Published in Frederick News Post Editorials on Wednesday, June 8
Delegate Rick Weldon, R-3B, has taken matters into his own hands after two failed tries to get guardianship legislation through the General Assembly. He recently aired his frustration, saying, "You beat your head against the wall until it hurts so bad that you find something else to beat your head against."
Mr. Weldon is frustrated that what he considers to be needed and appropriate legislation on child welfare has twice been rejected by his colleagues, once in the House Judiciary Committee and once in the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee.
After twice failing to get the support of his fellow legislators, Mr. Weldon decided to form his own task force to address issues involving the guardianship rights and benefits of relatives. It's no surprise that Mr. Weldon's group will be looking for a regulatory solution that won't require new legislation.
Mr. Weldon's concern is admirable, because the issue of grandparents or other relatives caring for children is a huge one. It's also one that's currently receiving attention on the national level. Nationwide, one child in 12 lives in a household headed by a grandparent of other relative of the child.
There are several main topics that Mr. Weldon's task force will be addressing. Among the most important are the child custody rights of relatives. While many may assume that relatives would have a stronger claim to guardianship rights than unrelated candidates, that's not necessarily the case.
According to U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, "Kinship caregivers are no different from strangers in the eyes of the federal law," unless parents have relinquished their rights and approved adoption by a relative. The result according to Ms. Snowe is that children often linger in foster care unnecessarily, while a stable, permanent, loving option -- a relative -- is overlooked.
One member of Mr. Weldon's task force is a local grandmother, Pat Owens of Thurmont, who had a nightmarish experience trying to attain custody of her grandson.
Ms. Owens has been involved in the federal attempt to address this issue. She helped, in part, to write the Kinship Caregiver Support Act, which was recently introduced by Sens. Snowe and Hillary Rodham Clinton,D-N.Y.
That legislation addresses on a federal level some of the same concerns Mr. Weldon's task force is addressing on the state level. It features a number of provisions that will help relatives who are caregivers receive the same kinds of assistance that other caregivers now get, including health-care coverage for the kids they care for, and housing and financial assistance.
One wonders why something that affects so many children in Maryland and the nation has been so difficult to address. Helping loving and able relatives care for children as opposed to placing them in foster homes seems like a no-brainer. But the reality is that these kinship caregivers have often been ignored when trying to gain custody, and not eligible for the same assistance available to non-relatives who provide foster care.
We salute Mr. Weldon for his concern and persistence is this matter.
Sometimes government fails and you have to take matters into your own hands.
