WASHINGTON, DC— At a Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing today on the State of the American Child, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), focused on challenges facing children and families and strategies to improve child development. He released the following statement:
“Investing in children and families will benefit the American workforce today and in the future.
“John F. Kennedy once said: ‘Children are the world's most valuable resource and its best hope for the future.’
“I cannot agree with this sentiment more, and yet I feel that as a nation we are not doing enough to provide hope to our children. From recent news reports on the number of children in poverty and what we have heard from our panel today – clearly, we have to more work to do.
“According to a new study by the Foundation for Child Development detailed today shows that this year one in five children will live in poverty. This rate of nearly 22 percent is up from 17 percent from the before the recession began in 2006.
“In spite of our wealth, our vast resources, our amazing technological progress in health care, education, information and many other areas, far too many American children are in worse shape than children a generation ago. The recession has made this situation even worse.”
Senator Casey, a longstanding advocate for children, has supported legislation to improve the economic stability of American families, including the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which extended child care credits to more low- and middle-income working families, and the Affordable Care Act, which provides health insurance to more American families and strengthens consumer protections and safety net programs.
To improve children’s future economic prospects and the strength of the American workforce, Senator Casey has introduced legislation to increase access to early childhood education and improve the availability of high-quality child care to children across the U.S.
• Senator Casey’s Prepare All Kids Act (S.839) would help all children prepare for school by providing high-quality pre-kindergarten education. The Prepare All Kids Act will assist states in providing at least one year of high quality pre-kindergarten to children. The plan calls for a new federal investment to be accompanied by matching funds from the states.
• Together with Senator Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), Senator Casey introduced Starting Early, Starting, Right Act (S.1000) in May 2009 to reverse chronic underfunding of child care and increase the availability of high-quality child care to children in low-income and working class families.
• He also introduced The Child Care Facilities Financing Act of 2009 (S.1002), which would address the critical importance of a quality physical environment for children, an issue that has often been overlooked in the need to ensure greater access to quality care.
Today’s hearing, which was chaired by Senator Chris Dodd, marks the first in a series held by the Subcommittee on Children and Families on the state of the American child.
“I applaud my colleague, Senator Dodd, for his leadership on this issue and think that this is the right time for our committee to refocus our nation’s attention on creating a brighter future for the next generation,” said Senator Casey. “Children are our best hope for the future. It is our duty to act swiftly and decisively on their behalf. I look forward to working with Sen. Dodd and others on this committee to do just that.”
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