Number of Individuals in Worth County Taking Commodities Sharply Higher

The number of individuals in Worth County taking commodities under the Community Services program rose sharply to 232 in April, up from 202 in March. 104 families took commodities in April, up from 99 in March. 50 people took senior boxes in April, up from 50 in March. Worth County had more people take advantage of the program for families and individuals than Atchison, Gentry, or Holt Counties. This was part of the reports that were given to the Community Services board during their regular meeting Wednesday night.

Community Services held three poverty simulations, including one at Worth County School. They all went successfully.

Target enrollment for the Worth County Head Start for next school year is 15. Census data shows that there are around 13 children under the age of 5 living in poverty in Worth County. Head Start estimates that there are 9 returnees and three prospective enrollees for next year. They plan to use over-income children to meet their goal of enrolling 15. The Worth County school system's preschool program plans to serve 10 for the next school year. The Assembly of God Church operates a child care program in Grant City; they report serving 20 children. The large majority are over-income for the Head Start program.

The majority of families served in Worth County own their own vehicle, obtain their own insurance, and have a valid driver's license. The biggest obstacle throughout the five-county area is the cost of fuel to travel. The cost of fuel has risen from around $2.89/gallon last fall to around $3.39/gallon after the outbreak of the crisis in Ukraine.

Community Services weatherized four homes in April and three in May. The goal is to do one more in June to expend all funds.

There are 122 on the Section 8 Housing roll, with 16 vouchers on the street and 8 who have been sent vouchers. Viability of construction of rental homes was a factor in the low number of rentals. Community Services is in the process of determining whether a grant to address this is feasible.

Three Home Sealers projects for the USDA are planned towards the end of June.

Funding levels for 2014-2015 for certain programs are up in the air for Community Services programs. While CSBG, Head Start, and LIHEAP programs are secure, the Weatherization funding is up in the air. Community Services has received $22,097 in Utilcare money. This is to help pay for winter and summer utility bills for clients. There was a waiting list after they ran out of energy assistance in March due to the extreme weather fluctuations last winter.

Worth County's Head Start enrollment was 15 in April, down one from March.

Community Services Receives Clean Audit Report

Neil Phillips, auditor for the firm Jarred, Gilmore, and Phillips, gave his report on the annual audit for Community Services Incorporated. He reported that CSI received a clean audit report for this year. Community Services handles around $3.7 million of money annually, most of it from federal sources. Of that, around $3.5 million, or around 93.2%, is spent on programs and services. This is higher than many charities. Out of the $3.7 million, $3.2 million of it comes from federal sources.

The biggest area of concern noted was the high residual money that CSI has left over from the state, around $292,000. If the state were to attempt to collect that money, then it would create serious cash flow issues especially since CSI pays vendors and then they are reimbursed by some programs. No problems were noted with controls. The audit tested 14 different areas of compliance and found no issues.

Executive Director Bonnie Patterson said that one area of concern she was focusing on was the drop in enrollment at Head Starts around the area, including Worth County. There were 15 students enrolled in Worth County's Head Start as of this month as well as 13 others enrolled in two other preschool programs in the county. Patterson said that there has been a sharp drop in population throughout CSI's area just since the 2010 census, although CSI is still being funded based on 2010 census figures. One possible reversal of this trend was noted by board members Herb Petty and Bob Westfall, who noted that the Amish are one of the fastest growing populations in the world. There are Amish communities near Redding as well as near Atlanthus Grove and Ravenwood.

Weatherization for 2013-2014 will receive around $52,000 plus around $25,000 to help with utilities. The Community Services Block Grant for 2013-2014 will be around $274,000. The state has a base of $200,000 for agencies around the state, which helps them to continue providing services even with lower populations.

CSI is planning a fair later this month for employees displaced by the impending Energizer closing.

Patterson received some good news regarding the health insurance. Premiums for the health insurance plan will only go up $27 under Obamacare.

The next meeting will be September 25th.

Federal Budget Cuts Force Community Services to Make Hard Choices

Federal budget cuts will force Community Services offices around the country to make hard choices over the next two years, Bonnie Patterson, Executive Director for the office that serves Worth County and five other county offices, told the Community Services board at their regular meeting Wednesday night.

