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Contrary To Claims by Its Supporters, the Congressional Budget Plan Increases
the Deficit
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities reports that proponents of the
conference report on the Congressional budget resolution recently adopted
by the House and Senate have claimed that the resolution reduces the deficit
over the next five years. They have used this purported "deficit reduction"
to justify the resolution's $35 billion in entitlement cuts over five years
and $212 billion reduction in funding for annually appropriated (discretionary)
domestic programs over that same. But the claim that the budget resolution
reduces the deficit is baseless. In fact, the budget resolution increases
the deficit by $168 billion over five years.
http://www.cbpp.org/4-29-05bud.htm
Congressional Negotiators Brokered a Conference Agreement on the FY 2006
Budget Resolution
The president of FRAC issued a statement on the FY 2006 budget resolution.
"The Food Research and Action Center is deeply disappointed that the
Congress is passing a budget resolution that in all likelihood will cut food
stamps for needy families with children and increase hunger in this country,
at the same time that it reduces taxes for the very affluent and increases
the deficit. Feeding hungry American children didn't cause the deficit and
cutting back on the help they get will not solve it."
http://www.frac.org/Press_Release/04.29.05.html
Conference Agreement on the FY 2006 Budget Resolution – PDF:
http://www.house.gov/rules/109hconres95text.pdf
NACHC Statement on Congressional Passage of Fiscal 2006 Budget Resolution
Following is a statement, in part, from the National Association of Community
Health Centers (NACHC) vice president for federal, state, and public affairs,
on Congressional passage the of Fiscal 2006 Budget Resolution: "The
budget approved by Congress yesterday calls for a $10 billion reduction in
Medicaid spending over five years. While health centers are acutely aware
of the challenges faced by the program, these reductions may have tremendous
consequences for the millions served by the program, and also on the providers
who deliver their care, unless the Congress is extremely careful during the
budget reconciliation process…”
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=162-04292005&site=rss
Marian Wright Edelman Statement on Passage of the 2006 Budget Resolution
The Children's Defense Fund Founder and CEO issued a statement in response
to passage of the 2006 Budget Resolution by both chambers of Congress. "This
Budget Resolution unjustly hurts our children and grandchildren by lavishing
billions in new tax breaks on the wealthy even as it forces major cuts in
critical investments that low-income children need to survive and thrive…”
http://www.childrensdefense.org/pressreleases/050429.aspx
Statement:
Medicaid Budget Cuts Will Cause Harm to America's Low-Income Seniors and Children
The following is, in part, a statement from the Executive Director of Families
USA about the Medicaid budget cuts. “The proposed $10 billion in Medicaid
cutbacks will not only shift huge financial burdens to the states and cause
health care cutbacks for America’s seniors and children, but it nullifies
the crucial principles adopted by the Senate last month and by the House earlier
this week. On March 17 the Senate voted that Medicaid budget changes should
not be arbitrarily decided but, rather, should only occur after a bipartisan
commission has the opportunity to determine the program’s future directions.
The House adopted a similar resolution on April 26. This agreement, however,
places the cart before the horse by arbitrarily agreeing to large Medicaid
cutbacks, even though a commission has not yet been appointed.
http://www.familiesusa.org/site/PageServer?pagename=Media_Statement_Medicaid_Budget_Cuts_04_28_05
**Children, Youth & Families
Grandparent at Home Buffers Single-Parenthood
According to a new study by a researcher at Cornell, having a grandparent
in the home appears to buffer some of the potential negative effects on children
of living in a single-parent home. The researcher found that living with
a single mother is linked to significant declines in academic achievement.
