Adoption Walk Saturday

www.itsaboutlove.org

Help for Adoption Tax Credits

Help Make the Current Federal Adoption Credit Permanent by Writing to your Representative

Here is how:

1. Find the name and Washington, D.C. mailing address of your Representative and Senators at www.congress.org. To find e-mail addresses, click through to the Senator’s or Congressperson’s Web site.

2. Next, log on to http://thomas.loc.gov/ to find out whether your Congresspersons are already co-sponsors of the legislation. On the thomas.loc.gov opening page, under “Search Bill Summary and Status,” search by bill number for H.R. 213. Then click on “Bill summary and Status.” On the page that comes up, click on “Cosponsors,” “Text of Legislation,” or “All Congressional Actions” to follow the progress of the bill.

3. If your representatives have not signed on as co-sponsors of the bill, send them your request that they do so. Tell them how important the tax credit was to you when you adopted your children, or how much you and other families you know are counting on it to be available in the future.

Act today, your efforts make a difference.

Even, if your Congressperson is already a co-sponsor, please pass this on to your friends and family,

asking them to contact their congressperson, because this will effect EVERYONE adopting after 2011!!

The Details:

Families Supporting Adoption

A CALL TO ACTION

RAISE YOUR VOICE TO ENSURE THE ADOPTION TAX CREDIT REMAINS PERMANENT

Private and independent domestic adoptions can cost anywhere from $5,000 to $40,000, and expenses for intercountry adoptions generally total between $7,000 and $40,000. Domestic adoptions out of foster care are typically much less expensive, usually costing the adoptive parent $2,500 or less.

Congress introduced the Adoption Promotion and Stability Act in 1996 to “help families defray adoption costs.”

Unfortunately, while the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act (EGTRRA) made the adoption tax credit permanent, the provisions which raised the amount that adoptive families can claim and increased the income eligibility phase-out range will sunset on December 31, 2010. Thus, beginning in 2011, the amount adoptive parents will be able to claim under the adoption tax credit will revert to the pre-EGTRRA levels of $6,000 per special needs child and $5,000 per non-special needs child. Additionally, adoptive families reporting $75,000-$115,000 in annual adjusted gross income will again be restricted in the amount they can claim, and those reporting more than $115,000 in annual adjusted gross income will again be prohibited from claiming the tax credit at all. Several bills have been introduced in Congress to repeal the sunset and make the EGTRRA reforms of the adoption tax credit permanent.

At the center of this debate is a recent Treasury Report which found that parents who adopted children internationally account for a disproportionately large number of adoption tax credit recipients, while parents who adopted children from foster care represent a disproportionately small number. More specifically, international adoptions accounted for 34 percent of all adoptions supported by the tax credit despite making up only 15 percent of all adoptions in the United States, while domestic adoptions out of foster care made up 18 percent of adoptions supported by the tax credit despite making up nearly 40 percent of all adoptions in the United States. This finding has led some to claim that the adoption tax credit is not fulfilling a primary goal of promoting domestic adoptions out of foster care. Some advocates have suggested that the federal government should therefore eliminate the adoption tax credit and redistribute the funds saved to other pro-adoption programs.

The Adoption Promotion and Stability Act of 1996 had two purposes, first among which was “to defray adoption costs for families seeking to adopt” by establishing the adoption tax credit. The bill made no distinction between adoptions out of foster care and any other type of adoption.

Increasing subsidies to adoptive parents has been one of the most effective ways of boosting the adoption rate.

Most importantly, the EGTRRA provisions to the adoption tax credit due to expire in 2011 should be made permanent.

For 2009, the maximum adoption credit has increased to $12,150. This amount is phased out if your modified adjusted gross income is between $182,180 and $222,180. You cannot claim the credit or exclusion if your modified AGI is $222,180 or more.

For information on Special Needs Adoption Tax Credit for 2009 go to www.nacac.org/postadopt/taxcredit.html.

To take the credit or exclusion, complete Form 8839 (PDF), Qualified Adoption Expenses, and attach the form to your Form 1040 (PDF) or Form 1040A (PDF).

