Grandparents Raising Grandchildren in Oregon | InmateAid
One thing Oregon grandparents need to know before applying for TANF: Oregon tests the caregiver's income for child-only TANF grants.
Most states do not count a grandparent's income when determining eligibility for child-only TANF. Oregon is one of only three states in the country -- along with Arizona and Nevada -- that applies an income test to the caregiver even for child-only cases. If you have been told that your income does not affect TANF child-only eligibility, that is true in most states. It is not the rule in Oregon.
This does not mean you cannot qualify. It means you should apply through ODHS Self-Sufficiency and ask specifically about your household income against Oregon's current eligibility thresholds. The Oregon Kinship Navigator can help you understand what to expect before you walk in the door.
The **Oregon Kinship Navigator (OKN)** is the primary kinship support resource in the state. Phone: **1-833-201-5557**. Website: oregonkinshipnavigator.org. It is free, serves kinship caregivers regardless of child welfare involvement, and is operated by Greater Oregon Behavioral Health, Inc. (GOBHI) in partnership with ODHS. OKN provides resource referral, a legal resource guide, tangible goods assistance (furniture, clothing, household items), twice-monthly virtual support groups, and a "Things to do first" list for new kin caregivers.
Oregon DHS also explicitly states it "embraces a Kin-First culture" and has one of the most expansive definitions of "relative" in the nation. Any safe adult with an established and trusted relationship with a child -- grandparents, aunts, uncles, teachers, neighbors, a friend's parent -- can qualify as a kinship caregiver. The system was designed to keep children connected to people they know.
You did not plan for this. You raised your children. You got to the other side of it. And then your child was incarcerated and the grandchildren needed somewhere to go. You said yes.
The Decision You Already Made
You already made the hardest decision. The grandchildren are with you. Everything else in this article is about making that workable.
A few things to understand about your position in Oregon right now:
Call Oregon Kinship Navigator first: 1-833-201-5557. They will walk you through the "Things to do first" list, connect you to local resources, and help you understand what Oregon's TANF income test means for your specific situation.
If you are age 55 or older: contact the Family Caregiver Support Program through the Aging and Disability Resource Connection (ADRC) at **1-855-673-2372** or your local Area Agency on Aging.
Apply for TANF, OHP (Oregon Health Plan), SNAP, and ERDC (child care) through ODHS Self-Sufficiency offices.
Get a notarized parental POA from the incarcerated parent through ODOC notary services. Contact the facility case manager. This is the bridge to educational and medical authority while you pursue more formal legal status.
Oregon's TANF Child-Only Income Test: What It Means
Oregon is one of only three states (along with Arizona and Nevada) that applies an income test to the caregiver for child-only TANF grants.
In most states, grandparent income is not counted at all for child-only TANF -- the grant is based solely on the child's income and needs. Oregon does not follow this rule.
What this means for Oregon grandparents:
- Your household income **will be reviewed** when you apply for TANF child-only
- Higher-income grandparents may not qualify, even though they would in most other states
- The income thresholds are set by ODHS; verify current thresholds at your local Self-Sufficiency office or through the Oregon Kinship Navigator
What this does not mean:
- It does not mean you automatically do not qualify. Many Oregon grandparents do qualify.
- It does not affect SNAP eligibility (SNAP uses different household income rules)
- It does not affect OHP (Oregon Health Plan / Medicaid) eligibility for the children
The Oregon Kinship Navigator (1-833-201-5557) can help you understand Oregon's current TANF income rules before you apply so there are no surprises.
If you are living on a fixed income, a pension, Social Security, or modest wages, call OKN first. They know the current thresholds.
Legal Authority: What It Is and How to Get It in Oregon
**Power of Attorney**
A notarized parental POA from the incarcerated parent gives you immediate authority for school enrollment and medical care. ODOC (Oregon Department of Corrections) facilities have notary services -- contact the facility case manager.
**Guardianship (Circuit Court)**
Guardianship through Oregon circuit court is the primary long-term legal pathway for grandparents not in the ODHS Child Welfare system. With guardianship, you have the legal rights and responsibilities to care for the grandchildren, make medical and educational decisions, and represent their interests.
Oregon has an **Assisted Guardianship** program for families exiting the formal child welfare system through guardianship -- not the same as private guardianship. If an ODHS Child Welfare case is involved, ask your caseworker about assisted guardianship eligibility.
The Oregon Kinship Navigator has a legal resource guide at oregonkinshipnavigator.org covering Oregon-specific guardianship and custody information.
