Resources

  21st CCLC FY23 Sign On Letter HOUSE 4-28-23

We thank you for your continued support of afterschool and summer learning programs, and for your work on behalf of children and working families. We ask that the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Subcommittees ensure that the Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Centers Program remains a vital resource to students and families moving forward.

  FY23 Title IV-A Letter

In order to support a safe and healthy school environment and make sure our students receive a well-rounded education that puts them on a path to success, we must continue to invest in our nation’s schools, educators, and most importantly, our students. For these reasons, we urge Congress to fund the SSAE flexible grant program at $2 billion in FY 2023. Thank you for your 1 of 4 consideration of this request. We look forward to working with you to make sure students in every community are supported to reach their maximum potential.

  CDF urges Congress to increase FY23 funding for WIC

  CDF Urges the Senate to Confirm Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court

As an organization rooted in the civil rights and children’s rights movements, we strongly support Jackson’s nomination and believe that, based on her qualifications, diverse experience, and strong judicial record, she will vigorously protect the rights our children and families have fought tirelessly for and, as a past public defender, bring a unique perspective that is needed to the bench. Her historic and long overdue nomination as the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court will have ripple effects for Black women, youth, and girls around the nation.

  CDF and More than 400 Organizations Call for the Swift Enactment of the Build Back Better Act with a Fully Expanded and Inclusive Child Tax Credit

  The ABC Coalition Calls on the IRS to Continue the Use of a Simplified Filing Tool for Families to Receive the CTC and Other Critical Benefits

CDF and members of the Automatic Benefit for Children (ABC) coalition recommend that the IRS continue to allow families to file taxes using a simplified filing tool to receive the Child Tax Credit (CTC) and other critical benefits. This tool should be available at the beginning of 2022 and on an ongoing basis. A permanent, simplified filing process is a critical component of a comprehensive strategy to ensure that all eligible families access the CTC, and it reaches the families who need it the most.

  CDF Calls on Congress to Extend the USDA’s Waiver Authority to Ensure Child Nutrition Programs Can Continue to Operate

CDF joined other leading child advocacy organizations to call on Congress to further extend USDA’s nationwide waiver authority to September 30, 2022 to give USDA the flexibility needed to respond to the pandemic as well as its aftermath, and to ensure that the federal child nutrition programs continue to operate and provide healthy snacks and meals to students.

  CDF and Nearly 800 Organizations Urge Congress to Include Essential Anti-Hunger and Anti-Poverty Provisions in the Build Back Better Reconciliation Bill

We urge Congress to protect the size and scope of the package and the critical investments that will reduce food insecurity, poverty, and racial disparities and improve nutrition in this country.

  CDF Joins Call to Extend USDA’s Nationwide Waiver Authority to Ensure Child Nutrition Programs Can Continue to Operate

USDA’s authority to provide a nationwide waiver, even if it increases program costs, is set to expire on September 30, 2021. We, the undersigned organizations, ask Congress to extend USDA’s nationwide waiver authority to September 30, 2022 to ensure they have the flexibility needed to respond to the pandemic and ensure that the federal child nutrition programs continue to operate and provide healthy snacks and meals to the students who need them.

  The Ensuring Medicaid Continuity for Children in Foster Care Act of 2021 (S. 2689) Would Lead to Significant Unintended Consequences for Children in the Care of the Child Welfare System

Exempting QRTPs from the IMD exclusion would undermine the goals of Family First, weakening the standards of quality and leading more children to be placed in large-scale institutions, rather than promoting placements with family, as the law intends.

  Response to OMB Request for Information to Advance Equity and Support for LGBTQ+ Children and Families in the Child Welfare System

With one in three foster youth identifying as LGBTQ+ and reporting abysmal treatment and outcomes, and LGBTQ+ families also facing inequitable barriers in child welfare services, we stand at a crisis point that requires urgent action by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

  CDF Joins Civil Rights Response to Attacks on the Right of Students to Learn About Historical and Ongoing Racial Oppression in the United States

All students deserve access to an education that prepares them to succeed in college, career, and life and to fully exercise their social, political, and economic rights. Attempting to gag educators and whitewash the aspects of U.S. history that rightfully make people uncomfortable undermines that basic principle.

  CDF Urges Congress to Pass a Robust Child Nutrition Reauthorization (CNR) Bill and Ensure Equitable Access to Meals

Children and families need ongoing support and access to healthy, nutritious meals during the pandemic and beyond. We cannot revert back to strict, outdated, and inflexible standards that leave millions of children—disproportionately Black, Latinx, and Indigenous children—behind and vulnerable to hunger. To truly build back better and advance racial equity, we must fully and finally eliminate barriers to healthy food and success for all children. Congress can—and must—begin right now and advance a bold CNR bill.

  The IRS Must Better Connect Families to Online Tools to Guarantee All Eligible Families Receive the 2021 Advance Child Tax Credit

The Automatic Benefit for Children (ABC) coalition writes with recommendations to better connect families who have not recently filed taxes with simple, easy, and straightforward online tools to guarantee that all eligible families receive the 2021 advance Child Tax Credit (CTC). In these times of extreme financial uncertainty, it is critical that people receive economic support as efficiently as possible.

  CDF Urges Congress to Ensure Children and Their Families Are Stably Housing During the Pandemic and Beyond

COVID-19 has exacerbated the nation’s affordable housing crisis—the result of a long history of racist housing policy including chronic underinvestment—the burden of which falls disproportionately on Black and Latino children. The emergency relief passed in December—which provided $25 billion in emergency rental assistance and extended the federal eviction moratorium—was a critical short-term step to protect the millions of families with children who are behind on their rent, but more must be done to ensure that these families emerge from the pandemic free from back rent and the looming threat of eviction.

