In addition to the four specific sets of federal policy actions and approaches recommended in these pages, we highlight below some legislative measures affecting children and families that are either due for reauthorization or will provide critical support to vulnerable families and help prevent their circumstances from worsening in today's economy. These include:
- The State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), which provides funds to states to provide health insurance to uninsured children in low-income families that don't qualify for Medicaid, should be reauthorized with funding significantly increased to improve health care access and quality.
- Food stamp caseloads have increased sharply in recent months, with at least one in every five children receiving food stamps in 25 states. A temporary increase would offset the impact of rising food prices and help millions of households that have lost jobs get by.
- The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) should be reauthorized and fully funded, along with other programs that provide critical support to vulnerable young children and their parents.
- Because states use outdated policies that cause many low-wage and part-time workers to be ineligible for unemployment insurance when they are laid off, fewer than 40 percent of unemployed workers receive unemployment benefits. Proposed legislation that would give states incentives to expand and extend unemployment benefits should be passed.
- The No Child Left Behind law designed to improve public school performance should be reauthorized, fully funded, and revised to provide more uniform and objective assessments for children and teachers and more support for schools that need improvement.
- Measures like housing vouchers and the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program should be expanded to help low-income families struggling with high rental and energy costs.
- The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families(TANF) block grant should be reauthorized in 2010 and overhauled to focus not just on self-sufficiency but on helping families move out of poverty.