MADISON – This week, Representative LaKeshia Myers (D-Milwaukee) was appointed to the Assembly Task Force on Adoption. The task force is a bipartisan group that includes ten Republicans and six Democrats.
This special bipartisan committee will focus on addressing the barriers facing biological and adoptive parents in the adoption process. Legislators on the task force will identify ways to modify the timeline for adoptions, examine the termination of parental rights, evaluate the costs associated with adoption, and increase awareness and resources for adoption.
According to the Department of Children and Families, there were 723 children adopted in Wisconsin in 2018; more than one-third of the public adoptions in Wisconsin are in Milwaukee County. Hundreds of children are waiting to be adopted.
Rep. Myers issued the following statement in response to her appointment, “It is indeed a pleasure to serve on this very important committee. Adoption and child welfare are issues that are imperative to me and members of my district. I appreciate the opportunity to bring a diversified perspective to a process that overwhelmingly involves children and families from Milwaukee County. It is my hope that the task force will work collectively to make the adoption process more transparent, equitable, affordable, and encourage more families in our state to consider becoming adoptive parents to children in need.”
