# Plain Language Summary: Youth and Family Engagement in Child Welfare Act

This bill requires states to include people with real experience in the child welfare system when they're planning their foster care, adoption, and family services programs. Right now, states develop these plans with government agencies and organizations, but they don't always ask the people who've actually lived through the system what they think. This bill changes that by making it mandatory for states to get input from kids and young adults who've been in foster care, parents who've gone through child welfare involvement, and foster parents and adoptive parents before finalizing their plans.

The bill specifically requires states to consult with youth and young adults who have experienced the child welfare system, and it emphasizes that these young people should represent the diversity of children in the state. States also have to listen to parents who've had involvement with child welfare, as well as foster parents, adoptive parents, and kinship caregivers (relatives raising children). This means the people making decisions about how these systems work will actually hear from people who know what it's like to be on the receiving end of those services.

To make sure this actually happens, states have to publish a public report on their website explaining how they used the suggestions from youth and young adults in their planning. This creates accountability—it's not enough to just ask people what they think; states have to show how they incorporated that feedback. The requirement takes effect on October 1, 2026, giving states time to set up these consultation processes and make sure they're including the right voices in their decision-making.