S. 4638 — Promoting Strong Native Families and Children Act

This section increases resources and flexibility for Tribal child welfare programs. It sets a minimum annual allotment of $5,000 for each Indian tribe with an approved plan under subpart 2, plus a pro-rata share of the remaining reserved funds. It authorizes tribes and consortia to use Promoting Safe and Stable Families funds for tribal customary adoptions. It raises the Tribal set-aside to 5 percent (from 3 percent) for mandatory Promoting Safe and Stable Families funding, discretionary Promoting Safe and Stable Families funding, and Stephanie Tubbs Jones Child Welfare Services funding. It allows the Secretary to waive or modify matching requirements for tribes and permits tribes to substitute their federal negotiated indirect cost rate for statutory administrative cost caps. It increases annual funding for the Tribal Court Improvement Program to $5 million for FY2026 and each year thereafter (from $2 million for FY2026–2029). It also streamlines Tribal reporting requirements and exempts tribes from certain plan requirements.

This section authorizes the Secretary to award social services block grants directly to Indian tribes and tribal consortia beginning in fiscal year 2026. It reserves 5 percent of the total appropriation for such grants, which the Secretary must allot by providing each approved tribe or consortium a base amount of $25,000 plus a population-based share of the remainder. It increases the annual appropriation to $1,790,000,000 for fiscal year 2026 and each succeeding year (from $1,700,000,000). It requires the Secretary to establish grant criteria in consultation with tribes and allows reallocation of undistributed funds.

This section authorizes Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and tribal consortia to operate only the prevention services program under section 471(e) of the Social Security Act without submitting a plan for foster care maintenance, adoption assistance, or kinship guardianship payments, provided they maintain a court, agency, or tribally designated individuals responsible for foster care proceedings or collaborating with the State on child welfare. It also permits states to enter agreements with tribes for administration of that prevention program alone.

This section permits states to count visits by caseworkers employed by tribal child welfare agencies toward the monthly caseworker visit requirements under section 424(f) of the Social Security Act. States may make this election only when the tribal agency maintains an agreement with the state to administer foster care funds or requirements, the visits satisfy the standards in section 422(b)(17), and the visits are reported through a coordinated data-sharing agreement.