Committees Addressing Infant and Toddler Issues in the 111^th Congress

The 111^th Congress is off to a running start and is taking action on many issues that impact infants, toddlers, and their families. With many new faces in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, the Congressional committees look very different than they did last year! Use this updated advocacy tool to learn about the Congressional committees and subcommittees addressing infant and toddler issues. Be sure to find the committees on which your members of Congress sit and take note of the issues that are within their jurisdiction.

Download the March Advocacy Developmental Milestone Calendar!

During the month of March, help to ensure that infants and toddlers are a focus for your State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care, mandated by the 2007 reauthorization of Head Start. Identify the designated Council in your state and send them a copy of ZERO TO THREE’S new paper, A Focus on Infants and Toddlers in State Advisory Councils. Download the March calendar now!

Federal Policy Update

Last week, the President signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The $787 billion package creates jobs, offers tax relief to individuals and businesses, and invests in infrastructure as well as children and families. In particular, the package provides for significant new investments for early childhood programs, including Head Start and Early Head Start, the Child Care and Development Block Grant, Part C early intervention services for infants and toddlers, and several other important education programs. For more information, please see our analysis of the early care and education provisions of the Act. In addition, for a breakdown of categorical spending, timelines, and the full text of the Act, please see http://capwiz.com/zerotothree/utr/0/?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.recovery.gov. Action will now move to implementation in order to get funding flowing quickly.

In other news, this week, Congress is set to complete work on an omnibus spending bill for Fiscal Year 2009, which began on October 1, 2008. Since that time, most federal programs have been running at current funding levels through a Continuing Resolution, which is set to expire on March 6^th. Meanwhile, the President is scheduled to release a broad outline of his Fiscal Year 2010 budget this week, with a detailed budget expected in late March or early April.

State Policy Update

Ohio Governor Proposes Comprehensive Plans for Early Childhood Development
On February 2^nd, Governor Ted Strickland released an executive budget that continues to fulfill his commitment to give all Ohio children a fair start. Building on the creation of the Early Childhood Cabinet in March 2007, and the Early Childhood Advisory Council in August 2008, the State Fiscal Year 2010-2011 budget aims to align state policy and coordinate resources to facilitate the improvement of the state's system for early childhood development. Specifically, the budget proposes policy changes that will streamline service delivery for: early care and education; health, mental health, and nutrition; special needs and early intervention; and family supports. To learn more about the changes proposed in Governor Strickland's executive budget, read the full state policy update now!

Publications & Resources

Launch of the National Quality Improvement Center on Early Childhood
The Children's Bureau at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is supporting the launch of a new National Quality Improvement Center on Early Childhood (QIC-EC) to focus on supporting research on maltreatment prevention. The QIC-EC includes ZERO TO THREE as one of 3 partners, along with Center for the Study of Social Policy and the National Alliance of Children's Trust and Prevention Funds. ZERO TO THREE is coordinating a Learning Network for the QIC-EC which will meet periodically via webinar. Contact Betty Johnson to join the Learning Network and participate in the February 27th webinar. For further information on the QIC-EC, please read the press release.

New Brief on Budgeting for Basic Needs
A new brief from the National Center for Children in Poverty, Budgeting for Basic Needs: A Struggle for Working Families, examines how much families need in order to make ends meet and acknowledges the many challenges that working families are currently facing. The brief shows that it takes earnings of approximately 1.5 to 3.5 times the official federal poverty level to cover the cost of a family's bare minimum needs. Child care, housing, health care, and transportation are listed as some of the largest costs.

Lessons from the SPARK Initiative
The Education Commission of the States has released a new policy brief, While no one was looking - Community-based solutions to linking early learning and the early grades: Implications for state policy. This brief examines three high-impact approaches used at SPARK (Supporting Partnerships to Assure Ready Kids) sites to aid in bringing the early learning and the K-12 communities together. The brief also offers examples of implementation and policy opportunities related to each of the three approaches.

Implementing Improvements for Children Raised by Grandparents and Other Relatives
New Help for Children Raised by Grandparents and Other Relatives: Questions and Answers About the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008, provides guidance to ensure complete implementation of the improvements in the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act for children being raised by grandparents and other relatives. The report, developed collaboratively by 18 organizations, is a useful guide to advocates and those implementing these new improvements.