On your mark… Get set… GO!

The 2023 Kentucky General Assembly is underway, and advocates from across the Commonwealth are sprinting into action to help improve outcomes for kids and families. Bloom Kentucky recently released its 2023 state policy priorities to help advocates in their race to the finish line. 

Bloom Kentucky is a collaborative initiative of grantmaking organizations from across the Commonwealth focused on statewide policy changes and budget investments that aim to prevent and mitigate the multi-generational impacts of childhood adversity so that every child can grow up happy, healthy, and hopeful.

“The Bloom Kentucky team is uniquely situated to help improve the lives of those we serve. Complementing the efforts our grantmaking organizations currently lead in their local communities, our 2023 policy agenda focuses on a number of issues on a statewide level to help address childhood adversity.” explained Barry Allen, President & Treasurer, The Gheens Foundation, Inc.

This year’s Bloom Kentucky policy priorities seek to build upon the momentum gained during the 2022 legislative session.

As part of the Blueprint for Kentucky’s Children, Bloom Kentucky is advocating for the following state policy priorities to help prevent and mitigate Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs):

• Support maternal mental health by requiring postpartum depression screenings at appointments after birth
• Strengthen Kentucky’s families and workforce by conducting a study focused on developing a Paid Family Leave infrastructure that is best suited for the Commonwealth
• Ensure survivors of intimate partner violence can access unemployment insurance benefits if their reason for not working is directly related to the violence, assault, or stalking
• Promote housing stability by establishing a process to automatically expunge an eviction from a family’s record after they have been eviction-free for a reasonable amount of time

“The focus of our Bloom efforts is to work upstream,” said Allen. “Our state policy agenda takes that approach by looking at factors that will lead to more prosperous outcomes for kids. First and foremost, parents and caregivers must have the tools they need to provide for their children in the best possible way.”

From caring for newborns without the added stress of employment security to ensuring access to stable housing, the Bloom priorities seek to bolster positive environments for Kentucky’s kids to grow and develop by supporting those who care for them. 

Learn more about Bloom Kentucky and its state policy and budget priorities at bloomkentucky.org. 

Bloom Kentucky is supported by a growing list of grantmakers, including Blue Grass Community Foundation, Brown-Forman Foundation, C.E. & S. Foundation, Inc., Central Kentucky Community Foundation, Community Foundation of Louisville, Community Foundation of South Central Kentucky, Community Foundation of West Kentucky, Felix E. Martin Jr. Foundation, Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky, Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky, The Gheens Foundation, Inc., The Gilbert Foundation, Inc., The Greater Clark Foundation, Harshaw Family Foundation, Humana Foundation, James Graham Brown Foundation, Jewish Heritage Fund for Excellence, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Kentucky Foundation for Women, Kosair Charities, Laura Goad Turner Charitable Foundation, Lawrence & Augusta Hager Educational Foundation, Lexington Clinic Foundation, Lift a Life Novak Family Foundation, Marilyn & William Young Foundation, Mildred V. Horn Foundation, Nickles Foundation, The Norton (Family) Foundation, Inc., Public Life Foundation of Owensboro, Snowy Owl Foundation, The V.V. Cooke Foundation, and Wood & Marie C. Hannah Foundation.