Every child deserves a stable and lasting family life.
But only in the last few years has substantial progress been made in bringing permanency to the lives of thousands of children who otherwise would have spent their formative years in foster care. Thanks largely to bipartisan efforts, state and local governments posted a 40 percent increase in adoptions over federal FY95. The nation as a whole is well on its way towards doubling the number of adoptions out of foster care by 2002. I am pleased to report that Illinois, the second-largest child welfare system in the nation, was able to achieve this goal in just one year. And already, we are 45 percent ahead of last years' performance.