Responding to the Needs of Families Impacted by FASD through Influencing Policy

Responding to the Needs of Families Impacted by FASD through Influencing Policy

This Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) Awareness Month, we at Illuminate Colorado are reflecting on our advocacy throughout 2023 to increase awareness of FASD among legislators and expand Colorado’s capacity to respond to the needs of individuals and families impacted by FASD.

Moving forward, we are excited to continue advocating at the federal and state levels to ensure legislators are FASD-aware and to elevate the voices and experiences of Colorado families.

Jillian Fabricius (Illuminate Colorado Deputy Director) and a staffer for Senator John Hickenlooper.

Advocating at the State Level

This past 2023 Colorado legislative session, advocates from SuPPoRT Colorado’s FASD Awareness Workgroup and Illuminate staff engaged with state legislators to highlight the need for a stronger system of services and support for individuals and families impacted by FASD.

This summer, Illuminate has continued this important work by engaging with the Opioid and Other Substance Use Disorders Study Committee, an interim bi-partisan committee made up of 10 state legislators tasked with responding to challenges associated with substance use disorders in Colorado by identifying gaps in prevention, intervention, harm reduction, and treatment– and identify possible legislative solutions. 

In August, Illuminate Policy Manager, Lex Loutzenhiser, testified to urge the committee to continue the work started in the 2023 legislative session to address challenges associated with FASD experienced by Coloradans. Illuminate will continue to work with state legislators to highlight the need for increased capacity to serve individuals and families impacted by FASD and provide considerations for future legislation.

August 30, 2023 Opioid and Other Substance Use Disorders Study Committee. Left to Right: Rep. Elizabeth Epps, Jade Woodard (Illuminate Colorado Executive Director), Jillian Fabricius (Illuminate Colorado Deputy Director), Lex Loutzenhiser (Illuminate Colorado Policy Manager), and Rep. Chris deGruy Kennedy.

To learn more about Illuminate’s engagement with Interim Study Committees, read Advocating for Family Strengthening Throughout the Year.

Advocating at the Federal Level

This June, the FASD Respect Act (H.R. 3946/S.1800) was introduced to the House by Representatives Don Bacon (R-NE) and Betty McCollum (D-MN) and in the Senate by Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN). To ensure widespread national support for this important legislation, FASD advocates from across the United States have been reaching out to their Congressional offices to share their support of this comprehensive bill. Alongside advocates who are parents of children and adults with an FASD, Illuminate staff have met with staffers from the offices of five of Colorado’s Congressional Delegation. We are grateful to Rep. Joe Neguse, representing Colorado House District 2, for prioritizing the needs of constituents and co-sponsoring the FASD Respect Act.

Today, September 21, Illuminate staff, as the Colorado affiliate of FASD United, and advocates from the FASD Awareness Workgroup will be participating in Hill Day during FASD Impact Week (hosted by FASD United). Throughout the day, Illuminate staff and FASD advocates will be in Washington D.C., meeting with Congressional offices to share the experiences of Coloradans impacted by FASD and asking Colorado’s Congressional Delegation to co-sponsor the FASD Respect Act.

2022 FASD Hill Day. Left to Right: Kelli Sutton (Illuminate Colorado Strategic Initiatives Manager), Jillian Fabricius (Illuminate Colorado Deputy Director), and a staffer for Rep. Joe Neguse.

To learn more about the FASD Respect Act, read Introducing the FASD Respect Act or visit the FASD United Policy and Training Center.

Join Us to Advocate for the FASD Respect Act!

Use your voice to join Illuminate and advocates across the country in urging Congress to pass the FASD Respect Act.

Coloradans can learn more about how to advocate for this impactful legislation here. If you live outside of Colorado, utilize FASD United’s FASD Respect Act advocacy tool to learn about how to be an advocate in your state.

Check out what else Illuminate Colorado has planned for FASD Awareness Month here! 

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Advocating for Family Strengthening Throughout the Year: Interim Committee Updates from the Capitol

Advocating for Family Strengthening Throughout the Year: Interim Committee Updates from the Capitol

This summer, while the Colorado State Legislature is out of session, Illuminate Colorado is engaged with two interim committees: the Child Welfare System Interim Study Committee and the Opioid and Other Substance Use Disorders Study Committee.

Through engaging with these interim committees, Illuminate Colorado is ensuring that policy makers have the information they need to write effective legislation that has strong potential to strengthen families and communities across the state.  

Policy can support and strengthen families impacted by substance use.