  CDF Calls for Congress to Expand the Child Tax Credit in the Next COVID-19 Relief Package

Families need immediate support as they struggle with the costs of raising children in the midst of an ongoing pandemic and faltering economy. Ensuring that families have adequate support is especially important for the Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and immigrant communities who have been hit hardest by the current economic and health crises, and who have too often been excluded from support and services. We urge Congress to act without delay to strengthen and expand the Child Tax Credit, and ensure that all children in need are able to regularly and easily access the benefit.

  84 Organizations Call for Congress to Pass Legislation to Improve Maternal Health

CDF joins the call for Congress to swiftly pass the bipartisan Maternal Health Quality Improvement Act (H.R. 4995) and the bipartisan Helping MOMS Act of 2020 (H.R. 4996) as soon as possible. Final passage of H.R. 4995 and H.R. 4996 is a critical and foundational next step in Congress’ work to address maternal mortality and improve maternal health.

  CDF Urges HHS to Withdraw the SUNSET Proposed Rule

Regulations play an important role in implementing a wide range of HHS policies and programs serving children and families, including child care, substance use treatment, child welfare, food safety, and health care. CDF is very concerned that the proposed rule will disrupt the ability of the Department of Health and Human Services to efficiently administer critical programs and services for children and families and should be withdrawn immediately.

  CDF Joins Over 200 Organizations Urging the New Administration to Cancel Federal Student Debt

236 organizations wrote to President-Elect Biden and Vice President-Elect Harris urging them to boost the economy, tackle racial disparities, and provide much-needed stimulus to help all Americans weather the pandemic and the associated recession by using executive authority to cancel federal student debt on Day One of their administration.

  CDF Urges Congress to Take Immediate Action to Address the Pandemic and Provide Support to All Families, Including Immigrants

Many of us have already urged the Senate to adopt specific policies, including reversal of the Trump administration’s public charge policy and inclusive provisions of the HEROES Act legislation passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in May. Since then, while the Senate has failed to act, the COVID-19 death count has doubled, and millions of working families have lost the enhanced unemployment and other financial lifelines then in place. Congress must take immediate action to address the pandemic and to provide support to all individuals and families, including immigrant families.

  Over 60 Organizations Urge Congress to Include Waivers for WIC in the Next COVID-19 Relief Package

For decades, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) has delivered quality nutrition services in community-based clinical settings to improve pregnancy and birth outcomes and promote healthy child development. In order to sustain much-needed program modifications to provide services throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, we urge that any final legislative package that responds to the public health and economic crises include an extension of USDA waiver authority for WIC services through at least September 30, 2021.

  CDF Urges Congress to Provide Adequate Funding for Child Care in the Next COVID-19 Relief Package

The HEALS Act’s $15 billion investment would keep the system afloat for less than two months and falls far short of the at least $50 billion that is needed to stabilize the system. We urge you to provide at least $50 billion in funding for child care in the next relief package to meet the needs of child care providers, educators, and parents and to reflect the essential role child care plays in supporting our public health response now and our recovery from this crisis.

  CDF Joins the Call for the Department of Education to Withdraw the Rule that Would Divert More Funds to Private Schools

We joined leading organizations to express our opposition to the Department of Education’s interim final rule on “CARES Act Program; Equitable Services to Students and Teachers in Non-Public Schools” and particularly to the scenario provided that would require school districts to divert more funds to private school students in the name of the CARES Act’s “equitable services” provision than is required under the law. This interim rule does not prioritize students facing the greatest barriers to education success.

  To Honor the Life and Legacy of Congressman John Lewis, Congress Should Enact the Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Election Provisions of the HEROES Act

To honor the life and legacy of the late Congressman John Lewis, more than 150 organizations urge Congress to enact federal legislation to safeguard the fundamental right to vote. There would be no truer tribute to Representative Lewis than for the Senate to pass the Voting Rights Advancement Act (“VRAA”) – recently reintroduced as the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act – and the election provisions of the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (“HEROES”) Act. Enacting these critical legislative measures would protect the integrity of the November election and counter the disenfranchisement of communities of color that the nation has sadly witnessed in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s infamous Shelby County v. Holder opinion in 2013.

  CDF Joined Over 80 National Organizations Calling for Congress to Enact New Pandemic Relief Legislation to Reduce the Harms of the Health and Economic Crisis

We urge Congress to enact new pandemic relief legislation that can effectively reduce the harsh scope of the health and economic crisis engulfing our nation. Congress must approve (1) cash and other assistance to prevent devastating and long-term losses to the jobless and families; (2) protections and resources to create conditions for a safe return to work; (3) state and local aid to ensure adequate health care, education, and many other essential services; and (4) Congress must protect mainstays of our democracy from being undermined by the pandemic: safe voting; the U.S. Postal Service; and the decennial Census.

