Legislative Update Week of May 4
Date Posted: 05/06/2009
NHSA LEGISLATIVE UPDATE AND CALL TO ACTION
Week of May 4, 2009
Dear Friends:
Please read this email and share it with others in your network. It contains an NHSA Update, a Legislative and Administrative Update and a Call to Action.
NHSA UPDATE
New Executive Director
As we hope you all know by now from our special email alert last week, NHSA announced its new Executive Director, Yasmina Vinci, at our national conference. We are very excited about having Ms. Vinci on board. In case you missed our prior email announcement, you can review it here: http://www.nhsa.org/news_and_advocacy/recent_news/vinci_to_serve_as_nhsa_executive_director. Under Ms. Vinci?s leadership, NHSA looks forward to building on our successes and ensuring that Head Start stays at the forefront of comprehensive early childhood services. Welcome Yasmina!
Conference Update
Thanks to the thousands of you who attended NHSA?s national training conference last week in Orlando, Florida! It was a smashing success filled with content for classroom staff, parents and administrators that focused on the new issues and hot topics affecting all programs. If you were unable to make it, check out our upcoming training opportunities at: http://www.nhsa.org/news_and_advocacy/event_calendar.
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
Congress Back; Budget Passed
Congress has been back at work in Washington for a couple of weeks after Recess (district work period). On April 29th, both the House and Senate passed a $3.56 trillion budget resolution (http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d111:SC00013:@@@R) for FY 2010, which paves the way for the coming Appropriations process that will develop the specifics of programmatic line items, such as Head Start, within the confines of the approved budget. The concurrent budget resolutions passed both the House and Senate (233-195 in the House; 53-43 in the Senate).
The Appropriations debate will be heating up over the coming weeks as the Appropriations Committees in the House and Senate work to develop the specifics (please see the Administration Update for more on this topic).
ADMINISTRATION NEWS
We have much Administration news to report in this E-Update:
Sebelius confirmed as Secretary of Health and Human Services
Kathleen Sebelius was confirmed by the Senate by a vote of 65-31 and sworn in as the 21st U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services on April 28th. Sebelius was the Governor of Kansas for six years and prior to that was the state insurance commissioner. Welcome Secretary Sebelius!
Nazario nominated as Assistant Secretary for Children and Families
Carmen Nazario was nominated by President Obama as the Assistant Secretary for Children and Families, Department of Health and Human Services on May 5th. Currently an Assistant Professor at the Inter American University of Puerto Rico, Nazario served from 2003 to 2008 as Administrator of the Administration for Children and Families for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Additionally, during the Clinton Administration, Nazario served as Associate Commissioner for Child Care in the Administration on Children, Youth and Families and then became the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary at the Administration for Children and Families.
OMB budget to be announced this week
As we?ve reported in prior E-Updates, we (and Congress) have been waiting on President Obama?s detailed budget requests. The White House Office of Management and Budget (?OMB?) plans to release agency-by-agency topline numbers on Thursday of this week. These numbers will signal to Congress what the Administration?s priorities are for FY 2010 and Congress will then work within the confines of its approved budget to craft the details of FY 2010 appropriations for each program (including Head Start). Congress will take into account the President?s appropriations requests and requests from other Members of Congress. Stay tuned for more details!
Still no word on when ARRA Expansion RFPs will be out
Still no word on when the Requests for Proposals (?RFPs?) on Early Head Start Expansion and Head Start Expansion from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (?ARRA?) will be published. We are hearing this will occur soon, but we do not have any estimates on when exactly these will be published. Stay tuned!
CALL TO ACTION
If you haven?t contacted your Members of Congress and Senators to make sure they know that NHSA and over 35 other state and regional Head Start Associations are requesting an increase of $1 billion for FY 2010, please do so. We?d like their support. You can send them a copy of our request letters that we sent to key members of committees on Capitol Hill at the end of March and explain why this increase would be helpful to your program. (Download the Senate letter here and the House letter here.)
To contact your Representatives or Senators, call the capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 or if you?d like to email them, go to: www.senate.gov or www.house.gov and click on your Senator or Representative?s website. On each website, there is a contact or feedback form which will allow you to email him/her directly.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Check Out NHSA Radio on Our New Homepage
NHSA?s latest media resource provides Head Start parents and staff access to the latest insights in parenting, education, health, and child development. Check it out by scrolling down to the bottom of our new homepage: www.nhsa.org.
Upcoming Webinars
NHSA has teamed up with Feldesman Tucker Leifer Fidell LLP to provide you with additional training opportunities. Join attorney Ted Waters for NHSA?s Legal Advisory Service Webinars happening monthly. He?ll cover issues of importance to you and your Head Start program. Check out https://www.nhsa.org/services/professional_development/legal_advisory_service for topics, dates, and registration information. Make sure to register early!
DOLLAR PER CHILD
Thanks to all of you who donated to the Dollar per Child Campaign this year. All the work that NHSA did on the ARRA and is doing on other current legislative efforts is paid for by Dollar Per Child funds. That's why we need you to continue to support the Dollar Per Child Campaign. Without a robust source of funds, NHSA can't lead the way in our advocacy efforts that benefit all Head Start programs. It is through these dollars that we can advocate for you and with you on your behalf. Don't wait. Please send your contributions, whatever amount you can afford, whether it is $1 per child, $5 per child, or $10 per child. You can even easily donate online on our new, improved website at: https://www.nhsa.org/get_involved/donate.
Dollar Per Child funds will ensure that NHSA can continue to lead the way in all of the future advocacy efforts coming up?from regulatory issues with the Office of Head Start, to additional fiscal year appropriations, to the next Head Start Act reauthorization which is not far off.
Please know that NHSA continues to work for you and with you on your behalf on matters of importance to the Head Start community.
This Legislative E-Update has been sent to Head Start Directors, the NHSA Board, Head Start State and Regional Association Presidents, Executive Directors, and Parents. Please share it with others in your network.