You asked whether a foster care child's receiving a large cash gift from a relative might affect his or her benefits or assets or the foster care parents' reimbursement.

SUMMARY

A cash gift to a child in foster care will not affect the Department of Children and Families' (DCF) payment to the foster parents. But neither statute nor DCF policy speaks specifically about a gift's effect on the child's benefits or assets.

DCF policy could be interpreted to allow it to use some of the money to reimburse itself for its expenditures on behalf of the child. That interpretation might depend on the nature of the gift, that is, whether the relative gave cash directly to the child or opened a custodial account in his or her name. Ed Reynolds, the assistant attorney general who represents the Department of Administrative Services' (DAS) Bureau of Collection Services (which is the agency that would actually seek to collect the funds), believes that assets in the child's control could be subject to collection. He suggested that the donor set up a "spendthrift trust," which would give a trustee control and would not be subject to collection. Janice Nome, DAS' legislative liaison, indicated that the bureau would be unlikely to seek to collect from the child's assets.

DCF POLICY

DCF policy calls for the agency to establish a trust account for each child committed to it who has assets. Assets include Social Security benefits like Supplemental Security Income (SSI); Veteran's Administration benefits; and lump sum settlements from inheritances, accident claims, and insurance payments. While the policy does not specifically name cash gifts as assets, DCF might interpret them as being in the general category of lump sum settlements. Benefits and lump sum settlements are added to the account whether they are received before or after the child is committed to DCF.

DCF must reserve $ 600 for the child in the trust account. When the account contains more than $ 600, DCF bills it for expenditures it makes on the child's behalf up to the amount of those expenditures. DCF policy allows it make exceptions to this practice when this is in the child's best interests. One of these exceptions occurs when the monthly benefit the child receives is greater than DCF's monthly expenditure for him. In this case, the unexpended balance can be held in reserve for the child's future educational plans (DCF Policy Manual § 50-3).

DCF distinguishes lump sum settlements from a foster child's earnings. In the latter situation, DCF encourages the child to open a savings account in his or her name and control and to save about 50% of earnings (Policy Manual § 50-4).

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