First Focus Campaign for Children wrote a letter in support of H.R. 3239, the "Save Kids Act," by Representative Raul Ruiz.

Excerpt:

On behalf of First Focus Campaign for Children, a bipartisan children’s advocacy organization dedicated to making children and families the priority in federal policy and budget decisions, we are writing to express our thanks for introducing the Humanitarian Standards for Individuals in Customs and Border Protection Custody Act.

Every child has the right to have their basic needs met and to be treated with humanity, but unfortunately the current state of the US border does not guarantee this. In the last year, six migrant children have tragically died in U.S. custody. 

Read the full letter here.

On April 25, the First Focus Campaign for Children (FFCC) sent a letter to leaders on the House and Senate Judiciary Committees in strong opposition to H.J.Res. 36, a proposal by Rep. Jim Banks to create an amendment to the U.S. Constitution on “parental rights.”

Excerpt from the Letter: H.J.Res. 36 would create greater threats to the safety, health, and well-being of children because the “parental rights” language preempts any protections for children absent a government interest of the “highest order” or "a parental action or decision that would end life.”

The consequence of the silencing or dismissal of the voices of children about the harm they experience and their needs has the effect of protecting the abusers, which include parents, government, and private institutions, rather than the children. If policymakers are to take actions that impact children, it should be to take action in their ‘best interest,’ to protect them from harm, and, at the very least, to do no harm. Unfortunately, H.J.Res. 36 undermines the fundamental rights, protections, and voice of children and would do harm. It should be rejected.

Read the full letter.

Blueprint Shows How 116th Congress Can Act on the Best Interests of Children (more…)

Any policies that affect children should base their foundations on the best interests of the child.

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First Focus Campaign for Children and 60 other groups sent a letter to the United States House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies regarding the crisis of family separation and detention.

View the letter.

Excerpt:

We the undersigned organizations are writing to express our profound concern over the cruel and harmful practice of separating families at our southern border. We request that you act to help swiftly reunite families and ensure this is done in a manner that absolutely protects the children, upholds legal standards prohibiting family detention, and increases government transparency for the public. During the House Appropriations Committee mark-up of the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS) annual appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2019 (FY 19), we were extremely troubled and alarmed to see the Cole amendment pass, as it would override crucial protections established by the Flores Settlement Agreement. However, we were pleased to see the Committee include a number of important provisions in the Manager’s Amendment, as well as several other amendments by voice vote, that would lead to real progress in addressing this urgent crisis. As the FY 19 Labor-HHS spending bill advances further, we urge you to:

1. Strike the Cole (No. 2) Amendment overriding Flores protections for children,
2. Support the four provisions in the Manager’s Amendment pertaining to Congressional oversight of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) and permitting in-kind donations to ORR care facilities,
3. Support the 12 amendments adopted by voice vote aimed at protecting children in the care of ORR and facilitating family reunification, and
4. Support additional amendments that, had they passed, would strengthen efforts to protect these children and families.

July 19, 2018, Washington, D.C.—In a year marked by partisanship, several Members of Congress stood out as Champions and Defenders of children, according to the 2017 Legislative Scorecard released by First Focus Campaign for Children (FFCC), a national bipartisan children’s advocacy group.

“Even though child advocates had to defend a whole range of legislative and regulatory attacks on children, we identified 120 Members of Congress who chose to make children a priority. We commend their leadership and hope they will inspire their colleagues to do the same,” said Bruce Lesley, President of the First Focus Campaign for Children.

Of note is that, in the 115^th Congress, women are 2.6 times more likely to be named a champion or defender of children than men.

The 2017 Champions for Children Scorecard includes key votes on health-related bills and amendments to tax legislation, including two House votes on the Children’s Health Insurance Program, two Senate votes on child tax credit amendments, and four votes between the two chambers on the Affordable Care Act.

