SW 332 - Social Policy and Services: Hatch Act and the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act

"The U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) is an independent federal investigative and prosecutorial agency. Our basic authorities come from four federal statutes: the Civil Service Reform Act, the Whistleblower Protection Act, the Hatch Act, and the Uniformed Services Employment & Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). OSC's primary mission is to safeguard the merit system by protecting federal employees and applicants from prohibited personnel practices, especially reprisal for whistleblowing."

"The U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE) oversees the executive branch ethics program and works with a community of ethics practitioners made up of over 5,000 ethics officials in more than 130 agencies to implement that program. When government decisions are made free from conflicts of interest, the public can have greater confidence in the integrity of executive branch programs and operations."

"On May 20, 2009, President Obama signed the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act or 2009. The HEARTH Act amends and reauthorizes the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act with substantial changes, including consolidating HUD's competitive grant programs and changing HUD's definition of homelessness and chronic homelessness. Grant awards under these ‘legacy’ grant programs are still in place and the resources for those programs are still relevant."

"Funded by the U.S. Department of Education, the National Center for Homeless Education (NCHE) serves as the Department's technical assistance and information center for the federal Education for Homeless Children and Youth (EHCY) Program. In this role, NCHE provides research, resources, and information enabling communities to address the educational needs of children experiencing homelessness. The Center also supports educators and service providers through producing training and awareness materials and providing training at regional and national conferences and events."

"The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services and the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education issue this Question and Answer (Q & A) document to provide State and local educational officials, early intervention services providers, and homeless assistance coordinators with information to assist with implementation of the requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and its implementing regulations and the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (McKinney-Vento Act)."