States findings of the Senate and endorses the development of a state plan to support kinship caregivers.

LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-eighth Legislature Second Regular Session - 2026 IN THE SENATE SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 118 BY STATE AFFAIRS COMMITTEE A SENATE RESOLUTION1 STATING FINDINGS OF THE SENATE AND PROPOSING THE CREATION OF A STATE PLAN FOR2 KINSHIP CAREGIVERS IN ORDER TO PROVIDE A COMPREHENSIVE BLUEPRINT TO EN-3 SURE THAT INITIATIVES AND ACTIONS IMPLEMENTED TO SUPPORT KINSHIP CARE-4 GIVERS ARE COORDINATED AND TO MAXIMIZE THE USE OF PUBLIC AND COMMUNITY-5 BASED RESOURCES.6 Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of Idaho:7 WHEREAS, kinship caregivers are grandparents, other adult family mem-8 bers, or close family friends who are raising children when such children's9 parents are unable to do so; and10 WHEREAS, kinship caregivers offer children permanency and improved11 well-being and reduce dependency on the foster care system; and12 WHEREAS, for every one Idaho child in foster care being raised by kin,13 there are 18 being raised by kin outside of foster care; and14 WHEREAS, more than 10,000 children in Idaho are being raised by their15 grandparents; and16 WHEREAS, more than 43,000 children are living in homes where a relative17 is the head of household; and18 WHEREAS, the dedication and selflessness of kinship caregivers enhance19 the quality of life for those they care for, often sacrificing their time,20 energy, emotional and physical health, financial stability, and personal21 goals to provide care and support; and22 WHEREAS, the absence of a solid support structure for kinship care-23 givers, including access to resources and respite care, takes a serious toll24 on the economic and social well-being of families and businesses and commu-25 nities across Idaho; and26 WHEREAS, kinship caregivers and those they care for would benefit from a27 multi-sector state-planning initiative to connect public, private, and in-28 dependent sectors to transform the infrastructure and coordination of ser-29 vices.30 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the members of the Senate, assembled31 in the Second Regular Session of the Sixty-eighth Idaho Legislature, that32 the Senate endorses the efforts of the Idaho caregiver alliance to develop33 a state plan for kinship caregivers and recommendations to increase pub-34 lic awareness, to provide training for caregivers, to improve caregiver35 supports, including respite resources, to integrate support for kinship36 caregivers into education and health care systems, and to develop methods37 for ongoing data collection and reporting to monitor changes and assure re-38 sponsible use of public and private resources.39