Budget cuts in certain areas will happen regardless of whether the sequester continues or the President and Congress reach an agreement. President Barack Obama’s 2014 budget would cut the Community Services Block Grant by 50% and would use competition to determine which agencies would receive the funding.

The budget would invest $1.4 billion in new early childhood intervention and Head Start funding to support states and communities in expanding the availability of high-quality learning opportunities for youngest children. It would extend and expand evidence-based voluntary home visiting at a cost of $15 billion.

The budget would provide $75 billion to provide $75 billion to provide high quality preschool for all four year olds to provide low and moderate income children with preschool while incentivizing the states to expand these programs even further. These investments would be paid for by raising the federal tax on cigarettes from $1.01 to $1.95 per pack. The tobacco industry is already protesting these increases.

The weatherization program would get $184 million and and Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program would get $3 billion, a cut of $346 million.

In her report to the board, Patterson said that President Obama’s preschool initiative was “a little discouraging” because what they were promoting was, in essence, the Head Start Program but the money would go to the states and then others would be able to apply for it.

Patterson said that Community Services needed to cut their budget by 5% this year. Next year, if the sequestration is still in place, another 5% worth of cuts could be made. They are looking into federal money for enrolling income eligible people into the Medicaid system for the Affordable Care Act. The state association is looking into applying for this money and subcontracting with the local agencies to provide this service.

Worth County is waiting for the weather to cooperate before starting their community garden this year. The Poverty Summit display will be in Worth County on May 22nd and 23rd. Worth County held a Meals with Class program; 15 participants attended all three classes.  Worth and Gentry counties did 171 clients’ taxes and obtained refunds of $285,891. Worth County had 127 people apply for the Low Income Heating and Energy Assistance Program last winter. Worth County had 235 individuals, 100 families, and 50 seniors receive commodities. The 235 individuals for Worth County was the most of any county despite Worth County having the smallest population out of the four counties served.

Worth County had 18 students in their Head Start program as of April.

Community Services, Economic Developer Seeking Office Space at Courthouse

(Minutes from the County Commission Meeting of September 26th)
There was a third meeting held about the CAFO issue. Chevy Davidson presented some facts and figures to the commission. Several people were in attendance to voice their opinions.
1. Commissioner Dennis Gabbert made a motion approve the agenda and minutes. Commissioner Rob Ruckman seconded. All in favor, motion carried.
2. Treasurer Linda Brown presented the weekly balance sheet, bills, and payroll.
3. Commissioner Rob Ruckman made a motion to approve the bills. Commissioner Dennis Gabbert seconded. All in favor, motion carried.
4. Commissioner Rob Ruckman reported the gas prices from MFA as gas $3.399 and diesel $3.759
5. Charity Austin, Economic Developer reported on EEZ progress. The Enhanced Enterprise Zone documents have been mailed off. It should be completed in about 3 weeks. She also told the commissioners that they City will no longer house the Economic Developer so they will need to provide an office space.
6. Bridget Gibson voiced concerns about old 169. She wants to know how to make it compliant for the tax rock. The commissioners told her that it would need to be narrowed, ditched, and crowned, and then base rock added to make it compliant.
7. Road and Bridge Foreman Jim Fletchall Report:
· Russell found 2 buckets to look at for the loader. Fletchall will find out more information.
· While working on CR 194 county crew found where Grand River Mutual Phone co had sliced through a tube. Fletchall will call Windstream.
· Fletchall explained a mistake that was made on CR 60. It had been designated as a bi-pass road earlier this spring so Roger Robertson the County rock hauler assumed it was all supposed to be covered with the tax rock, so he started at the wrong end and went all the way through.
· Robertson called to ask the commissioners if he was supposed to put tax rock on CR 164 since it was in the city limits of Denver. Commissioner Ruckman told him to put rock on it as it connected with the county road.
8. As set from Tax Hearing held on September 19th the levies are as follows:
Library tax levy at 0.0999.
The General Revenue Tax Levy at $.4996
General Revenue Temporary Tax Levy at $.35,
Road and Bridge Fund Tax Levy at $.4996
Special Road and Bridge Fund Tax Levy at $.3297
Senior Citizens Fund Tax Levy at $.05
9. Commissioner Dennis Gabbert made a motion to adjourn for lunch at 12:00 pm. Commissioner Rob Ruckman seconded. All in favor, motion carried.