Legal Aid Services of Oregon (lasoregon.org) provides free civil legal help to income-eligible Oregonians, including guardianship cases.
**Custody (Circuit Court)**
Legal custody is available through Oregon circuit court and is similar to guardianship but granted by a different court proceeding. The Oregon Kinship Navigator's legal resource guide explains the differences.
**Oregon's Definition of Relative**
Oregon has one of the most expansive definitions of relative in the nation. For ODHS Child Welfare purposes, "relative" includes any safe adult with an established and trusted relationship with a child. This means that even non-biological caregivers -- teachers, neighbors, longtime family friends -- can be considered kinship caregivers. If you are not a blood relative but are the person who stepped in, Oregon's system is designed to include you.
**Adoption**
Adoption permanently terminates the biological parent's parental rights. The Oregon Kinship Navigator can provide information on the differences between guardianship and adoption for Oregon families.
Money: What Oregon Offers Kinship Caregivers
**TANF (with Oregon's caregiver income test)**
As described above: Oregon tests caregiver income for child-only TANF. Apply through ODHS Self-Sufficiency offices. Cash assistance is issued via EBT card -- the **Oregon Trail Card**.
Apply at your local ODHS Self-Sufficiency office or call ODHS at 1-800-699-9075.
**OHP (Oregon Health Plan / Medicaid)**
OHP is Oregon's Medicaid program. Children in kinship care generally qualify based on income. The income test for OHP is separate from TANF -- OHP has broader eligibility and your caregiver income does not disqualify the children.
OHP covers doctor visits, dental, prescriptions, mental health services, emergency care, and vision. Apply at your ODHS Self-Sufficiency office or at OregonHealthCare.gov.
**SNAP (Food Assistance)**
Apply through ODHS Self-Sufficiency. SNAP uses household income rules different from TANF. The grandchildren's presence increases your household food benefit.
**ERDC (Employment-Related Day Care)**
ERDC is Oregon's child care subsidy for eligible low-income families while the caregiver is working. It is a subsidy -- families still pay part of the cost. Apply through ODHS Self-Sufficiency.
**Family Caregiver Support Program (Age 55+)**
For grandparents age 55 or older raising grandchildren: contact the Aging and Disability Resource Connection (ADRC) at **1-855-673-2372** or your local Area Agency on Aging. Services include information, assistance, respite care, and connections to community support.
**Assisted Guardianship Payments (ODHS Child Welfare Cases)**
If ODHS Child Welfare placed the grandchildren and guardianship is the permanency plan, ask your caseworker about assisted guardianship payments and eligibility. ORPARC (Oregon Resource Parent and Adoptive Resource Center) serves assisted guardianship families with free information, assistance, and support: orparc.org.
**Tangible Goods Assistance (Oregon Kinship Navigator)**
The Oregon Kinship Navigator, through Every Child Oregon, helps kinship caregivers who are NOT certified resource families through ODHS Child Welfare to access tangible items: furniture, clothing, household items. Call OKN at 1-833-201-5557 to request help. Individuals are asked to identify their top two essential needs.
**Social Security**
If the incarcerated parent was working before arrest, the grandchildren may be eligible for Social Security dependent benefits. Call 1-800-772-1213. SSI may be available for grandchildren with disabilities.
Oregon Kinship Navigator: The First Call
The Oregon Kinship Navigator (OKN) is operated by Greater Oregon Behavioral Health, Inc. (GOBHI) in partnership with ODHS. It serves ALL Oregon kinship caregivers regardless of child welfare involvement.
**Contact:**
- Phone: **1-833-201-5557**
- Website: oregonkinshipnavigator.org
**What OKN provides:**
- Resource referral and legal resource guide
- County-level resources and contacts
- Tangible goods assistance (furniture, clothing, household items) through Every Child Oregon
- "Things to do first" list for new kin caregivers
- Video training series for kinship families
- **Twice-monthly virtual support groups**: First Tuesdays 10-11am Pacific; Third Tuesdays 6-7pm Pacific (topics include boundaries, trauma, parenting, grief)
- **Connecting Kin peer support groups** (in partnership with KEEP): for families not involved with DHS
OKN specializes in working with families both inside and outside the child welfare system. If you are not sure whether OKN can help you, call anyway.
**ORPARC (Oregon Resource Parent and Adoptive Resource Center)**
Free services for ODHS adoptive families, assisted guardianship families, and Oregon families who have adopted through any state's child welfare system. Services include information and referral, advocacy and support, parent education and training, newsletter, online resources, and Spanish-language resources. orparc.org.
