Whereas, in September 2018, National Kinship Care Month is observed; Whereas, nationally, 2,700,000 children are living in kinship care with grandparents or other relatives; Whereas, nationally, 140,000 children in foster care are placed with grandparents or other relatives, with more than 2,560,000 kinship children supported outside of the foster care system; Whereas the percentage of kinship foster children has increased more than 11 percent since 2006; Whereas the number of non-relative foster parents continues to decrease and child welfare agencies are increasingly reliant on kinship families; Whereas children in kinship care experience improved placement stability, higher levels of permanency, and decreased behavioral problems; Whereas kinship caregivers provide safety, promote well-being, and establish stable households for vulnerable children; Whereas grandparents and relatives residing in urban, rural, and suburban households in every State and territory of the United States have stepped forward out of love and loyalty to care for children during times in which parents are unable to do so; Whereas many kinship caregivers give up their retirement years to assume parenting duties for children; Whereas grandparents and other relatives are increasingly providing caring homes for children because of the opioid crisis; Whereas, because of parental substance use disorders and other adverse childhood experiences, children in kinship care frequently have trauma-related conditions; Whereas kinship care homes offer a refuge for traumatized children; Whereas kinship care enables a child— (1) to maintain family relationships and cultural heritage; and (2) to remain in the community of the child; Whereas kinship care is a national resource that provides loving homes for children at risk; Whereas the wisdom and compassion of kinship caregivers is a source of self-reliance and strength for countless children and for the entire United States