  Nearly 800 Organizations Call On Congress to Include Immigrant Families in COVID-19 Relief Packages

CDF joined nearly 800 organizations in urging Congress to address the exclusion of immigrant families, workers, taxpayers, and their U.S. children and spouses, from the CARES Act and other COVID-19 recovery packages passed by Congress in the next pandemic relief legislation. Immigrants have been left out of every relief package so far, even though they are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 and are risking their health and safety as essential workers during the pandemic. We cannot let immigrants be excluded from relief again. If our nation wants to recover from this economic and public health crisis, we must ensure that everyone is included

  Appeal from Experts in Child Welfare, Child Health, and Child Development: Free the Families and Promote Family Unity

94 child welfare, health, and safety experts write to ICE after witnessing this administration’s continued systematic implementation of practices to separate immigrant families. Amidst the backdrop of a public health crisis, we must renew our shared concern that your agency will harm children by taking them from their parents in order to deter or punish families who come to this country seeking protection .

  CDF Joins 270+ Organizations Calling for HHS to Take Action on Pending Medicaid Section 1115 Demonstrations to Address Racial Disparities and Systemic Racism

One consequence of the systemic racism highlighted by the pandemic and nationwide protests against racial inequality and injustices is the health disparities faced by Black people in general, and Black women in particular. Medicaid, which provides coverage for over 70 million people with low incomes who — due to systemic racism and barriers to care – are disproportionately people of color, has an unmatched opportunity to reduce these disparities. We urge you to take two immediate steps with respect to Medicaid section 1115 demonstrations that will work to mitigate racial disparities rather than making them worse.

  CDF Joins the Call for USDA Waivers to Meet the Tremendous Need for Meals in the Upcoming School Year

School districts are still establishing what “school” will look like next year, but many students will not be “at school” five days a week, with access to school breakfast and lunch each day. Instead, schools across the country are making plans to implement staggered schedules, remote learning, or some combination of the two. This means that communities will need the flexibility to provide meals to children at school, to send meals home with children when they are not at school, and to provide meals at community sites closer to children’s homes

  CDF Urges Congress to Include Robust Education and Health Funding in the Next COVID-19 Relief Package

we urge Congress to include robust funding for education in the next legislative package in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, we urge at least $200 billion in additional funding for K-12 education and programs that support marginalized students that are most likely to be affected by missing in-person instruction. Money must be available to all schools regardless of their timeline for reopening. Schools in areas with high rates of COVID-19 spread may need to consider delaying a return to fulltime in-person instruction, and these schools will need the same or greater federal investments, not fewer. In addition, we strongly urge Congress to increase the federal government’s share of Medicaid costs by raising the federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) at least another 5.8 percentage points.

  Nearly 170 Organizations Call for Congress to Include the Pandemic TANF Assistance Act in the Next COVID-19 Relief Package

We urge Congress to demonstrate their commitment to addressing systemic poverty and racial, and gender disparities by including the Pandemic TANF Assistance Act in the next COVID-19 legislative package. The emergency grant program included in this bill would help families and children, especially families of color, meet their basic needs and is an essential part of more significant action and assistance needed for our most vulnerable.

  CDF Urges Congress to Enhance Medicaid FMAP to Provide Needed Health Care Services to Families

Given the magnitude of both the public health and economic crises the nation continues to face, state and local governments need more support to provide health care services to individuals and families. We urge Congress to provide an additional FMAP increase of at least 5.8 percentage points, be retroactive to January 1, 2020, and remain until September 30, 2021, regardless of unemployment conditions. After September 30, 2021, the 12 percent FMAP increase should not be reduced until the national unemployment rate falls below 5 percent. In addition, we request additional FMAP increases be determined based on the increase in a state’s unemployment rate.

  CDF Urges Congress to Expand the Child Tax Credit

Ample research tells us that strengthening and expanding the Child Tax Credit and converting it into a monthly child allowance is one of the most powerful ways to address child poverty and increase long-term positive outcomes for our children. We strongly urge Congress to adopt changes to the Child Tax Credit, reflecting the provisions in the American Family Act (S.690/H.R. 1560), to ensure it is fully refundable and reaches all children in low- and no-income households with the greatest need.

  CDF Calls for Congress to Prioritize Children and Families in Budget Decisions

We urge Congress to prioritize children and families, especially those who are most vulnerable in our communities, during the Fiscal Year 2021 (FY2021) appropriations process and emergency budget decisions.

  CDF Joins Over 2,000 Organizations Urging Congress to Expand SNAP Amid COVID-19

COVID-19 has exacerbated already too high levels of food insecurity in America. We urge Congress and the White House to take action now to limit the depth and duration of this health and economic crisis by ensuring that the basic food needs of struggling families and individuals are met. Congress and the White House must act now to increase the SNAP maximum benefit, increase the SNAP monthly minimum benefit, and suspend SNAP time limits and rules changes that would cut SNAP eligibility and benefits.

  CDF’s Testimony for the Hearing on Tax Relief to Support Workers and Families During the COVID-19 Recession

CDF submitted testimony to the House Ways and Means Committee on the need to support children and families with direct cash payments and expanded refundable tax credits throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and the attendant economic downturn.

  CDF Endorses Agenda of Civil Rights Principles for Safe, Healthy, and Inclusive School Climates

The tragedies that have occurred in schools across the country demand serious investments in evidence-based policies and practices that keep children and staff safe and do not exacerbate the school-to-prison pipeline, further criminalize marginalized children, or increase the over-policing of students in schools and communities. In order to ensure that students are learning in safe, healthy, and inclusive environments, we seek PK-12 school climate legislation that meets the following principles. We ask members of Congress to fulfill their role in helping educators and communities create and maintain safe schools that afford all students equal educational opportunities by incorporating these principles into all relevant legislation.

