Kinship Parent Subsidy Equal to Foster Parent Payment
Summary
West Virginia Governor signed HB4390 into law on April 1, 2026, requiring the state to pay kinship parents a subsidy equal to that of foster parents under specified circumstances. The bill passed the House 93-0 on February 26 and the Senate 34-0 on March 11, 2026. Kinship parents—relatives caring for children—will now receive payment parity with licensed foster parents.
What changed
HB4390 enacts a new requirement that kinship parents be paid a subsidy equal to foster parent rates in specified circumstances, establishing a clear timeframe for such payments. The bill, introduced January 15, 2026, moved through House and Senate Health and Human Resources and Finance committees before unanimous passage.
Affected parties include West Virginia's child welfare agencies, county social services departments, and kinship families caring for children outside formal foster care. State agencies must now ensure payment parity for relative caregivers, potentially increasing expenditures for kinship placements while providing necessary financial support to keep children with family members.
What to do next
- Review child welfare payment policies to ensure kinship parent subsidies match foster parent rates
- Update administrative procedures and systems for kinship placement payments
- Coordinate with county social services offices to implement equal subsidy payments
Source document (simplified)
ChangeBridge / West Virginia / HB4390 Signed by Governor HB4390 House Bill Signed by Governor 2026-03-14
Relating to the temporary payment to a kinship parent of a subsidy equal to that of a foster parent
The purpose of this bill is to require that a kinship parent be paid a subsidy equal to that of a foster parent in specified circumstances and set forth the timeframe for such payment.
Bill Details
State West Virginia
Session 2026 Regular Session
Chamber House
Official Source www.wvlegislature.gov/BillStatus/Billshi...
LegiScan View on LegiScan
Sponsors
Adam Burkhammer (Rep - R) Erica Moore (Rep - R) Scot Heckert (Rep - R) Mickey Petitto (Rep - R) John Paul Hott (Rep - R)
Action History
2026-04-01 H Approved by Governor 4/1/2026 2026-03-14 H Approved by Governor 4/1/2026 - House Journal 2026-03-14 S Approved by Governor 4/1/2026 - Senate Journal 2026-03-18 H To Governor 3/18/2026 2026-03-14 S To Governor 3/18/2026 - Senate Journal 2026-03-13 H House received Senate message 2026-03-11 S Completed legislative action 2026-03-11 S Communicated to House 2026-03-11 S Passed Senate (Roll No. 460) 2026-03-11 S Read 3rd time 2026-03-11 S On 3rd reading 2026-03-10 S Read 2nd time 2026-03-10 S On 2nd reading 2026-03-09 S Read 1st time 2026-03-09 S On 1st reading 2026-03-06 S Reported do pass 2026-03-04 S To Finance 2026-03-04 S Reported do pass, but first to Finance 2026-02-27 S To Health and Human Resources 2026-02-27 S To Health and Human Resources then Finance 2026-02-27 S Introduced in Senate 2026-02-26 H Communicated to Senate 2026-02-26 H Passed House (Roll No. 201) 2026-02-26 H Read 3rd time 2026-02-26 H On 3rd reading, Special Calendar 2026-02-25 H Read 2nd time 2026-02-26 H On 3rd reading, Special Calendar 2026-02-25 H Read 2nd time 2026-02-25 H On 2nd reading, Special Calendar 2026-02-24 H Read 1st time 2026-02-24 H On 1st reading, Special Calendar 2026-02-23 H By substitute, do pass 2026-01-23 H To House Finance 2026-01-23 H By substitute, do pass 2026-01-20 H Markup Discussion 2026-01-15 H To House Health and Human Resources 2026-01-15 H Introduced in House 2026-01-15 H To Health and Human Resources then Finance 2026-01-15 H Filed for introduction
Votes
2026-02-26 Passed House (Roll No. 201) Yea: 93 Nay: 0 2026-03-11 Passed Senate (Roll No. 460) Yea: 34 Nay: 0
Committee Referrals
2026-01-15 H Health & Human Resources 2026-01-23 H Finance 2026-02-27 S Health and Human Resources 2026-03-04 S Finance
Bill Text Versions
0000-00-00 Introduced 0000-00-00 Comm Sub 0000-00-00 Comm Sub 0000-00-00 Engrossed 0000-00-00 Enrolled
Subjects
Juveniles Legislative data powered by LegiScan (CC BY 4.0)
Named provisions
Related changes
Get daily alerts for West Virginia Legislative Events
Daily digest delivered to your inbox.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime.
Source
Classification
Who this affects
Taxonomy
Browse Categories
Get alerts for this source
We'll email you when West Virginia Legislative Events publishes new changes.