Brevard Family Partnership, along with several partners, advocates for the welfare of abused and neglected children on a local, state and federal level. Below you will find links to important legislative documents, publications and organizations.
2012 Legislative Session
The House and Senate will convene for the 2012 Regular Legislative Session on Tuesday, January 10, 2012. The earlier date coincides with statutes regarding state redistricting, which takes place every ten years.
2012 Legislative Priorities (Updated January 23, 2012) - A listing of issues that Brevard Family Partnership considers important to maintaining the integrity and excellence of our local and statewide Systems of Care.
2012 Legislative Bill Report (Updated February 20, 2012) - Tracking the status of legislation that affects child welfare and family safety.
2012 Legislative Meetings Schedule (Week of Feb. 20) - 2012 Legislative Meetings Schedule (Week of Feb. 27) (Updated February 16, 2012) - Meeting schedules for both House and Senate general sessions and committee/subcommittee meetings.
Helpful Resources and Reference Material Links
The National Wraparound Initiative has issued a Policy Statement and Recommendations to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) from the National Wraparound Initiative (Posted Sept. 23, 2011)
The Florida Coalition for Children has released a state-by-state comparison of child welfare data that shows how Florida rates in child welfare spending and children in foster care. (Release date: August 2011)
Florida Coalition for Children
The Florida Coalition for Children advocates for Florida's abused and neglected children and supports the agencies and individuals that work on their behalf
Legislative Issue Brief (Jan. 2011)
Title IV-E Waiver: Consequences of Budget Cuts to Child Welfare System
Child Welfare Resource Handbook (Summer 2008) - Requires Login and then access "Member Library"
FCC Kids Briefs Newsletter
September 2011
September 2010
August 2010
July 2010
October 2009
August 2009
April 2009
February 2009
January 2009
Additional Resources
Florida Dept. of Children and Families News/Press Releases
Florida's Healthy Start Coalitions - A Model for Success
Hearing Your Voice: A Guide to your Dependency Court Case
Florida's People, Florida's Promise
The Florida's People, Florida's Promise website was created by advocates for children and the elderly who started a watchdog group urging Florida legislators to consider new revenue sources rather than forcing more budget cuts to cope with the state's economic slump.
Children's Campaign, Inc.
Children’s Campaign, Inc. is a cutting-edge and groundbreaking advocacy organization devoted to making children’s issues a legislative priority while staying within the well-documented boundaries of permissible activities for a 501 (C)(3) organization.
Three citizen structures govern and inform our work: The Board of Directors, 5 Promises Leadership Council, and the Minority Issues Advisory Council.
Our vision and activities are driven by a platform that is the result of consensus building over a broad spectrum of interests and viewpoints and supported by state of the art public opinion research. We work closely with citizens and local and statewide collaborative partners to encourage policy-makers to address the needs as identified in the platform and its related policy briefs.
Every Child Matters Educations Fund - Washington, DC
The Every Child Matters Education Fund is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, non-partisan organization working to make children, youth, and families a national political priority. ECM promote the adoption of smart policies for children and youth, including:
-Ensuring that children have access to affordable, comprehensive health care services
-Expanding early-care and learning opportunities and after-school programs
-Preventing violence against children in their homes and communities
-Alleviating child poverty, and
-Addressing the special needs of children with parents in prison.
Homeland Insecurity Document
Why investments in children and youth must be a priority for the Obama Administration and the 111th Congress.
2011 Legislative Documents
Senate Bill 2146 - Equity Funding for CBC Lead Agencies (view letter opposing this legislation)
2011 BFP Legislative Priorities (V2) - 03/11
Letter to Gov. Scott and Transistion Team - Proposals and Recommendations for 2011