House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) announced the House would vote on its legislation to reauthorize the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), HR 3921. That announcement drew the ire of minority Democrats. Funding for CHIP expired on September 30, and the health coverage of nearly 9 million is currently at risk. In fact Congressman McCarthy held
Patty Murray joined the leaders of education unions on Tuesday to call on Congress to pass the DREAM Act, S. 1615. The bill would offer a pathway to lawful permanent residency for an estimated 1.7 million so-called DREAMers, according to a recent analysis by the non-partisan Migration Policy Institute. The DREAM Act would provide the
On Tuesday Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) introduced a new bill, S. 1964, the Child Welfare Oversight and Accountability Act of 2017. Its basic features are a de-link of Title IV-E kinship/subsidized guardianship from the AFDC eligibility, create a different and more flexible kinship care licensing standard for kinship
On Wednesday, September 13, the President and Democratic leaders appeared to line up on a deal that would restore protections for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) children and youth. The initial description indicated the DACA protections would go hand and hand with greater security funding but no wall against Mexico funding. Within hours however
On September 5, the Trump Administration announced the eventual elimination of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival or DACA. The official announcement was delivered by Attorney General Jeff Sessions. It begins another “repeal and replace” debate but this time the President can repeal all on his own. DACA allows an undocumented young person brought into
Congress is back and the list of priorities have grown due to Hurricane Harvey. That list may have become easier or more difficult because of the need for more disaster relief. That all remains to be seen. There are currently 12 working days when both houses are in session before the end of September and
The Senate cut short their extended work schedule on Thursday when they finished work on several nominations including some from HHS. They will be out until after Labor Day. When Congress returns in September they will have a long list of items many that must be addressed by the end of the month or at
HHS through the Office of Planning Research and Evaluation (OPRE) has released a report that takes a closer look at Child and Family Transitions among Families Experiencing Homelessness. It’s the fourth in a series of studies that uses HUD-funded Family Options Study data to look at families’ experiences in the 20 months following a shelter
The Dream Act of 2017 has been introduced in the Senate by Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC). Called the United We Dream Act, it would offer a route to permanent legal status for millions of undocumented immigrant youth. The bill comes as ten Attorneys General sent a letter to Donald Trump
Late on the evening of Thursday, June 15, the Secretary of Homeland Security announced what appeared to be an extension of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). Reacting to some news reports, the Administration later said they had not made a final decision on DACA but wanted to clarify their policy in another immigration