Community Services Faces Possible Drastic Expenses under Obamacare

Community Services faces possible drastic new expenses under Obamacare and may possibly require them to cover more employees under the plan, Executive Director Bonnie Patterson told the Community Services Board in a written report at their regular meeting last Wednesday. Community Services could face a double hit from sequestration cuts and Obamacare and may be forced to make even more cuts down the road. Patterson said that she would contact the insurance agent and discuss her concerns with him.In California and Oregon, two of the early states to implement Obamacare, rates will be much lower than expected at least initially. However, the concern is that these are simply teaser rates and that they will go sharply higher once everyone is locked in.

Community Services received their funding cut amount from Head Start due to the sequester cuts; it ended up being 5.27%, an amount which is likely to be permanent even if no more sequester cuts are forthcoming. She said that they anticipated a 6% cut in Section 8 Housing funding as well.

The State Association is applying for federal money to become navigators for clients to become enrolled in the federal healthcare system or to purchase affordable healthcare. If their application is successful, Community Services would be able to help clients navigate the system and pick the plan that is best for them.

Community Services Block Grant funding around the country will be cut by $635,283,911, a reduction of approximately 6.3%, from Fiscal Year 2012. This is according to a letter from the US Department of Health and Human Services. This funding level reflects both the final enacted appropriation and sequestration. These figures reflect both the sequestration and the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act of 2013 signed into law by President Obama on March 26th.

Community Services was able to weatherize two homes during April. They currently have 126 on the HUD rolls and 10 vouchers out. They have received two new contracts for the insulation of homes, one being a new construction and two additional estimates out. They received a grant from Home Depot for the Energy Savings for Veterans Program, which is specifically for materials. Community Services has acquired control of their domain name, website, and everything else related. They plan to start a new website by the first of June.

May is Community Action Awareness Month

May is Community Action Awareness Month. Community Services of Northwest Missouri put on a display at the Courthouse Monday showing some of the programs that Community Services offers to area residents. The following are some of the programs offered:

We teach and educate people to become self-sufficient.
--Step Up to Leadership
--Individual Development Accounts
--Back to School Fair
--Budget Counseling and Tax Preparation
--Nutrition Counseling
--Poverty Simulations

We feed people.
--Commodities --  2nd Harvest Food Program
--Senior Box Program
--Backpack Buddies
--Summer Feeding Program
--Community Gardens
--Community Meals

We keep people warm.
--Energy Assistance Program
--Emergency Crisis Intervention Program
--Weatherization of Homes

We keep people in their homes.
--Rent Assisstance 
--HUD Section 8

We repair homes.
--Home Sealers LLC
--HeRO Program

We teach preschoolers and their families.
--Head Start 
--Parent meetings

We play Santa Claus.
--Christmas in July
--Holiday Gift Programs at Christmas

We administer funds to help those in need in our communities during hard times and disasters.
--Salvation Army
--Emergency funds for each county.

We partner with other agencies to provide our programs and meet the needs of clients.
For more information about any of these programs, contact Mary Jo Fletchall at (660) 564-2182 or visit the office in the basement of the Grant City United Methodist Church during posted business hours.

You can pick your poison.

I'm with Huffington. You can pick your poison when it comes to cuts. Obama wants to gut Community Action and winter heating for older people. The Republicans want to gut NPR, Head Start, programs that put police officers on the streets, and teacher pay. The one thing our politicians seem to agree on is that we need to balance the budget on the backs of the people.

Community Action Funding At Risk

Today, Community Action Agencies across Missouri are facing the challenge of deciding which offices to close, which staff members to lay off and which services will end due to reduced funding for initiatives that support low income families. The budget proposal submitted to Congress by President Obama plans to cut many domestic programs including Community Services Block Grant funding by 50 percent in 2012, from $700 million to $350 million.

Last year, Missouri received $17,412,276 from the federal Community Services Block Grant program, which allowed local Community Action Agencies to leverage private sector resources of $23,047,586. Missouri's 19 Community Action Agencies, which have offices in every county and the city of St. Louis, use the funding to help people train for and get jobs, support business expansion, promote education, provide preventive health care and serve low-income senior citizens. More than 288,500 Missourians were served last year, including 122,500 children and 28,970 senior citizens.

"President Obama sent a message during his State of the Union address that a freeze on domestic spending would occur in order to reduce the deficit, and Community Action Agencies stood ready to do their part by reducing their spending and finding ways to help weather the economy with fewer resources," said Elaine West, executive director of the Missouri Association for Community Action (MACA). "However, no one anticipated that Community Action's core funding, the Community Services Block Grant, would be cut in half for next year and even dramatically reduced for the remainder of the current budget year."

The Community Services Block Grant program makes up less than a quarter of 1 percent of discretionary spending, which is only a small part of the federal budget. When fully funded, it represents less money than Congress sent abroad to Sudan or Ethiopia in foreign aid in 2009. Community Services Block Grants, however, were distributed across all 50 states to more than 1,100 communities.

Community Services Block Grant is a dedicated funding stream especially designed for Community Action Agencies. Most of the funds (83 percent) are used for initiatives designed in and for communities by each Community Action Agency's local tripartite board, which is made up equally of elected officials, community leaders, and low- income residents. The innovative programs Community Action Agencies develop and administer with the Community Services Block Grant are unique to the needs of each community and address a broad range of social issues. The state of Missouri has direct oversight of the projects developed by each agency and monitors them closely to ensure their effectiveness.

Recent initiatives include:
--The Bright Futures initiative in Joplin developed by Economic Security Corporation of Southwest Area to reduce the 20 percent high school dropout rate through a partnership with businesses, elected officials, the faith-based community and educators.
--A community garden in Trenton, organized by the Green Hills Community Action Agency, to feed 500 families and teach skills in growing and preserving food.
--A local resource center in Richland, where Missouri Ozarks Community Action, Inc. provides classes in life skills, GED, job readiness and resume building, as well as a computer lab for online job search and a place for veterans to meet with the local Veterans Administration representative.

"If Congress does not move to protect the Community Services Block Grant, local Community Action Agencies will have to close offices in rural counties, reduce staff, and cease projects such as the Bright Futures initiative," West pointed out. "This will prove especially harmful in small communities that serve elderly and extremely low-income populations, since no resources exist to replace those that will end."

The long- term effect of failing to invest in the economic security and stability of Missouri's communities and at- risk populations will be felt across the board in health care, unemployment, education, social services, and criminal justice. In addition, the closing of Community Action Agency offices would have a catastrophic impact in a state already reeling from 9.4 percent unemployment.