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Washington — The bipartisan First Focus Campaign for Children released a letter today endorsing legislation to make high-quality pre-kindergarten (pre-K) available to more children. The Prepare All Kids Act (S. 502), introduced by Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.), would establish a federal-state partnership to improve access and promote quality early education.“Pre-k can provide a solid foundation for lifelong learning, if we ensure that it’s high-quality, and that it’s widely available– Senator Casey’s bill delivers on both counts,” said First Focus Campaign for Children President Bruce Lesley.Children who attend high-quality pre-K programs show improved academic achievement throughout school and are less...

Washington — First Focus Campaign for Children president Bruce Lesley released the following statement today on lawmakers’ failure to reach a deal to avert the sequester by the end of the day:“It’s a bad day for children in America. The clock has run out on our kids, and billions are at stake for children in every state, city, community, and neighborhood.“Not all cuts are created equal, and children are hit especially hard by the discretionary cuts in the sequester. Sequester cuts seriously threaten many aspects of children’s lives - the safe roof over their heads, the education that promises an...

Washington — The First Focus Campaign for Children today commended Chairwoman Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) and her Senate Appropriations Committee colleagues for holding a hearing on the impact of federal budget sequestration. The bipartisan children’s advocacy organization cited a recent First Focus analysis finding that sequestration would result in immediate cuts of more than $4 billion to federal investments in children.“Chairwoman Mikulski and the Senate Appropriations Committee understand that sequestration isn’t just about numbers in a ledger – it’s about real children and families,” said First Focus Campaign for Children President Bruce Lesley.Unless Congress acts before March 1st, cuts of...

Washington — Más de 200 organizaciones que representan a los niños, inmigrantes, académicos, tradiciones de fe y derechos civiles publicaron este martes pasado un conjunto de principios para la legislación de una reforma de inmigración que cumpla las necesidades de los niños. La organización bipartidaria de defensa de los niños First Focus y la Women’s Refugee Commission lideraron los esfuerzos para desarrollar estos principios, que también han sido apoyados por el National Latino Children’s Institute, Southern Poverty Law Center, la Conferencia Católica de Obispos de los EE.UU., MomsRising, el Centro de Leyes Nacionales de Inmigración y un total de...

Washington — More than 200 organizations representing children, immigrants, academia, faith traditions, and civil rights today released a set of principles for immigration reform legislation that meets the needs of children. The bipartisan children’s advocacy organization First Focus and the Women’s Refugee Commission led the effort to develop these principles, which have also been endorsed by the National Latino Children’s Institute, Southern Poverty Law Center, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, MomsRising, the National Immigration Law Center, and a total of 205 organizations. The First Focus Campaign for Children urged U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee members to...

Washington — The bipartisan First Focus Campaign for Children today sent a letter to Congressman Steve King (R-IA), urging him to withdraw proposed legislation (H.R. 140) denying U.S. citizenship to babies born in the United States unless they can prove one or both of their parents is a U.S. citizen, a permanent resident immigrant, or an immigrant serving in the armed forces. The organization also sent letters to the co-sponsors of the legislation, urging them to withdraw their support.“This harmful proposal targets the health and well-being of just one group of people: children,” said First Focus Campaign for Children...

Seattle TimesIn October, Reichert was one of 50 members of Congress and one of only three Republicans to be named as top advocates for children by First Focus Campaign for Children. The group also cited Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Seattle, and Sen. Patty Murray.More

Wichita EagleKansas’ $12 million federal award (“Enrollments in Medicaid earn state a bonus,” Dec. 21 Business Today) is a welcome reminder that when Republicans and Democrats work together, government can make real progress for real people – in this case, cutting red tape to cover uninsured children.This award recognizes HealthWave’s success in protecting children’s health. While thousands of families have lost employer-sponsored health insurance, the uninsured rate among Kansas children has actually fallen, thanks to HealthWave and Medicaid.That success happened because Republicans and Democrats in Topeka put children’s health ahead of politics and built a system that works for...

Washington -- The First Focus Campaign for Children, a bipartisan children’s advocacy organization, today commended the White House and Congress for delivering a federal “fiscal cliff” agreement that protects key investments in America’s children.“With sky-high stakes for children, failure wasn’t an option – and President Obama, Vice President Biden, Minority Leader McConnell, Majority Leader Reid, Speaker Boehner, and Leader Pelosi delivered for kids,” said Campaign for Children President Bruce Lesley.Failure to meet the year-end deadline would have resulted in automatic repeal of improvements to the Child Tax Credit (CTC) and the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), as well as billions...

Washington -- The First Focus Campaign for Children, a bipartisan children’s advocacy organization, today commended the U.S. House of Representatives for passing legislation to minimize the academic disruptions facing children who are moved from one school to another. The Uninterrupted Scholars Act (USA, S. 3472), sponsored by Senator Mary Landrieu (D-LA) and Congresswoman Karen Bass (D-CA), grants child welfare caseworkers access to the school records of children placed in foster care under the state’s legal custody.“Kids in foster care already face extra hurdles in school, so we should be doing everything we can to advance reforms like the Uninterrupted Scholars...