This bill enhances support services for adopted children and families by expanding federal programs and funding dedicated to adoption support. It amends the Social Security Act to define and promote pre- and post-adoption support services, including counseling, training, support groups, and respite care for adoptive parents and children, with particular attention to issues like attachment, trauma, and cultural identity. The bill increases federal funding from $345 million to $365 million annually for fiscal years 2024 through 2028 and dedicates $20 million per year of that funding specifically for grants to states and tribal organizations to develop comprehensive mental health service programs for adopted children and their families. States must spend a significant portion of any savings from foster care reduction on these pre- and post-adoption services. Additionally, the legislation requires the federal government to establish a data collection system to track adoption disruptions and dissolutions, and to study adoption placement failures not currently captured in existing data systems, with reports due to Congress on these findings and recommendations for improvement.
Take Action
Your position
Add a comment
to comment on this bill.
Annotate the text
Highlight any passage on the Summary or Full Text tab to attach a note. Annotations appear on the Annotations tab.