In contrast, the test scores of children who live in single-mother families
that also contain a grandparent do not significantly differ from children
in married-couple families.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-05/cuns-gah050205.php
National Partnership: Expecting Better - State-by-State Analysis of Family
Leave Programs
According to the National Partnership for Women and Families, it’s a shock
to many expecting and new parents, and financially devastating to some. In
a nation in which lawmakers and business leaders talk often and easily about
valuing children and families, programs that provide paid maternity and paternity
leave are rare. Most Americans have no paid leave for prenatal care, no paid
leave when a baby is born, and no paid leave to bond with and care for a precious
new life. The failure to provide paid parental leave adds financial pressure
– in some cases, distress – to millions of families at what should be one
of the happiest times of their lives.
PDF: http://www.nationalpartnership.org/portals/p3/library/PaidLeave/ParentalLeaveReportMay05.pdf
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39 Teen Parents Graduate from Intensive 5-Year Program Aimed at Preventing
Child Abuse, Neglect
For many years, Metropolitan Family Services has been helping low-income
and teen parents-the two groups most at-risk for child abuse or neglect-raise
healthy happy babies. Metropolitan Family Services honored 39 of those parents
as it celebrates their graduation from the Healthy Families program. These
moms and dads completed 5 intense years of home visits and group education
sessions from pregnancy through their child's 5th birthday, where they learned
prenatal care, child development and parenting skills.
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=46694
Researchers Tested Drugs on Foster Kids
Government-funded researchers tested AIDS drugs on hundreds of foster children
over the past two decades, often without providing them a basic protection
afforded in federal law and required by some states, an Associated Press review
has found. The practice ensured that foster children — mostly poor or minority
— received care from world-class researchers at government expense, slowing
their rate of death and extending their lives. But it also exposed a vulnerable
population to the risks of medical research and drugs that were known to have
serious side effects in adults and for which the safety for children was unknown.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http:/news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050505/ap_on_he_me/aids_foster_kids
**Community Development
Credit Where It Counts:
Maintaining a Strong Community Reinvestment Act
A policy brief from Brookings argues that recent regulatory proposals to
curtail the scope of the Community Reinvestment Act should be withdrawn or
significantly modified. The Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) has helped to
revitalize low- and moderate income communities and provided expanded opportunities
for low- and moderate income households. Recent regulatory steps aimed at
alleviating burdens on banks and thrifts are unwarranted, and may diminish
small business lending as well as community development investments and services.
http://www.brookings.org/metro/pubs/20050503_cra.htm
Newly Proposed Housing Legislation Would Leave Public Housing Agencies
Vulnerable To Substantial Funding Cuts and Shifting HUD Mandates
According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities,
the State and Local Housing Flexibility Act of 2005, proposed by HUD and introduced
in Congress in April, would make sweeping changes in federal housing policy.
Among other things, the proposed legislation would convert the Section 8 housing
voucher program into a block grant, eliminate the requirement that rents be
affordable to public housing residents and voucher-holders, and give HUD authority
to waive virtually any statutory provision under an expanded "Moving
to Work" (MTW) program.
http://www.cbpp.org/5-3-05hous.htm
U.S. Secretary of Labor Announces $125 Million Grant Competition for the
Community-Based Job Training Grants
The Department of Labor announced the competition for the first $125 million
to be awarded through the Community-Based Job Training Grants. The Grants
will support workforce training for high growth industries through the nation’s
community and technical colleges. Their primary purpose is to build community
colleges’ capacity to equip workers with the skills required to succeed in
local industries. Training will prepare workers for jobs that are expected
to experience high growth and industries where demand for qualified workers
is outstripping supply.
http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/opa/OPA20050730.htm
HHS Announces $31,900,000 from Compassion Capital Fund
The Department of Health and Human Services announced that $31,900,000 is
available from the Compassion Capital Fund (CCF). The funds are designed
to help faith-based and community groups build capacity and serve those in
need. The announcement consists of two sets of funds. The first set of $16.9
million is available to up to 17 intermediary organizations to serve as a
bridge between the federal government and faith-based and community organizations.
The second set of $15 million is available to 300 faith-based and community
organizations for capacity building, to address the needs of at-risk youth,
and the homeless, to provide voluntary marriage education and preparation
services, and to offer social services to those living in rural communities.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2005pres/20050429.html
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Get more information on these issues at http://www.ecommunityissues.com.
