Kansas, which reportedly has a large and growing number of grandparents raising their grandchildren, passed a law intended to provide financial assistance to those grandparents.

But it turns out that the statute is only aiding a tiny fraction of these grandparents (and only a tiny bit at that). The reason: as in other states, aid is limited to grandparents with formal legal custody of their grandchildren.

Yet many of these grandparents, de facto parents, don’t – and couldn’t – get formal legal custody of their grandchildren.

Ironically, the legal trend in most states makes it harder and harder for grandparents to obtain full legal custody of their grandchildren.

Read more in this Kansas Morning Sun editorial: We must find a way to help all custodial grandparents.