CDCAN
CALIFORNIA DISABILITY
COMMUNITY ACTION NETWORK
DISABILITY RIGHTS
NEWS REPORT
Remembering Former Assemblymember Marco
Firebaugh
#033-2006 March 29, 2006 - Thursday
afternoon
Advocacy Without Borders:
Connecting people with disabilities & seniors to rights and unified
action
1225 8th
Street Suite 480 - Sacramento, CA 95814 916/446-0013 Fax:
916/446-0026
Marty Omoto - director email: martyomoto@rcip.com
website: www.cdcan.us
California State
Budget
Assembly Budget Subcommittee Votes 4-0 To Reject Governor's Proposal
To Divert Federal Money Meant for Cost of Living to SSI/SSP Recipients -
Advocates Say Action Helps People with Disabilities and
Seniors
SACRAMENTO - Mirroring the action taken in January by the
Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee, the Assembly Budget
Subcommittee #1 on Health and Human Services voted 4-0 to reject the Governor's
budget proposal to withhold federal funds meant specifically to help with cost
of living increases for people who receive Supplemental Security
Income/State Supplemental Payment (SSI/SSP). The Governor's proposal would
have diverted those federal funds to help bridge the State's on-going budget
shortfall.
The action by the Assembly - and the previous action by the
Senate, was praised by adocates for people with disabilities and seniors,
including many who are SSI/SSP recipients who crowded the hearing
room.
Over 800,000 people with
disabilities, over 21,000 persons who are blind and over 350,000 low income
seniors are recipients of SSI/SSP.
Pointing to a large stack of over 500 letters from people across
the State opposing the Governor's proposal, Assemblymember Hector De La Torre
(D-Southgate), subcommittee chair, noted that huge response, and the
public testimony during the hearing saying that "...I personally believe that,
as someone said from the audience, that when the Federal government sends money
[for SSI], it needs to go to that person. I don't understand on a policy
level how we can justify intercepting money meant for the
recipients..."
All three Assembly Democrats on the subcommittee -
Assemblymembers De La Torre, Loni Hancock (D-Berkeley), who made the motion, and
Gene Mullin (D-South San Francisco) who seconded the motion, were also joined by
Republican Assemblymember Roger Niello (R-Fair Oaks) in voting to reject the
Governor's budget proposal, over objections by the Governor's Department of
Finance and also Department of Social Services, which oversees the program in
the State. The remaining member of the subcommittee, Republican
Assemblymember Sam Blakeslee of San Luis Obispo, was not present at the
beginning of the hearing and missed the initial vote.
The full Senate Budget and Fiscal
Review Committee, chaired by Sen. Wes Chesbro (D-Arcata, 2nd District), in a
rare early action, rejected the Governor's proposal on SSI/SSP, during its first
meeting in January. While no action by either house is final until the
budget is actually signed by the Governor - a rejection by the Assembly Budget
Subcommittee would likely mean the issue is dead - an action that advocates for
people with disabilities, seniors and low income people are pushing hard
for. Advocates and some legislators are also pushing for repeal of last
year's action and to restore state and federal cost of living money due to
people on SSI/SSP.
Next Steps
* SSI/SSP Proposal Dead
- For Now: While no budget action is final until a budget is actually
passed by the Legislature and signed by the Governor, the strong and early
action taken by both houses now rejecting the Governor's proposal regarding
extending by another 15 months beginning April 2007 the withholding of federal
funds meant for SSI/.SSP recipients is considered dead - at least for now.
* Governor's Revised Budget In May: Things could change depending on
the State's economic picture when the Governor releases his revisions to his
proposed budget, in Mid-May (referred to as the "May Revise" or the "May
Revision") and what he proposals in that revised budget.
* Last Year's SSI/SSP Budget
Action: Last year the Governor proposed and the Legislature approved the
withholding of federal funds for cost of living increases for people who receive
SSI portion for first three months of January 2006 and 2007, and a two year
suspension of State funds meant for cost of living increases for the SSP portion
of the grant, beginning January 2006. Advocates and some legislators were
pushing that this action be rescinded and funds restored. Neither house
has taken any action on this yet.
Budget Hearings Impacting People with Disabilities and Seniors
This Week AND Monday
Thursday - March 30, 2006 (meets at 10 AM or on adjournment of
Senate Floor session)
Issue: Community Care Licensing (Dept of Social
Services, Budget Item 5180)
Other Budget Issues To Be Heard: Dept. of
Child Support Services (Budget Item 5175); Office of Systems
Integration/Statewide Automated Welfare Systems (SAWS) and the Electronic
Benefit Transfer (EBT), CA Health and
Human Services Agency (Budget Item 530).
Senate Budget Subcommittee #3 on Health & Human
Services
State Capitol - Room 4203
Priority: Important
Alert Issued:
No
Should People Come To Hearing: Yes
Monday - April 3, 2006 1:30 PM
Issue: Developmental
Services (regional centers and developmental centers under Dept of Developmental
Services)
Senate Budget Subcommittee #3 on Health & Human Services
State
Capitol - Room 4203
Priority: VERY
HIGH
Alert Issued: YES
Should
People Come To Hearing: YES
How To Receive CDCAN Capitol
News Reports and Alerts
The California Disability Community Action Network is a
non-partisan link to tens of thousands of Californians in every community,
including people of color, people of every type of disability, including people
with physical disabilities, people with developmental and other disabilities,
people with traumatic brain and other injures, people with mental health needs,
seniors, people with MS, Alzheimers and others, and all of their families,
community organizations and providers, direct care and other workers, and other
advocates. These action alerts and news reports is for all of them.
If you would like to get on this distribution (and conversely, get off of
it) please send an email with that request to: martyomoto@rcip.com OR sign up via the NEW
CDCAN website at www.cdcan.us Sharing information is part of
our organizing effort. Please feel free to forward or copy this
(attribution is nice but not necessary). We're all in this together!
MANY
THANKS to Training Toward Self Reliance, UCP, California NAELA, The University
Affiliated Programs, CHANCE Inc, Parents Helping Parents, Arriba, Strategies
Toward Empowering People, Parents Helping Parents, Asian American parents
groups, Resources for Independent Living and many other Independent Living
Centers, several regional centers, People First chapters, IHSS workers, other
self advocacy and family support groups California Disability Rights Inc ,
developmental center families, and hundreds of individuals like Maureen
Fitzgerald, Terri Lantz, Christal Hopkins, Lisa Brown, Anna Wang, Dennis Dishaw,
Bob Benson, David Engberg, Connie Arnold, and so many others who through their
support and contributions, make the non-partisan CDCAN reports and townhall
telemeetings possible. Thanks also to partnerships and the good people
with the State Council on Developmental Disabilities, and also the Department of
Health Services, the Department of Developmental Services, Department of Social
Services and the CA Health and Human Services Agency and other agencies, and the
State Legislature and staff, the Legislative Analyst Office. Good people
who do good things can make a difference
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