Advocacy: Home Visiting Legislation

State Level Advocacy

Home Visiting Legislation

Legislative Action Center(off-site)

Collaborations

• State-Level Legisation
• Federal Legislation

Home visitation programs for families with young children, such as Healthy Families America (HFA), have grown rapidly over the past decade. While many states moved quickly to implement programs, the funding has not always been adequate or consistent. States have pursued a variety of approaches for securing political and financial support for home visitation including seeking and passing legislation at the local, state and national levels. This legislation has varied in scope, intent and ultimately impact on the implementation of home visiting programs.

Having legislation in place does not necessarily ensure funding for home visiting programs. Often times, states will authorize a program but be unwilling or unable to appropriate funding towards the new authorization. At the same time, there are states that have significant funding, an established state system, and a number of sites in place, yet do not have a law authorizing funds to be used for this purpose. This suggests that states should carefully consider the need for, strategies, and expected outcomes for pursuing legislation. Some questions to explore might be: What is the reason behind pursuing legislation for HFA or other home visiting programs? Are you willing to pursue legislation without funding?

Legislation that establishes home visiting programs frequently mentions measures to ensure program quality, such as training and evaluation. These quality measures are best provided by a centralized organization, such as a state system that supports local program sites. HFA state systems vary considerably in their capacity to provide state-wide training, technical assistance with program development, and other quality assurance measures. The emphasis on quality measures in establishment laws suggests that it is important when pursuing legislation to know where a state system's strengths are in these areas, and to then promote these strengths through specific advocacy efforts.

Cataloging home visiting legislation by state has helped to form a comprehensive picture of the legislation that exists governing the establishment of home visiting programs. This picture confirms the complexities surrounding the legislative process and the inherent challenges that exist for interpreting and tracking this data. Very few, if any, legislators or legislative staff will have the time, patience, and interest required to research existing legislation in their state pertaining to home visiting on an ongoing basis. Even if they were to track this information, interpreting it and ultimately decoding the nuances that exist from one program to another would be a formidable task. It is critical that home visiting programs remain diligent in surveying this information while also seeking ways to educate legislators and other key decision makers about the implications of existing legislation for children and families in their states. Additionally, it speaks to the need for greater collaboration among home visiting programs to ensure coordination, potential funding, and decreased duplication of services.

In 2002, through a grant from the Home Visit Forum, HFA compiled a foundation of legislation impacting HFA and home visitation programs across the country. This does not represent an exhaustive list of all legislation addressing home visitation in 2002. It is intended to provide more concrete examples of possible legislative actions your home visiting program may consider.

• Download "Home Visiting Legislation" [Adobe PDF]

Federal Legislation - The Education Begins at Home Act

Prevent Child Abuse America has advocated at the federal level in an effort to build support nationally for quality home visiting programs. In 2005, The Education Begins at Home Act (EBAH) was introduced in both the U.S. House and Senate to establish the first federal funding stream dedicated to early childhood home visitation.

EBAH would create a three-year $500 million program to help states expand and deliver quality home visiting services to families with newborns and young children. Of the $500 million authorized by EBAH, $400 million would be provided to states on a formula basis to expand and enhance home visiting programs; states would be able to use the funds to support a service delivery approach that best suits their population's needs. The remaining $100 million authorized by EBAH would be divided between two competitive grants to reach military families and families with English language learners.