  CDF Opposes the Costly Tax Breaks for Millionaire Business Owners and Corporations in COVID-19 Package

CDF urges Senators to support repeal of costly tax breaks for millionaire business owners and corporations contained in the CARES Act and to oppose any other tax cuts for the rich and corporations in future COVID-19 relief and recovery bills. Instead, we recommend that your priorities be providing a major infusion of support to maintain state and local public services communities depend on, including public safety, healthcare, schools and sanitation; helping workers stay employed or providing them with robust unemployment benefits; giving more direct aid to families; and adequately funding public health.

  CDF Joined Over 400 Organizations Calling for Congress to Support Older Foster Youth Amid COVID-19

We urge Congress to act immediately to provide crucial supports to older foster youth facing the stress and disruptions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Approximately 18,000 youth exit foster care without a family each year, and, unfortunately, the outcomes for these young people are discouraging even in times of economic prosperity. Data indicate that on average, two in five foster youth who “age out” of care will experience episodes of homelessness and only 50 percent of youth will be employed at age 24. The COVID-19 crisis will only exacerbate these dire outcomes.

  CDF Joins Call for USDA to Extend Waivers to Ensure Safe Access to Food Assistance

We urge USDA to use its full authority to quickly extend the rest of the nationwide waivers, and state-specific waivers such as area eligibility, until September 30, 2020, or at least August 31, 2020. Extending the waivers is not only in the interest of public health, it also provides consistency for families and eases the administrative burden on state child nutrition agencies and FNS staff. The urgency of extending these waivers now cannot be understated as schools, local government agencies, and private nonprofits are making decisions today about whether or not they will continue to operate these programs this summer.

  CDF Urges Congress to Take Swift Action In Response to Continued Police Violence Against Black People Across the Country

Abusive police practices coupled with devastating state-sanctioned violence have exacted systemic brutality and fatality upon Black people since our nation’s founding. For too long, the cycle of police brutality and racism has been met with cosmetic tinkering instead of substantive structural change. We urge Congress to take swift and decisive legislative action in response to ongoing fatal police killings and other violence against Black people across our country. Federal statutory reforms are urgently needed on a range of policing issues, including use of force, police accountability, racial profiling, militarization, data collection, and training.

  CDF Joins Letter Urging Congress to Increase Funding for Child Care

The HEROES Act, introduced yesterday in the House, includes critical supports to stabilize
families and communities — including expansions in access to paid sick and family leave, getting
cash to families, additional nutrition benefits, and investments in housing assistance — yet the
legislation falls woefully short on support for child care.

  CDF Joins Calls to Ensure Equal Educational Opportunity amid COVID-19

Congress take immediate and comprehensive action to ensure equal educational opportunity during the COVID-19 public health crisis and beyond. Long term closures of early childhood settings, K12 schools, and college campuses, necessary to protect the safety and health of communities, have significantly exacerbated longstanding inequities in our educational system. Leadership and action from Congress can, and must, minimize the harm to marginalized students as long as COVID-19 continues to threaten the public health.

  CDF Supports the Emergency Rental Assistance and Rental Market Stabilization Act amid COVID-19

If enacted, the “Emergency Rental Assistance and Rental Market Stabilization Act” would provide states, localities, territories, and tribes with flexible resources to provide direct support to households in need with short- and medium-term rental assistance or to cover up to 6 months of back-rent and late fees. The funds may also be used to stabilize households by helping to address the cost of security deposits and utility deposits and payments, among other expenses.

  Leading Health Organizations Urge Congress to Strengthen Medicaid and CHIP amid COVID-19

As organizations dedicated to promoting the health of our nation’s children and pregnant women, we strongly urge Congress to protect and strengthen Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) as part of any forthcoming legislative efforts to address the COVID-19 pandemic and the anticipated subsequent recovery period.

  CDF Calls for Larger and Regular Financial Support for Families amid COVID-19

As Congress looks to its next round of legislation we must cast a wider net and help everyone with extraordinary expenses. It makes sense to extend relief to keep businesses afloat and help
keep wages flowing, and it is essential to fund state and local governments. At the same time, we must also keep families afloat through recurring direct payments, expanded unemployment insurance, and food/housing aid to those in need.

  170+ Organizations Expressed Opposition to Tax Breaks for Wealthy Businesses in CARES Act

CDF joined other national and state organizations in opposition to the two costly tax hand-outs to wealthy business owners and corporations included in the CARES Act and to urge you to repeal these provisions. Such businesses have the greatest capacity to weather the current economic disaster. Aid for this privileged group would be better spent on those suffering most from the pandemic.

  CDF Calls for Legislation that Helps Keep Families Healthy amid COVID-19

CDF joined other leading organizations to encourage Congress to build on past bipartisan efforts and ensure all individuals have equitable access to testing and treatment for COVID-19; equip states and localities with sufficient financial support to combat the crisis; provide protection and support to the health care workforce and others on the frontlines of the pandemic; assure access and capacity in the health system; and protect against high and unexpected health care costs.

  CDF Joins 550+ Organizations Calling for the Protection of Immigrant Families amid COVID-19

The federal response to the COVID-19 crisis, including the Families First and the CARES Acts, left many low- and moderate-income immigrants out of the public health and stimulus policies. This exclusion threatens the well being of immigrants, their families – which include millions of U.S. citizen children – and our communities as a whole. This omission will greatly undermine the nation’s ability to overcome this unprecedented crisis.

  180+ Organizations Push for Nondiscrimination Provisions in COVID-19 Response

Denying eligible people needed COVID-19 response services weakens public health and the economy. We call on Congress to prevent such exclusions by including specific language prohibiting discrimination in all COVID-19 response bills.

