West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey says starting January 1, the state will stop intercepting federal survivors’ benefits from foster kids and instead preserve them, so the kids will have them to use when they exit care.
Earlier this year, as part of an ongoing investigation into the state’s troubled foster care system, Mountain State Spotlight reported that the state is one of a shrinking number that still takes the benefits, money their deceased parents earned and paid into the federal Social Security system. The state’s foster care policy considers it a resource that can be put toward the cost of care. Applying for these benefits is one of many tasks that falls to a child’s caseworker. But many kids aren’t even aware the money is being paid on their behalf.
In announcing the news, the governor said approximately 42 kids currently in care receive these benefits, amounting to about $402,700 annually. That’s a small percentage of what the state spends on the foster care system, but having that money set aside could make a big difference for an individual child transitioning out of foster care.
“For a young person preparing to leave foster care, that money can make a meaningful difference,” Morrisey said in his announcement Thursday. “It can help provide a financial foundation as they move into adulthood, whether they’re continuing their education, finding a job or just living an independent life.”
Current foster care policy requires any benefit money that’s left over to be set aside in an account, but Mountain State Spotlight spoke with a former CPS worker who said she rarely saw any money left. The story also detailed the opportunities the money can provide: one former foster kid was able to get access to her saved survivors’ benefits with the help of a dedicated guardian ad litem. She bought a used car and credits the money with helping set her on a successful path.
“These kids have gotten the short end of the stick,” attorney Cathy Wallace told Mountain State Spotlight in June. “They’ve lost their family a lot of times, or they’ve lost a good chunk of their childhood. That money can make the difference in helping them get to school, buy books. It could get them transportation, so they could actually have a job. It gives them just a tiny leg up.”
It’s a leg up that many former foster kids need. A 2025 Mountain State Spotlight investigation found the state had returned millions of federal dollars that were meant to help kids exit the system and build successful adult lives.
The movement to stop taking Social Security benefits has gotten bipartisan support. Some state legislatures have acted, while in other states, governors have issued executive orders. Nearly a year ago, Administration for Children and Families Assistant Secretary Alex Adams sent Morrisey a letter urging him to take action. Adams lauded Thursday’s announcement, and urged the remaining 10 states that still intercept foster kids’ benefits to take action.