For instance, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, signed into law in December 2017 (P.L. 115-97) will increase the deficit by approximately $1.5 trillion, which the next generation will pay off well into the future. The deficit will also trigger cuts to numerous programs vital to children, including Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program, and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) offered an amendment to further expand the CTC by increasing its refundability (make it refundable against payroll taxes), which would have benefitted lower income families. Sadly, despite 68 senators voting for it, the amendment did not pass as senators failed to overcome opposition from Senate leadership and the Trump Administration.

In July 2017, the Senate voted down the “Health Care Freedom Act” (H.R. 1628), which would have resulted in an estimated 16 million Americans losing health coverage and a 20 percent increase in insurance premiums. The First Focus Campaign for Children strongly opposed the bill, and we thank all the members of the Senate who voted against it, including Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and John McCain (R-AZ).

Out of 90 bills that FFCC is tracking, The Child Poverty Reduction Act of 2017 (S.1630/H.R.3381), would mandate that the federal government create a plan to cut the number of children in poverty by half in ten years and to eliminate child poverty in twenty years. That legislation was sponsored by Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) and Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL), who accumulated the most points in the Senate and House for their votes and work on legislation for children.

This is First Focus Campaign for Children’s eighth annual class of Champions and Defenders for Children.

Champions for Children

• Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)
• Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT)
• Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ)
• Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
• Sen. Robert Casey (D-PA)
• Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME)
• Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV)
• Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL)
• Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
• Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)
• Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA)
• Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM)
• Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND)
• Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI)
• Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)
• Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA)
• Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL)
• Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY)
• Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)
• Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR)
• Rep. Lou Correa(D-CA)
• Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT)
• Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL)
• Rep. Susan Davis (D-CA)
• Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO)
• Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT)
• Rep. Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA)
• Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI)
• Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN)
• Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ)
• Rep. Luis Gutiérrez (D-IL)
• Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-FL)
• Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX)
• Rep. Jim Langevin (D-RI)
• Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA)
• Rep. Dave Loebsack (D-IA)
• Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA)
• Rep. Ben Ray Luján (D-NM)
• Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D-NM)
• Rep. James McGovern (D-MA)
• Rep. Gwen Moore (D-WI)
• Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-FL)
• Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI)
• Rep. Dave Reichert (R-WA)
• Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL)
• Rep. Jacky Rosen (D-NV)
• Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA)
• Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL)
• Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL)
• Rep. Darren Soto (D-FL)
• Rep. Mark Takano (D-CA)

Defenders of Children

• Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO)
• Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE)
• Sen. Joe Donnelly (D-IN)
• Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)
• Sen. Angus King (I-ME)
• Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN)
• Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT)
• Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV)
• Sen. Edward Markey (D-MA)
• Sen. John McCain (R-AZ)
• Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO)
• Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ)
• Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR)
• Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT)
• Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI)
• Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI)
• Sen. Tom Udall (D-NM)
• Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)
• Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)
• Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI)
• Rep. Nanette Barragán (D-CA)
• Rep. Ami Bera (D-CA)
• Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR)
• Rep. André Carson (D-IN)
• Rep. Mike Coffman (R-CO)
• Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA)
• Rep. Ryan Costello (R-PA)
• Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-FL)
• Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-WA)
• Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-NY)
• Rep. Dwight Evans (D-PA)
• Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA)
• Rep. Lois Frankel (D-FL)
• Rep. Gene Green (D-TX)
• Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-WA)
• Rep. Will Hurd (R-TX)
• Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA)
• Rep. John Katko (R-NY)
• Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA)
• Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI)
• Rep. Leonard Lance (R-NJ)
• Rep. Brenda Lawrence (D-MI)
• Rep. Sander Levin (D-MI)
• Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-IL)
• Rep. Alan Lowenthal (D-CA)
• Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY)
• Rep. Richard Neal (D-MA)
• Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-TX)
• Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ)
• Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)
• Rep. Linda Sánchez (D-CA)
• Rep. Brad Schneider (D-IL)
• Rep. Robert Scott (D-VA)
• Rep. José Serrano (D-NY)
• Rep. Terri Sewell (D-AL)
• Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA)
• Rep. Steve Stivers (R-OH)
• Rep. Norma Torres (D-CA)
• Rep. Michael Turner (R-OH)
• Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL)

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The First Focus Campaign for Children is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization affiliated with First Focus, a bipartisan children’s advocacy organization. The Campaign for Children advocates directly for legislative change in Congress to ensure children and families are the priority in federal policy and budget decisions.

