With the release of the 2015 KIDS COUNT® Data Book from the Annie. E. Casey Foundation we can take some pride in the fact that Wisconsin ranks in the top tier of states (13th best overall) on child well-being measures of economic well-being, education, health, and family/community. That is the same as last year’s ranking. That is great,...
Wisconsin Shares has spent $106.3 million less than budgeted for the last three state fiscal years in subsidy payments to child care programs. The Big Question: If we are repeatedly underspending, why do we still have policies that continue to drive child care payments down, undermining the quality of their programs and the children...
Wages minus childcare costs equals complex problem for Madison’s working families,” according to Madison Magazine in its July 2015 article, Childcare costs pinch working families. Meeting the costs of child care is often out of reach for parents, and high-quality programs struggle to sustain their standards. The extensive look at child...
A summary of a report from Peter Pratt, President of Public Sector Consultants in Michigan The Michigan legislature passed--and Republican Governor Snyder signed into law--the FY16 budget in June. Despite severe budget pressure, lawmakers and the governor affirmed their commitment to wise early childhood investment by: allowing more...
On July 2nd we finally saw the product of more than a month of closed door meetings about the state budget bill – during which time the budget committee didn’t have a single open meeting. After a process that excluded the public but included special interest groups, perhaps it should come as no surprise that the last motion offered and...
Zero to Three has just released a Baby Facts Report for Wisconsin, comparing Wisconsin with national data. In general, Wisconsin looks better than most states, but there is plenty of room for improvement. Here are some particularly positive findings for Wisconsin:...
As you have no doubt heard by now, the Supreme Court issued a health care reform ruling this morning that confirms what we have known all along – that the law was designed to provide a tax credit to any American who qualifies, regardless of the type of insurance marketplace they use. More broadly, the ruling reinforces the fact that...
Over 180,000 Wisconsinites at Risk of Losing their Marketplace Insurance Coverage Two years ago, Governor Walker and GOP legislators decided to cut in half the income limit for parents’ eligibility for BadgerCare – reducing it from 200% of the federal poverty level (FPL) to 100% of FPL. They justified that choice on the basis that...
A new report examines the potential impact of the impending U.S. Supreme Court ruling on King vs Burwell, a ruling that will determine whether people can continue to get federal tax credits for health care coverage purchased through the federal health insurance market. A ruling in favor of King could negatively affect access to health...
This past week, Rep. Bobby Scott (Virginia) introduced the Youth Justice Act of 2015 a bill that mirrors the Senate bill to reauthorize the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA). But, Rep. Scott's proposal creatively takes the best parts of the prior Youth PROMISE act that he has championed for several sessions and...
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