The Opioid and Other Substance Use Disorders Study Committee is working to respond to challenges associated with substance use disorders in Colorado by identifying gaps in prevention, intervention, harm reduction and treatmentand identify possible legislative solutions. Illuminate is engaging with the Committee to ensure policymakers understand and consider the unique challenges faced by families impacted by substance use.

In July, Illuminate Colorado’s Executive Director, Jade Woodard, presented to the Opioid and Other Substance Use Disorders Study Committee on ways we can strengthen families impacted by substance use. Woodard discussed three strategies that Illuminate Colorado has prioritized in our work: access to child care, safe storage of substances, and recovery support for families.

All families need access to high-quality, affordable child care in order to thrive.

Woodard described the unique challenges caregivers experience in accessing child care while receiving substance use treatment and support, and how programs, such as Illuminating Child Carewhich provides free childcare for families while caregivers receive recovery servicescan reduce barriers to care. 

Ensuring that potentially harmful substances are not accessible to children is one way to increase safety in the home.

When speaking with the Committee, Woodard explained the need for increased public awareness of safe storage practices through consumer messaging and training for children, families, and family-serving professionals.

In Colorado, there is a high need for recovery support services for caregivers impacted by substance use disorders.

Woodard shared how Circle of Parents in Recovery, a program supported by Illuminate Colorado, provides a free, confidential, and supportive space where caregivers can share and learn with their peers in recovery.

This August, Illuminate Policy Manager Lex Loutzenhiser provided public testimony to the Committee about Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) and the role of policy in increasing Colorado’s capacity to prevent FASDs and to respond to the needs of individuals and families impacted by FASD. Learn more by reading our recent blog, Strengthening Colorado Families Impacted by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) through Policy.

Lex Loutzenhiser

Policy Manager

Child welfare system involvement is preventable through policy solutions.

The Child Welfare System Interim Committee is working to identify and address issues within the child welfare system in Colorado. Illuminate is excited to engage with the Committee to highlight the role of prevention and proactive, upstream policy solutions to prevent and reduce child welfare system involvement.

Woodard presented to the committee a necessary foundation of information needed to understand how to strengthen families and prevent child maltreatment.

She began by introducing how the five research-informed Protective Factors help families to deal effectively with stressful events, reducing the risk for child maltreatment. Policy plays a role in promoting the five Protective Factors by increasing the resources, connections, and supports available to communities that help families thrive.

Next, Woodard shared some concrete strategies that Illuminate Colorado has employed to strengthen families and prevent child maltreatment. 

        • Through programs such as Circle of Parents and Family Connects that provide support outside of the child welfare system, Illuminate has actively invested in family well-being infrastructure that promotes protective factors for all Colorado families.
        • Through encouraging warm connections and proactive referrals, Illuminate has also worked to ensure that family-serving professionals have the resources they need to connect families with supportive services when they are experiencing increased stress, such as food or housing insecurity.
        • Colorado Connected, a campaign supported by Illuminate, is actively working to empower parents to ask for support, offer support to one another, and normalize supportive parenting networks to create strong families.

Finally, Woodard discussed how strengthening programs that support families involved with the child welfare system, such as Circle of Parents and other evidence-based programs, promote healing and prevent recurrences of maltreatment. 

Illuminate Colorado will continue to advocate for policy that strengthens families and prevents child maltreatment.

As both committees solidify bill concepts and prepare for the upcoming legislative session, Illuminate will continue to engage with the interim committees to share expertise and recommendations to advocate for policy that strengthens families and prevents child maltreatment. 

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Expanding Access to Affordable Child Care through Federal Policy Change

Expanding Access to Affordable Child Care through Federal Policy Change

Child care is an essential tool to strengthen families and prevent child maltreatment. However, many Colorado families face barriers to accessing affordable, high quality child care. This month, the US Health and Human Services Department (HHS) is considering proposed rule changes to expand access to child care by removing common financial and administrative barriers.

These proposed changes, along with the work of Colorado child care advocates, have the potential to expand access to child care, strengthening families and preventing child maltreatment.

Access to Quality, Affordable Child Care Promotes Protective Factors and Prevents Child Maltreatment

Promoting concrete support in times of need, which is 1 of 5 research-informed protective factors, strengthens families and prevents child maltreatment.¹ Chronic stress, resulting in toxic stress, can impact a parent’s ability to effectively respond to their child’s needs. Increasing access to quality, affordable child care, a concrete support in times of need, minimizes stress and reduces instances of child abuse and neglect. 

