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"Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment"
It was easy to lose count watching the House Appropriations Committee offer amendment after amendment as they prepared to send their budget bill to the floor just short of first adjournment. From KNI closure, state employee salary cuts, reductions in agency operating budgets such as SRS, a reduction of $300,000 for Meals on Wheels, and cutting the state cell phone budget in half, the committee majority had an easy time stacking up a very broad range of cuts. So much so, that the final budget recommendation was more extensive than the Governor's recommended budget.
Perhaps most interesting to those of us who watch this process firsthand, was the break with tradition and narrowing of debate. Typically, once a subcommittee completes their work and their bills are sent to the Appropriations Committee, most debate has taken place on major issues. The committee entertains amendments, but the biggest amendment challenges usually happen on the floor. Not so this time. With the new House Rules limiting debate on appropriations amendments through their new "pay go rule" in floor debate, the best shot at amendments wind up being in the full committee. This however, did not dissuade several minority members of the committee who claimed that even though their amendment might be ruled out of order, they wanted "full debate on the issue so that the public could see what is at stake". Those same minority members claimed that the majority of the cuts significantly impacted the most vulnerable citizens in our state and our job is to protect them. The bill passed the committee on a two-vote margin, not necessarily reflective of a committee that thought there were too many cuts. It is safe to assume that some committee members voted against the final version because there "weren't enough" cuts along with those who thought they were too severe. So goes the environment.
The Budget
Shortly before the House literally "kicked" their bill to the House floor, the Senate completed work on their version of the mega-bill. The Governor's budget left the state with a $7.5 million dollar ending balance. The Senate's version left a balance of $8.5 M and the House $8.0. This does not assume that the House and Senate are a half a million dollars away from compromise. Lining the two budget bills up there are over 200 items of disagreement. Granted many of these items should be easily remedied, but others such as KNI, Mental Health, school funding, and agency operating cuts reflect not only different strategies, but also different philosophical approaches that could lead to a very long negotiations process. So what is next? Unfortunately, just prior to first adjournment, the legislature was informed that the state had missed its revenue estimate for March that could trigger more cuts in the current year budget. If the revenues continue to trend down for the rest of this fiscal year, the Governor once again may be in the position of making allotments as he did earlier to keep the state in the black at the end of the fiscal year.
Relative to the budget for FY 2012, the legislature is anxiously awaiting the spring caseload estimates developed not only in the spring but also once in the fall by the Caseload Revenue Estimating Group. This is comprised of agency representatives, fiscal experts and economists, and three University representatives. In addition to forecasting what they believe the economy is going to do and how much revenue the state will receive, they literally predict the caseloads for Medicaid, and several other services that drive state spending. The group is scheduled to meet prior to the return of the budget committees on April 18th, 2011. Legislators are required to use the information from this group in completing their budget work. The Legislature will then convene on April 27th for the Veto session and the budget conference committees will finalize the budgets.
Here are some highlights from the budget bills that warrant our oversight during conference committee.
| Budget Item |
Senate |
House |
| Early Head Start |
Restored funding to $10.2 |
Restored Funding to $11.3 |
| Foster Care |
Funded contract increase through predicted case load savings |
Froze contracts at FY 2011 levels |
| Child Advocacy Centers |
Agreed with Governor's rec. but money from the AG's office regarding crime victims fund needs language correction to apply to CAC |
Agreed with Governor's rec. but money from the AG's office regarding crime victims fund needs language correction to apply to CAC |
| Mental Health |
Added $10M for mental health state aid -Add $5 M for the Family Centered Systems of Care |
Add $7.2 M from SGF for MH State Aid for FY 2012 |
| Coordinated School Health |
Add $150,000 back in to the budget |
No addition |
| SRS |
Add instructions to require SRS to make quarterly reports to the Legislative Budget committee about the financial status and where funds are spent |
Reduce operating dollars by $10M |
In addition to the above in the Senate version of the bill, they moved $400,000 from the Crime Victims Assistance Fund from the Attorney General's Office that has implications for child advocacy centers and CASA. The House did not have a similar action.
The Bills~
This year saw a handful of bills affecting child welfare compared to recent years. Nonetheless, these bills found several iterations as they moved through the process with many players and advocates involved in developing the final versions. For copies of the complete bill you may visit:
HB 2105 -- Prohibits a court from ordering that a child be removed from the parents' custody solely because the parent is homeless. The Senate and House were able to iron out differences on the number of days for notification at 10 in two instances: Before the court ordered custodian places the child back in the care of the parents; and after the court issues an order designating the custodian.
SB 23 -- Graduation for students in state custody; high school diploma. Passed in both houses by large margins, the bill effectively adds language to the revised Kansas Code for the Care of Children and the revised Kansas Juvenile Justice code. The language provides that a high school diploma "shall be awarded to a person by the unified school district in which such person is enrolled or resides if the person was in the custody of the Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services (SRS) or Juvenile Justice Authority (JJA) on or after the person's 17th birthday, and the person has met the minimum high school graduation requirements set by the state Department of Education. " The bill has now passed both the Senate and House, but with an amendment in the House will now send it to conference committee. The concern is possible drafting errors so a conference committee will be held to make the necessary modifications. Amended in the House, so it will go back to the Senate. The Senate is likely to non-concur with the House changes due to some errors in drafting that may detrimentally impact these students. A non-concur means that a conference committee between the House and Senate will be set, and the necessary modifications can be made.
