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Legislative Education and
Advocacy for Children
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Time For Kids is involved in supporting programs that serve children at-risk in
California's elementary schools. Our efforts include providing grants to locally
funded programs, visiting programs, talking with educators and program staff
that serve children, seeking information about effective program models and
educating legislators about current programs, fiscal needs and the needs of
children. Advocacy is an important part of our mission.
December 2009 - Post cards and letters needed!
Once again it is time to contact Governor Schwarzenegger in advance of the release of his 2010-2011 budget on January 10th. That means we need to get his attention and remind him of the importance of and passionate support for EMHI funding. Next week, Time For Kids Board members have a meeting with one of the Governor's staff members. When we walk into an office that has received a few hundred (or few thousand) cards and letters regarding EMHI, it makes our face-to-face advocacy more effective.
Thank you to the many of you who signed several hundred post cards at the EMHI Conference. For those who haven't yet contacted the Governor, please consider doing so as soon as possible. Time is of the essence. Go the Advocacy page to download pre-printed post cards and a sample letter to the Governor. Be sure to write your own name and return address so they will know a real person sent the message. Adding a brief personal note adds to the impact.
Remember - EMHI is both a cost-effective service to about 30,000 kids per year, and provides over 1,000 jobs across the state (our estimate). Thank you, as always, for your help!
August 2009 - State budget passed - EMHI saved!
A State budget was finally passed in July after arduous negotiations. Thanks to the tremendous efforts of all of you and our friends in the legislature, EMHI miraculously survived the budget process and remains funded at the $15 million level for next year. Thank you to the many of you who sent in post cards as part of Time For Kids post card campaign, wrote personal letters, made phone calls and sent faxes to key legislators about the need for EMHI funded programs. Legislators were inundated with communications about EMHI! We have been exceptionally effective in our grass roots efforts in the past and this year was no exception. Many wonderful programs have suffered painful cuts, but at least EMHI remains to serve California's elementary school children. Award letters were sent early in August notifying districts of the status of their grant applications.
We will be continuing our advocacy efforts on behalf of EMHI. We cannot rest now and must remain vigilant as the budget develops for this next year. Please check back frequently on this website for the latest information.
June 10, 2009 - Last effort needed to help EMHI
Legislators will be voting this week and next on budget items with the intent to have final decisions made by July 1st. Please make one last contact to these Key Legislators by fax or email or phone. If you have any personal connections with these legislators or others, please be sure they have all the information they need about EMHI.
May 2009 - URGENT! Your help is needed! Miraculously, funding for the Early Mental Health Initiative (EMHI) was included in the budget finally approved by the Governor and the legislature in February 2009 at the full $15 million level. However, the rejection by voters of Propositions 1A-1E put forth by the Governor as short term solutions to California's budget crisis has put EMHI, along with many other programs and services, in dire jeopardy. We must contact key legislators immediately regarding EMHI. Time For Kids has organized a campaign to help EMHI programs reach these key legislators as soon as possible. Project Coordinators have been contacted and packets of advocacy materials have been sent out upon request. As usual, the response and efforts to help have been enormously positive. Our goal is to make 30,000 contacts with these legislators. Please see the Advocacy section of this website to find a printable copy of the post cards we are asking people to send. The names and addresses of the key legislators can be found here as well. Please do your part to help if you haven't already done so. Ask your friends and co-workers to sign and send these cards as well.
We have been enormously effective in our grass roots efforts in the past and there is no reason to believe we can't be again. Our strong belief in what we are doing for California's kids plus the proven success and cost effectiveness of EMHI programs speaks for itself. Time For Kids will closely monitor the situation, make contact with key legislators, and prepare to testify at relevant committee hearings. Thank you for your help! Time is of the essence!
As always, we must be tireless in our efforts to educate legislators and the governor about the importance of early intervention programs. Letters, emails, and visits to legislators are always needed.
Sample letters, addresses and phone/fax numbers of legislators on the key
subcommittees will be put on this web site. While all input
matters, it is especially important to write if you are a constituent of one of
the legislators on the key subcommittees. If we, as an organization, have
learned anything in the past four years, it is that YOUR VOICE
MATTERS!!!
For further information about
legislative proceedings, visit www.senate.ca.gov or
www.assembly.ca.gov. On these websites, the Daily File includes
schedules and information about the committee hearings. Visit links to the
subcommittees of the Budget Committee to find hearing agendas. You can even
listen to many of the hearings online. The websites also provide assistance with
finding your legislator, links to home pages of each legislator and links to
legislative bills.
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A
bit of history about funding for the Early Mental Health Initiative:
Prior to the
statewide budget cuts of 2003, EMHI was funded at $15 million, which was divided
approximately equally between grants in first, second and third years of
funding. As the funding cycle is three years, new grants were allocated each
year from funds made available as third year grants cycled off their grants. Funding for EMHI was reduced to $10 million in 2003-2004, but restored to $15 million in 2006-2007 thanks to the dedicated efforts of many people across the state. We are hoping that funding will be increased and extended to fifth and sixth graders at some future time.
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| How the legislative budget process works (a simplified outsiders view) | Top of Page |
| Each January, the governor announces his budget proposal for the
following fiscal year. Following his proposal, both houses of the legislature
begin hearings to respond to the governor's budget and create their own budget
proposals. The hearings begin in subcommittees which, in turn, make their
recommendations to the full Budget Committees. Each house approves a final
budget proposal. Members of the two houses meet to negotiate a final legislative
budget which is approved by both houses and sent to the governor. The governor
has the option to approve or disapprove of various items in the budget. At the
end of the process, the governor and leaders of the legislature meet for final
negotiations. It is up to the legislative budget
subcommittees to consider approval of funding for EMHI. Since EMHI is
administered by the DMH, but is funded by Proposition 98, the budget item are heard in both the Education and Health and Human Services Budget
Subcommittees. Hearings continue through the spring, with final
recommendations developed by the subcommittees after the governor announces the
"May Revise"-adjustments to the budget proposal based on the latest revenue and
spending information. If the Senate and Assembly both support
funding for EMHI, it will be up to the governor to accept or reject that funding
level. Vocal support for the effort is always needed from citizens throughout the
process.
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