Texas Border Business
AUSTIN – Governor Greg Abbott, alongside Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) Commissioner Audrey O’Neill and Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Assistant Secretary Alex J. Adams, announced Texas is joining the Trump Administration’s “A Home for Every Child” initiative. The announcement comes during National Foster Care Month and reflects the state’s ongoing efforts to ensure every child in Texas has access to a safe, stable, and loving home.
“Texas is honored to join the Trump Administration in its mission to ensure every child in foster care has a real chance at a permanent, loving home,” said Governor Abbott. “By eliminating unnecessary rules and regulations, we will help more children find stability and hope. Together with our federal partners, we will deliver better outcomes for children in our foster care system.”
The “A Home for Every Child” initiative, launched by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services through ACF, supports President Donald J. Trump and First Lady Melania Trump’s Executive Order “Fostering the Future for American Children and Families.” The initiative aims to ensure that for every child who enters foster care, a licensed foster home or kinship placement is available – achieving a home-to-child ratio greater than 1:1 across participating states.
A national shortage of licensed foster homes continues to create barriers to stability and connection for children who need them most. Texas is committed to reversing that trend through strategic recruitment, expanded kinship support, and efforts to remove unnecessary obstacles that discourage qualified families from becoming foster parents.
“The Trump Administration is pleased to welcome the Lone Star State to ‘A Home for Every Child’ during National Foster Care Month,” said ACF Assistant Secretary Alex J. Adams. “Governor Abbott is putting the needs of Texas’ children and families first by supporting efforts to keep families together and remove unnecessary barriers that would discourage loving families from fostering. ACF looks forward to working with Texas to increase the state’s ratio of homes-to-kids so that every child can grow up in a safe, loving, and stable family.”
“Foster families play a critical role in partnering with case workers and families, and helping children heal when they have to be separated from their parents,” said DFPS Commissioner Audrey O’Neill. “Their dedication to opening their hearts and homes makes progress possible. Joining ‘A Home for Every Child’ gives us a sharper focus and stronger federal partnership to do what we’ve always been here to do: make sure every child in Texas has a safe place to belong. We will use data, reduce barriers, and invest in the families who make that possible.
As part of Texas’ participation in the initiative, DFPS will pursue the following priorities:
- Expand recruitment and retention of licensed foster families through targeted, data-driven outreach across the state.
- Increase kinship placements by reducing barriers for extended family members and trusted adults in a child’s life to become licensed caregivers.
- Strengthen family preservation services that help families address challenges before entry into foster care becomes necessary.
- Streamline the licensing process to remove unnecessary red tape that delays the placement of children in qualified homes.
- Use real-time data to identify placement gaps and match children with the most appropriate available home.
Texas has made progress in recent years to improve outcomes for children and families involved with the child welfare system. DFPS continues to work with community partners, faith-based organizations, courts, and local child welfare boards to build the infrastructure needed to ensure no child waits for a home.
National Foster Care Month is observed each May to raise awareness about the more than 370,000 children in foster care nationwide and the families, professionals, and communities who support them.
To learn more about becoming a foster parent in Texas, visit www.dfps.texas.gov.
