On Thursday, June 30th, the U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Committee approved its fiscal year 2023 (FY2023) education and housing funding bills.
The FY23 Labor-HHS-Education funding bill includes:
- $122 million in funding for the McKinney-Vento Act’s Education for Homeless Children and Youth (EHCY) program, which represents a 7% increase from its FY2022 appropriation.
- $155 million for the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act (RHYA) program, which represents a 10.5% increase from its FY2022 appropriation.
EHCY and RHYA are the only two federal programs that specifically target the needs of children and youth experiencing homelessness. The EHCY program is the only federal education program that removes barriers to school identification, enrollment, attendance, and success caused by homelessness. No other federal education program has the responsibility for and expertise in finding, engaging, and serving students who are homeless. Local liaisons help identify homeless children and youth, ensure school access and stability, provide direct services, and coordinate with community agencies to meet basic needs. RHYA programs prevent trafficking, identify survivors, and provide services to runaway, homeless, and disconnected youth, yet only 25% of applicants currently receive funding.
Current Status
The House FY23 funding bills are expected to be taken up for vote in the full U.S. House of Representatives in July.
In the absence of a bipartisan Senate agreement on top-line spending levels, the 12 Senate subcommittee chairs are expected to release draft Democratic bills in July that will become the starting point for negotiations with House bills..
Other Highlights of the FY23 House Appropriations Bills
The chart below provides recent and proposed funding levels for selected programs supporting children, youth, and families experiencing homelessness.
Take Action Today to Support Robust Funding for the EHCY and RHYA Programs!
Please contact your U.S. Senators and U.S. Representative and urge them to support additional funding for the only two federal programs specifically targeted to supporting homeless children and youth – the McKinney-Vento Act’s Education for Homeless Children and Youth program (EHCY) and the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act (RHYA) programs.
Use the below action form to personalize a template letter to be sent to your Members of Congress, requesting their support for the EHCY and RHYA programs.