Legislation

CAPTA Hearing in House, Approps Letter Circulates

  On Tuesday, March 26, the Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Human Services of the House Education and Labor Committee will hold a hearing on the reauthorization of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA). The hearing entitled, Strengthening Prevention and Treatment of Child Abuse and Neglect, is expected to focus on the historic

Administration Releases Details of Budget

  Congress was out of town last week, but the Administration did send up their detailed recommendations on their proposed 2020 budget. The CWLA budget summary can be found here with the budget chart found here. Behind the broad details of spending cuts of approximately 10 percent for the non-Defense Department discretionary (annually appropriated) funding,

Update and Action on the Violence Against Women Act

Shaquita Ogletree Earlier this month, House Judiciary Crime Subcommittee Chairwoman Karen Bass (D-CA-37) and Representative Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA-1) introduced H.R.1585, the bipartisan Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2019. H.R. 1585 reauthorizes the bill that includes enhancements that address gaps identified by victims and survivors of domestic and sexual violence, as well as varies disciplines

Juvenile Criminal Justice Records

Shaquita Ogletree   On March 20, the Brookings Institute convened a panel of experts to assess the state of play on juvenile criminal justice records policy. While the juvenile justice system has recently undergone a wave of progressive reforms focused on creating pathways to re-entry, there remains an uneven treatment of juvenile records that make

Davis and Lewis Ask for HHS Response on South Carolina Placement Waiver

Ways & Means Oversight Subcommittee Chairman John Lewis (D-GA) and Worker and Family Support Subcommittee Chairman Danny K. Davis (D-IL) sent a letter to two the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) officials regarding an HHS waiver that exempts organizations from federal foster care religious non-discrimination rules under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA).

Budget Repeats Unsuccessful Cuts and Ideas

The President’s budget, with greater detail later today or this week does reveal enough to demonstrate that the Administration is going a third round on some past budget cuts that went nowhere in a Congress run by his own party. The general descriptions provided included in the Budget for a Better America outline, proposes cuts

No Small Matter

Shaquita Ogletree On Thursday, March 13, America Forward and its network partners, National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), Save the Children Action Network, and the Annie E. Casey Foundation, hosted an event that explored early childhood education and the importance of the first five years in a child's life. Ranking Member of

Immigration Bill Introduced

The DREAM and Promise Act was introduced on Tuesday, March 12 by Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA), with Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), and Congresswoman Yvette Clarke (D-NY) as the lead sponsors out of a total of 202 cosponsors. It takes 218 votes to pass the House. The bill addresses two issues: the fate of young people

Senators Oppose Waiver to South Carolina on Child Welfare Recruitment

A group of 40 senators sent a letter to Health and Human Secretary Alex Azar on Wednesday, March 13, condemning the recent decision by HHS to grant a religious exemption from federal nondiscrimination laws and regulations for state-contracted child welfare agencies in South Carolina. Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden, D-OR, Senator Dianne Feinstein

Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Voted Out of Committee

On Wednesday, March 13, the House Judiciary Committee approved a reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), HR 1585. The legislation, sponsored by Congressperson Karen Bass (D-CA) would reauthorize the historic law that was created as part of the 1994 crime bill. Democrats had sought more specific improvements to the law rather than a

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