  Children Advocates Call for the Inclusion of Immigrant Families in COVID-19 Response

While the CARES Act was a strong start, we are deeply concerned that children in mixed-immigration status families (those with both citizen and noncitizen members) have been excluded from critical relief. These children comprise one in four of all children in the United States, and the vast majority are U.S. citizens. It is simply unacceptable to leave them out of the COVID-19 response. Doing so will not only put more children at risk of falling into poverty but also greatly undermine our nation’s ability to overcome this crisis.

  100+ Organizations Urge Congress to Protect Low-Income Families amid COVID-19

This pandemic calls for the enactment of policies and sufficient funding to protect low- and
moderate-income people from economic disaster and to meet the urgent needs of the most
vulnerable people in our nation. We cannot predict all of the impacts that the coronavirus and the recession will have on the people in our nation for years to come. Given what we know now, we share the broad economic security priorities for future COVID-19 response legislation and actions.

  CDF Letter to Congress on Prioritizing Children and Families in the 4th COVID-19 Package

As the scope and scale of the devastation from COVID-19 continues to grow, it is clear that children and families need additional support. At the same time, certain particularly vulnerable children and those disproportionately impacted by this crisis – including children living in poverty, children of color, children in the foster care system, and children in mixed immigration status families – were either completely left out of the previous relief packages or have additional, critical needs that must be addressed in Congress’ next response to the COVID-19 crisis. The unique and urgent needs of children must be a priority in Congress’ ongoing efforts to support the American people through this pandemic.

  CDF Continues Call for Increased SSBG Funding amid COVID-19

The Social Services Block Grant (SSBG) is a proven key source of support to help communities respond to critical needs in national disasters and an important tool in times of recession because it can provide assistance to cash-strapped states, territories, and counties quickly. We urged Congress to increase funding to the SSBG by $4.1 billion to respond to the growing needs of older people, children and families, and people with disabilities in the midst of COVID-19.

  CDF’s Comments on Alternative Measures of Poverty

CDF submitted comments urging OMB to meaningfully expand—not artificially shrink—poverty measures to include all children experiencing economic deprivation, not just those currently counted as poor and requesting that any modifications to poverty thresholds capture the full breadth of resources needed to support children’s healthy development.

  500+ Child Welfare Advocates Deliver Policy Demands to Congress to Protect Children From Abuse and Neglect During Pandemic

As national, state, and local organizations dedicated to the well-being of vulnerable children and families, we
write to urge Congress to act immediately to provide crucial support to families facing the stress and
disruptions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, by equipping the child welfare system with the tools it
needs to handle the crisis.

  450+ Organizations Call for Additional Child Care Funding in Next COVID-19 Package

Child care is an essential need for millions of children and families, and it will continue to be the backbone of our economy both during and after this crisis, but only if additional funding is provided to keep it afloat. In order to protect and preserve our child care system for child care providers, workers, and the children and families they serve, we urge lawmakers to provide at least $50 billion in aid targeted to the child care sector.

  200 Organizations Urge Congress to Invest in Gun Violence Prevention Research

The initial investment for the CDC and NIH was a crucial step toward applying a public health approach to increasing gun safety and reducing firearm-related injuries and deaths, and continued and expanded investments are essential to the success of this important work.

  CDF Calls for USDA Waivers to Ensure Children Have Access to Meals during COVID-19

CDF joined over 50 organizations to encourage the USDA to issue additional nationwide waivers so that communities are able to better respond to the current crisis and children are able to access the meals they need.

  CDF Calls for State Fiscal Relief and Increased Federal Medicaid Matching to Address COVID-19

We strongly urge Congress to move legislation forward that includes least at $150 billion in direct aid to states for fiscal relief and to enact an additional, emergency increase of 12 percent to Federal Medicaid matching funds in order to provide essential support to states as they deploy their resources to address critical health needs during COVID-19.

  CDF Joins the Call for Increased SSBG Funding amid COVID-19

As Congress creates packages to response to COVID-19, we strongly urge increased support for
the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG) to respond to the most vulnerable—our nation’s older adults, children and families, and people with disabilities.
people with disabilities.

  150+ Organizations Call for the Passage of the PAID Leave Act amid COVID-19

The spread of COVID-19 has highlighted the health and economic consequences faced by working people when they lack access to paid sick days and paid family and medical leave. Our society is only as healthy as its most vulnerable members. Now more than ever, we must recognize that we all have a stake in ensuring that working people have access to paid sick and safe days and paid family and medical leave.

  CDF Letter to Congress on COVID-19 Relief Legislation

As you work quickly with your Congressional colleagues to pass new legislation to address the devastating public health and economic impacts of the COVID-19 crisis, the Children’s Defense Fund urges you to include in the next package a number of critical provisions to protect our nation’s children and families.

  CDF Urges Congress to Prevent Housing Instability and Homelessness amid COVID-19

Any comprehensive response to the coronavirus should include emergency assistance funding to help prevent housing instability and homelessness as a result of the outbreak. An emergency assistance fund would provide both short-term financial assistance and stability services to help households with the lowest incomes overcome an unforeseen economic shock that threatens their housing stability.

  Comments on Proposed 2021 Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters

We joined other national child health groups to submit comments in response to the proposed 2021 Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters. Overall, approximately one-half of all children are covered by commercial plans with more than one million children enrolled in Qualified Health Plans (QHPs) to date. Commercial coverage, whether through an employer plan or a QHP, must ensure that covered children have access to timely, affordable, high-quality and age-appropriate care that meets their unique developmental needs and enables them to meet their full potential as adults. Access to health care for children and their families is vital to long-term health, well-being and productivity.

