RELEASE: March 15 , 2004

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Davy promotes funding source for child abuse prevention
Stresses only one month left for tax check-off program

LAWRENCEVILLE – Stressing that there is only one month left before tax filing deadline, Acting DHS Commissioner Jim Davy today urged New Jersey residents to “check off Line 54 for the Children’s Trust Fund” (CTF) on their state income tax returns, as a simple effective way to boost funding for child abuse prevention programs.

“ If every person who files a tax return in New Jersey this year checked off Line 54 to donate only one dollar to the Children’s Trust Fund, that would mean four million dollars toward preventing child abuse and creating safer families,” Davy said as he used a red marker to check off a giant replica of Line 54 on the New Jersey tax return form.

Meeting at HomeFront, a non-profit organization that uses its CTF grant to run a Safe at Home program for children of low-income/homeless families housed at Rowan Towers in Trenton, Davy stressed how individual citizens can be part of the child welfare reform plan by helping fund programs that help families and protect children.

The Children’s Trust Fund provides funding on a three-year basis with a step down process in funding amount. During the course of three years, programs must procure additional funding to meet the amount of their first year grant, with the goal of working toward independence from CTF funding in order to carry on their program beyond three years. Over the past 16 years, CTF has awarded $11.3 million to agencies in every county of the state. In the 2003-2004 grant year, 28 programs received a total of $176,756.

Each year CTF selects innovative programs structured to prevent child abuse and neglect among high-risk populations. Many of last year’s CTF grantees utilize widely recognized standard curricula that have proven to be successful, like Parents As Teachers, Families and Schools Together and the Strengthening Families Model. Most focus on improving parenting skills -- key for effective child abuse prevention programs as outlined in the New Jersey Prevention Standards. As part of the NJ Task Force on Child Abuse and Neglect, the Child Life Protection Commission administers CTF.

Joining him at today’s press conference were Donna Pincavage, executive director of the NJ Task Force on Child Abuse and Neglect; Dr. Paulette Moore Hines, chair of the Child Life Protection Commission; and Connie Mercer Myers, executive director of HomeFront, which is in its third year cycle of funding for its Safe at Home program. For more information on The Children’s Trust Fund, go to the New Jersey State website at http://www.state.nj.us/humanservices/cap/njcap2.html.

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