Background Info
The Pew Commission on Children in Foster Care-a national, nonpartisan panel of experts, including a former foster youth-came together to try and find answers to some of the problems with the foster care system. It became clear that most federal dollars for child welfare can only be used to maintain kids in the foster care system after they have been removed from their families. Very little is spent on services like prevention, family reunification, or other services or supports such as guardianship or post-adoption supports that would help kids live with the safe, permanent, loving, families they deserve.
The Solution
If states could use more of their federal child welfare dollars to support a broad range of programs and services in addition to foster care, they could better meet the needs of the children and families in crisis. By simply changing the way the federal government pays for services, we could prevent the need for foster care for some children and better help those in foster care leave more quickly more for safe, permanent families.
Federal Financing Recommendations from the Pew Commission
on Children in Foster Care
Federal child welfare financing should encourage permanent families, not foster care. Federal funding should be
available to support non-foster care maintenance services as
well, that can keep children safe and strengthen families.
All children deserve federal support. Eliminate the antiquated 1996 "lookback" income standard for Title IV-E eligibility - all children, including Native American children, deserve federal support.
Children should be placed with relatives whenever possible.
Provide monthly Title IV-E Guardianship subsidies to relatives
or other kin caregivers that provide permanent homes to abused
and neglected children-just as we do non-related adoptive homes.
These recommendations would ensure funds are available when foster care is necessary, but they also allow states and counties to invest in critical services to help keep families together, or find new families for children. Congress -it is time to act. Kids are waiting. What are we waiting for?
