Source: United States Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn)
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Roy Blunt (R-MO), Senate co-chairs of the bipartisan, bicameral Congressional Coalition on Adoption introduced a bipartisan resolution marking November as National Adoption Month and November 19 as National Adoption Day. This is the eighth consecutive year that Klobuchar and Blunt have led legislation to honor National Adoption Month and National Adoption Day.
“National Adoption Month is an opportunity to honor the dedication and commitment of adoptive families who open their hearts and homes to children,” said Klobuchar. “As co-chair of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption, Senator Blunt and I have worked with colleagues on both sides of the aisle to improve the adoption process for families and children across our country. I’ll keep pushing to increase awareness of adoption and help provide every child with the loving, permanent home they deserve.”
“Every child deserves a loving family and a happy childhood,” said Blunt. “As an adoptive parent, I know opening your home to a child in need is one of the most rewarding things you can do. During my time in Congress, I’ve been proud to advocate for legislation to make it easier for more children to find safe and caring homes and ensure adoptive families have the support they need. I hope that bringing awareness to National Adoption Month will encourage more families to consider growing their families through adoption.”
As co-chairs of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption, Klobuchar and Blunt have long led efforts to give every child a permanent home and improve the adoption process.
In June 2021, provisions of Klobuchar and Blunt’s legislation to protect adopted children from unregulated custody transfers passed the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
In May 2021, Klobuchar and Blunt introduced the Intercountry Adoption Advisory Committee Act to improve the intercountry adoption process. That same month, the senators led a bipartisan letter calling on the Biden administration to engage in efforts to resume intercountry adoptions with China, which have been indefinitely paused due to the coronavirus pandemic.
In November 2020, Klobuchar and Blunt’s legislation to provide updated and timely information to help American families trying to adopt internationally passed the Senate. Later that month, the senators encouraged the Department of State and the Department of Health and Human Services to raise awareness for National Adoption Month and for the importance of domestic and intercountry adoption.
In October 2020, Klobuchar and Blunt urged the Department of State to prioritize policies to promote intercountry adoption.
In April 2020, the senators called on the Department of State to use all available resources to ensure that intercountry adoptions proceed in a safe and timely manner during the pandemic.
Klobuchar and Blunt in May 2019 reintroduced the Supporting Adoptive Families Act to help provide pre- and post-adoption support services, including mental health treatment, to help adoptive families stay strong.
Klobuchar and Blunt also partnered on the Accuracy for Adoptees Act, which became law in early 2014. This legislation cuts red tape for adoptive families and ensures that corrections made to adoptees’ state vital records would be recognized by the federal government.
Full text of the resolution is available HERE and below:
Expressing support for the goals of National Adoption Day and National Adoption Month by promoting national awareness of adoption and the children awaiting families, celebrating children and families involved in adoption, and encouraging the people of the United States to secure safety, permanency, and well-being for all children.
Whereas there are millions of unparented children in the world, including 391,000 children in the foster care system in the United States, approximately 114,000 of whom are waiting for families to adopt them;
Whereas 64 percent of the children in foster care in the United States are age 10 or younger;
Whereas the average length of time a child spends in foster care is 21.7 months;
Whereas, for many foster children, the wait for a loving family, in which the children are nurtured, comforted, and protected, seems endless;
Whereas, in 2021, 14,380 children were at risk of aging out of foster care by reaching adulthood without being placed in a permanent home;
Whereas, every day, loving and nurturing families are strengthened and expanded when committed and dedicated individuals make an important difference in the life of a child through adoption;
Whereas, while nearly a quarter of individuals in the United States have considered adoption, a majority of individuals in the United States have misperceptions about the process of adopting children from foster care and the children who are eligible for adoption;
Whereas family reunification, kinship care, and domestic and intercountry adoption promote permanency and stability to a far greater degree than long-term institutionalization or long-term, often disrupted, foster care;
Whereas the Children’s Bureau, an office of the Administration for Children and Families within the Department of Health and Human Services, supports programs, research, and monitoring to help eliminate barriers to adoption and find permanent families for children;
Whereas National Adoption Day is a collective national effort to find permanent, loving families for children in the foster care system;
Whereas, since the first National Adoption Day in 2000, more than 75,000 children have joined permanent families on National Adoption Day;
Whereas the President traditionally issues an annual proclamation to declare the month of November as National Adoption Month, and the President has proclaimed November 2022 as National Adoption Month; and
Whereas the Saturday before Thanksgiving has been recognized as National Adoption Day since at least 2000, and in 2022, the Saturday before Thanksgiving is November 19:
Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Senate—
(1) supports the goals and ideals of National Adoption Day and National Adoption Month;
(2) recognizes that every child should have a permanent and loving family; and
(3) encourages the people of the United States to consider adoption during the month of November and throughout the year.
###