On November 17, the Senate gave final approval to a reauthorization of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 2014 by a vote of 96 to 2. The vote represented the first time the law had been reauthorized since 1996 when it was extended and adopted as part of that year’s creation of
Congressional leaders are still unsettled on a strategy for funding the government for the rest of FY 2015 but the House leadership has set a start date for the 114th Congress. Current year funding is running out on December 11, and while it was hoped Congress would adopt funding for the rest of the fiscal
On November 4, the Children’s Bureau (CB) and the Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB) released ACYF-CB/FYSB-IM-14-1, an informational memorandum that provides oversight and guidance on youth who run from foster care and come in contact with runaway and homeless youth programs. Noting that youth age 12 through 17 move between the two federally funded
At an event that took place on Wednesday, November 12 the adoption advocacy group Voice for Adoption launched their 10th annual Adoptive Family Portrait Project. The annual Capitol Hill event honors families formed through adoption from foster care. To launch the project, family photos and adoption stories are displayed at a reception. During the Month, participating members
The United States Congress returns this week after Veterans Day, for the first time since late September. Last week’s election set the stage for a new power structure which will have a great deal of influence on what this Congress does in the remaining weeks of 113th Congress. One of the first orders of business
When the new 114th Congress starts up on January 3, there will be at least 52 and possibly 54 Senate Republicans in the majority. On the House side Republicans may have at least 243 pending more than a dozen races where votes were still being counted. They went into the election with 233 seats. In
Following up on the President’s proclamation in recognition of November as National Adoption Month As part of Adoption Month, You Gotta Believe a New York City-based adoption organization has released this video regarding the adoption of older youth from foster care. In addition the Every Child Deserves a Family Coalition, is encouraging organizations to highlight
President Obama has issued a presidential proclamation recognizing November as National Caregivers Month. In the proclamation the President said, “Each day, courageous individuals step forward to help care for family members in need, their quiet acts of selflessness and sacrifice telling a story of love and devotion. Across our country, parents and children, siblings and
This week (Wednesday, October 29) the White House announced they will be holding a Summit on Early Childhood Education. President Obama will host the White House Summit that will include a broad coalition of philanthropic, business, education, advocacy and elected leaders, as well as other stakeholders who are committed to expanding access to high-quality early education.
Last week Voice for Adoption with the National Foster Care Coalition released a paper, Federal Policymakers Strengthen Law to Account for Adoption Assistance "De--‐link" Savings that outlines the changes Congress enacted recently to strengthen the requirement that states reinvest into child welfare services any state savings resulting from the expanding adoption assistance program. The issue
