Report on the Assembly Budget Subcommittee #1 (Health and Human Services) Hearing Wed March 24, 2010
“Toll on Californians of Adopted and Proposed Health and Human Services Cuts”
Yesterday, community representatives from SPIN, CAP, Parent Voices, United Health Workers, Health Access and many others witnessed an amazing display of uninformative responses from agency representatives about the human toll of proposed cuts to vital programs. While legislators grilled department heads and representatives with questions and requests for vital information, and quoted from a prepared 70-page document detailing the cumulative cuts to CalWORKs, In Home Support Services, health insurance, developmental services, drug and alcohol programs, foster youth -the list goes on and on – agency representatives gave fairly consistent responses:
“We don’t have that information;”
“We can’t assess that impact at this time;”
“We are unable to provide you with that data.”
No public comment was taken at the meeting, though Assemblyman Chesbro (filling in for new Chair Dave Jones) acknowledged the audience and encouraged us to participate in the ongoing budget hearing process. Unfortunately, the committee didn’t even stick to its own plan to hear advocate responders present their data on how Californians will be impacted.
Still, the legislators made some remarks that will resonate with all of us, and gave us some hope that they will stand firm in refusing to agree to more cuts to health and human services programs.
Jim Beall, Hector de la Torre and Wes Chesbro, Bill Emmerson and Noreen Evans were all there for at least part of the 6+ hour hearing.
Assemblyman Chesbro said: “ I am getting visions of California as a third-world country, with disabled people and children and families begging in the streets.”
Assemblyman Beall asked hard questions of agency heads, time and time again, and at one point, said “ I want us to maintain the services and grants, and cut administrative costs instead.”
Assemblyman de la Torre: “ This is a political game we play every year. The administration proposes these cuts in order to force the Legislature to the negotiating table. And while that happens, for three to six months out of every year, people out there are living in fear of whether their services will be eliminated.”
Assemblywoman Noreen Evans, the outgoing chair of the Assembly Budget Committee, said: “We are in the people’s house, and the people are getting sc_____ed.”
Republicans already have posters up on their doors: But we have a message too:
Kim Kruckel
State Budget Campaign Coordinator
California Partnership
kkruckel@communitychange.org
510-301-1456
check out our new website! www.california-partnership.org