When parents lack access to quality child care, this can serve as a barrier to participate in the workforce, receive mental health and substance use services, and engage in other meaningful activities that reduce stress and enhance health, well-being, and economic security. Research shows that families receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) experience a 20% increase in risk of supervisory neglect for each additional child care concern reported.²

In contrast, each additional month a low-income mother receives a child care subsidy results in a 16% decrease in the odds of a child neglect report and a 14% decrease in the odds of a physical abuse report in the following year.³

“Research shows that difficulty finding child care is a stronger predictor of maternal neglect than almost any other factor, including mental health, severity of drug use, history of abuse as a child, and use of public assistance.”

– Jade Woodard, Executive Director of Illuminate Colorado

Expanding Access to Child Care through Federal Policy Change

This year, the Biden-Harris Administration is directing public agencies to engage in rulemaking processes to expand access to affordable child care. In a July press conference, Vice President Kamala Harris made remarks discussing how the over 900,000 US families receiving child care vouchers through the Child Care and Development Block Grant Program (CCDBG), a federal program that funds state subsidized child care, still face barriers to accessing quality, affordable child care.

In Colorado, 32% of children ages 0-6 are eligible for subsidized child care under the CCDBG, but families receiving vouchers still pay between $1 and $584 in monthly out-of-pocket co-pays.⁴

In response to the President’s directive, the US Health and Human Services Department has proposed new rules.⁵ Among other changes, the proposed rules would:

        • Cap child care copayments at 7% of a family’s income for families receiving child care vouchers under CCDBG
        • Allow agencies to waive copayments for additional populations – including families with an income that is less than 150% of the federal poverty level (FPL) and families with a child with a disability
        • Exempt Tribal Lead Agencies from the requirement to establish sliding scale pay structures that require all families to pay copayments
        • Require agencies to implement new policies and practices that lessen the administrative burden placed on families when navigating the application process to receive child care vouchers
        • Increase sustainability of CCDBG program participation for child care providers by increasing the timeliness of provider payments and paying child care providers by enrollment, rather than attendance

A full list and explanation of proposed rule changes can be accessed here.

Have you received child care vouchers through the Colorado Child Care Assistance Program or subsidized child care in another state?

Submit an official comment here (click green “Submit a Formal Comment” button) to share how the proposed rules would impact you and your family!

Advocacy in Colorado to Increase Access to Child Care

Illuminate is grateful to our advocacy partners who lead the charge in expanding access to child care in Colorado. We appreciate Colorado Children’s Campaign, Clayton Early Learning, Early Connections Learning Centers, Healthier Colorado, Early Childhood Councils across the state, and others who are leading this work.

We at Illuminate join our partners in expanding access to child care through Illuminating Child Care, a program that provides on-site child care to caregivers while they receive support for complex issue impacting their family, like mental health concerns, substance use disorders, or employment challenges. Through RVs that have been retrofitted into safe and enriching infant and toddler classrooms, our Early Childhood Teachers offer child care at no cost to caregivers accessing services at 15 behavioral health and family support facilities across 3 regions of Colorado.

Citations
  1. Center for the Study of Social Policy. (n.d.) About Strengthening Families and the protective factors framework. Retrieved From: https://cssp.org/our-work/projects/protective-factors-framework/
  2. Yang, M.-Y., & Maguire-Jack, K. (2016). Predictors of basic needs and supervisory neglect: Evidence from the Illinois Families Study. Children & Youth Services Review, 67, 20-26. Retrieved From: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2016.05.017
  3. Yang, M. Y., Maguire‐Jack, K., Showalter, K., Kim, Y. K., & Slack, K. S. (2019). Child care subsidy and child maltreatment. Child & Family Social Work, 24(4), 547-554. Retrieved From: https://doi.org/10.1111/cfs.12635
  4. First Five Years Fund. (2023). Child Care & Development Block Grant in Colorado. Retrieved From: https://www.ffyf.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/2023_CCDBG-Fact-Sheet_CO.pdf
  5. Improving Child Care Access, Affordability, and Stability in the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF), 88 FR 45022 (proposed July 13, 2023). Retrieved From: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/07/13/2023-14290/improving-child-care-access-affordability-and-stability-in-the-child-care-and-development-fund-ccdf

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Introducing the FASD Respect Act: Federal Legislation Responding to Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)

Introducing the FASD Respect Act: Federal Legislation Responding to Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)

The FASD Respect Act (H.R. 3946/S.1800) has been reintroduced federally to be considered by Congress this 2023-2024 legislative session. Illuminate Colorado is excited to see the introduction of this groundbreaking legislation, which would expand opportunities to prevent and respond to Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASDs) in the United States. As the Colorado chapter of FASD United, we plan to engage our Colorado congresspeople in conversations regarding the impact of FASD in Colorado and ways in which this bipartisan legislation would build a foundation for Colorado children, adults, and families impacted by FASD to thrive.