**The Dougy Center**
Portland-based support for children, teens, young adults, and families grieving a death. If the grandchildren are dealing with grief -- the loss of the family they had, or any actual death -- the Dougy Center provides support in a safe place. dougy.org.
Oregon's Tribal Context
Oregon is home to nine federally recognized tribes: the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians; Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde; Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians; Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation; Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs; Coquille Indian Tribe; Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians; Klamath Tribes; and Burns Paiute Tribe.
ICWA (Indian Child Welfare Act) applies when child welfare proceedings involve enrolled tribal children. ICWA requires tribal notification and provides specific placement preferences for tribal children. If the grandchildren are enrolled tribal members or eligible for enrollment, contact your tribe's social services department alongside ODHS.
Oregon's expansive definition of relative -- one of the most inclusive in the nation -- reflects in part the cultural practices of tribal communities where extended family and community members have always shared responsibility for children.
The School Question
With a POA, guardianship, or legal custody, school enrollment in Oregon is straightforward.
Without legal authority: use the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. Oregon schools must immediately enroll children in unstable housing situations, including children living with relatives due to a parent's incarceration. Ask the school district's McKinney-Vento liaison.
Oregon's expansive definition of relative means that even without formal legal authority, many schools will work with relative caregivers who can demonstrate an established relationship with the child.
For children with IEPs, you will need legal authority or signed parental authorization from the incarcerated parent to participate in planning meetings. ODOC facilities have notary services -- contact the facility case manager.
Medical Authorization Before Court Paperwork Is Done
Get a notarized parental POA from the incarcerated parent through ODOC notary services. Contact the facility case manager.
Apply for OHP (Oregon Health Plan) for the grandchildren at your ODHS Self-Sufficiency office or OregonHealthCare.gov. OHP enrollment does not require legal authority.
ODHS recognizes informal kinship arrangements in many situations. Contact ODHS Self-Sufficiency and explain your situation -- the system is designed to work with you.
Oregon's Geographic Reality
Oregon stretches from the Pacific Coast to the high desert plateau of the east, with the Cascade Range dividing two very different climates and cultures. Portland and the Willamette Valley (Salem, Eugene, Corvallis) hold the majority of the population. Bend and central Oregon are growing rapidly. Eastern Oregon -- Pendleton, La Grande, Baker City, Burns, Ontario -- is vast, rural, and hours from most state services.
ODOC facilities include Oregon State Penitentiary (Salem, central Willamette Valley), Coffee Creek Correctional Facility for women (Wilsonville, Clackamas County, near Portland), Snake River Correctional Institution (Ontario, Malheur County, far eastern Oregon -- the largest ODOC facility), and Eastern Oregon Correctional Institution (Pendleton, Umatilla County). For a Portland family visiting Snake River CI in Ontario: about 6 hours east on I-84 through the Columbia River Gorge and across the high desert.
The Oregon Kinship Navigator's virtual support groups -- twice monthly -- are specifically designed for a geographically spread state. You can participate from anywhere in Oregon.
What She Is Carrying That He Cannot See
You did not plan for this stage of your life. The grandchildren arrived and with them came school forms, doctor appointments, someone to be home, someone to sit with a child who wakes up afraid.
You are also carrying your feelings about your child who is incarcerated. Those feelings do not have to resolve. You can love your child and be furious. You can hope for the release and fear what comes after.
The Oregon Kinship Navigator's own website includes a page on navigating birth family relationships and one on incarceration -- because these are the actual situations Oregon kinship caregivers are in. The support groups cover grief, trauma, parenting, and boundaries. These are real topics for real situations.
One of OKN's own navigators describes changing her retirement plans to help other grandparents after becoming a kinship caregiver herself. The people on the other end of this line have been there.
Talking to the Grandchildren About Where Their Parent Is
The children know something is wrong. Silence does not protect them.
Use honest, age-appropriate language. For a young child: "Your dad made a mistake and he has to stay somewhere else while he learns from it. You are safe and I am here." For an older child: "Your mom is in prison. She did something against the law and a judge decided she needs to be there for a while. She loves you. She is not in danger."
Do not make promises about when the parent will be home that you cannot keep. Let the children have their feelings. Keep the parent present in appropriate ways: photos, letters, phone calls.
Oregon DOC phone calls go through ICS Corrections / GTL. You control which numbers are approved. The grandchildren's relationship with their incarcerated parent is theirs.
