With California's 2014-15 budget process behind us, here's a look at President Obama's proposals for helping children and families this upcoming year. On June 23, together with the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Center for American Progress, the White House hosted a Summit on Working Families to set an agenda for the 21st Century workplace. It's an ambitious agenda that deserves our full attention.  

Policies That Can Make a Difference

 The following announcements, actions and proposals grew out of the President's summit:

Expanding Workplace Flexibility
The President issued a Presidential Memorandum directing federal agencies to review their workplace flexibilities and programs and report back any best practices and barriers to their use. In addition, the memorandum makes clear that Federal workers have the "right to request" a flexible work arrangement without fear of retaliation, and will direct agencies to establish procedures for addressing these requests by employees. 

Supporting Pregnant Workers 
President Obama will urge Congress to pass the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which will require employers to make reasonable accommodations to workers who have limitations from pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions (unless it would impose an undue hardship on the employer). The legislation also would prohibit employers from forcing pregnant employees to take paid or unpaid leave if a reasonable accommodation would allow them to work.

Increasing Access to Affordable Child Care 
DOL will make funds available for technical skill training grants to provide low-wage individuals opportunities to advance in their careers in in-demand industries, with $25 million focused on addressing barriers to training faced by those with childcare responsibilities. These funds will give more working families a path to secure higher wage jobs by addressing the significant barriers related to finding and acquiring affordable, high quality child care-including emergency care-while attending skills training programs. 

  
Supporting High-Quality Early Education for All Children 
The President has proposed a series of new investments that will establish a continuum of high-quality early learning for a child-beginning at birth and continuing to age 5-including expanding evidence-based, voluntary home visits for parents and children, growing the supply of high-quality infant and toddler care through new Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships, and providing all four-year-old children with access to high-quality preschool. HHS will provide new grants in 2014 to serve additional at-risk families during pregnancy and children's early years through the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program. 

  
Making Progress Toward Paid Leave 
DOL is funding two new independent research studies related to employee leave that will examine how paid leave programs impact employers and workers. The first study released will analyze the positive impact of California's paid family leave law ten years after implementation. 

  
Continuing to Close the Pay Gap 
The President proposes incentives to involve more women in STEM education, higher paying jobs in construction, and attracting women to technology careers through activities of the National Center for Women & Information Technology.  

For a full list of the President's proposals for working families, go to: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/06/23/fact-sheet-white-house-summit-working-families. And for a video of the president talking about the importance of family, please see http://t.co/WspvjMYpAj