In 2015, Children’s Home & Aid, thanks to the generous support of the Chicago Community Trust, partnered with the Federation for Community Schools, the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law and United Way of Illinois, to develop a new analysis of the state budget. Looking at the budget as a series of interconnected goals rather than a list of departments and programs, the Fiscal Scan of Illinois Public Investments in Children and Youth Ages 8-25, examined how much public funding is invested in youth ages 8-25 by key developmental area. This approach gave us deeper insight into whether or not the state is providing the necessary supports to allow these youth to flourish.
In 2018, this analysis was formalized by the state with the enactment of PA100-0818, which created the Youth Budget Commission, a legislative effort spearheaded by Children’s Home & Aid and the Start to Finish Coalition (S2F). The 15-member Youth Budget Commission appointed by the Governor will oversee the creation of the future versions of the scan and will use the document to develop comprehensive policy recommendations that support our goal of ensuring youth are stable, safe, healthy, educated, employable and connected.
This work raises — and begins to answer — questions about how to ensure that resources are invested equitably, and in a way that ensures the best results. One thing we know is that the state of Illinois, funders and service providers must approach funding and policy for youth collaboratively, moving away from the traditional practice of focusing on individual programs and specific state agencies. The Youth Budget Commission and the Fiscal Scan of Illinois Public Investments in Children and Youth Ages 8-25 is the first step in developing an approach in Illinois to tracking investments in older youth and young adults over time, comparing these investments to program outcomes, and making these data publicly available. These efforts, along with a mobilized community, galvanized by S2F, committed to the premise that all youth can thrive, will help ensure that Illinois youth become self-sufficient adults who lead exceptional lives. We invite you to join us as we work to complete our commitment to youth!
Downloads
Download the full Fiscal Scan here.
Download the 2017 Fiscal Scan here.
In 2017, Children’s Home & Aid released a companion report detailing how Illinois youth are faring in each of the six developmental goal areas, The report, Are We Keeping Our Commitment to Youth? can be viewed here.
For more information, please contact Eric Mayo at emayo@childrenshomeandaid.org.
