Foster care supplement.

Assembly Member Dixon's foster care funding legislation would require California counties to adjust a monthly $489 supplement paid to foster care providers for inflation starting January 2026. The supplement, which supports providers caring for children living with parents who receive Aid to Families with Dependent Children-Foster Care benefits, Kinship Guardianship Assistance payments, or Approved Relative Caregiver funding, would be modified annually based on changes in the California Necessities Index.

The measure maintains the existing requirement that the supplement's base funding must be appropriated in the annual state budget. Counties would implement the inflation adjustments through their existing foster care payment systems, with the state providing funding for any resulting cost increases under the 2011 Realignment framework. The bill preserves all other current foster care payment provisions, including those for teen parents and expectant parent supplements.

This targeted modification to California's foster care funding structure would apply to providers across three major programs: Aid to Families with Dependent Children-Foster Care, the Kinship Guardianship Assistance Payment Program, and the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Program. County agencies would calculate and distribute the adjusted supplements while continuing to administer the underlying foster care benefits according to existing regulations.