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News :: Miscellaneous |
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Champaign County Board of Mental Health holds Public Hearing |
Current rating: 0 |
by Brian Hagy
(No verified email address) |
21 Apr 2002
Modified: 01:45:28 PM |
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Champaign County Board of Mental Health will be holding a public hearing seeking voices from the community concerned about Governor Ryan's budget cuts and the extreme impact they have on the mental health services of Illinois. |
On Monday, April 22, the Champaign County Board of Mental Health will be hosting an open public hearing. The reason for this hearing is to seek input and responses from the community concerning the budget cuts Governor Ryan recently proposed.
Unknown to most people in Illinois, the proposed budget cuts severely affect the mental health field in Illinois. The Champaign County Nursing Home is facing a $400,000 reduction in funds from the state of Illinois (meaning a severe cut in staff and services). Provena Behavioral Health, which offers drug rehab services for adolescents and up and support for people with mental illness, is facing having to terminate many of their programs that don't deal with long-term and severe mental illness, in spite of an already burgeoning waiting list. Developmental Services Center, a not-for-profit organization that provides services to adults with developmental disabilities, is facing up to $350,000 in budget cuts (also meaning a loss of up to 14 staff positions and reduction in services offered...which also means that many folks with developmental disabilities would no longer be able to receive the support they need in order to live a healthy life). And the list goes on, as every agency that deals with mental disabilities is being severely cut from the Illinois state budget.
The public hearing scheduled on Monday, April 22 in the Illinois Terminal Building from 4-6 PM is meant to be an avenue for concerned citizens to voice their opposition to the budget cuts and to offer alternatives. It is important for people to show up to this hearing, even if you don't intend to speak. Rep. Tom Berns, and Senators Rick Winkel and Stanley Weaver are expected to be present at the hearing to determine the support for not encouraging these budget cuts.
In addition, the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability will also be there to present their plan that they refer to as "A Fair Plan for Illinois' Fiscal Crisis". This plan outlines 10 key points that help to increase revenue for the state of Illinois, and thus eliminate the need to have any budget cuts. Some of these points include: using the Illinois Rainy Day fund of $226 million (considering it's no longer raining in Illinois, but storming); increasing riverboat casino taxes; maintaining current Illinois Estate tax; and increasing the cigarette tax. The full text of the plan can be viewed on their website at http://www.ctbaonline.org. Governor Ryan has said that he supports the plan and would immediately sign his name to each of the points if Congress has the guts to bring it to his desk. The problem is that this is an election year, and thus the politicians are receiving enormous pressure from the corporate world and from those with a lot of money to not increase taxes (especially those that directly affect their own profits). Their theory is that the money should be removed from those who don't have it to begin with, and thus need it most.
So, if available, please come out for the Public Hearing, Monday April 22 from 4-6 PM at the Illinois Terminal Building. Let it be known that the state of Illinois budget can't be balanced at the expense of those who didn't create the problem and are at the mercy of those who did. |
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Meeting to Oppose Drastic Cuts in State Social Service Funding |
by Mike Lehman
(No verified email address) |
Current rating: 0
21 Apr 2002
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The Champaign County Living Wage Association has great concerns about Gov. Ryan's proposed cuts in state funding for social services due to the current crisis in the state's budget. On Monday, April 22 at the Illinois Terminal Building from 4 to 6pm, local social service agencies will be holding a public hearing to discuss alternatives to the proposed draconian cuts that will affect or close many services that help the working poor. The Illinois Terminal Building is on University Avenue by the west side of RR underpass in downtown Champaign.
As part of our mission to address the social problems caused by low income jobs, we urge you to attend this meeting and express your support for continued funding of vital social services. In particular, funding cuts for nursing home care directly impact our recent successes in raising all wages there to at least Living Wage. There are also many other services that will be affected if these cuts go through including developmental services, mental health services, and drug addiction assistance programs.
The impact of the proposed cuts is so great that even the News-Gazette has supported raising taxes "modestly" as part of a solution. Whatever solutions may be found, these cuts will severely impact those least able to find other means and they therefore MUST be reversed.
Thank you for making this information available to others. |