See irs.gov (topic 607 adoption credit)

“The Adoption Tax Relief Guarantee Act of 2009, H.R. 213.” Written to repeal the sunset of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 with respect to the expansion of the adoption credit and adoption assistance programs. This legislation will make the tax credit permanent. Unless legislation is passed, the Federal adoption tax credit that allows many adopting families to take a credit of up to $12,150 (2009) is scheduled to expire in December 2010. (For information on other legislation involving adoption go to adoptioncouncil.org/policy/fed_leg.html.)

Help Make the Current Federal Adoption Credit Permanent by Writing to your Representative

Here is how:

1. Find the name and Washington, D.C. mailing address of your Representative and Senators at www.congress.org. To find e-mail addresses, click through to the Senator’s or Congressperson’s Web site.

2. Next, log on to http://thomas.loc.gov/ to find out whether your Congresspersons are already co-sponsors of the legislation. On the thomas.loc.gov opening page, under “Search Bill Summary and Status,” search by bill number for H.R. 213. Then click on “Bill summary and Status.” On the page that comes up, click on “Cosponsors,” “Text of Legislation,” or “All Congressional Actions” to follow the progress of the bill.

3. If your representatives have not signed on as co-sponsors of the bill, send them your request that they do so. Tell them how important the tax credit was to you when you adopted your children, or how much you and other families you know are counting on it to be available in the future.

Act today, your efforts make a difference.

www.itsaboutlove.org

The Ants Go Marching

What more could we ask for than a playground, a fishing booth, good food, and great company? Our annual picnic was wonderful!

Where to start? It depends on your ticket. We had a progressive dinner starting at a certain table and then continuing on to others for vegetables and chips, salads, hamburger and hot dogs, and dessert.

Overseeing the hamburgers and hotdogs.

Enjoying our meal and getting to know each other.

Thanks for coming and building our support team! It was great to see everyone!

www.itsaboutlove.org

Mini Class - Writing Birth Parent Letter

In September we had a Mini-Class about writing the scary Birthparent Letter. Ann, an adoptive mother to two beautiful girls, taught the class. There was a lot of information given. Here are a few of the suggestions and ideas she shared.

Ideas about writing the birthparent letter:

Be You. What makes you unique and fun? What is most important in your lives? But be sensitive about religious stuff. Be honest and consistent in ALL your adoption stuff.

But DO spell check and proofread! Have several people read it and offer comments.

Shorter generally is better, in this day and age. You can add more details about your lives in the phone caption part. Do add LOTS of details in your captions, make sure pictures are fun and cheery.

DO talk about why you are adopting. A short “infertility story” is not bad. Birthparents usually just want to know the basics – no gory stories. Usually best near the beginning

Talk about why you want to be parents/ what your parenting ideas are. If true, talk about how your families would welcome this little one. You can also talk about how education (of the fall deer hunt, or Christmas cookie making) is important in your family and you can’t wait to show your baby how to do sprinkles, etc. Also importation to mention hobbies, talents, things the family does now (0r in the future) together. Do you want to go to Disneyland every year? Your future birth mom might be a Disney fanatic.

Your education and careers should get a mention. In this day and age, it can be nice to see that you are in a secure place and their child will always be taken care of.

Mention once or twice that you are happy together. How long have you been married? What do you like to do together?

NEVER LIE – about anything anywhere.

Tell them about the level of open-ness you are interested in. You can almost always get MORE involved, so if you have to say something way “We are interested in discussing the openness of this adoption.” (Remember it will break a birth mom’s heart to have parents promise pictures each week and get nothing for months). Do NOT lie or promise things you will not be able to do, or want to do.

Look at it from her perspective. She wants to give her CHILD a gift of YOU (stable family, etc). She is NOT giving you (practical strangers) a gift. Help her see how you will love and care for her precious child.

Do personalize each letter – depending on who might read it (itsaboutlove vs. parentprofiles).

Read other letters and see what other couples are saying. This can help you get some ideas about how to present yourselves.

Make sure pictures are GREAT. If at all possible, hire a friend/family member to take some more formal shots and some playful shots. Add in some pictures you have taken of events you have done, places you have gone, to show how much fun you are. Crop as much as possible – some computers screens are tiny.