| Greetings!
The first week two weeks of the Legislative session flew right by! It was by far the busiest first couple of weeks of session that I have experienced. We have already had a few bills passed by both Chambers and signed by the Governor. These were education bills - Race to the Top and state aid for schools. I expect the session to continue at a fast pace since funnel deadlines have been moved up three weeks.
I finally have some time for an update to all you on what has transpired the last couple of weeks and on what our priorities are for this session - sorry for the wait!
We know that 2010 finds Iowa children at a crossroads. The deepest recession since the Great Depression has eroded state revenues and jeopardizes essential services to Iowa's children. Every Child Counts will advocate for solutions that create a sustainable state budget that meets children's needs. Needless to say, our number one priority for the 2010 legislative session is a balanced and fair approach to Iowa's budget. In addition to this over-arching priority we will advocate for our three policy priority areas:
- Quality Early Care and Education
- Child Well-Being and Development
- Child and Family Economic Success
You can download a printer friendly version of our brochure with our 2010 legislative priorities on our website. If you would like some copies mailed to you, please contact me.
Below you will find a list of bills we are monitoring and are related (positively or negatively)to the three policy priority areas of Every Child Counts.
Until next time ~
Sheila Hansen |
| BILLS |
 Quality Early Care and Education
Subcommittee, Mascher, Baudler, and Berry
HF 2069 - An Act authorizing persons who are relatives, friends, or neighbors to provide child care as unregistered child care home providers under certain circumstances. By Hagenow. Subcommittee, Mascher, Hunter, and Koester
Child Well-Being and Development
HSB 223 - (a bill from last year) A study bill for requiring certain health insurance contracts, policies, or plans to provide coverage for audiological services and hearing aids for children. Subcommittee assigned, T. Olson, Petersen, and Pettengill.
**This bill is in the House Commerce Committee and we need you to contact committee members and ask them to support this bill. There was a very compelling subcommittee held last week with audiologists, pediatricians, speech pathologists and most importantly parents and children in attendance - all in support of the bill. The insurance industry lobbyists also were in attendance expressing their displeasure with the bill, so we need your help! Please email or call committee members ASAP!!
Family Economic Success
Other Bills
SSB 3030 - A study bill for an act concerning state government reorganization and efficiency, making appropriations, establishing fees, establishing criminal penalties, and providing effective and applicability provisions. State Govt. Subcommittee: Appel, Danielson, Feenstra. Companion Bill HSB 565
** This bill passed out of State Government with a huge amendment on 1/20. The amendment is still unavailable online and has not been rolled into a Senate file as of today. The amendment contains language that significantly changes Empowerment. Last summer Community Empowerment went through the Government LEAN process and submitted recommendations for changes/improvements to the Governor.
At the January Iowa Community Empowerment State Board meeting, Molly Kottmeyer, Sr. Policy Analyst in the Governor's office, told the board that the Governor had received the recommendations and agreed to a majority of them. She also announced that he has decided to move Community Empowerment into the Dept of Education. The LEAN team had recommended it remain in the Dept of Management or be moved to the Dept of Public Health. The LEAN team DID NOT recommend it be moved to the Dept of Education. We are still waiting for the actual Governor's bill with this recommendation and others in it.
In the meantime, we have the Senate bill and it does also take into account a lot of the recommendations of the LEAN team except for their recommendation as to where to house Community Empowerment. It also moves Empowerment into the Dept. of Education. We are still waiting for the House amendment with the Empowerment language in it.
Since I can't link you to the bill yet, here are a couple of excerpts:
Creates the "early childhood coordination center" within the Department of Education. The center will serve as a "...work unit of the department to provide a center for facilitation, communication, and coordination for early childhood Iowa activities..." It renames the local boards as Early Childhood Iowa boards.....
"Develop and implement a levels of excellence rating system for use with the state board's designation process for area boards.....the levels of excellence rating system shall utilize a tiered approach for recongnizing the performance of an area board"....
"The designation of an early childhood iowa area boundary and creation of a area board are both subject to the approval of the state board.
a. an area cannot encompass more than four counties
b. the counties encompassing a multicounty area must have contiguous borders.
c. a single county area shall have a minimum population of five thousand, based onthe most recent population estimates"
These are few of the signifcant changes to Empowerment that I pulled from the amendment. |
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| Featured Article |
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Legislative Term of the Week:
CAUCUS STAFF - The employees working for the legislative members of a political party. In each chamber there is a majority party caucus staff and a minority party caucus staff. The caucus staffs help legislators research issues and serve constituents.
Quote of the Week:
"It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something."
Franklin Roosevelt |
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State of the Union Address
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 As a reminder, President Obama is scheduled to give his annual State of the Union Address on Wednesday evening, January 27, 2010. It will be broadcast on the major networks as it usually is and will also be streamed live from the White House website. President Obama is expected to talk about the direction for the Administration and its focus on jobs. In the ensuing days after the speech, we expect that the Administration will release its budget for FY 2011.
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