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**Economic Security
U.S. Poverty Basics
The Catholic Campaign for Human Development has released an interactive website
which serves as a primer on poverty in the United States. The website includes
state, city, and county top ten lists for poverty, child poverty and low income
uninsured children; multimedia galleries; interactive maps; quizzes; and an
educational K-12 center. The site also contains links about advocacy, education
and participation with community groups.
http://www.usccb.org/cchd/povertyusa/
Social Security
Lifts 1 Million Children Above The Poverty Line
According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a little-known aspect
of the Social Security program is its powerful role in providing income security
for children. Census Bureau data show that 5.3 million children lived in
families that received income from Social Security in 2002. Many of these
children qualified themselves for Social Security payments because they were
the survivor or dependent of a deceased, disabled, or retired worker who qualified
for Social Security. Other children do not receive payments themselves but
live in families where someone receives Social Security.
http://www.cbpp.org/5-2-05socsec.htm
How Have Households with Children Fared in the Job Market Downturn?
According to The Urban Institute, during
and following 2001's recession families with children experienced a significant
decline in employment rates and income. These reductions in full-time employment
and income increased the incidence of poverty in homes with children, especially
those headed by single adults. However, safety net programs for working families,
such as unemployment insurance, were less effective in aiding single-adult
and low-income families than other types of households.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/ViewPublication.cfm&PublicationID=9255
Bush: Rein in Social Security
President Bush endorsed for the first time Thursday a Social Security plan
that would slow future increases in benefits for middle- and upper-income
workers. The move, an effort to keep the system solvent, comes as the public
and many in Congress are balking at Bush's plan to allow younger workers to
invest part of their payroll taxes in stocks and bonds.
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/usatoday/20050429/ts_usatoday/bushreininsocialsecurity
What You Might Not Have Learned about the President's Social Security
Plan
According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, because Social Security
reform is a complex issue, and because some of the President’s remarks in
his April 28 press conference left room for misinterpretation, viewers of
the press conference may have been left with an inaccurate impression of the
President’s Social Security proposals. The President’s plan would cut Social
Security benefits for anyone born after 1950 who earns more than about $20,000.
http://www.cbpp.org/policy-points4-29-05.htm
**Education
Measuring the Effects of Teachers and Schools on Student Performance
According to research from RAND, if teachers and schools are to be held accountable
for their students' performance, strategies for measuring the impact of their
work must be refined, or the uncertainties of these measurements must be taken
into account.
http://www.rand.org/publications/RB/RB9050/
Full Document: http://www.rand.org/publications/MG/MG158/index.html
Many Pre-Kindergarten Teachers Underpaid
According to a report from the National Pre-kindergarten Study, seven out
of ten teachers in state-funded pre-kindergarten programs earn salaries in
the low-income category and one in six works a second job to make ends meet.
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=111-05032005&site=rss
Finding the Right Hook: Strategies for Attracting and Sustaining Participation
in After-School Programs
Based on more than 60 recent evaluations of out-of-school programs, the Harvard
Family Research Project has identified recruitment and retention strategies
especially relevant to school leaders. The authors, both affiliated with the
project, point to strategies for attracting and sustaining participation in
after-school programs.
http://www.aasa.org/publications/sa/2005_05/lauver.htm
Opening
Doors to Earning Credentials: Opening Doors Update
MDRC has launched an ambitious demonstration initiative called Opening Doors
that is designed to help nontraditional students — at-risk youth, low-wage
working parents, and unemployed individuals — earn college credentials as
the pathway to better jobs and further education. The project is geared to
address two vexing problems for nontraditional students: their high attrition
rates and the long time it takes them to complete community college programs.