Presiding Commissioner Ted Findley brought the afternoon session to order at 1:45 pm.
10. Commissioner Dennis Gabbert made a motion to go into closed session with David Baird, County Attorney to discuss litigation at 1:48. Commissioner Rob Ruckman seconded. Findley aye, Ruckman aye, Gabbert aye.
11. Commissioner Dennis Gabbert made a motion to come out of closed session at 3:15 pm commissioner Rob Ruckman seconded. Roll vote: Findley aye, Ruckman aye, Gabbert aye.
12. There was more discussion on available space in the courthouse, due to the budget cuts from Community Services, the Community Services office will no longer be housed in the Apblanalp building. Mary Jo Fletchall is seeking free space for her office. Ted Findley is on the Community Services board and mentioned moving the office somewhere in the courthouse also.
13. Commissioner Dennis Gabbert made a motion to adjourn at 4:56 pm. Commissioner Rob Ruckman seconded. All in favor, motion carried.

NW Cellular Donates $1500 to Worth County Back to School Fair

As summer heats up, it won’t be long and children will be heading back to school. For many, tough economic times mean more assistance is needed for the basic supplies such as notebooks, pencils and backpacks. Northwest Missouri Cellular is once again supporting Community Services’ Back to School Fair to provide these much needed items to children in Atchison, Holt, Nodaway, Worth and Gentry counties. A recent donation of $1,500 was made to the directors of each county.

This program is an annual event that assists low-income families by providing education on resources available to them and backpacks filled with school supplies for the children that participate. Additionally, other services such as haircuts, immunizations, dental products and personal hygiene products are also offered in many locations. In 2010, over 100 children and adults attended the fair.

“With the uncertain economy and everyday prices from gas to food increasing, we realized more than ever we as a community need to provide assistance to this quality program.” said Roger Bundridge, General Manager for Northwest Missouri Cellular. “Our philosophy has always been to support the local communities that we live in. This is just one of the many ways that sets us apart from other wireless carriers within the area.”

Federal Budget Cuts Could Affect Area Poor

The US House approved 13% cuts in nutritional assistance, cuts to meals for low-income seniors, and cuts to food banks around the country. The vote was taken last Thursday. Congressman Sam Graves voted for the cuts. It would also cut the WIC program, which includes pregnant women and children under 5. This was part of the 2012 Ag Appropriations Bill.
Mary Jo Fletchall of Community Services in Worth County said that the extent of the cuts would depend on whether they would involve administrative cuts or actual cuts to the programs themselves. She said that there was a lot of fluff that could be cut. However, she said that the fear was that they would have to limit participation in their programs, which would really create a hardship. A lot would depend on how the various agencies would absorb the 13% cuts. In a news release, Congressional leaders maintained that such cuts could be made without affecting services and that strong programs could still be maintained with less money.
The Republican Congress has maintained that the cuts are necessary in order to achieve deficit reduction. However, the bill now goes to the Senate. The actual cuts may not be as much given that the Democrats control the Senate; this means that there would have to be some sort of compromise on the cuts and where they would be made.
There are risks that Congress is taking should the cuts target the actual programs themselves as opposed to administrative staffing. The risk is that less aid for preventative health services such as WIC, other nutritional assistance programs, cuts to food banks, and aid to low income seniors would result in more long-term health care costs, meaning that the risk is that Congress is sacrificing long-term benefits in return for short-term benefits. House Republicans have maintained that such actions are needed because the US has reached the debt ceiling, meaning that they cannot go into debt like they have in the past. However, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities maintains that the deficits are actually caused by the Bush tax cuts as well as the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Worth County Community Services Offering Home Weatherization

You could qualify for Worth County CSI's free weatherization program for homes. There are limited federal funds available for this program.

Weatherization saves money by reducing energy use in households by making homes warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer. It also has the added benefit of creating safer, healthier, and more comfortable places to live.

Homes, apartments, duplexes, and mobile homes that are rented or owned can all qualify. Landlords must give permission for services and agree to pay a small fee. Some landlords have this fee waived if the situation warrants. CSI can assist applicants in contacting their landlords.

Certain income guidelines must be met. A single person can have a yearly income of $21,660. A family of two can have an income of $29,140; family of three, $36,620; family of four, $44,100; family of five, $51,580; family of six, $59,060; family of seven, $66,540; family of eight, $74,020; each additional family member adds $7,480.

