"The goal is to get these children into safe and secure child care and make sure it can happen with the kind of flexibility needed due to the realities facing children in foster care," Grassley said.
The foster-care amendment is now part of legislation (S.1086) to reauthorize the Child Care Development Block Grant program. The program is the primary source of federal funding for child-care assistance through block grants awarded to states. The bill as proposed created a grace period for homeless families to compile required medical documentation for their children to access child-care services. The amendment backed by Grassley extended the grace period to children in foster care.
In 2012, nearly 400,000 children lived in the U.S. foster care system. Of those, nearly 102,000 awaited adoption. More than 26,000 aged out of the system before ever securing a permanent place to call home.
Grassley has led numerous legislative efforts to improve the foster-care system, as well as to encourage the adoption of children in the foster care to permanent, loving homes.
The Child Care Development Block Grant program was first signed into law by President George H.W. Bush in 1990 to assist low-income working families with the cost of child care. The program hasn't been updated since 1996, when adjustments were made as part of welfare reform.
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