Examined are recent legislative initiatives related to the problem of adolescent pregnancy and parenting. A 50-state survey was conducted by the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), and each state's legislative research agency provided information on bills and acts from the 1986 and 1987 legislative sessions, as well as programs and…

The mental health policies of the past 20 years and the evidence of unserved populations suffering from serious mental illness constitute a public health crisis. Currently there are at least 3,000,000 people in the United States suffering from mental disorders. A fully developed continuum of care is needed to respond effectively to the diverse…

Many mentally ill children, especially those who are seriously disturbed, are not receiving the mental health care they need. Although the federal government offers financing to the states for child and adolescent mental health programming, the primary responsibility for financing mental health services has been assumed by state governments. At…

This legislative report presents the findings of a 1986 telephone survey of states that have enacted state-funded pre-kindergarten early childhood education programs. The survey was designed to collect data related to the legislative authority, intent, and oversight of the early childhood education programs and to gain information on the…

The Family Support Act (FSA) of 1988 is the result of congressional efforts to restructure the nation's welfare system. This report examines the impact of the FSA on state programs that serve pregnant, parenting, and high-risk teenagers. The objective of FSA is to help families started by teen mothers and other welfare recipients make a transition…

Historically, the financial responsibility for caring for those with mental illness has shifted back and forth from the local community, to the state, to the federal government. Today states provide the vast majority of the funds to the state mental health agencies and oversee local governments and most private resources for mental health funding.…

This issue brief explores the problem of child pornography and teenage prostitution and examines some of the strategies federal, state, and local governments employ to address these social problems. After a brief review of Congressional actions and Supreme Court decisions, state statutes affecting pornography and prostitution are reviewed, and…

This document reviews three teenage pregnancy prevention strategies which were selected because of their easy access to teenagers and to illustrate the cost of implementation. After a discussion of the high cost of teenage pregnancy, the role of the state legislatures is described. Accessibility and acceptability are cited as two important…

Some common questions that state legislators have about how distance learning can work in their states are explored. Distance learning, once considered strictly a rural education strategy, is now recognized to have the potential to provide solutions to some of the problems states face in delivering quality education to all students. A distance…