"Each child in foster care deserves an opportunity to grow up in a loving, nurturing home," said Grassley. "It is unacceptable to me that one in three children in foster care have been at the mercy of the system for three years or more. And, more than half of those children have languished for five years or more. That's a lifetime in the eyes of a child."
During debate on the five-year federal budget blueprint, the Senate last night adopted Grassley's Sense of the Senate resolution to expedite and improve efforts to find permanent and loving homes for children whose reunification with their biological families is not in their best interests. As of March 31, 1999, 117,000 children in this country awaited adoption.
"The tragic case of two-year-old Shelby Duis from Northwest Iowa underscores the fundamental obligation that society has to protect the well-being of innocent children," said Grassley. "And as guardians of the public purse, Congress has a responsibility to demand accountability from the child welfare system and ensure funds are spent wisely in the full interests of the child concerned."
The federal government is expected to make $4.4 billion in foster care payments this fiscal year and the states' contribution will at least double that figure to $8.8 billion.
"We have a financial and moral obligation to give kids the sense of security that adoption into a permanent, safe home setting can provide," said Grassley.
In 1997, Congress passed the Adoption and Safe Families Act which set in place federal guidelines to establish a more child-focused placement system for children in foster care. Congress clearly stated that the safety, permanency and well-being of children must be of paramount concern.
The 1997 law shortens time lines for terminating parental rights to encourage adoption and breaks down geographic barriers so children will not be kept from a loving family because of state borders.
"The Adoption and Safe Families Act was a big step in the right direction, but there's more work to be done," Grassley said. He is also developing legislation to shorten the length of time children spend in foster care and to make it easier for families to become adoptive parents.
"There shouldn't be any disincentives for those who wish to become foster or adoptive parents," said Grassley. "Financial barriers shouldn't prevent families with the heart and a home to adopt a child."
