Hidden Foster Care Transparency Act

H.R. 5507, the Hidden Foster Care Transparency Act, would require states to actively measure and publicly report on separations of children from their parents that occur through so-called hidden foster care arrangements—defined as separations without the state assuming responsibility for the child’s care and without court oversight. The bill treats these arrangements as a condition for receiving certain foster care funds (IV-E under title IV of the Social Security Act), requiring states to submit annual data to the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS). The Secretary of Health and Human Services would then compile an annual report to Congress based on state data, and make state reports publicly available. The goal is increased transparency, accountability, and better data to address the practice, its outcomes, and the services associated with it. In short, if enacted, states would have to systematically track and disclose detailed information about hidden foster care arrangements, and the federal government would publicly report on national trends and state-by-state practices. This could lead to greater public awareness and policy scrutiny but could also impose new data-collection burdens on states and raise privacy considerations.