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119-s-162119th CongressWALLET

Recruiting Families Using Data Act of 2025

Sponsored By: Senator Grassley, Chuck [R-IA]

Passed Senate

Summary

Creates a new Family Partnership Plan requirement that makes states use data and family input to recruit, license, support, and retain foster and adoptive families. The bill focuses on child-specific recruitment, increasing kinship placements, improving placement stability, and reducing unnecessary congregate care.

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  • Families: States must develop plans in consultation with birth, kinship, foster, and adoptive families, community providers, technical assistance providers, and youth with lived experience. Plans must include annual feedback on licensure, training, supports, reasons parents stop fostering, and why adoptions fail.
  • Children and youth: Every child in or entering foster care who needs a foster or adoptive family would get a child-specific recruitment plan to boost permanency, reduce congregate care placements, and improve stability, especially for teens and sibling groups.
  • States and federal reporting: Plans must use data to set goals, measure progress, and report annual state-by-state counts and demographics of foster and adoptive families, including unused capacity and reasons for nonuse. Reporting to the Children's Bureau begins with fiscal year 2028 and the plan requirement takes effect October 1, 2027 with a delayed compliance option for states that need new legislation.

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

2 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.

States may get more time to comply

The new rules would generally start October 1, 2027. A state would get extra time if HHS finds it needs a new state law, other than a budget bill, to comply. That state would not be out of compliance until the first day of the first calendar quarter after its next regular session ends. In states with two-year sessions, each year would count as a separate session for this timing rule.

New state plans to recruit foster families

The bill would require each state to create a Family Partnership Plan and update it every year. The plan would show how the state finds and supports relatives and other caregivers, and makes a child-specific recruitment plan for each child. States would use data to set goals, cut group placements, grow kinship care and permanency, and better serve teens and siblings. Each year, states would report counts and details on licensed families, unused capacity and reasons, children in group care, and feedback from parents and youth, including barriers to recruiting families who reflect children’s racial and ethnic backgrounds. Starting in fiscal year 2028, a federal report would share state-by-state data and reasons placements or adoptions break down; HHS would be able to ask for more details.

Sponsors & CoSponsors

Sponsor

Grassley, Chuck [R-IA]

IA • R

Cosponsors

  • Sen. Hassan, Margaret Wood [D-NH]

    NH • D

    Sponsored 1/21/2025

  • Sen. Wicker, Roger F. [R-MS]

    MS • R

    Sponsored 1/21/2025

  • Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN]

    MN • D

    Sponsored 3/31/2025

  • Sen. Ossoff, Jon [D-GA]

    GA • D

    Sponsored 7/21/2025

Roll Call Votes

No roll call votes available for this bill.

View on Congress.gov
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