Menendez Introduces Bipartisan International Children with Disabilities Protection Act
U.S. Senator Robert Menendez, Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, introduced the International Children with Disabilities Protection Act of 2022, a bill with 11 Senate colleagues from both parties to authorize $2 million in funds for FY24 and $10 million per year from FY25 - FY29. The bill will provide a small-grants program within the State Department Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor to assist organizations supporting people with disabilities and families of children with disabilities to advocate for policies promoting inclusion and independent living. The program will emphasize the importance of including perspectives from disability self-advocates and will encourage strategies that keep families united, even in conflict areas. Succinctly stated in the bill’s summary, “This legislation aims to create a small-grants program—implemented by global disability rights NGOs—to support children with disabilities, and improve the capacity of local organizations of persons with disabilities and families of children with disabilities to advocate for necessary reforms.”
Read the proposed legislation here.