Scientific discoveries repeatedly confirmed the importance of brain growth during the first 5 years of child life. To support early childhood development, California voters passed Proposition 10 in 1998 to collect a 50 cent per pack tax on cigarettes and other tobacco products. Kern County Children and Families Commission (First 5 Kern) was…

Kern County Children and Families Commission (First 5 Kern) is funded by the Proposition 10 ballot initiative to support services for children prenatal to age five in California. The state revenue comes from an extra 50-cent tax on tobacco products, and is distributed according to the proportion of live births in each county. Following a…