More Human Services Disappear in Illinois

As we detailed yesterday, social service agencies have already started to layoff employees and scale back programs as a result of lawmakers failing to pass a state budget for this fiscal year.

Today, the trend continues:

Human Service Agencies Begin Layoffs:

On the last day before the state budget expired, one Aurora social services agency laid off 80 workers and told 1,100 clients with developmental and mental health disabilities that they would lose services.

As a result, people with disabilities will lose job training, coaching and counseling, mental health counseling and medication management. The cuts affect group homes and individuals in assisted living in Batavia, Geneva, St. Charles and Elgin. Some who do light packaging assembly will lose their jobs in a week, O'Shea said, and will likely lose their apartments.

State Budget Limbo Shuts Down MAAEC:

A local adult education center made history today by closing its doors for the first time due to state budget cutbacks, said Mattoon Area Adult Education Center Director Mark Nelson.

The shutdown also affects the Lake Land College adult education program connected to MAAEC, Nelson said. The shutdown results in the layoff of eight employees for now. It also ended the scheduling of any summer classes for GED or other programs, he said. Throughout the year, MAAEC helps with education and training for scores of people in East Central Illinois. It also provides child care for many students.

"Blood On the Sidewalk" For Some Social Services:

At the H Group in West Frankfort, administrators cut 33 jobs and 12 employees took pay cuts and demotions, said John Markley, executive director.

Markley estimated the H Group, which provides mental health and addiction services in Williamson and Franklin Counties, will serve 1,000 fewer people this year than the 7,000 served last year.

At Fellowship House in Anna, CEO Mickey Finch said the cuts mean her agency's budget will shrink from $1.7 million to $475,000 this year. Fellowship House provides 24-hour, seven-day-a-week residential rehabilitation, detoxification and prevention services to state-verified drug addicts.

Social-Service Agencies Begin Cuts After Budget Fails:

Twelve of the 33 employees at A Woman's Fund in Urbana already have lost their jobs, said the agency's executive director, Tami Tunnell. And 31 of the 210 staffers at the Mental Health Center of Champaign County were told Wednesday that they are being laid off, said Chief Executive Officer Sheila Ferguson.

State Service Agencies Face Cuts:

Kathy Doherty is the head of Between Friends, a domestic violence agency. She says without a guarantee of state funding...the organization immediately made program and staff cuts.

DOHERTY: Cutting services cost lives. We'll be able to serve 3,000 less survivors than we did last year. But in Cook County, 17,000 fewer victims of domestic violence will get served.
For those keeping count at home, just based upon the organizations cited at this blog within the last two days, that is 306 employees laid off and 5,590 clients who won't be provided service because of this budget impasse.

This is just a small sample size however, of what surely is a grim reality that social service agencies throughout the state are having to face. Governor Quinn's statement that there is no guarantee that social service agencies will be paid for current services provided just makes the picture more bleak.

As Progress Illinois points out, this move essentially removes the little wiggle room to operate that many state funded social service agencies had left:

When budget negotiations have broken down in the past, the services had run largely uninterrupted, thanks to "contingency contracts" issued by the governor. What's different this year, the Daily Herald notes, is that the state instead notified the agencies that their contracts would be terminated immediately, leaving some providers feeling like political pawns.

Governor Quinn stated yesterday that he’s planning to try and build public support for his opinions until lawmakers reconvene July 14th, whatever those opinions may be. This means that it is time to get out and publicly advocate for the those being hurt by this stalemate in Illinois.

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No Calm Before The Storm

Today it became official that nothing is official. After much political jockeying and stonewalling, a joint legislative session has been called for July 14th, where hopefully a fair state budget will be decided upon.

While an extreme optimist may cite Quinn vetoing the 50% budget a victory for social service providers, this is more of a situation in which the cup is three-quarters empty.

No, the lights won't go out in the state of Illinois, but the same cannot be said for the human service providers who are trapped in this budget limbo.

As we pointed out yesterday, the inactivity of this state's government to pass a fair budget has already caused irreparable damage, which will surely continue.

That continuation of damage, only a day into this budget-less fiscal year, did not take long to emerge.

Macon County is facing a harsh reality, where social service agencies such as Dove Incorporated and Macon Resources are forced to make drastic cuts:

In lieu of a state budget, Dove, Inc was forced to layoff a third of its employees and services along with them:

At Dove, the layoffs mean the end of Fresh Start Catering and the job training it has provided to homeless people since February 2008, and the agency's diversity program, a longtime community education initiative that helped organize events such as a panel discussion at the Decatur Civic Center in February exploring disparities in health care.

