E-CAPS Number 2

March 2, 2001

Greetings!

I've decided to call our email update "E-CAPS". As noted before, please send me email addresses for anyone you would like to receive these updates. Thanks for your cooperation. There are four attachments. If you did not receive everything, please let me know and I can resend it or fax it.

March 8th Labor Committee Public Hearing: Raised Bill No. 6931 We have a copy of the raised bill (finally!) for Equitable Wages for Early Childhood Professionals. We have reviewed it and have some concerns with it, however are very supportive of the concept of providing incentives and wage increases for child care workers who are continuing their education.

This will be a big day for us. There is a press conference on the issue at 10am and then the public hearing begins at 1pm. Tell your friends and colleagues about the hearing. This is our best shot to get the attention of the legislators about the crisis in recruiting and retaining child care workers.

We are hoping to have 15 people signed up to speak and over 100 people in attendance at the hearing. We are also encouraging people to make appointments with their legislators while they are at the LOB to talk with them about this issue. Talking points will be forwarded to you early next week.

We need to know ASAP:
1) How many people you expect to bring to the Public Hearing?
2) Who is testifying?
3) If your group will be attending the Rally afterwards in Bloomfield (4:30 - 8pm)?

Please email or fax your information to me ASAP. Thanks.

CT Campaign to Fight Poverty and Build Economic Security Rally
Following the Public Hearing is a Rally in Bloomfield (10 minutes north of Hartford) by the CT Campaign to Fight Poverty and Build Economic Security, a coalition we are part of. This very large coalition is supporting many issues important to our clients, including good wages for child care workers. A Flyer is attached. Please distribute to your staff and parents and encourage them to attend.

Other News:
School Readiness Strategic Planning Process proposed (attached)
Attached is language proposing a planning process to expand school readiness to birth to eight and to focus on finding solutions to problems such as the workforce shortage. There will be people testifying in support of this at the Education Committee Hearing on Monday, March 5th.

Education Committee
PUBLIC HEARING AGENDA
Monday, March 5, 2001
11:00 AM in ROOM 2E

S.B. No. 453 (COMM) AN ACT CONCERNING SCHOOL READINESS QUALITY ENHANCEMENT GRANTS.
To provide for distribution of quality enhancement grants by the Department of Education rather than the Department of Social Services. To require the department to distribute the grants by October first each year and to specify that if a provider does not use all the grant funds in one year that the funds are available for expenditure in the following fiscal year.

H.B. No. 6631 (RAISED) AN ACT CONCERNING SCHOOL READINESS GRANTS.
To establish a program to provide school readiness grants to towns that have low per capita incomes. To allow regional school readiness councils to receive grants for which member towns are eligible. To make the school readiness grant programs for priority and transitional school districts consistent. To make technical changes.

H.B. No. 6876 (RAISED) AN ACT CONCERNING THE SCHOOL READINESS AND EARLY READING SUCCESS GRANT PROGRAMS.
To make numerous changes to the school readiness and early reading success programs including (1) the establishment of standards for pre-literacy development and a requirement for school readiness plans to include pre-literacy practices and teacher training in the development of pre-literacy skills, (2) the setting of a cap for the amount of school readiness grants to transitional school districts at two hundred thousand dollars, (3) providing for coordination between child care providers and school readiness programs, (4) expanding the uses of supplemental school readiness quality enhancement grants, (5) revising the requirement for criminal history records checks for child care providers, (6) providing for health consultants for school readiness programs, (7) specifying the components of comprehensive reading instruction programs, (8) expanding the requirements for the early reading success grant program, (9) providing for an independent evaluation of the early reading success teacher training and curriculum modules, (10) ensuring that students in priority school districts who are substantially deficient in reading are provided reading programs that incorporate the findings of the Early Reading Success Panel, (11) ensuring that such children who are promoted from third to fourth grade are followed the next school year and are provided reading programs that incorporate such findings, (12) increasing the incentive for school building projects related to the provision of full-day kindergarten or a reduction in class size, and (13) providing for a study of teacher education programs in reading instruction.

Other Upcoming Public Hearings:

Human Services Committee, March 6th at 10am in Room 2A
Bill 676: AN ACT CONCERNING THE RENTAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.
To prevent very poor families from paying too high a percentage of their income in rent.

Bill 932: AN ACT PROVIDING ADEQUATE FOOD FOR STATE RESIDENTS IN NEED OF FOOD ASSISTANCE.
To provide adequate food for all state residents in need of food assistance.

Workforce Development Committee, March 8th at 12:30pm in Room 2A
Bill 1298: AN ACT CONCERNING THE WORKFORCE INVESTMENT STUDY TEAM REPORT.
To consolidate oversight authority for major workforce development funding streams with the Office of Workforce Competitiveness.

Bill 1347: AN ACT CONCERNING A STATE FUNDED WORK-STUDY PROGRAM FOR TANF RECIPIENTS.
To establish and operate a work-study program for TANF recipients.

Well, that's certainly enough for now. It going to be a busy week. Thanks in advance for your support.

David MacDonald
CAFCA Communications Director
TEL: 560-5847
FAX: 560-5848

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