(Stock photo by Johner Images/Getty)
U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), along with more than two dozen colleagues, has signed onto a letter to the U.S. Health and Human Services Department expressing ongoing concerns about Head Start programs in New Mexico and around the country in the wake of an attempted federal funding freeze last week.
Luján, who attended Head Start, has referenced the program several times since the Trump administration tried to freeze federal funding, as well as during Senate confirmation hearings. New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez said last week his office had received reports of problems accessing the Head Start funding portal.
The senators’ letter, addressed to Acting Secretary of Health and Human Services Dorothy A. Fink and Acting Director of the Office of Head Start Captain Tala Hooban, noted “ongoing, urgent concerns” at Head Start programs across the country, including “a lack of clarity on the status of renewals and notice of awards” in the Feb. 1 grant cycle; delays in processing reimbursements; and “a lack of clear communication with grantees throughout this confusing time.”
The letter requests “immediate action and assurance” that all requests for disbursement of funds be promptly processed; Feb. 1 grant cycle programs be notified in a timely way; and HHS implement “transparent and consistent communication” with Head Start programs.
“Head Start programs cannot pay their teachers and staff and continue normal operations without the assurances of payment processing and notices of grant renewals and awards,” the letter said. “This will impact children, families, and communities across the country, particularly the rural communities where these programs represent a large share of the child care options.”
A spokesperson from Luján’s office said while there have been “reports from other states about accessing funding,” none were specific to New Mexico at this time. The president of New Mexico’s Head Start Association could not be reached for comment. Source also has pending inquiries with the AG’s and governor’s offices, and will update this story as needed.