MARYLAND MODERNIZES KINSHIP LAW TO FIND FAMILIES FOR MORE YOUTH IN FOSTER CARE

Mary­land Gov­er­nor Wes Moore signed leg­is­la­tion in May 2024 that is the cor­ner­stone of the state’s shift to a kin-first cul­ture in child wel­fare. For youth expe­ri­enc­ing out-of-home care, the new law estab­lish­es a pref­er­ence for liv­ing with rel­a­tives, includ­ing fam­i­ly by choice.

The law mod­ern­izes Maryland’s child wel­fare sys­tem by remov­ing out­dat­ed lan­guage that excludes con­tem­po­rary con­cepts of fam­i­ly and updat­ing state reg­u­la­tions to reflect how fam­i­lies are formed today. When con­sid­er­ing the best inter­ests of chil­dren who require out-of-home care, Maryland’s kin-first approach pri­or­i­tizes adult-child bonds that are crit­i­cal to healthy devel­op­ment. The new law directs child wel­fare staff to iden­ti­fy kin as a pre­ferred place­ment for chil­dren who enter state custody.

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