Letters and Correspondence

On April 29, 2015, the First Focus Campaign for Children submitted this statement for the record to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Control for the hearing entitled “Birthright Citizenship: Is It the Right Policy for America?” The statement emphasizes the importance of preserving the Fourteenth Amendment’s birthright citizenship clause to ensure equal opportunity for each child born in America and access to critical safety net programs in the critical early years of life.

The Runaway and Homeless Youth and Trafficking Prevention Act would strengthen assistance to runaway and homeless youth by updating provisions for three key grant programs that help to serve homeless children and their families to include protections for children and youth who are victims of human trafficking. The First Focus Campaign for Children supports this legislation to homeless children and youth, as well as children at-risk of being trafficked, with a variety of services that can mitigate harm and improve outcomes.

The First Focus Campaign for Children joined more than 50 state and national groups supporting the Children Don’t Belong on Tobacco Fields Act, a bill that bill would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act to include in the definition of “particularly hazardous oppressive child labor” any employment in which children under the age of 18 come into direct contact with tobacco plants or dried tobacco leaves. This bill is an important step in protecting child farmworkers from the health risks posed by working in...

The First Focus Campaign for Children submitted this letter of support for the Children Don’t Belong on Tobacco Fields Act, a bill that bill would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act to include in the definition of “particularly hazardous oppressive child labor” any employment in which children under the age of 18 come into direct contact with tobacco plants or dried tobacco leaves. This bill is an important step in protecting child farmworkers from the health risks posed by working in tobacco fields.

First Focus Campaign for Children sent this letter to the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on April 14, 2015, in advance of their markup of the Every Child Achieves Act to reauthorize No Child Left Behind. The letter provides a list of amendments for members to support to strengthen the bill to provide more educational opportunities for all children, and a number of amendments that would weaken the bill, which we urge members to reject.

On April 1, 2015, First Focus Campaign for Children sent this sign-on letter to House and Senate leadership in support of the Administration’s proposal for a five-year collaborative demonstration involving the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). It is designed to encourage states and tribes to provide evidence-based psychosocial interventions to children and youth in foster care and to reduce the inappropriate use and over-prescription of psychotropic medications.First Focus Campaign for Children and Voice for Adoption coordinated this effort and 128...

Legislation sponsored by U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown to extend the bipartisan Children’s Health Insurance Program through 2019 has been cosponsored by every Democrat in the Senate. The First Focus Campaign for Children sent Senate Democrats a letter today, expressing thanks and support for their commitment to securing a four-year CHIP extension through ongoing negotiations over Medicare legislation. This letter is addressed to Senator Brown, but the text of other letters is identical.Thank you @SenSherrodBrown for sponsoring Medicare bill to #ExtendCHIP for four...

This letter to the U.S. House of Representatives strongly urge that Congress include a four-year funding extension for the Children’s Health Insurance Program in negotiations of a package to replace or extend the flawed Medicare physician sustainable growth rate system.

This letter to the U.S. Senate strongly urge that Congress include a four-year funding extension for the Children’s Health Insurance Program in negotiations of a package to replace or extend the flawed Medicare physician sustainable growth rate system.

On March 16, 2015 the First Focus Campaign for Children submitted this Statement to the House Committee on Oversight & Reform in response to a hearing on “The Fiscal Costs of the President’s Executive Actions on Immigration.” The expansion of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and the Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (DAPA) Programs is important for the healthy development and overall well being  of children in the United States as this action has the potential to...