Expressing support for the designation of September 2019 as "National Kinship Care Month".

IV 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. RES. 542 Expressing support for the designation of September 2019 as ‘‘National Kinship Care Month’’. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AUGUST 27, 2019 Ms. BASS submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means RESOLUTION Expressing support for the designation of September 2019 as ‘‘National Kinship Care Month’’. Whereas in September 2019, ‘‘National Kinship Care Month’’ is observed; Whereas nationally 7,700,000 children are living in kinship care with grandparents or other relatives; Whereas nationally more than 139,017 kinship children in foster care are placed with grandparents or other rel- atives, with more than 2,600,000 kinship children sup- ported outside of the foster care system; Whereas grandparents and other relatives are increasingly providing caring homes for children because of the opioid crisis; VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:45 Aug 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR542.IH HR542 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HRES 542 IH Whereas grandparents and other relatives residing in urban, rural, and suburban households in every county of the United States have stepped forward out of love and loy- alty to care for children during times in which biological parents are unable to do so; Whereas kinship caregivers provide safety, promote well- being, and establish stable households for vulnerable chil- dren; Whereas kinship care enables a child— (1) to maintain family relationships and cultural heritage; and (2) to remain in the community of the child; Whereas kinship care is a national resource that provides lov- ing homes for children at risk; Whereas kinship caregivers face daunting challenges to keep countless children from entering foster care; Whereas the House of Representatives is proud to recognize the many kinship care families in which a child is raised by grandparents or other relatives; Whereas the House of Representatives wishes to honor the many kinship caregivers who throughout the history of the United States have provided loving homes for parentless children; Whereas National Kinship Care Month provides an oppor- tunity to urge people in every State to join in recognizing and celebrating kinship caregiving families and the tradi- tion of families in the United States to help raise chil- dren; and Whereas much remains to be done to ensure that all children have a safe, loving, nurturing, and permanent family, re- gardless of age or special needs: Now, therefore, be it VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:45 Aug 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR542.IH HR542 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HRES 542 IH Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1 (1) supports the designation of ‘‘National Kin- 2 ship Care Month’’; 3 (2) encourages Congress to implement policies 4 to improve the lives of vulnerable children and fami- 5 lies; 6 (3) honors the commitment and dedication of 7 kinship caregivers and the advocates and allies who 8 work tirelessly to provide assistance and services to 9 kinship caregiving families; and 10 (4) reaffirms the need to continue working to 11 improve the outcomes of all vulnerable children 12 through parts B and E of title IV of the Social Se- 13 curity Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), and other pro- 14 grams designed— 15 (A) to support vulnerable families; 16 (B) to invest in prevention and reunifica- 17 tion services; and 18 (C) to ensure that extended family mem- 19 bers who take on the role of kinship caregivers 20 receive the necessary support. 21 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:45 Aug 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HR542.IH HR542 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS