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Policy makers are critical partners in promoting health, education, workforce development, and human services, so we actively engage, help educate, and advocate for good policy. And when you add your voice to our chorus, you make us that much louder and that much more effective.

Metro United Way 2023 Public Policy Agenda

Metro United Way recognizes that systemic change and lasting impact require a pairing of powerful programming and transformative policy making. Elected officials and administrative leaders are critical partners in promoting equity and opportunity for all people in the areas of education, economic mobility, and health, and as such, Metro United Way actively engages in public policy efforts.

The range of issues affecting our priorities is vast. To be effective, Metro United Way has a targeted public policy agenda below that has relevancy across our seven-county and two-state region.

View our 2023 Kentucky Public Policy Agenda HERE and our 2023 Indiana Public Policy Agenda HERE or by clicking the images below.

       

EDUCATION, ECONOMIC MOBILITY & HEALTHY LIVES

Increase access to affordable, high-quality early childhood education programs through strategies, including increasing resources and eligibility for the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP) and public preschool; investing in vital supports for the early childhood education workforce; developing child care accessible zoning regulations; and establishing public-private partnerships and incentives.
Ensure as many families as possible have access to evidence-based home visiting and parent support programs such as HANDS.
Improve and expand quality out-of-school-time programing as well as dropout prevention and recovery.
Support greater availability of safe, affordable housing opportunities inclusive of all aspects of housing costs.
Improve access to reliable, quality healthcare programs and services.
Reduce barriers to vital short-term supports such as SNAP and TANF as well as important economic mobility drivers like tax credits and programs like VITA.
Align public benefits with accessible application and renewal processes and gradual benefits phase outs instead of eligibility cliffs to encourage movement toward self-sufficiency.
Expand access to paid family and medical leave programs that support our community’s children, families, workforce, and economy.
Strengthen and expand access to the United Community information and referral platform as well as the 211 network. Promote data systems that encourage accountability and reduce duplication amongst providers for desired individual outcomes.
Implement equitable, common-sense justice reforms that reduce financial conditions of bail, increase pretrial services, and promote successful reentry from the judicial system while strengthening public safety, family outcomes, and individual opportunities.
Support reforms that connect justice-involved children to family-focused services and prevent youth from entering and persisting in the justice system.
Allow voters the choice to empower local governments to invest in regional needs and opportunities by modernizing Kentucky’s Constitution.

SECTOR ISSUES

Preserve and protect the tax-exempt status of nonprofits. Promote tax policy that empowers community solutions through nonprofits and encourages philanthropic giving through state and federal tax codes.
Protect nonprofits’ right to advocate for their missions and civic participation on a non-partisan basis.

FIND YOUR ELECTED OFFICIAL AND JOIN OUR ADVOCATE NETWORK

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Resources

  • Liberation Identification

    A movement to implement a statewide program providing state-issued photo identification to all people leaving incarceration in Kentucky.

    Learn More
  • Update to the Health Impact Assessment of Kentucky’s Child Care Assistance Program:

    Increasing eligibility for Public Pre-Kindergarten Support

    Download
  • Health Impact Assessment of Expungement Policy in Kentucky

    Click to View Assessment
  • Health Impact Assessment of Kentucky’s Child Care Assistance Program

    Download
  • Impact of COVID on KY's Child Care Providers

    Learn More
  • Greater Louisville Project Early Childhood Report

    View Report
  • 2022 State of Metropolitan Housing Report

    Download

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