Deal signs Child Booster Seat bill, creates MLK Advisory Council

Gov. Nathan Deal today bolstered child safety efforts by signing a bill to strengthen the state’s booster seat law (SB 88), and he enacted legislation that creates an advisory council for state Capitol ceremonies for the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday (SB 141).

“We must do everything in our power to protect young Georgians, and studies show consistently that booster seats provide children with a much greater level of safety than vehicle seats built for adults,” said Deal, who signed the bill at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta’s Scottish Rite Hospital. “I have no doubt that this law will save countless lives and prevent serious injuries for many young children.”

This bill will bring Georgia in line with the age recommendations of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration by raising the mandatory booster seat age to 8. SB 88 contains exceptions for children taller than 4 feet 9 inches or a child’s parent or guardian obtaining a physician’s written permission.

At Ebenezer Baptist Church, surrounded by members of the King family, Deal signed SB 141, a bill that promotes the legacy and philosophy of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. by creating the Martin Luther King, Jr. Advisory Council.

“It will be the duty of this council to promote the principles of nonviolence, peace, social justice and the awareness and appreciation of the civil rights movement and the life and work of Martin Luther King, Jr.,” Deal said. “Our state is proud to be the home of Dr. King, and Ebenezer Baptist Church, surrounded by Dr. King’s family, was the perfect place to start this new council.”

The advisory council will also develop and coordinate ceremonies and activities relating to the observance of the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. on behalf of the state of Georgia.

Bills can be read in their entirety at http://www.legis.ga.gov/en-US/default.aspx.

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Survey: Weak Economy Led to 1,395 Child Care Program Closures In Georgia Last Year

/PRNewswire/ -- Already struggling in a difficult economy, conditions went from bad to worse in 2010 for Georgia's child care providers and the thousands of children and families they serve.

According to a new report released by Quality Care for Children, Georgia lost 1,395 child care programs due to the poor economy – a net loss of 43,000 child care slots statewide. This represents an 11 percent decline in the number of child care centers and a more than 30 percent decline in family child care.

The 1,395 closures are more than double the 600 shutdowns reported by Quality Care for Children last year.

And the worst may not be over. The annual statewide survey of 485 child care programs also found that 20 percent of child care centers and 33 percent of family child care providers are considering closing their doors. Approximately one in three family child care providers say they're worried about having to close, an increase from last year when one in four had the same concern.

"We've seen a huge spike in the number of vacancies in child care programs throughout the state, brought on by parents who've either lost jobs or seen their income reduced and then had to withdraw their children," said Quality Care for Children CEO Pam Tatum, "At the same time, costs to operate a center have never been higher – further adding to the financial pressure on providers. The most pressing concern is: Who is now caring for these children? In tough economic times, parents have fewer options and often feel financially pressured to leave their kids in care situations that may be unsuitable – even dangerous – in order to make ends meet. Ultimately it's the kids who pay the price."

Tatum said nearly 65 percent of families in Georgia use some form of child care today.

QCC also reported a troubling new trend tied to the economy: More children are arriving to child care hungry. A significant number of providers are reporting that children appear more stressed and are living in homes that are experiencing hardship, evidenced by the number of children coming into the provider's home hungry in the morning, especially after weekends.

QCC ensures more than 10,000 children in family child care receive nutritious snacks and meals every day through the USDA Child Care Food Program. "Clearly, that's not enough," Tatum said.

"Any child who starts their day hungry; who seems visibly stressed; and who is not in a stable, nurturing quality environment is not getting the start that is essential to their healthy development and the ultimate health of Georgia's economy," Tatum said.

For the third consecutive year, QCC reported substantial declines in the overall quality of child care programs as well, measured by the number of programs that have cut staff hours, eliminated staff positions, and spent less on needed improvements and supplies such as books and toys. "These cuts and lack of investments can be devastating to the quality of early education in Georgia. Our children can't afford another year of decline."

Copies of the report are available at www.qualitycareforchildren.org.

