Executive
Committee
Subcommittee Chairs
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| Policy |
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PROMOTING
SAFE AND STABLE FAMILIES LEGISLATION
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| NFPN News Notes - August
2006 |
| The National Family Preservation
Network (NFPN) appreciates that many of you receiving this e-newsletter
pass it on to others. It would be especially helpful to pass
along this month's News Notes as it contains an action item.
Thanks in advance for sharing this information. |
| The only designated federal
funding source for family preservation and reunification is
the Promoting Safe and Stable Families Act (PSSF). Funds for
this program go to state child welfare agencies and may be used
for family support, family preservation and reunification, and
adoption. NFPN was instrumental in passage of the initial legislation,
which is reauthorized every five years. The funding level has
been increased in recent years and $395 million was appropriated
for the current fiscal year. |
| Bills to reauthorize PSSF
have been passed by both the Senate and House with an additional
$40 million in earmarked funds. The Senate bill earmarks the
funds for social workers to visit children in foster care at
least monthly. The House bill specifies that the funds be used
for competitive grants for meth treatment for families. NFPN
has expressed strong concerns about using PSSF funds for foster
care services. These funds were never intended for, nor have
they previously been used for, foster care as foster care has
other sources of federal funding. Using the funds for foster
care programs would set a precedent that could eventually result
in displacing federal funding for family preservation and reunification.
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| Because the bills have
been passed in different forms, they will now be sent to a conference
committee where the final decision will be made on how the $40
million will be allocated. This is a critical time to share
your views. Congress is in recess during the month of August
so please contact your legislators' district offices. You can
begin by thanking them for reauthorizing PSSF and providing
additional funding. The House put their bill language (HR 5640)
onto the Senate bill (S 3525) before passing it so, to avoid
confusion, state that you support using the additional $40 million
for meth treatment programs. This is also a great opportunity
for you to include some information on what your organization
is doing to preserve and reunify families. Invite your congressional
delegation to visit your organization and learn more about your
programs. Both versions of the bill require that states must
now report on how the funds are spent so it's timely to demonstrate
how the money can be put to good use. |
| To track the legislation
and find out how to contact your senators and representatives,
visit http://thomas.loc.gov. |
| Thank you for advocating
on behalf of family preservation and reunification and for all
of your work on behalf of families. |
- Priscilla Martens
director@nfpn.org
http://www.nfpn.org/contact/ |
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OPERA
is
a statewide, nonprofit association of private sector and tribal
entities who provide treatment, prevention and training services.
We are dedicated to ending addiction by ensuring the development
and maintenance of the highest quality statewide service systems. |
Mission
OPERA’s mission is to eliminate alcohol and drug problems
and their social, health and behavioral consequences through
use of evidence-based practices; partnerships with public and
private, social and healthcare providers; and advocacy for effective
budget and public policy. |
Vision
We envision a society in which alcohol and drug problems are
recognized as a public health issue that is both preventable
and treatable. We envision a society in which high quality services
for prevention and treatment of alcohol and drug problems are
widely available, and where prevention and treatment are recognized
as specialized fields of expertise. |
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