Statement on Passage of HB 291 by the House Families & Children Committee
Contact: Mara Powell mpowell@kyyouth.org Statement from Dr. Terry Brooks, executive director of Kentucky Youth Advocates LOUISVILLE, KY – Kentucky has the third highest rate of parental incarceration in the nation, with over 100,000 children having experienced the disruption and trauma of being separated from a parent. The Family Preservation and Accountability Act, co-championed by Senator Julie Raque Adams and Representative Nick Wilson, seeks to hold parents accountable for their actions while minimizing the negative impact of having a parent locked up on children. Today, we join advocates in celebrating as House Bill 291 advanced out of the House Families and [...]
Statement on Passage of SB 100 Senate Licensing & Occupations Committee
Contact: Mara Powell mpowell@kyyouth.org Statement from Dr. Terry Brooks, executive director of Kentucky Youth Advocates LOUISVILLE, KY – Kentucky kids have told us – as well as teachers, parents, coaches, and health care providers – vaping is happening among our high school and middle school students. And the reality is that, despite the Tobacco-21 law prohibiting sales of vapes and e-cigarettes to those under 21, two out of five youth nationally report getting these products directly from retail sources in their community, like gas stations and convenience stores. Senator Jimmy Higdon seeks to end that trend in Kentucky with Senate [...]
Statement on Passage of SB 73 by Kentucky Senate
Contact: Mara Powell mpowell@kyyouth.org Statement from Dr. Terry Brooks, executive director of Kentucky Youth Advocates LOUISVILLE, KY – Kids’ safety was once again prioritized by the Kentucky Senate with their overwhelming bipartisan support of Senate Bill 73 today. Through the leadership of Senator Julie Raque Adams, SB 73 will empower victims of sexual extortion by holding perpetrators accountable and will prioritize prevention education among Kentucky’s most vulnerable to online risks. Online sexual extortion – or “sextortion” – is a reality facing our elementary through high school students. In fact, nationally, over half of minors perceive online grooming as common among [...]
Statement on Passage of SB 17 by Kentucky Senate
Contact: Mara Powell mpowell@kyyouth.org Statement from Dr. Terry Brooks, executive director of Kentucky Youth Advocates LOUISVILLE, KY – Freestanding birth centers give pregnant moms choices in their care – and the Kentucky Senate voted to support that notion today with passage of Senate Bill 17, sponsored by Senator Shelly Funke Frommeyer. By removing barriers to establishing freestanding birth centers in Kentucky, pregnant moms with low-risk pregnancies can receive perinatal care safely in a homelike environment as an alternative to hospital delivery. These small health care facilities show results in women having fewer medical interventions and lower cesarean rates than those [...]
Statement on Passage of SB 73 by Senate Judiciary Committee
Contact: Mara Powell mpowell@kyyouth.org Statement from Dr. Terry Brooks, executive director of Kentucky Youth Advocates LOUISVILLE, KY – As Kentucky kids learn and socialize increasingly in online spaces, it’s as important as ever to put safeguards in place to prevent and address exploitation and promote child safety. In recent years, there has been a significant increase in cases of online sexual extortion, or “sextortion” – where perpetrators use social media platforms, gaming sites, and messaging apps to target youth. Those predators often use threats of exposure to coerce their young victims into providing explicit content or money, leaving many children [...]
Statement on Passage of SB 17 by Senate Health Services Committee
Contact: Mara Powell mpowell@kyyouth.org Statement from Dr. Terry Brooks, executive director of Kentucky Youth Advocates LOUISVILLE, KY – Kentucky kids’ health depends on access to safe and equitable care – beginning even before they are born. Senate Bill 17, sponsored by Senator Shelly Funke Frommeyer, will remove barriers to critical perinatal care options so that more Kentucky moms and their babies have the chance to thrive. Freestanding birth centers are small health care facilities that offer a homelike environment for mothers with low-risk pregnancies to access prenatal care and to give birth. These centers result in fewer medical interventions, offer significant [...]
OP-ED: “Say What?” Legislative Proposals for Kids
This originally appeared as an op-ed in the Herald Leader, NKY Tribune, and Courier Journal. By Terry Brooks “Say what?” Merriam Webster describes this idiom as “a way to express surprise or disbelief at what someone has said or at unexpected news.” It is also the most popular response to any question or request directed to my three teenage grandkids. I’m never sure if that teen response is genuine surprise or a very skilled stalling technique. There are a lot of “Say whats?” in our world, aren’t there? Some are serious and discoveries core to life. Others? Well, they’re a [...]
Statement on Auditor’s Report on Foster Children Sleeping in DCBS Offices
Contact: Mara Powell mpowell@kyyouth.org Statement from Dr. Terry Brooks, executive director of Kentucky Youth Advocates LOUISVILLE, KY – With the release of the preliminary report on foster children staying in Department for Community Based Services office buildings, State Auditor Allison Ball and the Office of the Ombudsman exemplifies how to be a catalyst for change for some of the Commonwealth’s most vulnerable kids. The report outlines a few important takeaways for us to consider when it comes to the cases seen in the three-month investigated time period (June 10-October 29, 2024). First, 49 children were reported to stay in DCBS office [...]
The Latest Child Maltreatment Report Shows Kentucky’s High Rate of Victims Persists
Contact: Mara Powell mpowell@kyyouth.org LOUISVILLE, KY – The latest national Child Maltreatment report from the Children’s Bureau of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services shows a total of 14,484 child victims of maltreatment in Kentucky during the reporting period (FFY 2023). While there has been a 28% reduction in child victims of maltreatment from 2019 to 2023, Kentucky has nearly double the national rate (7.4 per 1,000) of child maltreatment at 14.2 per 1,000 children. Young children remain the most vulnerable as victims of abuse or neglect in the Commonwealth, with 30% of total victims under the age of four. Babies [...]
Announcing the Blueprint for Kentucky’s Children 2025 State Policy Priorities Agenda
Media Contact: Mara Powell mpowell@kyyouth.org Louisville, KY – Today, Kentucky Youth Advocates and partners from across the Commonwealth released the Blueprint for Kentucky’s Children 2025 priority agenda. The Blueprint speaks with a common voice to create brighter futures for all Kentucky kids and their families. 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. This year, the Blueprint’s policy priorities focus on various gaps and challenges in the lives of the Commonwealth’s children. The priorities are focused [...]