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Press Releases

Blumenthal, Murkowski File Bipartisan 'Little DREAMers' Amendment

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June 18, 2013

Washington – The First Focus Campaign for Children today applauded U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) for filing a bipartisan amendment to strengthen the DREAM Act provisions of the Senate “Gang of 8” comprehensive immigration reform bill. The senators’ “Little DREAMers” amendment would eliminate obstacles that deny younger children a five-year path to citizenship, which is available through the underlying bill to older children and young adults.

Children’s Advocates Urge House to Protect Child Nutrition

June 18, 2013

Washington – The First Focus Campaign for Children, a bipartisan children’s advocacy organization, sent a letter today urging members of the U.S. House of Representatives to reject provisions of the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act (colloquially, the House “Farm Bill”) that weaken investments in child nutrition.

House Appropriations Committee Vote Weakens Child Nutrition Safety Net

June 13, 2013

Washington – The U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Appropriations voted today to approve legislation funding the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and related agencies for federal fiscal year (FY) 2014. The legislation provides $214 million less for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) for FY 2014. The lower WIC funding brings the bill in line with lower overall funding allocations made under the House-passed FY 2014 budget resolution.

In the News

House Votes to Defund DACA

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June 6, 2013
House Votes to Defund DACA

High Stakes for Children in Immigration Reform

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May 21, 2013
By Alison Burns
Public News Service

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Let's Protect our Children

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January 11, 2013

Let's Protect our ChildrenThis ad calling on Congress to protect critical investments in our children including early childhood, education, and nutrition from upcoming budget negotiations ran in the Jan. 11, 2013 print edition of Politico.

Champions for Children 2012

October 2, 2012

Champions for Children 2012First Focus Campaign for Children recognized the 2012 Champions for Children and Defenders of Children on Tuesday, October, 2012 in Roll Call Newspaper.

A Utah Success Story

June 14, 2012

A Utah Success StoryThis ad ran in UtahPolicy.com, a leading Utah political blog, during the weeks immediately before and following the state's 2012 presidential primary election. We worked with Voices for Utah Children to place the ad, which linked to a page urging policymakers and opinion leaders to reject threats to invest in CHIP.

Top of Our List

“Half in Ten Act” Makes Poverty Reduction a Priority

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May 24, 2013
By Fish Stark, First Focus Intern Associate

Today, more than one in five children in the United States live in poverty—one of the highest child poverty levels in twenty years. Not only that, but one in ten children are in families that live on less than half of the national poverty level, on just $11,000 per year for a family of four.

How Did Children Fare in the SJC Immigration Reform Markup?

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May 23, 2013
By Wendy Cervantes

This past Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) voted to advance the immigration reform bill (S.744) onto the Senate floor, representing a historic step forward for immigrant children and families. The committee considered numerous amendments over a period of five days, and the First Focus Campaign for Children (FFCC) determined that many amendments had the potential to positively or negatively affect children and families.

Senator’s Praise Children’s Budget Act

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March 29, 2013
By Jared Solomon

In the midst of the Senate budget vote-a-rama that occurred before the spring recess, we at the First Focus Campaign for Children were intently listening to a conversation that occurred on the Senate floor between senior Senators about the Children’s Budget Act (CBA). The CBA would require the President’s budget submission to Congress to include a deliberate and full accounting of all the money the Federal Government spends on and for children.