CALL-IN DAY TO SAVE STATE BUDGET FOR HOMELESS SERVICES ON TUESDAY, JUNE 14 2011
We still have an opportunity to restore funding cuts for Emergency and Transitional Housing and Homeless Prevention. Please help us do so by participating in our Tuesday, June 14 call-in day to Governor Quinn and House members.
The legislative leaders are meeting on June 15 about some remaining budget issues. Those issues include roadwork and other capital projects, and they include restoring funds to the state budget to avoid harmful cuts to important social programs.
Here is a quick explanation of the situation from the Responsible Budget Coalition:
The House and Senate both passed the same budget and sent it to the Governor. Even though it voted to pass that budget (to avoid a long summer overtime session), the Senate democratic caucus was unhappy with many of the cuts—especially to human services and education—and the unnecessary nature of them. So the Senate took the House's bill that authorizes capital and road projects and amended it to add back millions of dollars to the general funds budget to undo some of the most harmful cuts that had been made in the passed budget. The House refused to pass the bill as amended, and that's where the session ended.
Without the capital bill, Governor Quinn says he has no authority to continue all the projects in that bill—all the roadwork and other member-initiated projects. He says he will have to shut them down, which would cost a lot of jobs over the summer construction season. The Senate democrats (supported by Governor Quinn) say they will not pass the capital bills without the spending additions. The leaders are meeting next Wednesday, June 15, to see if they can make a deal. A 3/5 super-majority is required, so any deal must include Republican votes in both chambers.
PEOPLE AND HOMES ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN ROADS AND BRIDGES!
The Illinois General Assembly voted to cut $6,000,000 from homeless services starting July 1, 2011: 52% cut ($4.7 million) from the Emergency and Transitional Housing Program. 38% cut ($915,000) from the Homeless Prevention Program. 1% cuts to Homeless Youth and Supportive Housing Programs.
Here’s the impact to our communities: 15,000 adults and 6,000 children will spend the night on the street because there won’t be an emergency shelter bed for them. Without prevention, 1,000 families will be evicted from their apartments and will end up homeless. 250 vital human service professionals will lose their jobs.
Our elected representatives will be going back to Springfield in the next week to pass a bill that funds capital projects throughout the state. This is our last ditch effort to convince them that keeping people off the street is just as important as paving that street. Join homeless advocates, providers, and consumers across the state as we all call our Representatives and Governor Quinn with the same message!
PLEASE Call Your State Representative:
Call Governor Quinn
Phone #: 217-782-0244 or 312-814-2121
Tell them to restore funding to the four homeless programs listed above when they work out a capital bill. Don’t forget about people and homes for the sake of roads and bridges!
For more information contact Bob Palmer, Housing Action Illinois, 312-939-6074 x. 206 or bob@housingactionil.org.
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