HOW YOU CAN HELP
Call or email your Senator and ask them to preserve the funding for programs and services that support Georgia’s young children and their families in the FY2021 budget. Find more details below.
Don’t know who your State Senator is? Check here.
WHAT TO SAY
Deliver this message:
Dear Senator _______,
I urge you to support adequate funding for programs and services that support Georgia’s young children and their families in the FY2021 budget. In particular, I urge you to maintain the following as passed by the House on Tuesday:
[Check out the budget items below and include your favorites here!]
Thank you for your service and for all you do for Georgia’s children.
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HOUSE FY2021 BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS
Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning
- Funds a State Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Coordinator as recommended by the House Study Committee on Infant and Toddler Social and Emotional Health (2019 Session).
- Restores the $500,000 increase in funds for the Childcare and Parent Services (CAPS) program.
- Provides $4 million in funds for an additional 1,000 Pre-K slots, bringing the total number of slots to 85,500.
- Includes $1.6 million for a 2.5 percent increase in funding for Pre-K classroom operations.
Georgia Department of Community Health
- Increases funds by $19.7 million to provide six months of postpartum Medicaid coverage to mothers effective July 1, 2020 (Currently, only 60 days of postpartum Medicaid coverage is available to mothers). Legislation will also be necessary for this to pass (see below – HB 1114).
- Increases funds by $250,000 to provide lactation care and services for Medicaid recipients.
Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities
- Utilizes $50,000 in existing funds to maintain funding for the treatment, prevention, and recovery support services for pregnant and postpartum women living with substance use disorder.
- Maintains $750,000 for Marcus Autism Center.
Georgia Department of Human Services
- Increases salaries of Georgia Division of Family & Children Services (DFCS) caseworkers who handle Medicaid and SNAP cases to reduce employee turnover.
LEGISLATION GEEARS SUPPORTS
Extension of Postpartum Medicaid (HB 1114)
Extends Pregnancy Medicaid to 6 months postpartum and provides for reimbursement for lactation care. The Infant and Toddler Social and Emotional Health Study Committee and the Maternal Mortality Study Committee recommended extending Pregnancy Medicaid to 12 months postpartum, but this is an important first step in better supporting Georgia’s families.
Status: PASSED HOUSE YESTERDAY.
Paid Parental Leave for State Employees ( HB 1094)
Provides three weeks of paid parental leave to state employees following the birth, adoption, or placement in the home of a child. Check out this Georgia Recorder piece on this bill which includes a quote from Executive Director Mindy Binderman!
Status: PASSED HOUSE YESTERDAY.
Study Committee on Lead Exposure Prevention (HR 1280)
This resolution would create a joint study committee on childhood lead exposure, specifically on reducing the blood lead level that would confirm lead poisoning from 15 micrograms per deciliter to 5, as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Status: Passed out of Health & Human Services Committee; The bill now rests in the House Rules Committee.
Repeals the Sunset Provision on the Family Care Act (SB 408)
This bill would remove the sunset provision on the Georgia Family Care Act of 2017, which requires those businesses with 25 or more employees that offer sick leave to allow employees to use five days of earned sick leave for the care of immediate family members.
Status: Passed out of the Senate Committee on Insurance & Labor; The bill now rests in the Senate Rules Committee.
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