Newsroom

Overview

Newsroom

Find CWDA’s statements, press releases, op-eds and articles, plus other news of interest that the association is tracking.

Press release

San Diego, Fresno, Sonoma and Yuba Counties Win California Foster Youth FAFSA Challenge, First Statewide Effort Focused on Helping Foster Youth Apply for College Financial Aid
Winners announced at the April 10 Foster Youth Education Summit

John Burton Advocates for Youth

SAN FRANCISCO, April 10 — More California foster youth who are seniors in high school are headed to college, thanks to the first coordinated statewide effort to help them submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and receive financial aid for college.  As part of the inaugural California Foster Youth FAFSA Challenge, led by John Burton Advocates for Youth, four county offices of education were named winners for their efforts and received checks at the Foster Youth Education Summit in Pomona on Tuesday, April 10.

Article Frank J. Mecca Sacramento Bee

A good investment to keep California’s seniors from becoming homeless

By Frank Mecca

We are witnessing an awful reality that as California’s senior population booms, so does the number of elderly and disabled adults who are abused, neglected or exploited.

They often are forced into potentially life-threatening homelessness even after Adult Protective Services is alerted. Unfortunately, when APS was created two decades ago, it wasn’t designed, nor was it ever funded, to deal with complicated housing issues.

Article Chronicle of Social Change

California Approves Short-Term Fix For Foster Parents Stuck in the Approval Process

By Jeremy Loudenback, March 15, 2018

California Gov. Jerry Brown (D) signed a stop-gap measure on Tuesday that will provide emergency funding to caregivers who take in a foster child before completing the approval process.

Over the past year, the state’s new approval process for caregivers in the state has led to lengthy funding delays for foster parents and relative caregivers, now collectively known as resource families.

Article The Chronicle of Social Change

Three Strategies That Helped San Francisco Increase Foster Home Applications by 300 Percent

January 26, 2018

By Felicia Curcuru

Efforts like Continuum of Care Reform in California are part of the statewide goal to place more foster youth in family settings. However, many county child welfare agencies are struggling to meet these goals due to a shortage of available resource families, a group that includes both foster parents and kinship caregivers.

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Contribute to County Employees Affected by the Wildfires
Many county human services agency employees lost homes as they served their neighbors

CWDA has created a YouCaring fundraising site to collect donations to assist county human services department employees who lost their homes in the recent wildfires.

At this time we know of employees in Napa and Sonoma Counties who lost their homes. We will add additional counties as we become aware of employees affected in other areas.

Please consider donating. All donations will be divided evenly among those we know of who lost their homes in the fire.

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CWDA Statement on Proposed Federal 2018 Budget

The budget for programs in the Health and Human Services area contains significant proposed cuts and policy changes that will result in reduced benefits and eligibility for potentially millions of Californians, if enacted by Congress. CWDA Executive Director Frank Mecca issued the below statement regarding the proposal.

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CWDA Statement on Passage of American Health Care Act

SACRAMENTO (May 4, 2017) - Frank Mecca, Executive Director of the County Welfare Directors Association of California, today issued the following statement on the passage of the American Health Care Act by the U.S. House of Representatives:

“Through its actions today, the House majority demonstrated its lack of respect for basic principles of societal decency. The bill’s harsh cuts target nearly everyone, but will hit the poorest, sickest, and most vulnerable Americans hardest of all.

Legislation

CWDA Co-Sponsors SB 282 with Sen. Wiener
Bill would increase CalFresh access for prepared food for homeless, elderly or disabled and create employment opportunities

CWDA is co-sponsoring SB 282, known as the Reducing Hunger Among Vulnerable Californians Act of 2017, with Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) to increase access to prepared food for low income homeless, elderly or disabled Californians and also create employment opportunities for childless homeless adults.

Press release

New Year Brings Major Change for Child Sex Trafficking Victims: No Longer Treated as Criminals
Senate Bill 1322 Requires Law Enforcement to Ensure Child Victims Receive Services, Not Arrest or Jail

SACRAMENTO – Child welfare agencies, children’s advocates and community providers are reminding their partners and the public that January 1 marks a major turning point in California’s efforts to help children who are victims of sex trafficking: These children will no longer be treated as criminals. Instead, the expectation of law enforcement agencies is to protect these children and ensure they receive appropriate, victim-centered services from child welfare agencies and community providers.

Article Frank J. Mecca

CWDA Executive Director to Serve as Vice Chair of Budget Center Board

CWDA Executive Director Frank Mecca will serve as vice chair of the California Budget & Policy Center in 2017. Frank has served on the Budget Center’s Board since 2013. The Budget Center Board elected its new leadership at its December meeting.

Press release

Governor Makes it Clear: Child Sex Trafficking Victims are Not Criminals
Senate Bill 1322 is Critical Step in Children’s Recovery and Healing

SACRAMENTO – Child welfare agencies, children’s attorneys and community providers are praising Governor Jerry Brown today for signing Senate Bill 1322, which sends a strong message to children who are victims of sex trafficking: You are not a criminal.

Article

California Receives Federal Grant to Enhance Adult Protective Services

California is among 13 states receiving a grant for its Adult Protective Services (APS) system to address the abuse, neglect, and exploitations of older adults and people with disabilities.

