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First Things First warns early‑childhood funding decline could force cuts in La Paz‑Mohave region
Summary
Vanessa Sandoval, regional director for First Things First, told the Tri‑City Council the program funds roughly $4 million in the La Paz‑Mohave region and that declining tobacco‑tax revenue threatens provider services and scholarships unless stable revenue is found.
At the public comment portion of the Oct. 29 Tri‑City meeting, Vanessa Sandoval, regional director for First Things First, described a sharp decline in tobacco‑tax revenue that funds early‑childhood programs in the La Paz‑Mohave region.
Sandoval said First Things First funds almost $4 million in local programs, including family‑resource connections, childcare scholarships and quality‑improvement work. She told council members the decline in dedicated revenue has reached a critical level and that program reductions could be necessary without a stable funding source. First Things First officials are working with state lawmakers on funding stabilization and said they would seek opportunities to brief council members and local elected officials.
Why it matters: early‑childhood programs support child care access, health connections and early learning; funding instability could reduce services used by families across the tri‑city region.
Speakers
- Vanessa Sandoval — Regional Director, First Things First; nonprofit; first_reference tc:00:07:29 (s=449.07498)
Authorities
- type: other; name/description: First Things First (Arizona early childhood funder, funded by tobacco tax revenue); referenced_by: ["public-comment-first-things-first"]
Topics
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Provenance
[{"block_id":"s=449.07498","local_start":0,"local_end":480,"evidence_excerpt":"Good morning, everyone. I'm Vanessa Sandoval, the regional director for First Things First. And I'm here just to share a little bit about First Things First and where we stand. We fund nearly $4,000,000 in Laplace Mohave region, programs for families that, connect families to health services, family resources, improving quality access care along with childcare scholarships.","tc_start":"00:07:29","tc_end":"00:07:49","reason_code":"topicintro"},{"block_id":"s=480.995","local_start":0,"local_end":420,"evidence_excerpt":"Our decline has reached a critical level and will soon be have be having to, cut programs throughout the region. And so we are currently working with state lawmakers to find stable revenue source for our funding to ensure that the children, parents, communities, and businesses have early childhood system that they need to thrive.","tc_start":"00:08:00","tc_end":"00:08:22","reason_code":"topicfinish"}]
