Voices for Utah Children Articles

  • Higher Child Care Costs and More Stress for Families Coming This Fall

    When the pandemic hit, child care was one of the first sectors in crisis. But action in the form of federal aid and swift state program implementation prevented widespread program closures. The nearly $600 million Utah received in federal child care...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Jenna Williams
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Annie E. Casey Foundation Releases 34th edition of KIDS COUNT® Data Book

    Utah Shines in Child Well-Being Rankings, Yet the Strain of Inaccessible, Unaffordable Child Care Pushes Parents to the Breaking Point Utah made significant strides in overall child well-being, moving up to second place in the country from fourth last...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Laneta Fitisemanu
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Utah Children's Budget 2023

    The care for the children in our state and communities can be measured by our public investment in our smallest humans. From the fiscal year 2008 to 2022, Voices for Utah Children divided all state programs concerning children into seven categories,...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Taylor Throne
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • What Happened with Child Care During the 2023 Legislative Session?

    Child care certainly received its fair share of discussion this legislative session, but did anything really happen? The short answer is kinda. Here’s what happened. Funding Requests During the session, Voices for Utah Children teamed up with parents,...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Jenna Williams
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Full Steam Ahead for Full-Day Kindergarten in Utah!

    Congratulations, Utah parents and educators! Together, we did it. Funding for optional full-day kindergarten is now a reality for schools statewide. The Utah Legislature passed HB477, "Full Day Kindergarten Amendments," sponsored by Rep. Robert...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Anna Thomas
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Summary of the Tax Cuts Passed by the 2023 Utah Legislature

    The Legislature finished its 2023 General Session last Friday evening, March 3rd. In the area of tax policy, we've prepared the chart above to summarize the tax cuts passed this year. The tax cuts that will go into effect in the next year add up to...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Matthew Weinstein
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Utah's Proposed Child Tax Credit

    To date, the state legislature’s minimal efforts to address Utah’s complex child care crisis are completely out of proportion to the scope of the problem. None of those efforts have offered much relief for Utah families with young children who are...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Jenna Williams
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • How Much Will Each Utah County Soon Lose in Child Care Funding?

    During the pandemic, the child care sector was decimated. Nationally, 16,000 childcare programs permanently closed and 100,000 workers left the industry entirely. But even before the pandemic began, Utah only had enough licensed child care to meet...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Jenna Williams
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Utah Education Funding: Legislative Leadership vs The Data

    At two large pre-legislative events in the second week of January, hundreds of attendees heard Utah's Senate President proudly assert that Utah was the only state that increased education funding during the pandemic. Every year, especially around the...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Matthew Weinstein
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Invest in Utah's Future Coalition: $5.6b of unmet needs should be prioritized over tax cuts

    BROAD COALITION CALLS FOR INVESTMENT IN UTAH’S FUTURE RATHER THAN TAX CUTS, DOCUMENTS $5.6 BILLION IN URGENT UNMET NEEDS Salt Lake City – On Monday, January 23, 2023 at the Utah State Capitol, a broad and diverse coalition of advocates for the poor,...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Matthew Weinstein
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Comparing the Tax Cuts

    * * SEE COMPLETE ANALYSIS OF THE LEGISLATURE'S $400 MILLION TAX CUT PROPOSAL AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE * * The 2023 Legislature's annual seven-week General Session has begun! At the top of the agenda for the Governor and Legislative leadership: tax...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Matthew Weinstein
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • The best holiday gift for Utah kids this year: An improved federal Child Tax Credit

    Every December Congress meets to try to pass all the urgent items they didn't manage to get done the rest of the year. Usually the list includes tax policy changes demanded by one well-heeled special interest or another. This year is no different. At...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Matthew Weinstein
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Digital Media Policies & Kids: The need for more thoughtful approaches to solutions

    By Sariah Villalon (Voices Policy Intern) We live in a digital world where social media has become integral to our society. It has broadened our communication, allowing us to connect and share information with anyone around the world. It has helped...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Sariah Villalon
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Brackeen v. Haaland: The Case Child Welfare Advocates Should Worry About

    On November 9th, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear the Brackeen v. Haaland (21-377) case.[i] The case could determine if the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), enacted by the U. S. Congress in 1978, is constitutional. Since it was enacted, ICWA has...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Martín C. Muñoz
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Voices Urges Utah’s Congressional Members To Take Action After The 5th Circuit’s Decision On DACA

    Statement on the Fifth Circuit Court Decision in Texas v. United States Voices for Utah Children is disappointed with the ruling from the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. The ruling largely upheld the lower courts’ decision that the Deferred Action for...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Ciriac Alvarez Valle
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Utah's Child Care Crisis is About to Hit a Whole New Level

    Since the start of the pandemic, Utah has received nearly $600 million in emergency federal funding to ensure that our child care sector can continue to serve families despite nearly overwhelming COVID-era challenges. In one year, at the end of...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Anna Thomas
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Farewell From Jessie

    After more than seven years advocating for Utah children’s health coverage and care, I will be leaving Voices for Utah Children to work on national school Medicaid policy and programs. I am so grateful to have worked alongside our amazing team at...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Laneta Fitisemanu
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Wait, Still No Optional Full-Day Kindergarten for Your Family?

    Labor Day weekend is in the past, the “heat dome” has cracked, and we are well on our way into the 2022-23 school year. Oh, and the majority of Utah families still have no choice when it comes to their child’s kindergarten program. Ensuring that all...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Anna Thomas
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • Utah Economic Benchmarking Project 2022: Utah vs Texas

    New Economic Benchmarking Report Finds Utah Ahead of Texas in Most Key Metrics of Economic Opportunity and Standard of Living Salt Lake City, August 31, 2022 - Voices for Utah Children released today the fifth in its series of economic benchmarking...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Taylor Throne
    • Category: Updates & Blog

  • My Policy Fellowship Reflection | Abigail Piña Dahilig

    Before starting my fellowship, I had experience doing paid contract work with Voices. The projects I supported were in juvenile justice and immigrant family policies. Over the past year, as part of my fellowship, I worked on the same issues in greater...

    • Type: Article
    • Author: Questions?
    • Category: Updates & Blog
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