WASHINGTON, DC – Bipartisan legislation has been introduced which would ensure grandparents raising grandchildren receive the support they need. An estimated 2.7 million children in the U.S. are being raised by grandparents, other relatives or close family friends, and while so-called “grandfamilies” or “kinship families” are often eligible for federal support due to unique challenges and disproportionate risk of poverty, awareness of these benefits is often not widespread among grandparents. Democrat PA U.S. Sen. Bob Casey and Republican Indiana U.S. Sen. Todd Young ’s Informing Grandfamilies Act would require states to provide grandfamilies with information about the resources available to them and hire staff with the necessary expertise to guide grandfamilies and kinship families through the benefit process.

SEN. TODD YOUNG

SEN. BOB CASEY