,,iii  #aafth ,,congress  #b;d ,session 
,s4 ,,res4 #eih  ,,in ,,the ,,senate    
,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states  ,may #ba1 
#bjbj,mr4 ,grassley 7for himself1 ,ms4  
,stabenow1 ,mr4 ,jones1 ,mr4 ,lankford1 
,mr4 ,kaine1 ,mr4 ,king1 ,mr4 ,van      
,hollen1 ,mr4 ,roberts1 ,mr4            
,blumenthal1 ,mr4 ,tillis1 ,ms4         
,klobuchar1 ,mr4 ,blunt1 ,mr4 ,brown1   
,mr4 ,boozman1 ,mr4 ,sullivan1 ,mr4     
,scott of ,south ,carolina1 ,mr4        
,wicker1 ,ms4 ,harris1 ,mr4 ,casey1 ,mr4
 ,cassidy1 ,mr4 ,wyden1 ,ms4 ,sinema1   
,mr4 ,young1 ,mr4 ,inhofe1 ,mrs4        
,feinstein1 ,mr4 ,manchin1 ,ms4 ,ernst1 
and ,mr4 ,enzi7 submitted the following 
resolution2 which was considered and    
agreed to  ,,resolution  ,recognizing   
,national ,foster ,care ,month as an    
opportunity to raise awareness about the
 challenges of children in the foster   
care system1 and encouraging ,congress  
to implement policies to improve the    
lives of children in the foster care    
system4  ,whereas ,national ,foster     

,care ,month was established more than  
#cj years ago to-- 7#a7 bring foster    
care issues to the forefront2  7#b7     
highlight the importance of permanency  
for every child2 and  7#c7 recognize the
 essential role that foster parents1    
social workers1 and advocates have in   
the lives of children in foster care    
throughout the ,united ,states2 ,whereas
 all children deserve a safe1 loving1   
and permanent home2 ,whereas the primary
 goal of the foster care system is to   
ensure the safety and well-being of     
children while working to provide a     
safe1 loving1 and permanent home for    
each child2 ,whereas there are          
approximately #dcg1jjj children living  
in foster care2 ,whereas there were     
approximately #bfc1jjj youth that       
entered the foster care system in #bjah1
 while more than #ga1jjj youth were     
eligible and awaiting adoption at the   
end of #bjah2 ,whereas the number of    
children living in foster care has      
increased dramatically in recent years2 

,whereas more than #id1jjj children     
entered foster care in #bjah due to     
parental drug abuse2 ,whereas children  
of color are more likely to stay in the 
foster care system for longer periods of
 time and are less likely to be reunited
 with their biological families2        
,whereas foster parents-- 7#a7 are the  
front-line caregivers for children who  
cannot safely remain with their         
biological parents2  7#b7 provide       
physical care1 emotional support1 and   
education advocacy2 and  7#c7 are the   
largest single source of families       
providing permanent homes for children  
leaving foster care to adoption2        
,whereas1 compared to children in foster
 care who are placed with nonrelatives1 
children in foster care who are placed  
with relatives have more stability1     
including fewer changes in placements1  
have more positive perceptions of their 
placements1 are more likely to be placed
 with their siblings1 and demonstrate   
fewer behavioral problems2 ,whereas some

 relative caregivers receive less       
financial assistance and support        
services than do foster caregivers2     
,whereas an increased emphasis on       
prevention and reunification services is
 necessary to reduce the number of      
children that are forced to remain in   
the foster care system2 ,whereas almost 
#ah1jjj youth aged out of foster care in
 #bjah without a legal permanent        
connection to an adult or family2       
,whereas children who age out of foster 
care lack the security or support of a  
biological or adoptive family and       
frequently struggle to secure affordable
 housing1 obtain health insurance1      
pursue higher education1 and acquire    
adequate employment2 ,whereas foster    
care is intended to be a temporary      
placement1 but children remain in the   
foster care system for an average of #ai
 months2 ,whereas #cd percent of        
children in foster care experience more 
than #b placements while in foster care1
 which often leads to disruption of     

routines and the need to change schools 
and move away from siblings1 extended   
families1 and familiar surroundings2    
,whereas youth in foster care are much  
more likely to face educational         
instability1 with #a study showing that 
#ge percent of foster youth experienced 
an unscheduled school change during a   
school year1 compared to #ba percent of 
youth not in foster care2 ,whereas      
children entering foster care often     
confront the widespread misperception   
that children in foster care are        
disruptive1 unruly1 and dangerous1 even 
though placement in foster care is based
 on the actions of a parent or guardian1
 not the child2 ,whereas #cj percent of 
children in foster care are taking at   
least #a antipsychotic medication1 and  
#cd percent of those children are not   
receiving adequate treatment planning or
 medication monitoring2 ,whereas1 due to
 heavy caseloads and limited resources1 
the average turnover rate for child     
welfare workers is #cj percent2 ,whereas

