*cross-post Nourish CA
We need your help to stop the racist state policy that discriminates against family child care home providers.
Food for Family Child Care Homes budget proposal is being heard on Thursday, April 27 in the Senate Budget Subcommittee 3, starting at 9:30AM. This budget proposal will designate money in California's budget to end the reimbursement gap in our state's child care system. California currently fails to provide full reimbursement to family child care home providers, so they receive no state funding for one out of every four meals they serve to kids in their care.
Join us this Thursday (tomorrow!) and give public comment!
You can access the livestream here and the hearing agenda here.
How to call in for public comment
Once the public comment period begins, please dial 877-226-8163 (Access Code: 7362834)
Once you are in the "virtual waiting room", please mute your phone (this is very important!)
Enter 1 then 0. You should hear a prompt that says "You are in queue". Do not press 1 then 0 again! This will remove you from the queue.
Be patient and wait until an operator joins your line. The operator will assign you a number. Write that number down and wait for the committee to announce your number.
Once your number is announced, please unmute your phone and state your comment.
Public comment will be limited to 1 minute max.
Sample script "Hello Chair and members, I am [name] with [organization/affiliation], and I am commenting in support of the Food for Family Child Care Homes proposal. This small investment will finally eliminate the unfair state meal reimbursement rate gap that discriminates against Family Child Care providers by only including reimbursing for 75 percent of meals served. Thank you." *If time allows, you can also include a talking point below or share your own reason for supporting the Food for Family Child Care Homes budget proposal:
This long overdue change will move the state closer to ensuring a more equitable child care nutrition program. Family Child Care home providers should be fairly compensated for living up to the obligation to provide healthy meals to kids in their care.
California’s child care system undervalues and underpays essential labor historically performed by Black, Latina, and immigrant women. Ending the reimbursement gap is one important step toward eliminating those inequities.
Each year, providers absorb hundreds of millions of dollars in costs for meals served to children, despite the fact that they are already operating on razor thin margins.
If you cannot call in you can also submit written testimony to: SBUD.Committee@senate.ca.gov If you have questions, email Jared at jared@nourishca.org.
If you're unable to give public comment on Thursday or just want to learn more about this issue, join us on May 11 for Food With Early Care Virtual Discussion! You will hear from advocates working along providers to push for impactful and urgent improvements to programs such as WIC and the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP).
If you have questions, email Kameron (kameron@nourishca.org) or Samantha (samantha@ccfproundtable.org).