  Comments on HHS’s Religious Freedom Protections Proposed Rule

This most recent rule rescinds regulations that were put in place “to improve service delivery and strengthen religious liberty.” Repealing these religious freedom protections is not a necessary step and does not reflect the will of the broader faith community. This NPRM will provide only a nominal benefit for some faith-based organizations receiving federal funds to provide social services. In doing so, however, it will put the religious liberty, safety and well-being of the beneficiaries of these social services at grave risk.

  Comments on CMS’s Proposed Medicaid Fiscal Accountability Regulation (MFAR)

We joined other national child health groups to urge CMS to withdraw the proposed Medicaid Fiscal Accountability Regulation (MFAR). If finalized, the MFAR would trigger insecurity and instability for state Medicaid programs and state budgets by injecting uncertainty into how states can finance the state share of their Medicaid expenditures, and how they pay providers.

  Leading Children’s Health Groups Oppose New Federal Guidance on Medicaid

The guidance issued by the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) alters how Medicaid is financed by capping federal funding and offering states the option to use block grants and per capita caps for low-income adult populations, which includes parents with young children. When parents lose coverage, their children are more likely to lose coverage as well. Our organizations are united in opposition to any threat to Medicaid that would dismantle a pillar program millions of families rely on. At a time when child uninsurance is already on the rise, this guidance makes it even harder to guarantee children can get the care they need.

  Letter in Support of the Family First Transition Act

CDF led an effort to garner support from nearly 400 national and state organizations across the country in support of the Family First Transition Act. This Act presents a bold plan to help states, tribes and territories meet the unique fiscal and statutory requirements of implementation. Once enacted, it will provide critical tools to help states, tribes and territories take advantage of the opportunities contained in Family First, so that more children and families can thrive.

  Comments on HHS Nondiscrimination Proposed Rule

CDF submitted comments on HHS’s proposed rule on nondiscrimination protections for HHS-funded programs. Government-sanctioned discrimination is diametrically opposed to the cardinal rule of child welfare, that the best interest of the child is paramount, and, as such, it should never be allowed in the child welfare system. This rule would threaten the ability of the child welfare system to promote permanency for youth in care and will jeopardize the safety and well-being of children in foster care.

  CDF and Other Leading Children’s Health and Medical Groups Respond to South Carolina Waiver

With this Section 1115 waiver approval, South Carolina becomes the first state in the nation to exclusively impose the harmful policy of work requirements on low-income parents with children. Children rely on healthy
parents and caregivers to help them meet their health and developmental needs, and this waiver will make it harder for parents to be there for their children.

  Comments on USDA’s Proposed Rule Regarding SNAP SUAs

CDF submitted comments on USDA’s proposed rule regarding SNAP Standard Utility Allowances (SUAs). The proposed rule would limit states’ flexibility to set the SUA, resulting in a reduction in SNAP benefits for many hungry children and families across the country and exacerbating the struggles many low-income families have paying for both food and utilities. Given the disturbing and lasting impact this would have on children’s food security, health and well-being, we urged the administration to withdraw this proposed rule.

  Comments on HUD’s Disparate Impact Standard Proposed Rule

CDF submitted comments on the proposed rule on HUD’s implementation of the Fair Housing Act’s Disparate Impact Standard. We urged HUD to immediately withdraw the proposed rule and instead advance housing policies that strengthen – not undermine – the disparate impact theory that allows for stable, safe and affordable housing for all.

  Amicus Brief Regarding the Harms of Rescinding DACA

CDF joined three dozen organizations and leaders in filing a friend-of-the-court brief with the U.S. Supreme Court, asking the Court to consider the impact of rescinding DACA on beneficiaries’ children, whose interests were glaringly absent in the Trump administration’s 2017 decision.

  Comments on the Expansion of Expedited Removal

CDF submitted comments in opposition to the expansion of expedited removal as the use of expedited removal and detention of families is inappropriate and harms children. We requested DHS immediately halt implementation of the expansion and take steps to ameliorate the well-documented problems in the expedited removal process as it existed prior to the Rule.

  Comments on Proposed Rule to Eliminate Categorical Eligibility for SNAP

CDF submitted comments on the proposed rule to eliminate categorical eligibility in SNAP. We strongly urged FNS to withdraw this harmful proposal as it would cause an estimated 3.1 million to lose coverage and would disproportionately impact children and families.

  Comments on Proposed Medicaid Access Rule

CDF joined other national organizations to submit comments on the proposed rule by CMS to rescind the current Medicaid Access Rule that requires states to monitor and document Medicaid payments in fee-for-service (FFS) systems and the impact on beneficiary access to care. We urged CMS to withdraw this proposed rule as it could leave children and pregnant women, particularly those who serious, chronic or complex medical and dental needs, with reduced access to the care they need.

  Letter on USCIS’s Elimination of Non-Military Deferred Action

The Children’s Defense Fund joined over 150 organizations to call for USCIS to reverse its elimination of non-military “deferred action” to ensure that vulnerable children and families are able to receive life-saving protection without fear of deportation.

  Amicus Brief on DHS Rule Abandoning Flores Agreement

Together with more than 20 organizations and pro bono counsel at Arent Fox LLP, CDF submitted a friend-of-the-court brief in a California federal court. The brief outlines how the administration’s final rule abandons the Flores agreement and argues the regulation will have a devastating impact for immigrant children.