It also means scaling back the Community Services Program working with neighborhood groups and the domestic violence program,

Macon Resources had to make similar tough decisions:

Gone are the agency's group care for adults and children, sheltered work program for people with developmental disabilities, support that allowed clients to live independently and a self-advocacy program.

"We'll have 136 people who won't get service tomorrow and 14 people who don't have jobs," Lewandowski said Tuesday. "I feel like crap, and I'm angry because this all could have been worked out a long time ago."

At the child advocacy center, the doors will remain open for now, but a children's therapist, case manager and part-time administrative assistant have been notified their last day is Thursday.

In Bloomington, a meeting among social services outlined a situation which is sadly similar:

At the meeting, the following were among the cuts reported:

• The Crisis Nursery for children whose parents are in immediate crisis is reducing its hours.
• Assistance to runaway youth will be reduced.
• Subsidized child care for the working poor is being reduced, meaning many of those parents will need to quit their jobs to stay home with their kids, increasing the unemployment rate.
• Services to help keep older adults in their homes are being slashed, meaning more seniors may have to move into more expensive nursing homes.
• Staff at the GED office will be reduced.
• Counseling for sex abuse victims is being reduced.
• Mental health treatment and counseling for the non-Medicaid population is being reduced.

Chicago is feeling the affects as well:

• Intact Family Recovery - This program offers care and support to substance impacted children and their parents. Parents affected by cutting this program: 133
  Staff laid off: 6

• Urban Systems of Care - This program offers outreach and engagement services to residents of poverty stricken areas of Chicago.
  Parents and children affected by cutting this program: 61
  Staff laid off: 4.5

• Mental Health Juvenile Justice - This program offers support to mentally ill youth as they deal with legal issues in Cook County Courts and with their probation officers
  Youth affected by cutting this program: 60
  Staff laid off: 4

This very well may be only the tip of the iceberg. Unfortunately, the agencies listed above are serving as an all-too-real reminder of how fragile the existence of critical human service organizations really are.

It is hard to even imagine the damage that will be done if a reduced budget is actually passed. As of now we have 14 days to advocate on behalf of organizations in danger.

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Dear Illinois General Assembly: Let's Stop The Damage Already Done.

Dear Members of The Illinois General Assembly,

I was talking with a friend on Saturday and found out she is being laid off as of June 30 (today), the end of the fiscal year. Her job was funded by unrestricted (i.e. not a state contract) funding at her non-profit, but because of the budget crisis, all money that could be moved to services has been moved there. So, she is out of a job.

I have heard others who shall remain nameless, including those here at Heartland, talk about having to clean out their offices, figure out how to turn their caseload over to the staff that will be left, ask if I know about any jobs. One woman was concerned she could not make it to the vigil planned for tomorrow night because she would be at work late tying up lose ends on her last day. These individual stories can be put along side the countless other stories from across the state about agencies shutting down, potential clients are being turned away, and layoff notices have gone out. People are sitting around their kitchen table wondering how they are going to pay the mortgage next month. Individuals and families that have been trying to get on their feet are being told the service they need to get them there – childcare, mental health treatment, services for their kids with disabilities – are gone as of July 1 (tomorrow).

You know that social service providers are not being paid on time this year, and you also know a non-profit cannot keep drawing on a credit line in hopes that you will finally do the right thing. They have to make tough decisions, and that includes all the actions they have already taken, and the actions they will be forced to take if you do not pass a fair budget.

Regardless of what happens in the next few days, you have already done damage.

I know there is a lot of talk now about the pension obligation bonds, and sweeping this, and restructuring that, and, presto, you have a fix that saves (most of) social services for the time being. You get the best of both worlds; you avoid voting for a tax increase, and you get to tell the providers in you district that (most of) the needed services they provide will survive.

But you and I both know that is smoke and mirrors.

We know that these sweeps and bonds are temporary. We know that the structural deficit will still be there. We know that this problem will manifest itself again very soon. Maybe November, maybe January, but very soon, and we know when it does rear its head again it will be worse. Much worse. The stimulus money won’t last forever. The emergency borrowing will need to be paid back.

We also know there is never a “good time” to vote for a tax hike. People throw out these pretend nuggets of wisdom, “If we just get past the primary,” or “If we just get past the general election.” They pretend that those skittish about voting for a tax increase will suddenly find their resolve at these magic moments.

You and I know that is not true.

We say it will happen in the future, because the future is not now. But you and I know it needs to happen now. There is never a “better time.” Elections are always around the corner. Tracking polls are always being done. There will always be a reason.

