2020 State and Federal Advocacy Agenda
When the California Legislative season convened in January, elected officials from all across the state gathered in Sacramento to propose ideas and form the basis of what might become the policy proposals that grace the Governor’s desk that year. However, what could have been a historic year for California, which began with a budget surplus and modest investments in early childhood development programs, ended with a bare budget and a narrow set of legislation because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
As a result, First 5 LA’s State and Federal Advocacy Agenda focused on advocating for a narrow set of policy solutions that address urgent responses to COVID-19 for children and families in LA County, and that also align with our 2020-2028 Strategic Plan and four results for children.
STATE POLICY
AB 2883: Childcare services: Alternative Payment Programs: Direct Deposits: Reserve Funds
Author: Asm. Sharon Quirk-Silva (AD-65)
Summary: This bill would eliminate the current requirement that Alternative Payment (AP) providers be reimbursed based on the days and hours of attendance to families with variable schedules. Instead, this bill would base provider reimbursement on the maximum certified hours of care.
Status: Legislation not moving forward, however, contents were included in trailer bill language.
Author: Asm. Robert Rivas (AD-30)
Summary: This bill would allow Federally Qualified Health Clinics (FQHC) and Rural Health Clinics (RHC) to establish new patients exclusively using telehealth programs. More specifically, the bill would end the current requirement that an FQHC or RHC patient and provider first meet in person, in order for subsequent telehealth services to be reimbursable through Medi-Cal.
Status: Vetoed by Governor Newsom.
SB 1383: Unlawful Employment Practice; Family Leave
Author: Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson (SD-19)
Summary: This bill would provide up to 12 weeks of job-protected family leave to all workers employed at businesses with 5 or more employees. I would also guarantee that leave be granted for new parents to bond with a child or to care for sick children, parents, grandparents, and other direct family members.
Status: Signed into law by Governor Newsom on September 17, 2020.
FEDERAL POLICY
H.R. 2: Moving Forward Together Act
Author: Rep. Peter DeFazio (OR-4)
Summary: This bill would provide a $1.5 trillion investment in infrastructure for essential sectors, including $10 billion for child care and $100 billion for K-12 schools, $30 billion for health care, $100 billion for affordable housing, $65 billion for clean water, and over $300 billion for community development projects. This funding would help to address long-standing disparities in access to essential services such as health care and early learning and would direct additional funding toward under-resourced communities.
Status: Passed the House of Representatives; received in the Senate.
H.R. 7027: Child Care is Essential Act:
Author: Rep. Rosa DeLauro (CT-3)
Summary: This bill would provide $50 billion dedicated to child care funding and allow providers to safely reopen and operate during the COVID-19 pandemic. The funding would flow as grants through the Child Care Development Block Grant (CCDBG) program, and be made available to help programs cover: personnel costs, including maintaining compensation and benefits; sanitization and cleaning costs, as well as the purchase of personal protective equipment and any other supplies necessary to continue or resume program operations in a safe manner; fixed costs such as rent or mortgage payments; and tuition and copayment relief to families.
Status: Passed the House of Representatives; received in the Senate.
3721: COVID-19 Racial and Ethnic Disparities Task Force of 2020:
Author: Sen. Kamala Harris (CA)
Summary: This bill would establish a COVID-19 Racial and Ethnic Disparities Task Force to gather data about disproportionately affected communities and provide recommendations to combat the racial and ethnic disparities in the COVID-19 response.
Status: In the Senate.
3719: Closing the Meal Gap Act of 2020:
Author: Sen. Kamala Harris (CA)
Summary: This bill would permanently increase supplemental nutritional assistance program (SNAP) benefits by up to 30 percent, depending on family income-level. It would also provide SNAP funding to US territories like Puerto Rico, American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands as entitlements rather than block grants, and remove the time limits and work requirements childless adults between the ages of 18- and 49-years old currently face when receiving food supports.
Status: In the Senate.
