I have been following the story about Putin's proposed financial bonus for Russians who have more than one child for the past couple of months now, and I just found out that it's been to the Duma and passed on its first reading.

Interestingly enough, the proposed financial incentive includes both children who are born to Russian citizens AND children who are adopted by Russians. I hadn't heard the second part of that before and I think that's very, very good news. I've been concerned that the $ for babies plan might result in more children in the orphanages but perhaps it won't.

Here's the article I read from RIA Novosti:

MOSCOW, November 17 (RIA Novosti) - A maternity incentive bill on payouts for women who give birth to more than one child was passed by lawmakers in Russia's State Duma in its first reading Friday.

The president-sponsored bill, aimed at reversing the current decline in the nation's birth rate, will provide for one-off payouts to women who give birth to or adopt a second child after January 1, 2007, and for subsequent births.

But the payouts, which are currently set at 250,000 rubles (a little under $9,400), but will be revised annually to adjust for inflation, come with conditions attached. They could be invested in education, housing, or a pension saving program, but not until the child turns three, or three years after his/her adoption.

The second-birth incentive bill is expected to help Russia overcome a severe demographic crisis. The country's population has been in steady decline since the launch of market reforms in the early 1990s, and, according to the United Nations, it may further fall by one-third by the middle of the century, from today's 142 million.

Ahead of the bill's submission to parliament last month, Deputy Duma Chairman Oleg Morozov said, citing expert estimates, that if enacted, the new legislation could triple the birth rate within three years.

In his annual address to the nation in May, President Vladimir Putin said the population was falling by about 700,000 each year, and pledged financial incentives to women with larger families.

I guess time will tell...