So, can we make a deal? Can we put politics and posturing aside and focus on my friend who packing up her office right now? Can we think about what the posturing and waiting and positioning is meaning to her and thousands like her? Can we focus on stopping the damage?

And if we do that, can we agree that passing a fair budget with a permanent solution including new revenue has to happen before you come back from Springfield? Because we know that is what needs to be done. Cuts have to happen, other reforms have to happen, but we know that is what needs to be done.

I and the hundreds of thousands on people watching your every move would really appreciate it.

Sincerely,

Doug

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Illinois Poverty News Weekly

June 22 to June 29:

Illinois Minimum Wage Climbing to Eight Dollars - The Pendergraph 6/22/09

Despite Spike in Joblesssness, Illinois Sees Only Gradual Rise in TANF Enrollment, Progress Illinois, 6/22/2009

US Steel says Illinois plant likely to restart on demand – The Daily Herald, 6/24/2009

A is for Anxiety: Parents and Providers Worry about Daycare Subsidies - Chicago Public Radio, 6/26/2009

Millions for Weatherization Programs in Illinois – WCIA News 3, 6/26/2009

WIC expanding its program – Mount Vernon Register News, 6/26/2009

Why Illinois Needs Health Reform – Enews Park Forest, 6/27/2009

More local residents unemployed (Joliet) – Joliet Herald News , 6/27/2009

Illinois Poverty Continues to Climb – WGIL, 6/27/2009

MAP Grants An Early Casualty Of Budget Battle – Progress Illinois, 6/29/2009

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Saying Goodbye to Patrick

After over a year with us at the From Poverty to Opportunity Campaign, Patrick Stonehouse's internship is ending. He has been a tremendous asset to the work of the Campaign and Heartland in general, with particular emphasis on making our social media - the Facebook group, the Twitter page, and, most importantly, this blog - content rich. If we are lucky, he may grace us with a post now and again in the future. Below are his parting words. Join me in thanking him for his time and wishing him the best.

It has been a pleasure and an honor to serve the people of Illinois as an intern with The From Poverty To Opportunity Campaign. From the enormity of the current budget situation to the food banks running out of food to conversations with people on the street and people living in poverty, The From Poverty To Opportunity Campaign (by which I mean the staff and the supporters) have shown me a depth and breadth of both the experience of extreme poverty in Illinois and the human condition, that I doubt I could have found anywhere else.

This has been a tremendous year and I thank all of you for the opportunity to have participated in the work that we are all doing, and the lives that we are living.

I know that for many of you I have been a fairly anonymous blog poster with the Campaign, and that is fine, but for me, you – advocates, concerned citizens, service providers, and especially the people of Illinois who are struggling in poverty- you have been and will continue to be, an inspiration.

Thank you,

Patrick Stonehouse
Intern- The From Poverty To Opportunity Campaign, 6/08-6/09

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Adding Insult to Injury

Reports have emerged detailing that Illinois unemployment rates have surpassed ten percent, a 25 year high. The news is not any better in metro areas, as unemployment rates are showing similar patterns. The jobless rate state-wide stands at over 670,000. Rockford is leading the way with a 13.4% unemployment rate. Danville, Decatur and Kankakee-Bradley all have unemployment rates that have risen over 10%. In Chicago there are 189,000 less jobs than there were only a year ago. These numbers are staggering and sobering, and it must be assumed that this situation will get worse before it gets better.

Some believe it will get much, much worse.

What happens to these recently laid-off workers and what is the proper remedy to this situation?

Unfortunately, it appears as though stimulus money isn't creating as many jobs as hoped. In lieu of federal aid, it is only logical that the recently unemployed turn to the state of Illinois for support during these tough times.

In the midst of a doomsday budget scenario however, legislatures have decided to cut the very services that directly aid the unemployed.

Doug outlined the domino effect of cutting services that aid the jobless here:

"So what happens to these now jobless families? Do they enroll in programs like Temporary Assistance to Needy Families to help get them through and make sure they can provide for their children? Well, the doomsday budget shuts down 42 of the 120 offices where families can go to apply for this assistance. The case loads – which are already unacceptably high – will go even higher for that frontline staff. This now unemployed family will have an incredibly hard time getting the assistance they need. Who knows how long it will take for an application to be processed in this new “slimmed down” environment?

But it does not stop there.

How does this family maintain its housing? Their income is gone. They are waiting in line to get temporary assistance. They inevitably get behind in their rent or mortgage. The state’s Homelessness Prevention Fund, designed to help people in these types of emergencies, will be eliminated in the doomsday budget. Gone."

