Bill Text: CA ACR4 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: Positive Parenting Awareness Month.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 58-16)
Status: (Passed) 2023-05-03 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Res. Chapter 37, Statutes of 2023. [ACR4 Detail]
Download: California-2023-ACR4-Chaptered.html
Assembly Concurrent Resolution
No. 4
CHAPTER 37
Relative to Positive Parenting Awareness Month.
[
Filed with
Secretary of State
May 03, 2023.
]
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
ACR 4, Addis.
Positive Parenting Awareness Month.
This measure would declare the month of January 2023 as Positive Parenting Awareness Month in California.
Digest Key
Fiscal Committee: NOBill Text
WHEREAS, Raising children and youth in California to become healthy, confident, capable individuals is the most important job parents and caregivers have as their children’s first teachers; and
WHEREAS, The quality of parenting or caregiving, starting prenatally, is one of the most powerful predictors of children’s future social, emotional, physical, and behavioral health; and
WHEREAS, Positive parenting is a protective factor that strengthens family relationships, increases parents’ confidence, and drives children’s social, emotional, and relational health and development; and
WHEREAS, All people have inner strengths or resources, yet many parents, caregivers, children, and youth of every age, race, ethnicity, culture, and social identity feel stressed, isolated, and overwhelmed at times; and
WHEREAS, The COVID-19 pandemic, climate-related crises, and racial injustices have exacerbated economic insecurity, mental health challenges, domestic violence, discrimination, and other trauma experienced by many families, particularly Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian, and other families of color that already experience inequities rooted in structural racism; and
WHEREAS, Research confirms that positive parenting prevents, buffers, and fosters healing from adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), including abuse, neglect, and household challenges, which impair lifelong health and well-being and occur in the context of adverse community environments that lack equity; and
WHEREAS, Research also confirms that positive parenting creates positive childhood experiences (PCEs), and children and youth who experience safe, stable, and nurturing relationships and environments learn empathy, impulse control, anger management, communication, and problem-solving skills that help protect against interpersonal, family, and community violence; and
WHEREAS, Families in California come in many forms, with children who are raised by parents, grandparents, foster parents, and family members, and supported by other caregivers in a variety of settings such as schools, family childcare, early childhood education centers, health clinics, and home visiting programs; and
WHEREAS, Families can benefit from a “toolkit” of proven strategies and receive support from various positive parenting programs in many counties and tribes through numerous organizations and individual practitioners, thanks to local partnerships, including those between First 5 commissions, community-based organizations, local government, tribal nations, health and human service providers, schools, libraries, higher education institutions, child welfare agencies, family resource centers, and parent leaders; and
WHEREAS, Governor Gavin Newsom recognized, acknowledged, and identified the Triple P – Positive Parenting Program in the May Revision as one of the evidence-based parent education programs to build supports for children, youth, and parents; and
WHEREAS, The Governor’s Master Plan for Kids’ Mental Health highlights investments to address urgent mental health supports for children and youth especially in underserved and marginalized communities; and
WHEREAS, The Governor’s master plan creates an inclusive framework for supporting prevention and early intervention of mental health challenges, including the importance of providing more resources for parents to build their knowledge, tools and capacity to support the behavioral health of their children; and
WHEREAS, Parent education is an effective early intervention and prevention tool to mitigate ACEs, support parent-child needs to improve behavioral health, and destigmatize and normalize seeking support; and
WHEREAS, Counties may implement and encourage positive parenting through a population health approach so that all families have equitable opportunities to access information and support in ways that leverage their unique beliefs, traditions, customs, interests, and racial, ethnic, tribal, and cultural practices; and
WHEREAS, Family support professionals and paraprofessionals, recognized for their excellence and compassion across California, provide essential services that support the physical, social-emotional, and behavioral health of children and families; and
WHEREAS, California must continue to ensure that accessible and culturally responsive family support programs are readily available to the millions of Californians that rely on these critical services; and
WHEREAS, Every individual, community group, business, public agency, nonprofit agency, and tribe in California has a role to play in raising awareness of the importance of positive parenting and supporting the health and well-being of children and families; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate thereof concurring, That the Legislature declares the month of January 2023 as Positive Parenting Awareness Month; and be it further
Resolved, the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.
