There are thousands of Iowa children in foster care and awaiting adoption. I’ve personally experienced the foster and adoption process when my wife and I adopted two of our six children. After a very long process, we officially adopted Aliya and Jayna on April 5, 2023. The experience of trying to give these two little girls their “forever home” showed me firsthand the many shortcomings within our adoption process.
One prohibitive factor that prevents many families from adopting a child is the high cost. Between agency fees, attorney fees, and other expenses, the average cost for a family to adopt is anywhere from $8,000 to $40,000. That makes adopting nearly impossible for many people.
I introduced the Fight for Families Act to help more low- and middle-income families, as well as retirees on fixed incomes, be able to adopt children. Currently, the $14,890 Federal Adoption Tax Credit only benefits high-income families with significant taxes owed. The Fight for Families Act will make this tax credit refundable (and permanent) so families of varying incomes can offset the costs. This will especially help in a situation where a grandparent who is retired and on a fixed income wants to adopt a grandchild, but that tax credit, as it stands, doesn’t help because they don’t make enough money for the tax write-off. This small change in our tax code could be life-changing for a child waiting to be adopted.
Family is everything to Iowans, and I want to make sure that I’m doing everything in my power to help those who are willing to open their home to disadvantaged children.
Read The Bill Text Here:
FORM: https://nunn.house.gov/SL/Fight-for-Families-Act