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We Advocate.
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We Collaborate.
We are the County Welfare Directors Association of California. We are a nonprofit association representing the human service directors from each of California’s 58 counties.

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CWDA Opposes Proposed Changes to “Public Charge”
Trump Administration's cruel an unnecessary proposal will only hurt families.

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Please Don’t Call This Foster Care
CWDA's take on children and parents separated by Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) as they cross U.S. borders.

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Immigration Resources for Counties
This page includes tools and resources for county human services agencies relating to immigration, health care and public benefits under current law. 

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From Our Partners: Child Poverty in California
In 2016, 83.5% of poor children in California lived in families with at least one working adult. Read the full PPIC report.

Hot Topics

Hot topic Immigration

Counties Work to Ease Client Concerns
State and federal laws are still in effect that entitle clients to health care coverage and assistance that they are eligible to receive. Find resources for Counties assisting clients from immigrant communities seeking further guidance here.

Hot topic CalFresh

California Counties Urge Adoption of Senate Farm Bill in Conference
CWDA joined CSAC and CHEAC in urging the House and Senate conferees to adopt the Senate version of the Farm Bill as it relates to SNAP, or CalFresh food assistance in California. Read the full letter.

Hot topic Conference

CWDA 2018 Conference Presentations
CWDA's 2018 conference was October 10-12, at the Anaheim Marriott. It was a a unique opportunity for attendees to meet and network with human services leaders from all 58 counties in one place. Presentations are now available to download.

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News & Updates

Recent News

Article Chronicle of Social Change

Beyond Family First: Congress Should Boost Funding to Prevent Child Abuse and Neglect

By Daniel Heimpel

Last week, national TV news was filled with images of newly elected Members of Congress descending on Capitol Hill for their “freshman orientation.” My hope is that this change – and momentum on the heels of a major federal foster care law signed earlier this year – will create a new opportunity to get child welfare financing closer to what advocates, practitioners and lawmakers have long said they want, but have failed to deliver: True child maltreatment prevention.

Press release Megan Gamble Diana Boyer

Author and Cosponsors of Assembly Bill 2043 Respond to Governor Brown’s Veto

SACRAMENTO – Last week, to our disappointment, Governor Brown vetoed Assembly Bill 2043 (Arambula), cosponsored by CWDA, Children Now, and the County Behavioral Health Directors Association of California (CBHDA), which would have created California’s first-ever Family Urgent Response System (FURS) for foster youth and families.

Press release Cathy Senderling-McDonald Megan Gamble

CWDA Opposes Trump Administration’s Proposed Changes to “Public Charge”

SACRAMENTO – CWDA opposes the Trump Administration’s proposed changes to the rules that govern the consideration of whether certain legal immigrants are to be considered a “public charge,” released by the Department of Homeland Security on September 22, 2018. This unnecessary and cruel proposal changes long-standing federal policy governing the entry and livelihoods of our nation’s immigrant population.

Article Sacramento Bee

Agencies must work together to place foster kids. This bill will help

By Assemblyman Ken Cooley

Children removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect have experienced unimaginable trauma that will follow them throughout their lives. All these children need specialized care and services to help them heal.

But there is a small subset of California’s 60,000 foster children who require even greater attention and care, whose special needs and intense service requirements often don’t fit into an easy placement solution.

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Blog Posts

Blog post Cathy Senderling-McDonald

The Road Ahead for California’s Foster Care Reform

CWDA continues to fight for the tools and resources necessary for the success of Continuum of Care Reform (CCR) in California’s child welfare system. It is imperative that California enact legislation that will help California meet the goals of this major foster care reform effort and ensure that funding is dedicated to that purpose. We must ensure that foster youth and caregivers are supported and stable as we continue to roll out and learn from this reform effort. To that end, we are determined to see two important policy efforts implemented in the coming year.

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