Policy Briefs: Caring for Children

This policy brief provides data that suggest that many, if not most, foster care children in the United States were not living with their father at the time they were removed from their home. The brief also examines data on whether noncustodial fathers had contact with their child or contributed to the child's support. Legislative and policy changes in child welfare and child support programs are discussed within the context of identifying and locating fathers of foster children to expedite permanent placements for these children or as a means of providing opportunities for increased father involvement.

This Caring for Children brief examines the characteristics of parents who have adopted children from the foster care system and those of children who are waiting for permanent homes. It finds that child welfare agencies may increase the adoption rate if they reduce administrative hurdles and better equip families to overcome the challenges inherent in adopting a child with special needs or one of a different race or ethnicity.

Highlights some of the findings from the Urban Institute's 2001 Child Welfare Survey; $20 billion was spent on child welfare services in state fiscal year 2000, of which $2.3 billion came from Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds.