comment
The Children's Bureau is committed to providing title IV-E agencies
with additional flexibility to implement technological options they
need to build economical, efficient, and effective information systems
that support child welfare policy and practice. We are beginning the
process of reviewing SACWIS regulations to consider providing title IV-
E agencies with increased flexibility to design information systems to
support child welfare policy and practice. Therefore we are soliciting
comments from interested parties. Please comment on any aspects of
SACWIS that you wish. We are particularly interested in obtaining input
on:
1. What requirements in current SACWIS regulations inhibit or
support the development of efficient, effective, and economical case
management systems?
2. How can States and Tribes maintain the consistency of data that
is defined, collected, and maintained in multiple systems to ensure a
common understanding of the families' history and circumstances across
the different systems, including the system(s) used to submit Federal
reports?
3. What data do States and Tribes consider critical to their
business practice model? Are there data needs for managing the title
IV-E program that are not easily met by SACWIS systems and how are
those data needs currently being addressed?
4. How can the systems used by States or Tribes be designed to
support the seamless management of data across multiple systems over
time? (e.g., when systems are replaced; when provider contracts expire
or are terminated; or when families move from one provider to a
different provider using a different system.)
[[Page 43190]]
5. How can the SACWIS regulations be modified to encourage
flexibility and support different practice models while ensuring
standardized data is available as needed?
ACF will consider the comments after the comment period closes to
further assess SACWIS regulations.
Dated: July 15, 2010.
Bryan Samuels,
Commissioner, Administration on Children, Youth and Families.
[FR Doc. 2010-18038 Filed 7-22-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-25-P