  Statement from the Children’s Defense Fund: Reckless and immoral Public Charge rule will harm millions of children

The Children’s Defense Fund condemns in the strongest possible terms the finalized Department of Homeland Security Public Charge rule announced today.

  Comments on HUD’s Proposed Verification of Eligible Status Rule (RIN 2501-AD89)

Children’s Defense Fund submitted comments to voice our strong opposition to the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) proposed rule regarding “verification of eligible status” because it threatens the health, development and well-being of children.

  Amicus Brief Regarding the Impact of Employment Discrimination on Children

The Children’s Defense Fund is proud to be among the advocacy organizations who included our voice in a friend-of-the-court brief to the U.S. Supreme Court that uplifts this powerful message: Employment discrimination against LGBTQ people harms children. The brief, submitted by pro bono counsel at Latham & Watkins LLP and the Southern Poverty Law Center, urges the Court to rule in favor of LGBTQ employees who have confronted workplace discrimination.

  Comments on Section 1332 of the Affordable Care Act

CDF joined other national organizations to submit comments on the Request for Information from the CMS, HHS and DOTR related to Section 1332 of the Affordable Care Act. We called for the Departments to rescind the newly released guidance and, instead, retain the 2015 guidance that aligns with federal law in order to ensure the guardrails are maintained and strengthened, rather than eroded.

  Letter in Support of the Humane Enforcement and Legal Protections (HELP) for Separated Children Act (H.R. 3451) and the Help Separated Families Act (H.R. 3452)

Children’s Defense Fund joined other leading national organizations to express our strong support for the Humane Enforcement and Legal Protections (HELP) for Separated Children Act (H.R. 3451) and the Help Separated Families Act (H.R. 3452), which codify protections for children who may be separated from their parents by immigration enforcement actions in the interior.

  Comments on Consumer Inflation Measures Produced by Federal Statistical Agencies

CDF submitted comments to voice our recommendation that, consistent with longstanding law and practice and Congressional intent, the OPM should continue to be annually adjusted by CPI-U in order to protect critical programs for children and families from future cuts.

  Letter in Support of Vaccine Awareness Campaign to Champion Immunization Nationally and Enhance Safety (VACCINES) Act of 2019

CDF joined other leading organizations to share our support for the Vaccine Awareness Campaign to Champion Immunization Nationally and
Enhance Safety (VACCINES) Act of 2019 (H.R. 2862), which is a critical step in combating vaccine hesitancy and misinformation and ensuring that there is continued public awareness of the importance of vaccinations.

  Leading Children’s Health and Medical Groups React to Staggering Decline in Children’s Enrollment in Public Health Insurance Coverage

CDF joined other leading children’s health and medical organizations in sounding the alarm; new data show
that the number of children enrolled in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP)
nationwide fell by about 840,000 in 2018.

  Letter to Congress on Decline in Children’s Enrollment in Medicaid and CHIP

After years of progress improving children’s coverage, new data show that the number of children enrolled in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) fell by 840,000 in 2018.

  Comments on Patient Protection and Sale of Individual Health Insurance Coverage Across State Lines

CDF joined other national organizations to submit comments in response to the CMS Request for Information regarding patient protection and increasing consumer choice through the sale of individual health insurance coverage across states through Health Care Choice Compacts (HCCCs). We expressed our concern that the implementation of Section 1333 of the ACA could impede, rather than improve, access to timely, affordable and necessary services for children and pregnant women.

  Comments on USDA’s Proposed Time Limits for SNAP

CDF submitted commented on the USDA’s proposed rule on requirements for able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWDs) in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in order to express our serious concerns about any policies that would restrict access to SNAP for those who are hungry, given the critical role SNAP plays for children and families in communities across the country.

  Letter to Sec. Azar on the Impact of Work Requirements on Parents and Families

CDF joined other national organizations to express our concern about the possibility of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMW) approving pending section 1115 waiver requests to impose work-reporting requirements on very low-income parents and caregivers covered by Medicaid. Approval of these requests would be extremely harmful to very vulnerable children and their families and would directly contradict the objectives of the Medicaid program.

  Comments on Proposed 2020 Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters

Children’s Defense Fund joined other leading national organizations to submit comments on ways we believe the Proposed 2020 Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters can be strengthened to ensure that access to timely and appropriate treatment for pregnant women and children, particularly those with serious, chronic or complex conditions, is as seamless as possible.

  Comments on DHS’s Proposed Public Charge Rule

CDF submitted comments to urge the Department of Homeland Security to withdraw its proposal to revise the definition of ‘public charge” and to dedicate its efforts to advancing policies that strengthen – rather than undermine – the ability of immigrants to support themselves and their families now and in the future.

  Comments on DHS’s Proposed Changes to the Flores Settlement

CDF submitted comments to recommend that DHS and HHS withdraw their proposed rule without delay and commit their energy instead to ensuring robust, good-faith compliance with the Flores settlement agreement. CDF strongly believes that every child who comes into the custody of the federal government should be guaranteed the care, protection and services necessary to mitigate further trauma and promote healthy development, including access to their family.

  Comments on Proposed Medicaid Work Requirements in Kentucky

CDF submitted comments urging HHS to reject Kentucky’s proposed work requirements for Medicaid eligibility. CDF remains
very concerned that any work requirements being implemented in Medicaid will harm children as parents and caregivers lose the health coverage they need to work and offer quality care to their children.

