[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 67 (Wednesday, May 16, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E809]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             FAIRNESS FOR FOSTER CARE FAMILIES ACT OF 2001

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                       HON. CONSTANCE A. MORELLA

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 15, 2001

  Mrs. MORELLA. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Fairness 
for Foster Care Families Act and thank my colleague Congressman Ron 
Lewis for taking this important step toward expanding the benefits of 
our foster care system.
  Approximately 500,000 children are placed in foster care programs 
each year nationwide, including 23 counties in Maryland. According to 
the Maryland State Social Services report for January 2001, the number 
of children in foster care has risen over 20 percent from 8,178 in 1997 
to 9,900. H.R. 586 addresses a growing need for foster care and foster 
care placement agencies.
  Imagine two households of foster care families. The first one is run 
by John Doe, who receives his foster care payments from a non-profit 
foster placement agency. His next door neighbor, Jane Doe, puts in the 
same amount of effort and spends the same amount of money on her foster 
child, and her initial foster care payments are the same. But because 
Jane's payments are from a for-profit foster placement agency, current 
law states that Jane has to pay taxes, so she effectively earns less 
money than John Doe even though she puts in the same amount of effort 
as John Doe. The Fairness for Foster Care Families Act will remedy this 
patently unfair system by ensuring that equal effort from foster care 
families merits equal reward in the form of non-taxable payment from 
all foster placement agencies.
  Tax credits for payments from any qualified placement agency will 
make it easier for prospective foster care parents and placement 
organizations alike to provide a safe and nurturing environment in 
which these children can develop without worrying about profits or 
financial insecurity. If we do not in the House of Representatives 
expand tax credits to include for-profit foster care organizations, we 
risk jeopardizing the quality of care that foster children may receive 
while at the same time further complicating the screening process for 
foster parents.
  Currently, for-profit foster care organizations that are not directly 
controlled by the government do not receive tax credits for the 
payments they make to providers of foster care. As a result, these 
companies must raise their payments to solicit more applicants.
  Applicants for foster care undoubtedly increase as payments from 
foster care organizations increase. With a tax credit for all qualified 
foster care placement agencies we can be sure that the applicant pool 
of foster parents can increase in a way that boosts both quantity and 
quality of the applicant pool.
  The Fairness for Foster Care Families Act will help expand foster 
care to meet a growing need that affects my constituents and the nation 
at large. We owe it to our children, we owe it to the future of our 
society, we owe it to the families who have the courage and compassion 
to open up their homes to those children that are, for whatever reason, 
without a home. Passing the Fairness for Foster Care Families Act sends 
the message that we care enough about our foster individuals to provide 
them all with an equal opportunity for proper care. I encourage my 
colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 586.




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