Media Contact: Brendan Daly (202.794.1580)

WASHINGTON, D.C. (July 6, 2015) — Save the Children Action Network (SCAN) today applauds Gov. Jay Inslee on his plans to sign the Early Start Act into law Monday afternoon, which will provide $158 million in early learning funding in Washington’s next biennial budget.

“The Early Start Act will make high-quality early childhood care and education programs available to more children in Washington. This is essential to ensuring children have strong start to life,” said Mark Shriver, president of Save the Children Action Network. “We thank the legislators who crafted and championed this bill, as well as Governor Inslee, who has shared in their commitment to creating stronger early learning programs in Washington.”

The Early Start Act’s large number of bipartisan cosponsors signifies the broad-based support in the state legislature for investing in kids and increasing access to high-quality early learning.

SCAN generated more than 600 letters of support from state residents, demonstrating Americans’ strong support for early learning programs.

Despite this good news, there is more work to be done.

SCAN is working with King County Executive Dow Constantine to build support for another measure, the Best Starts for Kids Initiative, which includes funding for interventions targeted at King County’s youngest children, such as home visiting and child care.

In June, SCAN student ambassadors hosted the Invest in Kids Benefit Concert in Kirkland, Wash. to raise awareness about the importance of early education and the Best Starts initiative. These Seattle-area students were inspired to use their voices to advocate for kids in their community following their participation in SCAN’s and Save the Children’s Advocacy Summit held this spring in Washington, D.C.

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Save the Children Action Network is the political voice for kids. We believe that every child deserves the best start in life. That’s why we’re building bipartisan will and voter support to make sure every child in the U.S. has access to high-quality early learning and that no mother or child around the globe dies from a preventable disease or illness. By investing in kids and holding leaders accountable, we are helping kids from birth to age five survive and thrive.