[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 13]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 18157-18158]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




       RECOGNIZING NATIONAL ADOPTION DAY/MONTH NOVEMBER 19, 2011

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. LAURA RICHARDSON

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, November 18, 2011

  Ms. RICHARDSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize November 19, 2011 as 
National Adoption Day, which celebrates adoptive families who have 
opened their homes to children placed in foster care. Today, states, 
communities, public and private organizations, businesses, families, 
and individuals come together to increase awareness of children in need 
of permanent homes and families.
  Mr. Speaker, currently there are over 463,000 children living in 
foster care. These children have been placed in homes on the account of 
the physical, sexual and emotional abuse they have endured with their 
biological caretaker. My state of California currently has the largest 
foster care population with the number of youths in foster care 
tripling since 1981. These children deserve to grow up in a loving home 
that is safe, happy, and most importantly one they can call their own.
  Since the first major effort to bring awareness to the need of 
adoptive families, which was initiated by former Massachusetts Governor 
Michael Dukakis and later proclaimed a month in November 1995 by 
President William J. Clinton, nearly 50,000 children in the system have 
been adopted yearly. American families have opened their homes to these 
children and provided resources and opportunities that allowed them to 
have a chance of claiming the American Dream.
  Unfortunately out of the 463,000 children living in foster care, 
about 107,000 are available for adoption. 65% of children who are not 
placed in a permanent home emancipate themselves from the system often 
left unemployed, without a place to live and resorting to homeless 
shelters. Less than 3 percent go on to college and emancipated females 
end up four times more likely to receive public assistance compared to 
the overall population of the United States.
  Measures by the government have been implemented to increase the 
adoption rate and make the process of adoption easier for families who 
seek to adopt. The Affordable Care Act increases and improves the 
Adoption Tax Credit. It allows the process of adoption to be accessible 
and affordable for families who

[[Page 18158]]

want to nurture, care, uplift and open their home to a child. States 
can also receive incentives for increasing adoptions of children 
adopted from foster care. A project by the Department of Health and 
Human Services, AdoptUsKids, offers support to States and even tribes 
and territories to recruit adoptive parents. The project also provides 
assistance and help to families considering adoption or those who have 
begun the process.
  Mr. Speaker, it is vital that we continue to create more programs, 
events and activities that will enlighten citizens of the United States 
on stories of children successfully placed in permanent homes, debunk 
myths about the process and acknowledge the thousands of children who 
could potentially become a part of these statistics. Through these 
efforts we can increase the rate of adoption, decrease the rate of 
homelessness among the youths in this group and help develop future 
leaders and innovative thinkers of tomorrow.
  To the families who have opened their hearts and homes to these 
children we celebrate you and your efforts to change the lives of these 
children. As the rest of us enjoy and share the company of our children 
and extended family members, let us not forget those children who will 
not have the same opportunity to do the same. Let us not forget the 
children who will not be able to celebrate the holiday season in a 
warm, loving, and happy home they can call their own. Let us remember 
these children and work towards positively affecting these children's 
lives and securing their success in the future.

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