Earlier today, UWKC board member and early learning advocate Janet Levinger testified before the House Early Learning and Children’s Services Committe in Olympia to push for the inclusion of pre-kindergarten education into the state’s definition of basic education.  Defining Pre-K as part of basic education would make funding for early learning much more secure. Why is that so important? Read her testimony below:

Good afternoon. For the record, my name is Janet Levinger. I am here today as a community volunteer and child advocate. I currently…

If you’ve been following the twists and turns of the health care debate over the past year, you likely know that the Senate narrowly passed its version of health care reform on Dec 24. Now, the House and Senate must reconcile two considerably different bills. Rather than go through the formal process of a joint conference committee to iron out the differences,  negotiators are expected to rewrite the Senate  legislation, send it to the House for a vote, and then give the Senate final approval. The…

Local Updates:

City of Seattle accepting public comments on Housing Levy plan

In November, Seattle voters overwhelmingly voiced their support for affordable housing by renewing the Seattle Housing Levy (a United Way of King County policy priority). Now, the city must determine how to distribute those funds. The Office of Housing is accepting public comments on the Draft Administrative & Financial Plan (A&F Plan) for the newly approved 2009 Seattle Housing Levy.  The A&F Plan guides implementation of the levy for the next two years (2010 and…

National Housing Trust Fund linked with House jobs bill

The House of Representatives is currently debating a $75 billion “Jobs for Main Street” bill that includes $1 billion for the National Housing Trust Fund (NHTF), as well as $65 million for project-based vouchers to be distributed with NHTF dollars.  Fully funding the NHTF would not only guarantee affordable housing for King County’s most vulnerable populations, but would also provide a shot in the arm for the state’s ailing economy. According to the National Low Income Housing…

Earlier this morning, Governor Gregoire introduced the first draft of her 2010 Supplemental Budget, which as expected contained dramatic cuts to several UWKC priorities. A snapshot of some of the most important reductions is listed below. For the full budget document, click here.

It should be stressed that the governor is planning a second budget with a proposed revenue package that would ameliorate some of the cuts, and that she repeatedly stated that the budget did not reflect her values or those of Washington state. However, even with…

Governor Christine Gregoire is scheduled to release her budget December 9 at 9:00 a.m. You can view the press conference at http://www.tvw.org/index.cfm?bhcp=1. With the state facing a projected $2.6 billion shortfall in the coming fiscal year (beginning July 1, 2010), it will be a “cuts only” budget requiring elimination of entire programs and services unless new revenue sources are identified. Details of the Governor’s budget will be available after 9:00 am at http://www.ofm.wa.gov.

The programs most at risk are those that are state-only funded, such as…

We just moved closer to realizing a significant federal
investment in voluntary, high-quality evidence-based home visiting! Yesterday, Sen. Reid (D-NV) released the Senate version of health care reform, a bill that melded the efforts of the Senate Finance Committee and the Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee. It will be considered shortly by the full Senate.

Introduction of the Senate health care reform bill follows narrow passage of the House’s version of health care reform last week. Home visiting was included in both versions albeit at different funding…

Washington state’s revenue forecast came out today and, as expected, revenue is down another $760 million, pushing the projected deficit to over $2 billion for the remainder of this biennium (FY 2009-2011).

That means that even if new revenue sources are considered, the Governor and State Legislature will be making cuts in critical programs. Historically, those cuts have fallen most heavily on health and human services, including funding for several United Way of King County priorities. It should prove to be a difficult and challenging session for…

Governor Gregoire is scheduled to release her 2010-2011 budget on December 8, and United Way of King County is engaged in discussions to protect  UWKC priorities, from homelessness to early learning.

This budget, the second year of a biennial budget approved in early 2009, will reflect adjustments that need to be made in order to balance state spending with projected revenue.

With the State currently facing a $1.8 billion deficit in the coming fiscal year beginning July 2010, it will be a “cuts only” budget unless new revenue sources…

Now that we’ve dusted ourselves off from another wacky election season, many of us are now turning our focus to this joyous time of year where simply finding a parking space at the mall has been cause for celebration…But I find it interesting in talking to many of my friends that, this year, it’s different.  And I guess it doesn’t surprise me.  I mean, unemployment just hit double digits for the first time since the early 80’s.  Of course it’s different.

So, what to do?  First…