The two budget committees are expected to act on a budget resolution this week. The House Budget Committee will meet on Wednesday and likely act all in one day. The Senate Budget Committee will meet on Wednesday and Thursday. A budget resolution is supposed to be jointly approved by the House and Senate to have
On Tuesday, the House, absent much debate, passed an appropriations bill that will fund the Department of Homeland Security through the rest of the fiscal year. The action to adopt a “clean” bill—without any restrictions on the President’s executive order regarding immigration—was adopted 257 to 167 with Democrats providing the bulk of the vote (182
A report by the Inspector General (IG) for HHS indicates that children in foster care are not receiving required health screenings. The report comes after a November 2014 IG report that found that there were significant shortfalls in health screening for all children enrolled in Medicaid. The new report, Not All Children in Foster Care
The Senate HELP Committee continues its discussions of a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). Reports are that HELP Committee Chair Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN) would like a vote by April but the Senate will be out of session from March 28 through April 12 so in a best case scenario they
After a back in forth in strategy that saw the House reject a “clean Homeland Security funding bill” that would have provided funding through the end of the fiscal year without conditions regarding immigration, the Congress instead extended funding through this week. It is unclear what will happen next but there is a potential deal
On Tuesday February 24, the Senate Judiciary Committee considered the issue of human trafficking and two bills that approach the issue beyond what was debated within child welfare in 2014 through amendments to child welfare law. Under the hearing title, Human Trafficking in the United States: Protecting the Victim, senators focused attention on providing services,
On February 25 the Bureau of Indian affairs in the Interior Department issued new guidelines and regulations regarding the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). The guidelines are the first update since 1979 shortly after the law was enacted by Congress. These updated guidelines are intended to provide procedures and best practices for use in Indian
On February 20, the Administration for Children and Families issues new guidance on the intersection between child welfare requirements and immigration enforcement. The guidance (ACYF-CB-IM-15-02) comes via an Information Memorandum and offers resources and advice on case planning and service delivery for families and children with parents or legal guardians who are either detained or
Congress returns this week through the end of next month. Front and center will be the expiration of funding for the Department of Homeland Security. Funding will expire at the end of this month if the Congress can’t come up with a deal to extend it. The House bill would tie any funding to provisions
Some in Washington are advocating the elimination of SSBG as a way to fund child welfare services. The theory is that eliminating the $1.7 billion in SSBG dollars might free up some funds for child welfare and perhaps also cut federal spending at the same time. Such calculations however ignore the fact that SSBG funds
