Jackie Walorski: “I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Modernizing the Interstate Placement of…”

“I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Modernizing the Interstate Placement of Children in Foster Care Act. This bill will reduce the amount of time kids wait to be adopted, placed with relatives, or placed with foster parents when they are going to a home in another State. The current paper-based process keeps children waiting while caseworkers mail physical documents. This bill incentivizes States to connect to an electronic system that has been pilot-tested in a handful of States, including my home State of Indiana. Getting at-risk kids into a stable, permanent environment as quickly as possible is critical to allowing them to thrive and reach their full potential. Each day they spend waiting for paperwork to be mailed back and forth is time wasted unnecessarily. I want to thank my colleague, Congressman Young of Indiana, for his leadership on this issue. I strongly urge my colleagues to support H.R. 4472 and do everything possible to get our most vulnerable children placed in a safe environment.”