2007 and the Difference that we made

With the New Year well under way, I wanted to reflect on the difference that UU advocates made in the lives of children last year. We had some successes that we can all be proud of and observe with an excited anticipation the brighter future that those successes will provide. Successes such as the $100 million dollar increase in afterschool funding that will provide the 21st Century Community Learning Centers Program with much needed and long overdue funds, improving valuable afterschool learning and activity time. We can also be proud of the improvements in Headstart; improvements that go beyond dollars and into the much needed area teacher qualification. Thanks to a $6.9 billion increase over FY’07, our very youngest and most compromised will be met by a steadily improving program with strategic deadlines for teacher qualification to be met by 2013. The qualifying threshold for families was also raised expanding eligibility from 100 percent of poverty level to families at 130 percent of the poverty level.
We were also met with struggles that were frustrating. We put a great deal of effort into SCHIP as did advocates from varied organizations around the country. If any good came from the ongoing controversy it would be that SCHIP is now more understood by the general public and it’s need is more greatly appreciated. Unfortunately, it was not reauthorized but was merely extended until March 2009. While the extension will allow states to continue covering the 6 million children who are currently enrolled, it also contained a directive which places a eligibility cap of 250% of the federal poverty level, dramatically changing the original premise of the program. There are efforts underway to repeal the directive in 2008. Stay tuned.
The Farm Bill was finally passed in mid-December by the Senate with provisions that closely mirror those passed by the House in July. There were substantial increases made to the Food Stamp Program, ($3+ billion) and The Emergency Food Assistance Program, ($500+ million). It is vitally important that the Farm Bill get passed in early 2008 in order for the new increases to take effect and aid families in crisis.
Finally, we come to the issue of No Child Left Behind, a piece of legislation that this organization firmly believes is well founded but ill-directed. We have spent a great deal of our efforts this past year trying to raise awareness about the detrimental effects that this legislation has had on compromised populations. It is an effort that is moving like a wave across the nation as more and more teachers, (read about the NEA’s position on NCLB at www.nea.org) parents, and students voice their opinions about this policy and the impact it has had on their lives. It is within this wave that we will focus our attention in 2008 on equity in public education and the inequity that has become a reality in our public schools. There are ongoing efforts to educate the public and lawmakers on the current policy and the effect that it is having on the fundamental right of public education. We need advocates to succeed at this effort. We hope that you will continue your commitment to Promise the Children in 2008 and advocate for change in public education. Peace!

Consider the Cost

Consider the cost...one year fighting the war in Iraq could insure...at the time of this writing...277,895,672 children for one year. http://www.nationalpriorities.org/Cost-of-War Through SCHIP, health care would be provided on a daily basis and would allow these children to develop into healthy, productive adults. We need to consider the cost.

Progress? Last Thursday, 10/25, the House voted 265-142 to approve a modified bill that would reauthorize and expand SCHIP, again falling short of the two-thirds necessary to override a veto. The revised legislation—which is similar to the bill vetoed by President Bush earlier this month—would expand SCHIP to cover 10 million children and increase spending on the program to $35 billion over five years, funded with a 61-cent-per-pack increase in the federal cigarette tax. The bill would limit coverage to children in families with annual incomes below 300% of the federal poverty level (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 10/25). There were also revisions clarifying policy regarding adults, undocumented workers, and higher income families. Learn the facts at: http://www.chn.org/SCHIPApropsinfo.html

The important point to note here is who voted and how. There was very little change from the previous vote. Forty-three Republicans and 222 Democrats voted in favor of the bill. Only one Democrat, Rep. Jim Marshall (Ga.), opposed the measure. None of the Republicans who voted against the previous bill voted in favor of the revised version and one Republican who voted in favor of the previous bill, Rep. Vernon Ehlers (Mich.), voted against the new version.

Republicans maintain that the revision was drafted too quickly and rushed to the floor leaving very little time for opponents to change their minds. The response from the Bush administration is even more frustrating. The administration said that the revised bill still does not ensure that low-income children will be covered first and does not provide sufficient guarantees that undocumented immigrants will not be able to enroll.

Here is where your work as an advocate is vitally important. You need to make policy makers aware of how you want them to vote. It may be just a phone call but it is how your voice is heard and your voice matters! Please call your Representative at 1-800-965-4701. (for help getting your Reps’ name, go to: http://www.house.gov/ and enter your zip code in the top left corner.) If your representative voted for SCHIP...thank them. They need to hear that you support their decision. If the voted against it, call them and tell them why you support policy to insure more that 10 million American children.

This week SCHIP will most certainly go to the Senate. Please call your Senators at: 1-800-828-0498. (for help getting your Senators’ names, select your state at: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm Regardless of how they have voted in the past, call them and tell them how you want them to vote. Consider the cost. We can’t afford to compromise the health of 10 million children. Be their voice!