Your advocacy is working!! Keep the pressure up!!
Please plan to attend the
Public Hearing on the Budget before the
Senate Finance Committee
THIS FRIDAY
and speak out on the need to fund the children on the Child Care Assistance Program waitlist.
Date: THIS Friday, May 24th
Location: State Capitol, Senate Committee Room A-B
Although the hearing begins at 9:00 am,
please plan to arrive at 11:00 am and stay for the rest of the day. They take public testimony in the order of the budget sections, and Education is last. There is internet so you can work, and a cafeteria for lunch. Please let Melanie Bronfin know if you will be attending so she can look for you there and assist,
[email protected] or 504-228-0988.
When you arrive, fill out a GREEN CARD (available in the Committee Room) and turn it in (or look for Melanie and she will provide you with a card). Main talking points can be found
here. Then please plan to add your story of how the lack of CCAP has affected you, your parents, your community, etc. Your testimony should be about 5 to 10 minutes in length.
Bottom Line on the Budget and CCAP:
- The original state budget bill contained $0 new dollars for CCAP.
- Through your advocacy, the Governor and the House now have added $9.1 million!!
- This will cover a raise in CCAP rates and an additional 1100 children.
- Now we need the Senate to add more too!
- Even with this added funding, we will still have 4400 children on the waitlist who desperately need early care and education services!!
- $27 million more is needed to cover them
- NOTE: Even if we fund every child on the waitlist, we will be serving around 20,000 children—which is still HALF of the number we were serving 10 years ago.
We look forward to seeing you on Friday!