 ,states1 localities1 and communities   
should be encouraged to invest resources
 in preventative and reunification      
services and postpermanency programs to 
ensure that more children in foster care
 are provided with safe1 loving1 and    
permanent placements2 ,whereas1 in      
#bjah1 ,congress passed the ,family     
,first ,prevention ,services ,act       
7,public ,law #aae-abc2 #acb ,stat4     
#bcb71 which provided new investments in
 prevention and family reunification    
services to help more families stay     
together and ensure that more children  
are in safe1 loving1 and permanent      
homes2 ,whereas ,federal legislation    
over the past #c decades1 including the 
,adoption ,assistance and ,child        
,welfare ,act of #aihj 7,public ,law    
#if-bgb2 #id ,stat4 #ejj71 the ,adoption
 and ,safe ,families ,act of #aiig      
7,public ,law #aje-hi2 #aaa ,stat4      
#baae71 the ,fostering ,connections to  
,success and ,increasing ,adoptions ,act
 of #bjjh 7,public ,law #aaj-cea2 #abb  

,stat4 #cidi71 the ,child and ,family   
,services ,improvement and ,innovation  
,act 7,public ,law #aab-cd2 #abe ,stat4 
#cfi71 and the ,preventing ,sex         
,trafficking and ,strengthening         
,families ,act 7,public ,law #aac-ahc2  
#abh ,stat4 #aiai71 provided new        
investments and services to improve the 
outcomes of children in the foster care 
system2 ,whereas ,may #bjbj is an       
appropriate month to designate as       
,national ,foster ,care ,month to       
provide an opportunity to acknowledge   
the accomplishments of the child welfare
 workforce1 foster parents1 the advocacy
 community1 and mentors for their       
dedication and accomplishments and the  
positive impact they have on the lives  
of children2 and ,whereas much remains  
to be done to ensure that all children  
have a safe1 loving1 nurturing1 and     
permanent family1 regardless of age or  
special needs3 ,now1 therefore1 be it   
,that the ,senate-- 7#a7 supports the   
designation of ,national ,foster ,care  

,month2  7#b7 recognizes ,national      
,foster ,care ,month as an opportunity  
to raise awareness about the challenges 
that children face in the foster care   
system2  7#c7 encourages ,congress to   
implement policies to improve the lives 
of children in the foster care system2  
7#d7 acknowledges the unique needs of   
children in the foster care system2     
7#e7 recognizes foster youth throughout 
the ,united ,states for their ongoing   
tenacity1 courage1 and resilience while 
facing life challenges2  7#f7           
acknowledges the exceptional alumni of  
the foster care system who serve as     
advocates and role models for youth who 
remain in foster care2  7#g7 honors the 
commitment and dedication of the        
individuals who work tirelessly to      
provide assistance and services to      
children in the foster care system2     
7#h7 supports the designation of ,may   
#ca1 #bjbj1 as ,national ,foster ,parent
 ,appreciation ,day2  7#i7 recognizes   
,national ,foster ,parent ,appreciation 

,day as an opportunity-- 7,a7 to        
recognize the efforts of foster parents 
to provide safe and loving care for     
children in need2 and  7,b7 to raise    
awareness about the increasing need for 
foster parents to serve in their        
communities2 and  7#aj7 reaffirms the   
need to continue working to improve the 
outcomes of all children in the foster  
care system through parts ,b and ,e of  
title ,,iv of the ,social ,security ,act
 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #fja et seq47 and other 
programs designed to-- 7,a7 support     
vulnerable families2  7,b7 invest in    
prevention and reunification services2  
7,c7 promote adoption in cases where    
reunification is not in the best        
interests of the child2  7,d7 adequately
 serve children brought into the foster 
care system2 and  7,e7 facilitate the   
successful transition into adulthood for
 children that age out of the foster    
care system4