Press release

Repeal of Maximum Family Grant Rule is Momentous for Families in Poverty
Historic Rule Change Benefits 130,000 Children

SACRAMENTO—The County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA) is thrilled at the news that repeal of the Maximum Family Grant (MFG) rule in the CalWORKs program is included in the 2016-17 budget agreement announced by Governor Jerry Brown, Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon.

Press release

Assembly Budget Includes Child Care Assistance for Foster Families
CWDA, The Alliance for Children's Rights Commend Action as Critical to Keeping Siblings Together & Improving Child Well-Being

Many of our youngest foster children are languishing in shelters because long waiting lists for state subsidized child care are frustrating county efforts to recruit and retain otherwise willing foster parents. On Tuesday, California’s Assembly voted to include $22 million in the forthcoming budget for a child care bridge proposal that would provide time-limited child care vouchers for the youngest of these children, ages 0 – 3. The request for funding was proposed by a broad coalition of child welfare and child care advocates, led by Los Angeles County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl.

Press release

Assembly Budget Committee Makes Ending Child Poverty a Priority
Action Taken to End Maximum Family Grant (MFG) Rule, Myth-Driven Law that Plunges More Children into Poverty

SACRAMENTO—Today marked a critical step in ensuring children living at the deepest levels of poverty are no longer subject to a classist, racist, myth-driven law and are eligible for assistance to help them and their families build better lives.

Press release

CWDA Applauds Minimum Wage Agreement
Increasing Income and Well-Supported Assistance Programs Key Combination to Ending Poverty in California

SACRAMENTO - Frank Mecca, Executive Director of the County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA), released the following statement in response to the tentative agreement reached for increasing California’s minimum wage:

“Today’s agreement to boost the minimum wage over the coming years is an important recognition by California’s leaders that too many working families simply cannot build a decent life without more income each month.

Article

Repeal MFG Makes Women’s Caucus Priority List

Continuing their push for a #StrongerCA and reminding their colleagues and the public that families and women must be the state’s priorities, the Democratic members of the California Legislative Women’s Caucus unveiled their priorities on Thursday, February 11.

Press release Frank J. Mecca

Senate Plan Prioritizes Housing and Keeping Families Together
CalWORKs Housing Support and Bringing Families Home Programs are Key Investments to End Homeless and Poverty

SACRAMENTO— Frank Mecca, executive director of the County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA), released the following statement in response to the bipartisan “No Place like Home” State Budget initiative led by Pro Tem Kevin de Leon and supported by a coalition of Senators:

Article

Repeal MFG Named to Sacramento Bee’s Top 15 Political Stories of 2015

The shameful maximum family grant (MFG) policy that has exacerbated the hardship children and families in the CalWORKs program face each day and continued work to repeal it made The Sacramento Bee’s Top 15 political stories of 2015.

Press release Frank J. Mecca

EITC Critical Start to Ending California’s Poverty Crisis
Strengthening CalWORKs, Dealing with Child & Family Homelessness Next Steps in Comprehensive Plan

Frank Mecca, Executive Director of the County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA) responds to Governor Brown’s revised 2015-16 state budget.

Article Frank J. Mecca

Housing is key to move Californians from welfare to work
By Frank Mecca and John Bauters, Special to The Bee

After suffering through unthinkable abuse for over a decade, Michelle gathered the strength to leave her husband and seek a better life for her three children. But what came next was a series of humbling experiences she never imagined. 

Press release

Fighting Poverty Imperative for Children, Families and Economy
CWDA Commends Governor for ACA Commitment, Urges Policies that Improve Lives of All Californians

The County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA) commends Governor Brown for his continued commitment to the Affordable Care Act, reflected in his proposed 2015-16 State Budget, and the critical expansion of Medi-Cal that has brought health care coverage to millions of Californians.

Press release Cathy Senderling-McDonald

Governor Brown Signs Legislation to Save Dollars, Smooth Medi-Cal Communication Under Affordable Care Act
County Social Services Agencies & Front-line Workers Teamed Up to Reduce Confusion

County Social Services Agencies and the front-line workers who help eligible Californians access health care benefits praised Governor Brown’s signature on SB 1341 (Mitchell), a bill that will save taxpayer dollars and reduce confusion in the Medi-Cal program.

Article Frank J. Mecca

State Takes First Steps to Help Child Sex Trafficking Victims
By Frank Mecca and Kate Walker, Special to The Bee

Nine children who were being repeatedly sold for sex and exploited by pimps were recovered last week in the Sacramento region, part of a nationwide FBI sting that recovered 168 children across the United States. Sacramento had the sixth highest number of recoveries out of the 54 FBI field offices involved. 

Press release Frank J. Mecca

Poverty Epidemic Will Continue Dragging Down Recovery
Lack of Strategic Solutions to Help Children and Families Disappointing

Frank Mecca, Executive Director of the County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA), issued the following statement on Governor Jerry Brown’s 2014-15 May Revision:

Press release Frank J. Mecca

Budget Misses Opportunities to End Poverty
Strategic Solutions Can Help Children and Families, Optimize State’s Economic Recovery

Frank Mecca, Executive Director of the County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA), issued the following statement on Governor Jerry Brown’s 2014-15 State Budget proposal: