Protecting Youth & Families

Guidance on Higher Education Could Help Youth in Foster Care in Loan Application

The U.S. Department of Education released guidance on Thursday, July 9, 2020, reminding Colleges and Universities (Institutions of Higher Education/IHEs) of the existing flexibility for verification of non-filing from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in, this guidance, allowing IHEs to accept a signed statement in place of a W-2 for foster youth. Here’s the relevant excerpt: 

Senator Brown, Colleagues Introduce the Child Welfare Emergency Assistance Act

On Thursday, July 2, Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) introduced the Child Welfare Emergency Assistance Act. The bill, co-sponsored by Senators Kamala Harris (D-CA), Bob Casey (D-PA), and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), will provide flexible, emergency aid for key child welfare programs working to support children, youth, and families during the COVID-19 pandemic. The senators’ legislation

House Moving 2021 Appropriations

Last week the House Appropriations Committee began to move the 12 annual Fiscal Year 2021 appropriations bills through their respective subcommittees. The Labor-HHS-Education bill passed through the subcommittee on Tuesday, July 7, 2020, with funding receiving a slight increase. Congress is still acting under the final year of the ten-year budget caps. The HHS portion of

Senator Murray, Colleagues Introduces Major Child-focused COVID Bill

Senator Murray (D-WA), Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Democrats introduced the Coronavirus Child Care and Education Relief Act before the fourth of July holiday break. This bill includes $430 million for many of the Senate Democratic priorities for child care, K-12 schools and higher education, and child welfare: The child welfare specific legislation includes $1.5

New York City’s Efforts To Return to School Echo Across US

On Wednesday, July 8, 2020, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio unveiled a plan to reopen the country’s largest school system this fall. With the President demanding all schools open, the New York city debate shows the challenges. The DeBlasio plan revolves around a schedule that would have some students attend two days of

Child Poverty Bill to Benefit Millions of Children

On Thursday, July 2, 2020, Congressman Danny Davis (D-IL), Congresswoman Roybal-Allard and Senators Bob Casey (D-PA), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) officially dropped the Child Poverty Reduction Act (H.R. 7419/ S. 4115), which commits to cutting child poverty in half in 10 years, just as the pandemic pushes child poverty toward record levels.

2020 KIDS COUNT Data Book Released

The 2020 KIDS COUNT Data Book released last week details how children are faring in the United States and in each state based on thee most recent data on key trends in child well-being prior to the coronavirus pandemic. The KIDS COUNT index captures what children need most to thrive, using four domains: (1) Economic

Lowest Level of Juveniles in Residential Placement

The 2017 Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement (CJRP), a biennial survey conducted by the U.S. Bureau of the Census on behalf of the Office of Justice Programs’ Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), shows that the number of youth in placement continues to decline. Between 1997 and 2017, the number of juvenile

Children’s Bureau Offers Guidance on TPR and Adoption Assistance

In a June 23, 2020 letter from Children’s Bureau, Associate Commissioner Jerry Milner addressed state leaders offering guidance on addressing the termination of a parent’s rights (TPR) and on how to reach out to adoptive families during this COVID-19 pandemic. The Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA) requires termination of parental rights if a child has been

Help Non-Filers Get Their Stimulus/Treasury Re-sends 44,000 EBT Cards

For those people who lack bank accounts and other measures to deposit the rebate checks of up to $1200 per person, the U.S. Treasury has issued 3.6 million electronic impact payments (EIPs) more commonly thought of as debit cards.  In a letter to members of the House, Treasury indicated that as of June 19, 2020

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