Rising rates of unemployment combined with an increasingly diminished safety net creates an incredibly slippery slope that leads directly into poverty. Unfortunately, the proposed budget, with its massive cuts to human services, would perpetuate this problem, not alleviate it. We are facing the worst job market this state has seen since 1983. Expanded programs to help aid those most affected are needed, not reductions.

As we have stated before, we need your help to oppose this budget, but just to reiterate:

1. Call your lawmakers and the leaders. They need to hear from you now.

Go to Heartland's website. There you can look up who your legislator is, get their number, and find a call script to use.

2. Send an e-mail to your lawmakers. Urge them to pass a budget that cuts non-essential spending while providing a modest tax increase that protects vital community-based programs throughout the state.

3. Share this post with others via e-mail (link at the bottom) - family and co-workers, explaining why its so important to you personally that our work continue, and urging them to join you in contacting their lawmaker. You can also encourage those on Facebook to join the doomsday budget Facebook group to keep up to date on how to help.

Thank you in advance for your contacting your lawmakers today. Working together, we can and will make a difference, and realize human rights in Illinois.

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70% Just Won't Cut It

As you are likely aware, an estimated 5,000 Illinoisans converged on the Capitol building in Springfield on Tuesday, June 23 to protest crippling budget cuts to social services and to urge legislators to vote for a progressive income tax increase to cover the holes in the budget and to relieve the disproportionate tax burden Illinois has placed on residents with limited means.

5,000 people. Tremendous. You helped close the Capitol building with your numbers. Tremendous.

So, here is our current budget situation (Largely gathered from information in The Capitol Fax Blog ):

- It is possible that if certain pieces of legislation and policy are enacted then $3.3 billion dollars would be freed up which would provide for a budget at 70% of state funding, rather than the 50% of funding that is currently on the table. However, the amount could be less. The Governor’s Office thinks that $3.3 billion is an overestimate of revenue.

There are a couple of problems with this proposal:

1) 70% of funding is still far less than is needed in order for social support services to be able to meet the INCREASED NEED for their services- there will still be service cuts, staff cuts, and agency closures, all of which mean that the vulnerable people of Illinois will not get the help that they need, deserve, and have a right to.

2) This is patching a sinking ship with scotch tape -it does not address the state funding problem only the symptoms. All of the funding problems, tax problems, and resource allocation problems that lead to this situation will still be in place.

3) It still does not address the need for a progressive income tax increase- there is still a disproportionate tax burden on the people of Illinois who can afford it the least.

Not to mention that we don’t even know if the $3.3 billion will actually come in. Seems like a pretty big bet… and one that would be paid out by the vulnerable people of Illinois if we lose.

- Some in the legislature are pushing for an extension of the current budget year for another month or two.

This would essentially just put off hard decisions and consequences and make the consequences more painful when we do have to face them. If we all know that we have been operating in a system that is precarious at best and harmful in some circumstances, is the solution really to keep doing it for a couple of more months? How does that make any sense? Things will get worse as they have been getting worse and when the state (by which I mean the legislators, state agencies, service providers, and residents of all income brackets) has to knuckle down to fix the budget problem, it will be a bigger hole requiring bigger cuts and more pain.

While the crowd that overran the Capitol Building on Tuesday was awesome and powerful, we cannot let the pressure off. Keep pushing your legislators to support the progressive income tax increase. Keep pushing your legislators to address the budget problems now. Keep talking to your friends and family about how the budget affects us all.

Keep pushing. We cannot afford to stop.

There is some talk of further protests to be held early next week in both Springfield and Chicago. We will let you know as soon as we have more information.

And if you have pictures of any of the rallies, links for more information or events, etc. that you would like to share, please feel free to use this Facebook group to do so.

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Volunteer Opportunity to Help Address Child Hunger

The Heartland Alliance Mid-America Institute on Poverty is working with the Greater Chicago Food Depository to survey children about their nutritional intake and experiences with hunger. We need volunteers to help survey kids the week of July 6-10. No prior research experience is required. We are looking for people to volunteer that:

• Are 21 years of age or older.


• Enjoy working with children!


• Are available to attend a 2-hour training in Chicago on either Tuesday June 30 at 1:00 p.m. OR Wednesday July 1 at 9:30 a.m. at the Greater Chicago Food Depository (4100 W. Ann Lurie Place)


• Are available during daytime hours the week of July 6-10. You don’t have to be available all days at all hours this week, but we ask that you be able to commit at least 4 hours that week to the project.


• Are able to transport themselves to assigned sites throughout Chicago.

Interested? Fill out the form at this link (a Word document) and e-mail it to Amy Terpstra. If you have any questions, send and e-mail to Amy or give her a call at 773.336.6076.

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