Tribal Governments Seek Greater Control Over Foster Care

Although American Indian and Alaskan Native children are overrepresented in the U.S. foster care system, tribal governments are blocked from the largest federal sources of funding for child welfare programs, according to a joint report from the National Indian Child Welfare Association and the nonpartisan Kids Are Waiting campaign, a Pew Charitable Trust project. Tribal governments, concerned that children's spiritual and cultural ties can fade in foster care, are seeking alternatives that would grant them more control. States can access seven federal child welfare funding programs, but their tribal counterparts can access only five and are excluded from directly accessing the largest source of funding. The Tribal Foster Care and Adoption Act (Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont.), currently under Senate review, would allow tribes to access all seven federal funding sources that are now available to state child welfare systems and introduce accountability measures.

Kids Are Waiting reports