Contact:
Mara Powell
mpowell@kyyouth.org

Announcing the Blueprint for Kentucky’s Children 2022 State Policy and Budget Priorities Agenda

Louisville, KY – Today, Kentucky Youth Advocates and partners from across the Commonwealth are launching the Blueprint for Kentucky’s Children 2022 state policy and budget priorities agenda. The Blueprint for Kentucky’s Children is a coalition of non-profit, public, and private organizations that stands on three pillars: thriving communities launch strong families, strong families launch successful kids, and successful kids launch a prosperous future for Kentucky.

As the Commonwealth continues efforts to overcome the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and address systemic racism, the Blueprint speaks with a common voice to create brighter futures for all Kentucky kids and their families. The policy and budget priorities on the Blueprint’s 2022 agenda keeps that charge in mind.

The Blueprint for Kentucky’s Children 2022 priorities span closing gaps in child maltreatment reporting policies, establishing a minimum age of 12 years old that a child can be charged with an offense, expanding local control so communities can curb youth tobacco use, utilizing community-based alternatives to minimize the shared sentence of parental incarceration, and more. Kentucky kids and families also need a strong state budget that invests in child care and full day kindergarten, sustains funding for critical safety net programs like Medicaid, KCHIP, SNAP, and KTAP, increases funds to strengthen the DCBS workforce, and more.

For more information on each of the priorities, view the 2022 Blueprint fact sheets at kyyouth.org/blueprintky/.

“Every Kentucky child is relying on their leaders in Frankfort to prioritize their future. As we noted in the latest Kentucky KIDS COUNT County Data Book, too many families across the Commonwealth, especially families of color due to longstanding inequities, were struggling prior to COVID-19 and those trends will only continue to be exacerbated by the ripple effects of the pandemic,” said Terry Brooks, executive director, Kentucky Youth Advocates. “Children are the common ground for the Kentucky General Assembly and the Beshear Administration, and we are confident that their commitment to kids will result in tangible actions for families by the final gavel in 2022.”

Each year, Blueprint for Kentucky’s Children partners and advocates from across Kentucky bring attention to Blueprint priorities in Frankfort at the annual Children’s Advocacy Day at the Capitol, which has shifted to Children’s Advocacy Week. For 2022, in anticipation of the continued need for reduced crowd sizes, we are hosting virtual advocacy events throughout the week of January 18 – 21, including opportunities to connect with state legislators and other advocates. Sign up to receive updates on Children’s Advocacy Week at kyyouth.org/childrens-advocacy-week/.

###

Kentucky Youth Advocates believes all children deserve to be safe, healthy, and secure. As THE independent voice for Kentucky’s children, we work to ensure policymakers create investments and policies that are good for children. Learn more at kyyouth.org.