The Effects of Federal Adoption Incentive Awards for Older Children on Adoptions from U.S. Foster Care
Abstract
This paper analyzes state responses to the 2003 and 2008 changes in the federal Adoption Incentives program to increase adoptions from the U.S. foster care system. The 2003 change introduced a $4,000 payment to states for every adoption of a child aged 9 and older above a state-specific baseline. In 2008, the payment was doubled to $8,000. Using a discrete hazard model cast in a difference-in-differences framework, I do not find robust evidence that the incentives increased the probability of adoption for older children relative to younger children following the policy changes. I also do not find that the incentives affected the timing of adoption, likelihood of termination of parental rights, or the amounts of adoption assistance for older children relative to younger children. The findings illustrate the incentives are unable to help states overcome many of the challenges associated with achieving adoption for older children.
Repository Citation
Brehm, Margaret. 2018. “The Effects of Federal Adoption Incentive Awards for Older Children on Adoptions from U.S. Foster Care.” Journal of Policy Analysis and Management 37(2): 301-330.
Publisher
Wiley
Publication Date
Spring 4-1-2018
Publication Title
Journal of Policy Analysis and Management
Department
Economics
Document Type
Article
DOI
https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/pam.22040
Keywords
Special needs, Taxes, Subsidies, Birth
Language
English
Format
text