There was little progress to report in regard to the passage of the Family First Prevention Services Act, (HR 5456, Conference Report 114-628). Its only path forward would appear to be a voice vote in the Senate with perhaps some assurances from sponsors and other parties to interpret the legislation in a way that will
During the summer break Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) and their offices reached out through a conference calls to supporters and other stakeholders encouraging them to promote the bill while Congress was out of session. Also holding webinars along with power point presentations were a coalition of California groups including state,
Some critics of the Families First Prevention Services Act have recently argued that the proposed bill does not truly provide prevention services. In part this depends on how the individual defines prevention. CWLA views the Families First Act as providing an important part of the child welfare continuum, intervention services that can prevent placement into
The two Title IV-B programs along with the adoption and kinship incentive fund expire on October 1, 2016 and so they need to be reauthorized either through the Families First Act or or another measure which could include a short term extensions included any CR. A CR however may just extend the program for a
More than 550 attendees at the CWLA Conference were welcomed by opening remarks of Commissioner Rafael Lopez, Administration on Children, Youth and Families (ACYF), HHS. Lopez offered praise to the many participants made up of state and local agencies and service providers. In his first day comments he said that what was most important and
Talking about the need for greater access to needed services for families, on both Monday and Tuesday’s plenary sessions Commissioner Rafael Lopez noted the significance of the Family First Prevention Services Act, (HR 5456) (Conference Report 114-628). Lopez highlighted in his Tuesday luncheon remarks how the current opioid crisis is not new but just different
CWLA submitted comments to the Department of Education on proposed regulations of the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) before the due date of Monday, August 1. The Proposed regulations, which garnered more than 20,000 comments, implement Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), focused generally on the broader accountability requirements in ESSA but in
The final conference report on the “CARA” legislation includes changes under nine titles. Its emphasis, unlike past anti-drug initiatives, is more on prevention and treatment. It is a distance from some of the efforts of the 1980s when crack-cocaine was attracting all the attention in regard to substance use. Actions then and into the 1990s
Wait Until September Congress left last week to start one of their longest summer breaks in decades. As they departed they were unable to get final action on the Family First Prevention Services Act, (HR 5456) (Conference Report 114-628). The legislation has been endorsed by CWLA. All week long, bill sponsors had attempted to reach
On Tuesday, the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (CCAI) held their annual unveiling of their policy report. The report and the panel of speakers are the result of the 2016 CCAI Foster Youth Internship Program® class. The policy report, Powerful Voices: Sharing Our Stories to Reform Child Welfare includes 22 policy recommendation by the 12
