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- The Beacon

| Spring 2009

| Summer 2008 | Winter 2008

 

Conference Committee Deliberations Underway; Thousands at Risk

Ask your Legislator to support Disability Services

(Posted June 2, 2009) Disability services are sharply reduced in the proposed budgets. Because of our entire community's vigorous advocacy, we have succeeded in restoring a portion of the proposed cuts.  However, heading into Conference Committee -- where House and Senate leaders will decide line-by-line which version of the budget to accept -- we are still faced with a worst case shortfall of $73 MILLION in the Department of Developmental Services budget alone. Even if all our Conference Committee requests are granted, DDS would still be $47.5 MILLION short-funded (not including cuts at other disability agencies).

Not all of these cuts can be fully restored to FY09 levels, but there is a great deal at stake in Conference Committee, including: 

• $6 million in Day/Employment services - prefer House
• $13 million in Family Support (Respite) services - prefer House
• $2.7 million in Turning 22 funding - prefer House (plus need annualization)
• $3.5 million in the DESE/DDS program - prefer House
• $1.8 million in MRC's Extended Employment program - prefer House
• $16 million in Community First Initiative funding - prefer House
• $6.2 million in Early Intervention services - prefer House

This alone represents nearly $50 million worth of services for nearly 8,000 individuals and families. These cuts would affect EVERYONE who gets services through the Department of Developmental Services as well as those who get services through other agencies (MassHealth, MRC, etc.)

We need to make our Legislators and the public aware of the TWO best ways of limiting the cuts to disability services:  

1.    New Revenue - Tell your legislators you support any means necessary to increase revenue and save lives.

2.    Federal stimulus matching funds - The President and Congress included a provision (enhanced federal Medicaid reimbursement - aka FMAP) specifically meant to preserve human services and the like. Through this provision, disability services will generate upwards of $90 million in FY10. Yet currently, this money is not slated to go back into disability services, where it was intended to go. Tell your legislators (and newspapers) it should.

WHAT CAN YOU DO? The most effective way to get your message across is to be as vocal and visible as possible. This means sharing your story in the following ways:

1. At the very minimum, email your legislator through our Arc Action Center

2. Better still, call or visit your legislator. (see contact info here for your Representative and Senator)

3. Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper about the services you get that are at risk.

4. Tell your local newspaper that you'd be willing to participate in a story about how the budget cuts would affect your family.

5. Respond to our calls to rally, visit legislators at the State House, etc.

If you happen to be a constituent of any of the Conference Committee members, remember that you are especially important as you have direct access to the few most powerful decision-makers during this period. Please let us know if you are in these districts:

• Senate President Therese Murray
• Senate Ways & Means Chairman Steven Panagiotakos
• Senate Ways & Means Vice Chair Stephen Brewer
• Senate Ways & Means ranking minority member Michael Knapik
• House Speaker Robert DeLeo
• House Ways & Means Chairman Charles Murphy
• House Ways & Means Vice Chair Barbara L'Italien
• House Ways & Means ranking minority member Vinny deMacedo

We need our Legislators to understand just how critical these services are to you and your loved ones. The Conference Committee budget is beginning its deliberations now and will release its budget in early July, so it is essential to reach out to your state Reps and Senators as soon as possible...and make sure that they are making disability services a top priority.