Oregon's Oregon Kinship Navigator page specifically notes: "Research also indicates that inmates with strong family ties and support networks are much more likely to succeed upon release." The connection matters. Keep it alive.
OHP covers mental health services for children. If the grandchildren are struggling, ask the school counselor for a referral or the child's OHP primary care provider.
The Dougy Center in Portland (dougy.org) provides specialized grief support for children and families.
Your Relationship With Your Incarcerated Child
Your feelings about your child are complicated. You are raising their children because they cannot. Both things are true.
What the grandchildren need: to see that you are not punishing their parent through them.
What you need: a place to hold the complicated feelings that is not in front of the grandchildren. OKN's virtual support groups, the Connecting Kin peer groups, a therapist, a trusted person -- any of these is better than carrying it alone.
What to Do First: A Practical Checklist
Call Oregon Kinship Navigator: 1-833-201-5557. Ask for the "Things to do first" list and connect with a Navigator who knows Oregon's specific rules, including the TANF income test.
Get a notarized POA from the incarcerated parent through ODOC notary services. Contact the facility case manager.
Apply for TANF (noting the caregiver income test), OHP, SNAP, and ERDC through ODHS Self-Sufficiency. Call ODHS at 1-800-699-9075 or visit your local Self-Sufficiency office.
If you are 55 or older: contact the Family Caregiver Support Program through ADRC at 1-855-673-2372 for respite care, information, and local support.
If grandchildren are enrolled tribal members: contact your tribe's social services and confirm ICWA applies.
Start the guardianship or custody process. Contact Legal Aid Services of Oregon (lasoregon.org) for free civil legal help. OKN's legal resource guide (oregonkinshipnavigator.org) covers Oregon-specific legal options.
If ODHS Child Welfare placed the grandchildren: ask your caseworker about assisted guardianship eligibility. Contact ORPARC (orparc.org) for free support services.
Need furniture, clothing, or household items? Contact OKN at 1-833-201-5557 and ask about the tangible goods program through Every Child Oregon (for non-ODHS-certified families).
Join the twice-monthly virtual support group through OKN: First Tuesdays 10-11am, Third Tuesdays 6-7pm Pacific.
Enroll the grandchildren in school. Use the POA or McKinney-Vento as needed.
Take care of yourself. The support groups are there. The line is answered by people who understand what you are doing.
FAQ
**Why does Oregon test caregiver income for TANF child-only grants?** Oregon is one of only three states (along with Arizona and Nevada) that applies an income test to the caregiver even for child-only TANF. In most states, the grandparent's income is not counted for child-only TANF. In Oregon it is. Contact Oregon Kinship Navigator (1-833-201-5557) before applying so you understand the current income thresholds for your household size.
**What is the Oregon Kinship Navigator?** A free, statewide resource for grandparents and other relative caregivers in Oregon, operated by GOBHI in partnership with ODHS. Phone: 1-833-201-5557. Website: oregonkinshipnavigator.org. Provides resource referral, legal guide, tangible goods assistance, county-level contacts, twice-monthly virtual support groups, and the "Things to do first" list for new kin caregivers. Serves families regardless of child welfare involvement.
**What is OHP?** Oregon Health Plan -- Oregon's Medicaid program. Children in kinship care generally qualify based on income. OHP has broader eligibility than TANF and your caregiver income does not affect the children's OHP eligibility. Covers doctor visits, dental, prescriptions, mental health services, emergency care, and vision. Apply at ODHS Self-Sufficiency or OregonHealthCare.gov.
**What is the ERDC program?** Employment-Related Day Care -- Oregon's child care subsidy for eligible low-income families while the caregiver is working. A subsidy program; families still pay part. Apply through ODHS Self-Sufficiency.
**What is the Oregon Trail Card?** Oregon's EBT card for benefits including TANF cash assistance and SNAP. When you are approved, benefits are loaded onto the Oregon Trail Card.
**What is ORPARC?** Oregon Resource Parent and Adoptive Resource Center. Free services for ODHS adoptive families, assisted guardianship families, and Oregon families who have adopted through any state's child welfare system. Information, referral, advocacy, parent education, newsletter, Spanish-language resources. orparc.org.
**How do I talk to the grandchildren about their parent being in prison?** Use honest, age-appropriate language without promises about when the parent will be home. Let the children have feelings. Keep the parent present appropriately -- photos, letters, ODOC phone calls through ICS Corrections/GTL. OHP covers mental health services for children; the Dougy Center (dougy.org) provides grief support; ask the school counselor for referrals.