PDF: http://www.mdrc.org/publications/opening_doors_proj_update_2005.pdf
**Health
Preventive Care for Young Children: Problems and Solutions
A new report from the Commonwealth Fund reveals that just 57 percent of parents
with young children report ever discussing their child's development with
a pediatrician. Its authors call for national standards for preventive care,
enhanced reimbursement, better provider training, and parent education.
http://www.cmwf.org/publications/publications_show.htm?doc_id=275484
Parents Who Don't Vaccinate their Children May Believe Vaccines Cause
Harm
According to an article in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine,
concern that vaccines might cause harm was the most common reason given by
parents who choose not to have their children vaccinated for preventable diseases.
The number of parents of school-age children claiming non-medical exemptions
from vaccination requirements has been increasing for the last decade in a
number of states.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-05/jaaj-pwd042805.php
Uninsured Americans with Chronic Health Conditions
A study from The Urban Institute examines
how uninsured adults with chronic health problems are faring in terms of several
measures that may indicate that access to care is compromised. The study finds
that almost half of uninsured adults with chronic conditions forgo needed
medical care or prescription drugs, due to cost and that they forgo care at
much higher rates than their insured counterparts.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/ViewPublication.cfm&PublicationID=9254
More Young Adults Lack Health Insurance
According to research from the Commonwealth Fund, more than 13 million young
adults ages 19 to 29 lacked health insurance coverage in 2003, an increase
of 2.2 million since 2000. A new report suggests that three policy changes
could extend coverage to uninsured young adults and prevent others from losing
it.
http://www.cmwf.org/publications/publications_show.htm?doc_id=275323
New and Updated Medicare Fact Sheets
The Kaiser Family Foundation has issued
four new and updated fact sheets highlighting key facts and the latest statistics
about the Medicare program. These fact sheets -- Medicare at a Glance, The
Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit, Medicare Spending and Financing, and Medicare
Advantage -- are available online.
http://www.kff.org/medicare/factsheets.cfm
**Hunger and Nutrition
New Institute of Medicine Report on the WIC
Food Packages
The final report of the Institute of Medicine Committee to Review the WIC
Food Packages was issued on April 27th. It offers a comprehensive set of recommendations
for improving the WIC food packages. The WIC program serves approximately
8 million women, infants and children each month. This important program provides
nutrition education, referrals to health care and a nutritious package of
foods. Research has shown that the WIC program helps to reduce low-birth weights,
decrease the incidence of iron deficiency anemia in children, prevent overweight
in children, and improve the growth of at-risk infants and children.
http://www.frac.org/Press_Release/05.02.05.html
**Substance Abuse
Prenatal Cocaine Exposure Exerts Subtle effects on Schoolchildren
University of Florida researchers report, children exposed to cocaine before
birth show subtle but discernible differences in their ability to plan and
problem-solve once they reach school age. Still, most fare far better in
the first few years after birth than many experts once predicted.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-04/uof-pce042905.php
DOJ Awards $32.6 Million for Prisoner Drug Treatment
The Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs has awarded $32.6 million
nationwide for alcohol and other drug abuse treatment services for inmates
through its Residential Substance Abuse Treatment Program.
http://www.jointogether.org/saredirect/?Object_ID=576833&ID=saFunding
Website Encourages Hiring of Recovering Addicts and Ex-offenders
The founder of a Houston manufacturing company has created a Website to help
small business owners hire ex-offenders and those in recovery from substance
abuse. The web project, named America in Recovery,
matches applicants' resumes with the small business owners looking to hire
those termed "America's unemployables."
http://www.jointogether.org/sa/action/dt/news/reader/0%2C2812%2C576848%2C00.html
Substance Abuse Policy Research Program Grants
Up to $3.5 million in funding is available for round 10 of the Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation's Substance Abuse Policy Research Program. Two types of
funding are available under the program: $100,000-to-$400,000 special solicitation
grants that focus on critical and timely research topics to influence public
policy; and under-$100,000 grants for open topics on alcohol and other drug-abuse
policy.
http://www.jointogether.org/sa/news/funding/reader/0%2C1854%2C576835%2C00.html