This act would:

    • Establish a standard statutory definition for FASD
    • Strengthen systems of care for people of all ages with an FASD through education, awareness, and services
    • Fund FASD service provision in state and tribal systems for people of all ages
    • Designate Centers for Excellence across the US that are tasked with expanding, guiding, and promoting awareness, outreach, prevention activities, professional training, technical assistance, and appropriate diagnosis and services for people diagnosed with an FASD.

In Colorado, thousands of families are impacted by FASD.

However, families have limited access to diagnostic services, early intervention, and treatment for FASDs due to lack of funding and awareness of these conditions. The FASD Respect Act is an important step to expanding funding and access to early intervention and other necessary services. 

As the FASD Respect Act makes its way through Congress, we at Illuminate are excited to continue to provide updates and advocacy opportunities for those interested in engaging with this influential legislation as it moves through the legislative process.

Looking for a FASD Diagnosis?

Getting a diagnosis of a Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) for yourself, your child or loved one can result in additional support to thrive into adulthood, like developmental disability services or educational services.

Looking for more information? 

Find out more about the FASD Respect Act from FASD United.

Read about Strengthening Colorado Families Impacted by FASD through Policy

Learn about Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders

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Reflecting on the 2023 Colorado Legislative Session

Reflecting on the 2023 Colorado Legislative Session

This legislative session, Illuminate Colorado advocated for 25 bills that would promote protective factors to prevent child maltreatment and strengthen families. These bills ranged across many areas of focus, including access to healthcare, economic supports, housing stability, child welfare system involvement, and more, all aligning with our 2023 policy priorities. Of the bills Illuminate supported, 21 passed. Illuminate also advocated for two budget priorities, both of which succeeded.

We at Illuminate Colorado are grateful to our partners for their collaboration, leadership, and dedication to advocating for legislation that strengthens families and prevents child maltreatment.

Highlights from the 2023 session included:

  • In support of the Colorado Department of Early Childhood (CDEC) budget request, Illuminate Colorado sought continuous funding for Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Training. Included in the Long Bill (SB23-214), the legislature restored an annual $150,000 in funding to the Colorado Child Abuse Prevention Trust Fund for the purpose of Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Training. This funding dedicates resources to evidence-informed trainings that prepare adults with tools to prevent, identify, and respond to child sexual abuse. Interested in getting trained and becoming one of over 8,000 adults in Colorado committed to preventing child sexual abuse? Visit Tip Colorado to learn more about this free 2-hour training.

Visit Tip Colorado to learn more about the free 2-hour training.

  • Colorado banned use of corporal punishment in licensed child care settings, public schools, and group facilities. As one of Prevent Child Abuse America’s 2023 state policy priorities, eliminating the use of corporal punishment in schools, such as spanking and paddling, is an important step to shifting culture surrounding discipline and promoting positive responses and discipline strategies for children. HB23-1191 seeks to promote healthy child development and positive, evidence-based discipline approaches by eliminating use of corporal punishment in child care settings, public schools, and group facilities.
  • Legislators in Colorado focused on building sustainable funding and increasing access to vital healthcare for youth, pregnant people, and new parents who receive Medicaid through SB23-002, SB23-174, SB23-288, and HB23-1300. These bills will increase access to community health services, doulas during pregnancy and postpartum periods, and youth behavioral health services without a diagnosis, and will establish continuous eligibility for children ages 0-3. These bills aim to utilize evidence-based measures to reduce gaps in care and increase equity in the healthcare system for underserved communities that experience increased health risks due to social determinants of health, including racism and poverty.
  • Several bills sought to increase economic supports for families through Colorado’s tax code, including HB23-1006, HB23-1112, and HB23-1311. These bills will result in additional income for low-income families through increased awareness of vital tax credits, increased access to larger amounts in tax credits, and a ballot measure that, if passed, would result in a flat TABOR rebate for all Coloradans who file taxes.
  • Legislators also addressed concerns within the child welfare system, and passed several bills that clarify and enhance processes to increase kin placement and reduce family separation. HB23-1024 and HB23-1043 are two bills that will increase relative and kin involvement when a child is removed from home. In response to concerns that the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) may be overturned later this year by the U.S. Supreme Court in a judgment on Haaland v. Brackeen, legislators developed SB23-211, which further implements ICWA and its related federal regulations into Colorado statute, in partnership with the Southern Ute Indian Tribe.
  • The legislature aimed to increase equitable outcomes in eviction proceedings through HB23-1120 and HB23-1186. In recognition that the majority of people who face eviction do so without legal representation, these bills will make court and eviction processes more accessible by requiring mediation before an eviction is filed for people who receive cash assistance, including SSDI and TANF, and requiring remote options for court participation in eviction proceedings.

