Safeguarding Assets: Benefits for Children in Foster Care
Solix Case Study
Situation
Public child welfare agencies provide foster care placement and supportive services for children who cannot safely remain at home. These services are funded through a combination of federal and state resources. Some children in foster care receive other benefits including Social Security benefits, such as Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Retirement, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (RSDI).
Historically, these benefits were often used to help offset the cost of care. However, state and local laws increasingly require child welfare agencies to conserve these funds on behalf of children, place them in appropriate tax-advantaged accounts, develop plans for their use, and provide financial literacy education to youth transitioning from care and their families.
To support compliance with these requirements, child welfare agencies have engaged Solix subsidiary Sivic Solutions Group, LLC (SSG) to implement and administer a comprehensive asset conservation program.
Objectives
- Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local legislative requirements
- Establish and manage tax-advantaged benefit accounts
- Protect benefit eligibility by maintaining compliance with resource limits
- Deliver financial literacy education to youth transitioning from care and their families
- Improve coordination among case stakeholders
Challenges
- Coordinating decisions among families, caseworkers, attorneys, guardians, and other stakeholders
- Determining the most appropriate account structures, often requiring multiple account types
- Maintaining balances below resource limits to avoid benefit disruption
- Managing complex account setup, documentation, and funding requirements
- Tracking deposits, balances, and reporting across multiple accounts
- Addressing limited financial literacy among youth and families
Solution
SSG offers a centralized program to administer conserved benefits and support regulatory compliance by:
- Coordinating with each child’s support team to identify and establish appropriate account types, such as ABLE accounts and Special Needs Trusts
- Managing account setup, documentation, and funding calculations
- Monitoring account balances and deposits to ensure ongoing SSA compliance
- Providing centralized tracking, reporting, and account oversight
- Delivering financial literacy education, including individualized financial planning sessions for youth and families
This comprehensive approach ensures that children and their families receive both the financial resources and education needed to support permanency and stability, while improving operational efficiency, reducing administrative burden, and maintaining regulatory compliance.
Results
- Supported compliance with state and local statutes
- Shifted the focus of benefits from cost recovery to long-term asset preservation and financial stability
- Reduced the risk of benefit disruption through proactive monitoring and account management
- Improved stakeholder coordination through standardized processes and centralized oversight
- Increased financial literacy among youth and transitioning from care
- Enhanced transparency through consistent reporting and account tracking
- Helped youth build financial resources to support future independence and self-sufficiency