WASHINGTON—Thanks to a new executive order backed by first lady Melania Trump, federal employees who foster or adopt children will now receive new benefits, according to an internal White House email obtained by The Daily Wire.
The White House Management Office informed Executive Office of the President (EOP) staff on Friday that under the Family and Medical Leave Act, employees who foster or adopt a child can receive up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave, flexible work schedules, and “other workplace accommodations at the discretion of component leadership.”
Many of these benefits were first established during President Donald Trump’s first term and continued under former President Joe Biden, but officials say the new order clarifies and expands how they can be used.
The renewed focus comes as part of the first lady’s “Fostering the Future” initiative, developed alongside the Office of Personnel Management and the Administration for Children and Families at the Department of Health and Human Services.
A White House official told The Daily Wire that the order is designed to remove barriers for federal workers seeking to foster or adopt.
“Federal workers looking to adopt or foster a child no longer need to worry that their work would delay or prevent a child from being with a loving family,” the official shared. “Their responsibility as a parent or caregiver doesn’t happen all at once. He or she may need one day here for a court visit and another day there for a doctor’s appointment. Delaying any of these things means that one more kid isn’t being reunified with their family or finding the next best place to belong and be cared for.”
The policy builds on the first lady’s initiative. According to the internal email, Melania Trump coordinated with the Office of Personnel Management, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, and the Health Department’s Administration for Children and Families to “support foster and adoptive families across the federal workforce.”
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On Thursday, President Trump signed a proclamation designating May 2026 as National Foster Care Month, calling upon “all Americans to honor the efforts of those who contribute to our Nation’s foster care system and recommit to improving the lives of those children who depend upon their service.”
One of the biggest challenges that FLOTUS and her allies face, The Daily Wire has learned, is the need for more caring foster parents and adoptive families.
As The Daily Wire previously reported, the Department of Health and Human Services has partnered with 14 states and Washington, D.C., through the bipartisan “Home for Every Child” initiative to increase the number of licensed foster homes. Currently, there are just 57 licensed homes for every 100 children in care.
Participating states, including Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Nebraska, Rhode Island, and Iowa, are working to improve data tracking and reduce barriers in the foster care system, with the goal of reaching a one-to-one ratio.
“When we don’t have enough homes for those children, they get placed in non-traditional settings that are not conducive to long-term growth and development of the child,” Assistant Secretary Alex Adams previously told The Daily Wire. “So we need to increase nationally the ratio of homes to kids.”
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