In doing so, these bills aim to increase participation of tenants in these processes and create additional opportunities for families to remain housed.

  • In addition to addressing child welfare through legislation, the Legislative Council approved a request to form the Child Welfare System Interim Study Committee. The committee is tasked with studying various topics, including prevention services, intervention services, system processes, social determinants of child welfare system involvement, and more. The committee will consist of 11 members of the legislature and may introduce 5 bills in the 2024 legislative session to address issues studied. We at Illuminate Colorado were grateful to be included in the list of agencies that may provide assistance and information to the Committee and are excited to lend our expertise to this process.

What’s next?

  • Advocate for family strengthening and policies that build protective factors to prevent child maltreatment through policy implementation activities.
  • Provide support and expertise to the newly formed Child Welfare System Interim Study Committee.
  • Provide support and expertise to the Opioid and Other Substance Use Disorders Study Committee.
  • Continue to identify family strengthening policy needs and challenges through the coalitions Illuminate convenes. Join us
  • Advocate for federal legislation that promotes and invests in programs that strengthen families, including advocating for the reintroduction and advancement of the FASD Respect Act.
  • Advocate for ballot measures that strengthen families, including Proposition EE resulting from HB23-1290, which would retain funding for Universal Pre-K.
  • Advocate for legislation that did not pass this legislative session, including policy that promotes economic security and substance free spaces.
  • Continue to collaborate with our partners in prevention and the Colorado General Assembly to advocate for future state legislation that promotes Illuminate Colorado’s policy priorities and mission to strengthen families, organizations and communities to prevent child maltreatment.

Visit the full 2023 Legislative Session Recap to learn more about all the bills impacting family well-being that passed this session and what is next for Illuminate’s policy work.

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A Race to the Finish Under the Dome: Strengthening Colorado Families through Policy

As Colorado is nearing the end of its legislative session, we at Illuminate Colorado are continuing to advocate for family strengthening at the capitol.

While several bills have already crossed the Governor’s desk, many are still making their way through the legislative process.

Two of Illuminate’s priority bills have already been signed by Governor Polis.

HB23-1006 will require employers to notify employees of the availability of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC) to increase awareness of these crucial economic supports. In addition, Illuminate was invited to witness the Governor’s signing of HB23-1191, which prohibits corporal punishment in public schools, licensed child care settings, and group facilities.

Governor Jared Polis signs HB23-1191, accompanied by Representative Regina English.

Left to right: Illuminate Deputy Director Jillian Fabricius, Representative Regina English, and Illuminate Policy Manager Lex Loutzenhiser.

Many bills that Illuminate supports have passed the House and Senate and are awaiting the Governor’s signature.

HB23-1187 would expand access to alternative sentencing options for pregnant and postpartum people, increasing access to medical and behavioral healthcare and reducing family separation. 

SB23-002 would enable Colorado Medicaid to reimburse community health workers services, which are integral to enhancing equity and access to healthcare. 

SB23-211 would adopt the Indian Child Welfare Act and related federal regulations into Colorado state law, strengthening tribal engagement in the child welfare system when indigenous children are removed from their home due to abuse or neglect.

HB23-1091 would continue the Child Care Contribution Tax Credit, which incentivizes individual investment in early childhood care and education.

HB23-1300 would require Colorado to seek federal approval to offer continuous eligibility for Colorado children ages 0-3 without annual redeterminations if they are initially eligible for Medicaid, reducing administrative burdens and gaps in coverage for young children.

We’re still watching several bills that are scheduled or waiting to be scheduled in committees or on the floor this week.

HB23-1112 would increase the amount families can receive through the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC), enhancing families’ financial wellbeing. 

HB23-1120 would require landlords to engage in mandatory mediation before filing an eviction against a tenant who receives cash assistance, including Colorado Works (TANF) program participants, increasing equitability and accessibility in eviction processes for low-income families.

 

SB23-288 would strengthen the process for Colorado to begin reimbursing doula services through Medicaid to expand access to these supportive and culturally responsive services for pregnant people and postpartum parents.

Use the Illuminate Colorado Bill Tracker to stay up to date on the progression of bills that we are tracking through May 9th, the final day of Colorado’s legislative session.

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