Community Services' Weatherization Assistance Program is funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 with the goal of preserving and creating jobs and stimulating the economy. CSI uses their own crews or contracts the work with area businesses. Whenever possible, products are purchased from local manufacturers and suppliers. Weatherization can reduce energy consumption by as much as 25% or $450 per year.

Weatherization includes such things as repair, tune-up, or replacement of furnaces, weather stripping, replacement of old light bulbs to more efficient types, and insulation of hot water tanks, walls, floors, and attics. What will be done depends on the unique needs of each structure.

For more information, call Mary Jo Fletchall of Worth County Community Services at (660) 564-2182.

Community Services Offers Home Weatherization

Community Services Inc. provides weatherization services for local families to keep cool this summer and save energy as well as money on utility bills.

Weatherization measures reduce heat, gain and prevent conditioned air from leaking to the outside. These measures help increase the comfort of homes and lower energy bills year after year.
For example:
• Weatherization can cut a homes’ average annual energy bill by more than $430.
• Weatherized homes are cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter
• Weatherized homes cost less to maintain
• Weatherized homes are safer

The Missouri Weatherization Assistance program is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and administered by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. This program has expanded due to funding from the Reinvestment Act of 2009. The funding allows CSI, Inc. to weatherize more homes than ever. This additional funding will only be available for a limited time. The qualifying income guidelines are very generous with the hope of targeting households with moderate to low incomes. Folks with moderate incomes will likely not qualify next year.


What type of services does the Weatherization Assistance Program offer?
1. A complete audit of the unit for energy efficiency, to determine the most effective measures to reduce energy consumption
2. Caulking around windows and door frames
3. Blowing insulation
4. Replacing of old incandescent light bulbs with new CFLs
5. Inspection, tune-up, repair, or replacement of the heating system
6. Central air conditioners, heat pumps and room air conditioners may be repaired or replaced provided the occupant can provide a letter from a licensed physician stating that the occupant’s health and safety would be in danger without a functioning air conditioning unit.

The Weatherization Assistance Program of Community Services, Inc. serves a nine county area including the counties of: Andrew, Atchison, Buchanan (outside city limits), Clinton, DeKalb, Holt, Nodaway, and Worth.

For questions or to apply, please contact Laura Parman or Samantha Seabolt in the Weatherization department at Community Services, Inc. in Maryville, MO; 660-582-3113.

Visit our website: www.communityservicesinc.org

Federal Cuts to Community Services Not as Big as Feared

Over the last several weeks, Worth County Community Services Director Mary Jo Fletchall and other Community Services people were worrying that federal cuts to the program could be as big as 50%. But when they were finally announced, it turned that they were being cut by only 2.8% for the rest of the fiscal year, a figure that Executive Director David Bell said that they could live with at the regular regional Community Services board meeting Wednesday night. In addition, Head Start is getting a slight increase in funding instead of the decrease that had been expected. However, Community Services is not out of the woods as the process will start all over again once the current Fiscal Year ends in September. On a less positive note, the Missouri House passed a bill that Bell says would wipe out a lot of stimulus programs, including the Community Services Weatherization Program. That bill still has to go to the Missouri Senate. This would create logistical problems as Bell said that they had already bought the trucks and trailers and hired the people to do the work.

The Federal Community Services Block Grant Monitors came to see how the Federal Stimulus Money was being spent. The Head Start Monitors were there a couple of weeks ago and listed strengths and areas of concern. One of the areas of concern identified was the need to have a federally certified nutrition specialist; board member Julie Tracy suggested possibly having Hy-Vee's dietitian or someone from one of the regional hospitals; the monitors wanted to see direct oversight. There were other places that they could look as well; Nodaway County's health department has a nutritionist on staff while University Extension has nutrition specialists as well. One of the biggest strengths was parent and community involvement in the area. One of the other positives listed was the Meals with Class Program; however, that program was cut due to a lack of funding; Bell said that it had been one of CSI's biggest expenses. He said that there was a possibility of putting it back in but that they would have to wait and see what the federal funding would look like for the next fiscal year.

The next meeting will be set for May 25th at 7 p.m. at the Community Services building behind McDonalds in Maryville.

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.