A new Child Trends survey of state child welfare spending shows a slight decrease in funding between 2012 to 2014 with a slightly bigger decrease in federal spending. The survey showed a continued pattern of great variations across the fifty states. A pattern that has existed since the first such surveys provided detail on spending
For the states that raised objections to parts of the Families First Act, specifically California, New York, Texas and Wyoming, the Child Trends survey gives some perspective. California and New York which raised serious concerns over the re-structuring both draw-down and spend significant amounts on child welfare. In 2014 California spent slightly more than $4
There was no vote on the Family First Prevention Services Act, (HR 5456, Conference Report 114-628) as Congress finished a budget deal last week Wednesday. As a result, the bill still remains in the same place. That means that it could be finished or dead for this Congress. There could be one more run at
September as National Kinship Care Month was celebrated at the Children’s Bureau on Friday, September 30. More than a dozen states have joined onto a national effort to celebrate kin families in the month of September. The Bureau celebration, which was also webcast, including comments by several kinship care givers from several cities including New
There was no news regarding the passage of the Family First Prevention Services Act, (HR 5456, Conference Report 114-628) as time in this session winds down to a pre-election pause. There were on-going discussions regarding potential amendments and verbal or written assurances to fix the legislation but there did not seem to be any clear
On Wednesday, September 14, Congressperson Karen Bass (D-CA) introduced H.Res. 867 recognizing September as National Kinship Care Month. The effort to recognize September as National Kinship Care month has been actively promoted for several years by key leaders for kinship care including the New York State Kinship Navigator program. This year and in the past
There was little progress to report in regard to the passage of the Family First Prevention Services Act, (HR 5456, Conference Report 114-628). Its only path forward would appear to be a voice vote in the Senate with perhaps some assurances from sponsors and other parties to interpret the legislation in a way that will
During the summer break Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) and their offices reached out through a conference calls to supporters and other stakeholders encouraging them to promote the bill while Congress was out of session. Also holding webinars along with power point presentations were a coalition of California groups including state,
Some critics of the Families First Prevention Services Act have recently argued that the proposed bill does not truly provide prevention services. In part this depends on how the individual defines prevention. CWLA views the Families First Act as providing an important part of the child welfare continuum, intervention services that can prevent placement into
Talking about the need for greater access to needed services for families, on both Monday and Tuesday’s plenary sessions Commissioner Rafael Lopez noted the significance of the Family First Prevention Services Act, (HR 5456) (Conference Report 114-628). Lopez highlighted in his Tuesday luncheon remarks how the current opioid crisis is not new but just different