Appropriately timed, CLASP has released a new analysis of state efforts to implement the new regulations and funding under the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG). New CCDBG regulations are a result of a new authorization enacted in 2014. The 2014 reauthorization was the first one since 1996. The regulations and law instituted new
On Thursday February 7, the House Energy and Commerce Committee held their first hearing in the 116th Congress on family separation policies in regard to immigration enforcement. According to testimony from the Inspector General’s Office at HHS, Ann Maxwell, “…the total number of children separated from a parent or guardian by U.S. immigration authorities and
Shaquita Ogletree CWLA has joined a number of organizations signing onto a letter urging Congress to reauthorize H.R. 494, The Tiffany Joslyn Juvenile Accountability Block Grant (JABG) Program. The letter circulated by the National Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Coalition (NJJDPC) and can be read here. The JABG program reduces juvenile offending through a range
Jay Williams On Wednesday, January 30, Senator Mike Enzi (R-WY) reintroduced the Child Welfare Provider Inclusion Act (S.274), similar to legislation he sponsored along with Congressman Mike Kelly (R-PA) last year. The legislation, which CWLA does not support, would require HHS to penalize state child welfare agencies who are found in violation of “provider inclusion”
Building on efforts such as the Enzi legislation, a report in the Washington Post last week says that the President’s coming FY 2020 budget will request language to expand its authority to allow discrimination on the basis of religious beliefs. The Post article states “In a 2020 draft budget request that has not been made
Last week, H.R. 507, the Put Trafficking Victims First Act, sponsored by Congressperson Karen Bass (D-CA) passed the House of Representatives by a near unanimous margin. The legislation addresses a need for expanded victim services, improved data-gathering on the prevalence and trends in human trafficking, and effective mechanisms to identify and work with victims in
Most of January was occupied by the government shutdown and reorganization of a new Congress but as a result of the government shutdown initial legislative action including committee meetings and oversight were delayed. That began to change last week. Both houses began to hold hearings on key health care issues. The House Ways and Means
Kylie Hunter On January 29, the Committee for Children, Futures Without Violence, and the National Children’s Alliance held a congressional briefing to discuss strategies to prevent child sexual abuse. Panelist consisted of Delegate C.T. Wilson, Maryland; Deborah Chosewood, Georgia’s Division of Family and Children Services; Dr. James Mercy, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC);
Last week the House Budget Committee held their first hearing and opportunity to look at the FY 2020 horizon. The Administration has formally announced it will delay the release of the proposed Fiscal Year 2020 budget beyond this Monday’s required deadline. They have not given a date but the government shutdown of last month means
While there was a slowdown in action on health care in Washington due to the shutdown there were some debates taking place in some states as far as the Affordable Care Act. In Idaho opponents to expanding Medicaid coverage under the ACA went to the state Supreme Court to overturn a 2018 voter initiative that