In our last Update, we brought you news that a growing share of kids under age 5 are on the brink of hunger and new findings that missing even occasional nutritious meals can have a big impact on children's health:

• Even Very Low Levels of Food Insecurity Found to Harm Children's Health

As Congress readies to reauthorize child nutrition programs, the School Nutrition Association encourages advocates to email key leaders in Congress and the Administration about adequate funding for school meals and national school nutrition standards.

Currently, only 10 states support serving supper in after-school programs -- but that could change in new legislation, according to the Food Research and Action Center.

LIHEAP Coalition Sign-on Letter to Congress
Your organization can sign on to a letter asking the House and Senate Appropriations' Committees to support $5.1 billion for the regular Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) in fiscal year 2010.

• View the letter (from the National Consumer Law Center)

• More on LIHEAP and families (from ACF)

School Connectedness, Culture and Climate: CFK Coverage
Next week, the Search Institute and the National Collaboration for Youth are hosting a Congressional briefing on school connectedness, climate and culture that focuses on the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's new report, School Connectedness: Strategies for Increasing Protective Factors Among Youth. Connect for Kids will be there and will bring you a multimedia recap of the event.

Home Visitation and Early Intervention -- a Congressional Hearing, a New Bill
This month, a bipartisan bill introduced in the House, the Early Support for Families Act, would give grants to states in order to provide early childhood home visitation programs. How would this affect early childhood learning and parent-child relationships? On June 9, Chapin Hall researcher Deborah Daro testified before the House of Representatives Income Security and Family Support Subcommittee about what the research says.

• You can read a transcript of the hearing and testimony.

• Read the Chapin Hall report, Home Visitation: Assessing Progress, Managing Expectations

• The National Assembly has more on the bill.

Health Care Reform -- House Debate Kicks off Today
The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) committee has released its health reform proposal and should begin debating the bill in committee today, June 17.

• The Coalition on Human Needs has the scoop.

• Health care reform matters for all families, says the National Council of La Raza, citing data that roughly 40 percent of all uninsured children are Latino.

• On June 25, Health Care for America Now is holding a health care reform rally in DC and online; Edie Falco is a spokeswoman.
  

Your Turn! What other major policies are you tracking in Congress or your state? Let us know by emailing policy@connectforkids.org.