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Georgia's Pre-K Program Serves One Million Children

/PRNewswire/ -- The location of the Millionth Child currently being served by Georgia's Pre-K Program has been revealed. The millionth child walked through the doors of Sumter County Primary School in Americus, Georgia! Governor Sonny and Mrs. Mary Perdue will kick off a special celebration at the school on Thursday, February 18. Georgia is the first state in the nation to serve more than one million Pre-K children in a voluntary, universal, lottery-funded program.

"We are thrilled with the outpouring of support that the Millionth Child Celebration has received," said Bright from the Start Commissioner Holly A. Robinson. "This exciting campaign could not have been successful without our generous partners, outstanding providers and teachers, and most importantly, the one million children who have benefited from Georgia's Pre-K Program."

Commemorative Millionth Child Celebration activities began last year and will continue through 2010. The celebration was launched in April 2009 by Georgia First Lady Mary Perdue who read How Much is a Million? to a group of Georgia's Pre-K children. She and Governor Perdue chose the book in honor of this milestone. Other activities include the Million Book Campaign challenging everyone in Georgia to read to children. So far, more than 622,000 books have been logged in!

"The millionth child campaign emphasizes the importance of a quality learning experience that includes a strong early literacy program for all of Georgia's children," said Mary Mazarky, Assistant Commissioner for Pre-K.

Bright from the Start: Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning administers the nationally recognized Georgia's Pre-K Program. High quality learning experiences are emphasized for every child participating in the program which has been in existence 16 years. During the 2009-2010 school year, 82,000 children in approximately 4,100 classrooms in every county in the state are being served.

Bright from the Start: Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning is responsible for meeting the child care and early education needs of Georgia's children and their families. It administers the nationally recognized Georgia's Pre-K Program, licenses child care centers and home-based child care, administers federal nutrition programs, and manages voluntary quality enhancement programs.

The department also houses the Head Start State Collaboration Office, distributes federal funding to enhance the quality and availability of child care, and works collaboratively with Georgia child care resource and referral agencies and organizations throughout the state to enhance early care and education. For more information, go to www.decal.ga.gov.

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Governor Announces Legislation Filed to Establish Identity Theft Task Force

Governor Sonny Perdue announced today the filing of legislation to establish an identity theft task force within the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI). This legislation is being carried by Senator Joseph Carter (R – Tifton).

“Today I have a message for identity thieves in Georgia: Your number is up,” said Governor Sonny Perdue. “With this legislation, we are ensuring that Georgia’s identity theft laws are backed by the full force of the GBI and that identity thieves will be brought to justice.”

Governor Perdue’s legislation would establish a dedicated identity theft task force within the Investigative Division of the GBI. Governor Perdue included $1 million in his budget proposal to fund this initiative. This task force will combat identity theft on several fronts including investigating alleged identity theft, educating the public, supporting victims and training local law enforcement in combating identity theft.

"The General Assembly looks forward to supporting the GBI as they work to protect Georgia's citizens and businesses from the scourge of identity theft," said Senator Carter. "I have full confidence that the GBI will take this new duty on and produce the kind of results the people of this state deserve."

Identity theft cost Georgia’s citizens and businesses more than $25 million in 2006. From 2002 to 2006, there were more than 34,000 reports of identity theft in Georgia filed with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Georgia is ranked 7th in the nation in incidents of identity theft per capita.

The GBI has a proven track record of combating crimes that plague Georgia’s citizens. In recent past, the Governor has charged GBI with aggressively combating methamphetamines and predators who prey on Georgia’s children via the internet. Since the launch of the methamphetamine task force, total drug seizures have increased from $7.6 million in 2005 to over $32 million year to date in 2008. Governor Perdue’s child safety initiative (CSI Georgia) was launched to provide more GBI agents to investigate crimes against children committed by internet predators. The GBI’s High Technology Investigations Unit caseload increased 57 percent in 2007 compared to 2006.

Currently, the Governor’s Office of Consumer Affairs is charged with investigating identity theft. This legislation would transfer that statutory authority to the GBI.