First Focus Campaign for Children released its 2017 Champions Scorecard. In an attempt to recognize the lawmakers in the First Session of the 115th Congress who are actively working and trying to improve the lives of our nation’s children through public policy change, to improve the lives of our nation’s children through the policy process, we are pleased to present awards to 120 legislators who have made children a priority.

The 2017 Champions for Children Scorecard includes key votes on health-related bills and amendments to tax legislation, including two House votes on the Children’s Health Insurance Program, two Senate votes on child tax credit amendments, and four votes between the two chambers on the Affordable Care Act. Learn more and view the report at www.championsforchildren2017.com.

Thank legislators who put the needs of children over politics, and share this scorecard resource by using our social media kit.

View the kit.

Our nation’s children face an array of problems, including poverty, violence, abuse, neglect, hunger, poor nutrition, education inequity, homelessness, lack of health coverage, infant and child mortality, and family separations in mixed-status households. These obstacles demand attention, policy solutions, political will, and action that to make children a priority.

Unfortunately, kids are far too often an afterthought in Congress. The problem is that children can’t vote and don’t have Political Action Committees (PACs) that garner and demand attention.

Children need Champions and Defenders, who are willing to focus on, support, raise their voices, and attach their name to legislation that would improve the lives of our nation’s children and actively oppose legislation that would harm kids.

In an attempt to recognize the lawmakers in the First Session of the 115th Congress who are actively working and trying to improve the lives of our nation’s children through public policy change, to improve the lives of our nation’s children through the policy process, we are pleased to present our Champions and Defenders for Children Scorecard.

View the Champions for Children website.

Download the full report.

See also the previous award recipients:

• 2015
• 2014
• 2013
• 2012
• 2011

In May, the Trump administration issued a zero-tolerance policy for families crossing the U.S. border. According to a recent report, 1,887 new children are now in the custody of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) since the enactment of this policy just one month ago. This initiative has created a new category of unaccompanied children who will rely on HHS for their safety and well-being. While the stated purpose is to uphold the rule of law, cruelty as a deterrence tactic has been the point of this initiative from the start. The following statement comes from Bruce Lesley, President of First Focus Campaign for Children:

“With dire urgency, the administration’s anti-immigrant and anti-family policies must be rejected. In a democracy, we are all accountable for our government, which includes how we treat the most vulnerable among us. The administration’s family separation policy directly harms children and amounts to child abuse. Anyone concerned about the tragedy of family separation and the harm it is doing to children should contact their elected officials and demand the end to this policy. Our country has to be better than this.”

As a nation that values the well-being of all children and understands the strength of family unity, it is our responsibility to ensure that children and families who are seeking refuge in the U.S. are not deterred from doing so and that our government provides the best protections and services to these vulnerable children during every step of the process. There is room for bipartisan conversations regarding our nation’s broken immigration system. However, tearing children from their parents should never be a part of this conversation.

The Family First Prevention Services Act was signed into law as part of the Bipartisan Budget Act on February 9, 2018. This act reforms the federal child welfare financing streams, Title IV-E and Title IV-B of the Social Security Act, to provide services to families who are at risk of entering the child welfare system. The bill aims to prevent children from entering foster care by allowing federal reimbursement for mental health services, substance use treatment, and in-home parenting skill training. It also seeks to improve the well-being of children already in foster by incentivizing states to reduce placement of children in congregate care.

View the summary.

View the section-by-section overview.