As of the writing of this update, the House of Representatives still has not elected a new Speaker to lead them. As we reported last week, Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy was voted out of the position following his successful bipartisan agreement to avoid a government shutdown. The Continuing Resolution that is currently funding the government
On October 12, 2023, CWLA submitted comments for the record on the Ways and Means Subcommittee hearing on, “Modernizing Child Welfare to Protect Vulnerable Children.” Our comments explained the history and background of the programs in Title IV-B of the Social Security Act and highlighted a number of key areas of focus for a potential
Generations United and the RRF Foundation for Aging released a new report and held a webinar to examine how younger and older people can connect with each other through their program initiative, “Strengthening Cultural Responsiveness in Intergenerational Programs.” They conducted a national survey to highlight the ways organizations combat systemic racism and prioritize the voices
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine released a new report, Reducing Intergenerational Poverty, that examines the drivers of long-term, intergenerational poverty, identifies potential policies and programs to reduce it, and recommends actions to address gaps in data and research. The report identifies possible drivers of intergenerational poverty and lists seven key domains, including
On October 11, 2023, the Children’s Bureau released a new Program Instruction regarding the new finalized rule that allows states to create a separate licensing standard for relative or kinship foster family homes. This Program Instruction provides instructions for title IV-E agencies that opt to adopt licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster
On October 3rd, 2023, the House of Representatives removed Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) from his position of Speaker of the House, marking the first time in history that a Speaker has been voted out. Eight Republicans led the effort and were joined by the House Democrats. Representative Patrick McHenry (R-NC) was appointed as Speaker Pro Tempore,
The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Institute for Research on Poverty hosted a webinar on October 4, 2023, entitled “Ensuring Access to High-Quality, Affordable Care and Education for Low-Income Families”. Panelists Julia Henly from the University of Chicago’s Crown Family School of Social Work, Yoonsook Ha from Boston University’s School of Social Work, and Gina Adams from
A new Child Trends brief from Drs. Tyreasa Washington and Brittany P. Michalec-Adkins studied children in out of home care (OOHC) and found that children in kinship care performed better academically than children in non-relative foster care. Children placed with kin tend to have better academic, behavioral, and mental health outcomes, and an increased sense
The Human Rights Campaign Foundation released their 2023 School Discipline and School to Prison Pipeline Report as part of Project THRIVE. This report focuses on data from a survey of LGBTQ+ youth in 2022. The report finds that in-school suspension and expulsion increases the likelihood of incarceration by 128%, and specifically targets and disproportionately impacts
After several weeks without making significant progress on a deal to keep the government running, Congress passed a bipartisan continuing resolution (CR) on Saturday, September 30, 2023, just hours before the end of the fiscal year. For much of last week, the House and the Senate were on two different paths. House Republicans were unable
