The 2010 legislative session proved difficult as an unstable economy created challenges for our state legislators to balance the $2.8 billion budget. On April 13, the State of Washington ended a special extended session with the passage of a more than $30 billion supplemental budget that included new taxes and cutbacks to balance the budget and meet the needs of our most vulnerable children and families.

At Children's Home Society of Washington, we are proud to report that the following pieces of legislation were passed and will go into effect June 10, 2010.

• Subsidized guardianships to provide support to kinship families
• Notification of the right to request counsel in dependency proceedings
• Amended legislation that will improve child welfare outcomes through performance-based contracting 
• Safe housing and support for foster care youth in transition 
• Continuous (12-month) eligibility for children enrolled in Early Childhood Education and Assistance Programs (ECEAP), Head Start, and Early Head Start programs
• Creation of statewide early learning plan
• Early learning programs to target educationally at-risk children
• Redesign state support given to families that moves them out of poverty and into self-sufficiency  

Read the detailed version of this summary and obtain comprehensive bill information on the Washington State Legislature website. If you have questions, contact Laurie Lippold, CHSW Director of Public Policy via email or by calling (360) 754-3290. Your involvement is very much appreciated and truly made a difference.

Don't Know How to Contact Your Legislators?

Visit www.leg.wa.gov and click "find your legislator" on the left-hand side. If you don't know who your legislators are, enter your address in the search field. You can contact your legislator by email or phone using the contact information provided. Don't be shy – your government officials need to hear from you!