Sen. Dodd Opposes Diminshing The Child Care Bureau in the Health and Human Services Department
Sen. Dodd Opposes Diminshing The Child Care Bureau in the Health and Human Services Department
RAISE CONCERNS ABOUT THE IMPACT ON CHILD CARE IN AMERICA
Today a bipartisan and bicameral group of lawmakers objected to the restructuring of the Department of Health and Human Services because of the proposed consolidation of the Child Care Bureau. Led by Senators Edward M. Kennedy and Chris Dodd and Representatives George Miller and Lynn Woolsey, the lawmakers raised their concerns in a letter to Secretary Leavitt on the impact this change will have on important efforts to improve access to child care and upgrade the quality of early care and education programs available to families. Since its establishment in 1995, the Child Care Bureau has played a leadership role in promoting the quality of care as an essential component to child development and school readiness.
In justifying the move, the Department of Health and Human Services cited the need for greater coordination between the Child Care Development Block Grant (CCDBG) program and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. However, House and Senate Democrats expressed strong concern about the future policy implications of the move, particularly in narrowing federal child care assistance to function solely as a work support for TANF families, rather than as a work support and a key to children's educational success.
"Thousands of children across the country are waiting for quality child care, and thousands that currently receive help under the CCDBG program are the working poor," said Senator Kennedy. "The Bush Administration's misguided policy and budget cuts threaten to push these families off of child care assistance, and it compromise efforts already underway to improve child care and leverage CCDBG to support quality early learning environments."
"Watering down the role of the Child Care Bureau diminishes the purpose of child care as both a support for working parents and an early learning experience for children," said Senator Dodd. "This is a step backward in the movement to improve the quality of care for all families, especially low-income families struggling to keep their children safe while they earn a living."
"The Bush Administration's proposal once again calls into question whether its commitment to child care is real or not," said Rep. George Miller. "It comes at the same time that the President's budget proposes drastic cuts in the number of American children that would receive child care."
"The Administration's proposed consolidation of the Child Care Bureau into the Office of Family Assistance could significantly harm the availability of quality child care for low-income families," said Woolsey. "The Child Care Bureau has been a focal point in the national effort to ensure that child care is not only a support for working parents but also an enriching experience that prepares children to succeed in school. This action is another unfortunate example of the Administration's lack of understanding of the needs of working families."
This year, CCDBG is serving 250,000 fewer children than it did in 2001, when President Bush took office. Yet the President's budget for 2007 would reduce the number of children receiving child care through CCDBG by another 400,000 by the year 2011.
Child care is central to the integration of early education services for families across the country. With more and more of the nation's children in out-of-home care, the Senators and Members of Congress believe that the Administration for Children and Families crucial focus on improving early education and care must be maintained.
Below is the letter from the lawmakers, as well as a letter of opposition from a large consortium of advocates across the country. (
March 15, 2006
The Honorable Michael O. Leavitt
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
200 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Washington, DC 20201
Dear Secretary Leavitt:
We are writing in response to your letter of February 22, 2006 to the Senate and House Appropriations Committees regarding the planned reorganization of the Administration for Children and Families (ACF). We thank you for your commitment to the important programs administered by ACF and appreciate your efforts to improve the efficacy and efficiency of federal programs serving children and families.
The organizational structure and operations of ACF significantly affect the direction, quality, and efficiency of federal programs serving children and families. We agree that a thoughtful and comprehensive analysis of the agency's organization may improve program quality and the use of administrative funding. We commend you for your plan to elevate the Head Start Bureau to report directly to the Assistant Secretary of ACF. We believe this change could lead to strengthened program oversight and quality. We also commend you for seeking ways to improve accountability and program consistency across ACF's Regional Offices, and we request that you ensure that any effort to streamline management processes maintains the valuable role and perspective provided by the Regional Offices.
We appreciate your interest in improving coordination between the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), and other important programs that support healthy families by proposing a consolidation of the Office of Family Assistance (OFA) and the Child Care Bureau However, before you proceed with this part of the Department's reorganization plan, we respectfully encourage you to consider carefully its consequencesintended and unintendedon the future direction of activities to improve access to child care and the quality of early care and education programs available to families. Of greatest importance, we ask you to assure us that any reorganization not narrow the population of children and families who benefit from CCDBG or lose the Child Care Bureau's focus on promoting quality early education and child care.
Currently, the Child Care Bureau administers the CCDBG to serve low-income families, including but not limited to families receiving TANF public assistance. As you know, this program subsidizes child care as a key work support for low-income families and supports state efforts to improve the quality of early care and education programs available to all children. In addition to administering CCDBG, the Child Care Bureau serves as a central point for information and research about child care in the nation. The Bureau's history of disseminating best practices and serving as a resource for technical assistance has helped states focus on early learning, quality in early childhood settings, and school readiness.
Moreover, the Child Care Bureau has taken the lead in promoting coordination across Head Start, child care and state pre-kindergarten, and implementing other key elements of the President's Good Start, Grow Smart initiative. It is essential that the Child Care Bureau's current efforts to support the dual role of child care as a children's service that influences school readiness and a work support for families continue to be fully supported by ACF's organizational structure. We could not support any reorganization that would compromise ACF's current role of supporting states' efforts to coordinate early education and school readiness opportunities and to help provide for the child care needs of low-income families. With a large percentage of the nation's children in out-of-home care, we believe ACF's crucial focus on improving early education and care must be maintained.
We appreciate your consideration of and careful attention to these critical issues as you move forward with efforts to reorganize ACF. We believe that major decisions regarding the operation and organization of ACF should be carefully considered and discussed with the states and the child care field. We encourage such consultation to ensure that any final decision complements and supports states' efforts to improve access to high-quality child care and school readiness programs. Thank you for your efforts to inform our respective Committees of your plans, and for your commitment to continue to work with our staff on this matter. We look forward to learning more in the coming weeks about the progress of your deliberations.
Sincerely,
Michael B. Enzi
Chairman
Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Edward M. Kennedy
Ranking Member
Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Howard P. "Buck" McKeon
Chairman
House Committee on Education and the Workforce
George Miller
Senior Democrat
House Committee on Education and the Workforce
Lamar Alexander
Chairman
Senate Subcommittee on Education and Early Childhood Development
Christopher J. Dodd
Ranking Member
Senate Subcommittee on Education and Early Childhood Development
Ric Keller
Chairman
House Subcommittee on 21st Century Competitiveness
Ralph Regula
Chairman
House Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
Michael N. Castle
Chairman
House Subcommittee on Education Reform
Lynn C. Woolsey
Ranking Member
House Subcommittee on Education Reform
Dale E. Kildee
Ranking Member
House Subcommittee on 21st Century Competitiveness
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http://dodd.senate.gov/index.php?q=node/3425