[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 126 (Thursday, August 2, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Page S10804]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. BAUCUS (for himself, Mr. Domenici, Mr. Bingaman, Mr. 
        Smith, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. McCain, Ms. Cantwell, and Mr. Levin):
  S. 1956. A bill to amend part E of title IV of the Social Security 
Act to provide equitable access for foster care and adoption services 
for Indian children in tribal areas, and for other purposes; to the 
Committee on Finance.
  Mr. BAUCUS. Mr. President, I want to begin my remarks by commending 
the thousands of case workers, foster families, neighbors and friends 
across the country that work to provide safety, stability, and love for 
the more than half a million children in the Nation's foster care 
system. More than a third of foster children in Montana are Native 
American. Across America, most of the Native American children in 
foster care are under the jurisdiction of tribal courts. But Native 
American tribes that want to administer their own child welfare systems 
are not eligible for Title IV-E funds to run their own foster care and 
adoption programs.
  Today I am proud to introduce with Senators Domenici, Bingaman, 
Smith, Stabenow, McCain, and Cantwell the Tribal Foster Care and 
Adoption Act of 2007. This legislation is a demonstration of the 
commitment on both sides of the aisle to provide tribes with the 
opportunity to care for their own children. Children that need foster 
care and adoption services because of the abuse and neglect that they 
have already suffered. This bill provides tribes with the ability to 
serve their children directly with culturally appropriate care and 
understanding. The legislation also recognizes the good work of states 
and their collaborative efforts with tribes on behalf of tribal 
children.
  This legislation has had a long history in the Senate and I am 
pleased to have been a part of that history since the 107th congress. 
It has been introduced in every Congress since then always with 
bipartisan support. This bill's time has come.
  We have worked very hard to fine tune this legislation in away that 
is fair to states and finally gives Tribes direct access to the child 
welfare system. We want a system set up to protect those that need our 
protection the most not to exclude the most vulnerable members of our 
society from direct participation.
  The child welfare system is languishing because of inadequate 
funding. And the system also suffers from a lack of culturally-
appropriate approaches to help tribal children to find loving, 
permanent homes. I am further committed to working on behalf of our 
child welfare system with Chairman Grassley and with Senator 
Rockefeller who have always been dedicated to child welfare issues. The 
Tribal Foster Care and Adoption Act provides a pivotal opportunity to 
ensure that tribes across our country have the ability to access the 
child welfare system. I see this as a first step in making much needed 
improvements to the country's child welfare system, without significant 
costs or new federal programs.
  We owe the first inhabitants of this great Nation and their children 
a child welfare system that works for them. We must do all we can to 
provide help.
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