SB 100 -- Definitions and scope of practice issues related to addiction counseling. Among other provisions, this bill would allow licensed addiction counselors, on or after July 1st, 2011 to practice in treatment facilities including licensed medical care facilities, licensed adult care homes, community-based alcohol and drug safety action programs, and state institutions at which detoxification services may have been obtained. The bill currently sits in conference committee but it looks like agreement has been reached on the bill. It will be taken up when the legislature returns for the veto session. For additional background on this bill you may visit the following site.
http://skyways.lib.ks.us/ksleg/KLRD/2011SuppNotes/supp_note_sb100.pdf
SB 81 -- As introduced the bill only contained the clarification that a court must determine no viable relative placement exists before considering placement with a non-relative. Proponents of the bill claimed that this would help ensure full consideration of relative adoption before a non-relative is considered. With combining SB 84 and 94 it is not a substitute for SB 81 and:
- grants relatives priority in adoption and when the court determines no viable relative exists, would grant custody to a person with whom the child has emotional ties;
- addresses concerns on permanency planning and prioritizing relatives; and
- requires notification of parties to a temporary custody hearing.
At this juncture, unless it is amended into another bill, it will be held over until next year where it will be considered in House Judiciary Committee.
From the Legislature, to State Agencies, to your Community -- Continuing your Advocacy Efforts
Being an advocate is a year round commitment. Whether the legislature is in session or out of session, advocates must continue their work in ways that are meaningful for the constituents. Opportunities to educate and connect should be continued with state agencies such as SRS, KDHE, and JJA as well as in your communities -- local officials, conferences and training events. As we prepare to transition from the legislative session, consider the following as resources and ideas for your ongoing advocacy work.
April is Child Abuse Prevention Month: Pledge to Make a Difference
Not only does April mean spring is finally here, it is also a month of great importance for those of us in the child advocacy arena. April is Child Abuse Prevention month. It is an opportunity to not only remind ourselves why we do the work we do but to tell the public, and our elected officials that the job of preventing abuse and neglect of children belongs to all of us.
A Little History With a Major Impact
The first Federal child protection legislation was passed in 1974 as a result of increasing public awareness of the growing need to ensure the safety and welfare of children. While the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) has been amended several times since its passage, the original intent behind this legislation remains intact. In 1982 the Congress resolved that the week of June 6-12 be designated as the first National Child Abuse Prevention Week. The following year, April was proclaimed the first national Child Abuse Prevention Month. It has become the standard across the country to promote child abuse and awareness activities during this month. The Office of Child Abuse and Neglect (OCAN) coordinates Child Abuse Prevention Month, providing information and releasing updated national statistics about child abuse and neglect each April. Be sure to visit this site for more background and an understanding of how Community Based Child Abuse Prevention (CBCAP) grants reach the state. http://www.childwelfare.gov/preventing/preventionmonth/history.cfm
Ways to Make a Difference
Strengthening Families and Communities: 2011 Resource Guidehttp://www.childwelfare.gov/preventing/preventionmonth/guide2011/
No matter what part of the community or the continuum of care you are involved with from early childhood services, to foster care, to adoption, this resource guide is a critical tool. In particular it provides vital information that supports service providers in their work with parents, caregivers, and their children to strengthen families and prevent child abuse and neglect. In particular it focuses on the five protective factors, which have been demonstrated to reduce the risk of abuse and neglect, and provides tools and strategies to integrate the factors into existing programs and systems. According to the Administration on Children and Families, focusing on promoting protective factors is a more productive approach than reducing risk factors along. Protective factors are positive attributes that strengthen all families.
I encourage each of you to explore the information and to educate yourself about how you can incorporate the five protective factors in the work you do with children and families. For more information on protective factors that reduce the risk of child abuse and neglect, visit the Child Welfare Information Gateway webpage---Enhancing Protective Factors: www.childwelfare.gov/preventing/promoting/protectfactors
During the month of April, make a visit to these important websites that can help us be more effective advocates and supports for children and families.
- Center for the Study of Social Policy
- Strengthening Families is a framework develop by CSSP and works with national partner organizations to embed five protective factors into existing programs and systems. The organization currently serves as a convener of learning opportunities for national and state organizations and as an information hub. It also helps peers in the child welfare and other fields learn how to implement the Strengthening Families approach.
- http://www.cssp.org/reform/strengthening-families
Monitoring Impact: What Advocates Should Do in Times of Change
Kansas is experiencing great change in the public policy and governmental arenas that affect the children and families we serve. With any transition to a new Governor and Legislature it is always a time of "disruption" going from what we know to what we don't know. In addition, it is beginning to look like only the start of major structural change as witnessed by the legislature's approval of 6 executive reorganization orders before first adjournment. This signals to advocates that we must prepare ourselves to shift some of our efforts to watching and documenting how those changes are "impacting" the people we serve.
So how do I measure impact? The role of the child advocate in part, is to take what we know about the children and families we serve and make sure that information is used to drive positive public policy and services for them. At this juncture, don't get bogged down in a major analysis of indicators. Start paying more attention first. Consider the following as a way to begin to understand if changes in the environment are having an impact on the people you serve.
- Start small by turning a bit more of your attention to watching your indicators in the data you already collect.
- Make a list of those indicators (literally ways of knowing that something has happened or changed) and check them with more frequency noting any changes.
- Use this information to help you ask further questions about these changes and discuss what you are seeing with your peers. For example, convene a gr0up and compare notes about what you are seeing. This is a great way to inform how you develop an advocacy agenda.
In short, we have an obligation as advocates to start the dialogue with our colleagues and strategic partners and make sure our public policy makers understand how the choices they made on our behalf, positive or negative, are affecting the people we serve. For more information on measuring impact go "proving and improving: a quality impact toolkit for social enterprise" http://www.proveandimprove.org/new/meaim/index.php
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