NACAC promotes and supports permanent families for children and youth in the U.S. and Canada who have been in care—especially those in foster care and those with special needs.
Our Work
To achieve this mission, NACAC focuses its program services in four areas: public policy advocacy, parent leadership capacity building, education and information sharing, and adoption support.
Thank You!
NACAC is grateful for
the support of our
major funders:
The Debra Steigerwaldt Waller Foundation
North American Council
on Adoptable Children ... because every child deserves a permanent, loving,
and culturally competent family
Adoption Tax Credit Is Made Permanent
but Not Refundable
The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, signed into law on January 2, included a provision that made the adoption tax credit permanent. Unfortunately it did not make the adoption credit refundable for 2012 or future years, so the credit will only benefit those adoptive families who have federal income tax liability.
The maximum amount of the credit for 2013 will be $12,970.
NACAC is deeply disappointed Congress did not make the adoption tax credit refundable for 2012 or future years, and will continue to advocate for refundability in the future.
NACAC and the Adoption Institute Release New Issue Brief on the
Importance of Adoption Assistance
NACAC Passes New Position Statement on Trauma-Informed Care
NACAC and the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute have partnered on a nationwide campaign to counter efforts by states to cut adoption assistance benefits. Our goal is to raise public awareness, educate policy makers, and provide advocacy materials for parents, professionals, and other activists to use at the state level. On September 19, we released The Vital Role of Adoption Subsidies: Increasing Permanency and Improving Children’s Lives (While Saving States Money) to help individuals understand the value of adoption assistance and advocate to maintain these crucial benefits.
At its December 11, 2012 meeting, the NACAC board of directors approved a position statement on Access to Trauma-Informed Care.
The statement acknowledges that all children and youth involved in adoption and foster care have experenced trauma, that this trauma affects them and their entire family, and that services provided must take into account the effects of trauma and how best to serve those who have experienced trauma.
NACAC and Jockey Being Family®
Launch Adoption Advocacy Toolbox
NACAC recently held two webinars on adoption assistance, and you can download an mp4 file to view the sessions. (Please note the file is 52MB. In some browsers, you need to right click or control click on the link and choose Save Link As to download the file.)
Adoption Assistance Benefits and Eligibility — download
Advocating for Adoption Assistance Programs on — download
With funding from Jockey Being Family, NACAC has created a new online resource for adoption advocates in the U.S. and Canada. The site contains information about how to advocate for adoption, strategies for advocacy efforts, a guide to post-adoption advocacy, and resources and links related to numerous special topics in adoption (adolescent permanency, education/school issues, FASD, kinship, openness, and much more.
HHS Releases Latest
AFCARS Data
NACAC Approves Position Statement on Permanency
for Older Youth
In July 2012, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released data on foster care from fiscal year 2011. The data show that more than 104,000 children were waiting to adopted, while more than 50,000 exited care to adoption.
At its August 2011 meeting, the NACAC board of directors approved a position statement that outlines the organization's belief in permanency for all older children and youth and identifies policies and practices that can help such permanence.
North American
Council on Adoptable Children (NACAC)
970 Raymond Avenue, Suite 106
St. Paul, MN 55114
phone: 651-644-3036
fax: 651-644-9848
e-mail: info@nacac.org Feedback