  Comments on Proposed Medicaid Work Requirements in Mississippi

CDF submitted comments urging HHS to reject Mississippi’s proposed work requirements for Medicaid eligibility. CDF remains very concerned that any work requirements being implemented in Medicaid will harm children as parents and caregivers lose the health coverage they need to work and offer quality care to their children.

  Letter to DHS Secretary Nielsen in Opposition to Parent-Child Separation at the Border

  Letter to Congressional Leadership Applauding the Passage of the Family First Prevention Services Act

  Over 500 Groups Urge Congress to Protect CHIP Funding

  Letter from Child Care and Early Learning Coalition Urging Congress to Increase Funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant

  Letter from CDF Urging Congressional Leadership to Pass a Long Term Extension of CHIP Funding

  Statement of Leading Children’s Health, Medical and Advocacy Organizations: Short-Term CHIP Funding Falls Short for Children 2017

  Statement of Leading Children’s Health, Medical and Advocacy Organizations: Congress’s Failure to Include a Strong Five-Year Extension of CHIP on This Week’s Spending Bill is a Missed Opportunity to Protect Children and Families 2017

  Letter from National Children’s Health Groups to Congressional Leadership on Extending CHIP

  Statement from Children’s Groups Regarding CHIP Funding Deadline

  Statement for the Record Regarding Graham-Cassidy Health Proposal

  Statement from Leading Children’s Health Groups on Graham-Cassidy Proposal

  Statement of the National Children’s Health Community Urging Quick Bipartisan Action on a Strong, Five-Year Extension of Funding for CHIP

  Statement from Children’s Groups CHIP Five-Year Funding Extension

  Statement from Children’s Health Community Opposing Medicaid Per Capita Caps

  Statement of the Children’s Community Urging Congress to Act Quickly on a Strong, Five-Year Extension of Funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program 2017

  Letter from Children’s Groups to The Honorable Bill Cassidy

  Letter from Children’s Groups to House: Do No Harm to Children’s Health

  Letter from Marian Wright Edelman Speaking Out Against the American Health Care Act

  Letter from Children’s Health Groups Urging Leadership to Protect Health Care for Children

  Letter in Support of Family First Prevention Services Act

  Letter to Senate Urging Passage of the Family First Prevention Services Act

  Letter to House of Representatives Urging Passage of the Family First Prevention Services Act

  Letter from Marian Wright Edelman in Support of the Family First Prevention Services Act

  Petition for Rulemaking to Prevent Lead Poisoning

  Public Comments of MaryLee Allen on Implementing Title I in the Every Student Succeeds Act

  Testimony of Marian Wright Edelman to the National Commission on Hunger

  Letter from CHIP Coalition to Congressional Leadership 2015

  Consensus Principles of Child Health Groups 2013

  Letter from National and State Organizations to Senators on Gun Violence Prevention 2013

  Comments on Proposed Rule on Medicaid, CHIP and Exchanges: Essential Health Benefits 2013

  Letter Regarding Proposed Rules Extending Medicaid to Age 26 for Eligibile Former Foster Children

  Comments on Proposed Rule on Standards Related to Essential Health Benefits 2012

  Comments on Changes to Definition of “Lawfully Present” in the Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan Program of the Affordable Care Act 2012

  Comments on Final Medicaid CHIP Exchange Eligibility Enrollment 2012

  Comments on Essential Health Benefits Bulletin 2012

  Letter on State and Local Funding Flexibility Act

  Letter Urging House not to Repeal CHIP Maintenance of Effort provisions

  Letter from Local and National Organizations to the House: Protect Medicaid and Hold Children Harmless in the FY 2012 Budget Resolution

  Transcript of Conversation Between Tavis Smiley, Cornel West, and Marian Wright Edelman

  Testimony of Marian Wright Edelman for Subcommittee on Children and Families of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions

  Comments on Development of State Health Insurance Exchanges 2010

  Comments on Final Rules for Issues Relating to Dependent Coverage to Age 26 2010

  Letter from CDF to HELP Committee in Support of Changes to ESEA

  Letter of Support for the Casey Children’s CHIP Amendment

  Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act – Statement on the Hearing on Implementation

  Letter from Faith Leaders on Children’s Health Reform to the President and Congress

  Testimony of Marian Wright Edelman on the Youth PROMISE Act

  Testimony of Marian Wright Edelman for Hearing on the Comprehensive Health Reform Discussion Draft 2009

  Comments from the Children’s Defense Fund: Expanding Health Care Coverage: Proposals to Provide Affordable Coverage to All Americans

  Letter from Marian Wright Edelman to Congressional Leadership Regarding the Stimulus Package

  Letter in Support of the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act 2008

  Testimony of Marian Wright Edelman on the Prison Abuse Remedies Act of 2007

  Letter of Support for Youth PROMISE Act 2008

  Letter of Support for the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA)

  Letter from US Coucil of Mayors Endorsing the All Health Children Act

  Changes Needed in Federal Child Welfare Law to Better Protect Children and Ensure Them Nurturing Families

  Losing the Children, Early and Often – Crisis Magazine 2007

  A Delta’s Point of View: Attacking the Cradle to Prison Pipeline

  The Cradle to Prison Pipeline Crisis 2006

  Regulatory Comments and Recommendations Relating to Provisions Addressing Foster Children and Other Wards of the State in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act 2004

  Letter Recommending Changes to No Child Left Behind Act

  Comments of Marian Wright Edelman on Educational Apartheid in the U.S.: Tracking Policies and Re-Segregation in America’s Schools

  Testimony of Marian Wright Edelman – “A Progress Report on the War on Poverty”