Pandemic-related expansions of some nutrition programs were extended through an announcement by the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Tuesday, April 20, 2021. The announcement extended some child nutrition nationwide waivers and flexibilities for schools and child care through the next school year of 2021–2022. The continuation of the nutrition program waivers means that schools will be
On Thursday, April 22, 2021, Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee and Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03), Chair of the House Education and Labor Committee, re-introduced the Child Care for Working Families Act. The legislation, which CWLA has endorsed, would create a comprehensive child care
On Wednesday, April 21, 2021, the House Ways and Means Committee held a hearing entitled ‘In Their Own Words: Paid Leave, Child Care, And An Economy That Failed Women.’ The hearing showcased stories of struggles experienced by working moms before and during the pandemic. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA) began
On Thursday, April 22, 2021, Zero to Three held the State of Babies Summit to release the State of Babies Yearbook: 2021, which shows that even before the economic and social fallout of COVID-19, the babies of our nation did not have the supports needed to thrive. The pandemic has only further exacerbated disparities that affect
Last year, CWLA joined hundreds of organizations to engage in the vitally important and difficult task of helping households who don't usually file a tax return get their stimulus checks. According to the U.S. Treasury, about 8 million eligible families have not received the first stimulus check. Today, those eligible people haven't gotten their
A Way Home America is a national initiative to build the movement to prevent and end homelessness among young people. The New Deal to End Youth Homelessness is a federal policy proposal that offers a roadmap to transform how young people, particularly Black, Brown, Indigenous, and LGBTQ young people, are supported in our society. The
On Thursday, April 15, 2021, the House Subcommittee on Appropriations for the departments of Labor-HHS-Education heard testimony from the new HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. The testimony builds on the previous week's White House overview of the FY 2022 appropriations. The House focused several Thursday hearings on the FY 2022 appropriations meaning we are now in the full
On Tuesday, April 13, 2021, the U.S. Senate Finance Committee hearing, the 2021 Filing Season and 21st Century IRS called IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig to testify on the 2021 tax filing season. His comments included positive news on the Child Tax Credit. (CTC) Chairman Ron Wyden's (D-OR) opening statement emphasized that 2021 is not a typical
On Thursday, April 15, 2021, the Biden Administration announced the release of $39 billion in child care funding resulting from the March passage of the American Rescue Plan. The allocations for the states found here are divided between $14.9 billion in flexible funds and $23.9 billion in stabilization funding. They also announced that they would provide guidance to
Last week two organizations released a new study, “A Lifetimes Worth of Benefits,” a report that details the effects of quality child care on family income, the gender gap, and women’s retirement security. The report, authored by the National Women’s Law Center and the Center on Poverty and Social Policy at Columbia University, analyzed the
