[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 114 (Tuesday, July 14, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3931-S3932]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RECOGNIZING A HOME FOR EVERY CHILD
Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, I commend the Administration for Children
and Families, ACF, for its achievement in securing the participation of
all 50 States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico in the A Home
for Every Child Campaign.
This milestone represents a meaningful bipartisan accomplishment:
every jurisdiction choosing to join a voluntary effort focused on
improving the lives of vulnerable children and families. At a time when
consensus can be difficult to achieve, this campaign demonstrates that
leaders across the political spectrum can unite around the fundamental
goal of ensuring every child has a safe, stable, and loving home.
This initiative is rooted in Idaho, where it is transforming the
child welfare system and resolving the shortage of quality foster
homes. The Gem State's model has improved foster care outcomes by
achieving higher home-to-child ratios, prioritizing kinship
recruitment, and preventing both unnecessary placements into care and
burnout by current foster families. With the support of every State,
that innovative approach is now being successfully implemented at the
national level by Dr. Alex Adams, the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services Assistant Secretary for Family Support, who previously
served as Idaho's Health and Welfare Director.
As chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, I was proud to help
enact the Working Families Tax Cuts that made the adoption tax credit
partially refundable up to $5,000, helping offset the costs of adopting
a child. And the Trump administration announced plans to help foster
youth participate in the Trump Accounts created in the law to help the
next generation build wealth,
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with Idaho pledging to adopt policies that will allow all its foster
youth the same opportunity.
By strengthening collaboration between the Federal Government and
States, ACF is helping transform outcomes for children and families
while establishing a model for strategic Federal-State partnerships. I
thank the foster families across Idaho and the country who provide the
stability and love every child deserves. I commend ACF, participating
State and Territorial leaders, and all those working to make this
vision a reality.
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