CAFCA
Happenings!CAFCA
Happenings!
April 2005
2005 Legislative Session
The last official
day of the session is May 11th. CAFCA continued to testify on bills
through last Thursday. To view the latest on all bills CAFCA is tracking and
their status, please visit CAFCA’s web page: www.cafca.net.
Complete bills may be viewed and downloaded from the General Assembly Web page: www.leg.state.co.us.
Select the appropriate bill range and click on the bill. Be
sure to select “all versions” then choose the latest version to make sure
you are viewing the most current.
Colorado
Economic Recovery Act (HB 05-1194), AKA Referendum C
Representative
Andrew Romanoff’s HB 1194, also dubbed the Colorado Economic Recovery Act, has
not only passed both Houses, but is also supported by Governor Owens, the
Colorado Association of Commerce and Industry, the League of Women Voters, The
Colorado Forum, and many other organizations, as well as CAFCA. This is an
impressive compromise and would allow the state to “de-Bruce” TABOR for a
period of 5 years. However, it will require a great deal of effort to sell it to
Colorado voters, many of whom do not know about or understand the impact of
cutting $1 billion from Colorado’s budget over the past three years. Opponents
have already begun printing literature and bumper stickers. This measure will
appear on the November ballot as “Referendum C.”
Its companion, Referendum D, which will also be on the fall ballot,
describes how the funds collected would be spent. CAFCA will be working with its
lobbyists, legislators and others to prepare informational materials about
Referendum C for use by member agencies. These materials will be useful when
canvassing neighborhoods and sharing with community groups. We will let you know
as soon as they are available.
Cyberitis
Strikes CAFCA
During the
past month, we have been experiencing serious problems with both email and our
web page postings. Emails sent to Peg@cafca.net
have not been coming through or are being received 7-10 days after they are
sent. Outgoing emails have been affected as well. In addition, postings
Mary makes to our web page, e.g., the CAFCA calendar and legislative summaries,
are not being properly recorded. This is extremely frustrating for you and
for and us. We apologize for the inconvenience and the occasional failure of
important information being sent or received. Fortunately, or perhaps,
unfortunately, the problems seem to be external to CAFCA and rest with our host
server. We hope to have them corrected soon.
General
Membership Meetings
General
membership meetings have been moved to a bimonthly schedule. The next meeting
will be Friday, June 17th. Be sure to check the CAFCA web page (www.cafca.net)
for a calendar of all CAFCA meetings.
Committee Briefs-Please go to the Members Only section of the CAFCA web page: www.cafca.net for complete current committee minutes. Summaries are provided below.
Adoption Committee, Carol Lawson, Chair
The committee now meets bimonthly schedule. The next meeting will be Thursday, May 12th 9:00 am – Noon, at Adoption Options. Committee members will review a draft of the notice in expedited adoptions, developed by Kurt Olsson and Carol Lawson. Implementation may occur as early as July 1, 2005. Peg will also provide a legislative summary on bills affecting adoption practice.
Foster Care Committee, Bonnie McNulty, Chair
Committee members hosted a roundtable discussion of the CPA/County partnership. Weld, Adams and Arapahoe county representatives dialogued with members regarding questions about county budget issues, placement concerns, and related topics. Next meeting: May 26th, 8:30 – 10:00 am, Starbucks at REI Building., I-25 and 23rd St. Committee members will be selecting a new chairperson due to the fact that Bonnie has decided not to renew her CPA license. The committee chair also serves on the CAFCA board.
CTS Committee, Patty Erjavec, Chair
In April RTC committee members discussed HB 1324, which grants CDHS authority to charge a monthly administrative fee to eligible agencies that receive food commodities through the USDA food distribution program. Much of the meeting was devoted to a discussion of Kathy Chase’s email concerning allocation of overnight staff to IV-E rather than to Medicaid. The group also discussed the cost report letters that many RTCs have received. These issues may be addressed by a review of previous financial workgroup minutes and CDHS audit policies. The CTS subcommittee studying the charter school option will, at least initially, meet during the CFO roundtable discussion group. Next meeting: Friday, May 20th 10:30 am-noon at Mount Saint Vincent Home, 4159 Lowell Boulevard, Denver, 2nd floor conference room. One item on the agenda will be a discussion SOMB certification/credentialing rules for individual therapists in order to become a “full operating provider.”
Public Policy Committee, Cyndi Dodds, Chair
The committee will be reviewing the CAFCA 2010 Public Policy Strategic Plan and its implementation at the May 3rd meeting. Other topics include legislative and regulatory updates. Next meeting: Tuesday, May 3rd, noon- 2:00 pm
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SAVE THE DATE!
“Staying on Track,” CAFCA’s annual educational conference is scheduled for Friday, July 22nd 2005. Keynote speaker is nationally known youth care specialist and author CHARLIE APPELSTEIN. Other workshops include: Pedophilia and Child Molestation, Substance Abuse 101, Testifying Effectively for Children, and more. Time: 8-3, Location: Bethany Lutheran Church, Englewood, CO. Mark Your Calendars NOW! Look for more information and registration forms on the CAFCA web page (www.cafca.net) by the middle of May.
NOMINATIONS NOMINATIONS NOMINATIONS NOMINATIONS NOMINATIONS
The CAFCA Conference Committee is seeking YOUR nominations for the following awards to be presented at the Annual Conference on July 22nd. Nomination forms and complete information may be downloaded from the CAFCA website. Celebrate the important work we do by nominating a worthy recipient.
· Leadership (Individual)
· Advocacy (Individual)
· Foster Care Worker/Parent/Family
· Counselor/Case Manager/Therapist (Individual)
· Treatment Team
· Educator/Education Team
· Child Care Worker
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Colorado Planned Giving Roundtable
luncheon program
Thursday,
May 5, 2005
Gold
in the Ground – A Practical Guide to Developing and Accepting Gifts of Real
Estate
Presented by Neal P. Myerberg, J.D., Principal of Myerberg Shain & Associates. Time & Location: 11:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. (11:00 a.m. - registration) Four Points Sheraton, 600 S. Colorado Blvd., 303-757-3341, $35.00 CPGR members: $50 non-CPGR members. Please register by Monday, May 2, 2005 on-line at www.cpgr.org or call (303)544-2301. Find out about the advantages and disadvantages of accepting these gifts.
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What
Does the Proposed Federal Budget Mean for Colorado’s Children & Families?
Find
out by attending one of the fact-finding forums hosted by Every Child Matters
Education Fund—pizza and soft drinks will be served! A forum will be conducted
in each of Colorado’s 7 congressional districts over the next several weeks.
The first two are planned for:
DENVER
Tuesday,
May 11th, 11:30-1:30 p.m., First
BaptistChurch, 14th Ave. and Grant St.
BOULDER Tuesday, May 17th, 11:30-1:30, Boulder Public Library, 11th St. and Arapahoe For more information, go to: www.everychildmatters.org and click on the Colorado Forum Information link.
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COCAF/Adoptive
Family Resources Workshop
Creating Sexual Safety For Adopted & Foster Children &
Their Families
Dr.
Wayne Duehn, national expert, Professor of Social Work at the U. of Texas
Saturday, May 21st, 2005, 8:30 am – 2:30 p.m.
The Event Center at Church Ranch 10200 Olde Wadsworth Blvd., Westminster, 303 404-3777. $50 per person or $55 for 2 parents from same family Includes continental breakfast, lunch & afternoon snack. For more information, please call 720 937-4497 or email colleen@tarket.net. **********************************************************
Please send items for the Bulletin Board to: cafca1@aol.com.