Idaho’s health and welfare director told U.S. senators Tuesday morning he would work to better the country’s foster care and adoption systems if confirmed as an undersecretary for family support.
Alex Adams has spent much of the last several months in Idaho recruiting foster parents and transitioning foster kids out of temporary Airbnbs.
He said he has similar priorities at the federal level.
“Where I intend to spend a disproportionate time of my energy and a disproportionate amount of my effort is improving child welfare – specifically the foster care and adoption systems,” Adams said.
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) said his staff has gathered more than 100 claims of discrimination by LGBTQ foster youth across the country.
Wyden asked Adams what he will do to stand up for these kids.
“Following the best interest of the child and ensuring all kids are treated with respect and dignity and protected from harm and following the law is my operating principle,” he replied.
Adams says he’s not sure of the specifics in these cases and wants to review them. A representative from Wyden’s office said they expect to release more specifics of these claims in the coming weeks.
If confirmed, Adams would not only oversee foster care and adoption services. The division includes more than 60 programs with a budget of $70 billion – the second largest division within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Some of those include cash benefits for low-income families through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, or TANF, and home heating subsidies.
The division also oversees Head Start early childhood learning programs, which have recently been cut by the Trump administration.
Multiple Democratic senators asked Adams if he would push to restore these clawbacks or support the initiatives in the future.
He responded that he’s a supporter of Head Start programs, noting his wife’s grandmother ran one in Blackfoot. But he stopped short of promising any restoration of the cuts.
“[DHHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.] wants to make Head Start better and brighter by the end of this term and I share that commitment.”
Adams’ nomination must be confirmed by the full senate before he can assume the position.
Editor's note: An earlier version of this story said Sen. Wyden had gathered more than 100 claims of discrimination of LGBTQ foster youth in Idaho. It's since been corrected to reflect these stories came from foster youth across the country.
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