Dear friends,

As the governor and our legislators try to reach agreement on a 2010-2011 budget – at the time of this writing, an interim budget was under consideration to provide more time for working out details on the full budget – the numbers being discussed concerning human resources are discouraging. 

Proposed cuts include an additional $1.14 billion from Job and Family Services funding. Counties would receive about $40 million less to administer programs over the next two years. This follows significant administrative cuts over the past two years.  

Reductions have been proposed for every major JFS program, including public assistance, child support and children’s services. By one estimate, the cuts would result in the layoff of one quarter of the state’s Children’s Services workers. 

In addition, cash assistance to the disabled, some child care programs and kinship care programs would be eliminated. 

I do not envy the governor or our legislators. They have extremely difficult decisions to make. Tax revenue continues to drop and the need continues to grow. The JFS system has taken a disproportionate amount of the budget cutting to date and in the current 2010-2011 proposals. One state association has estimated counties have received a $193 million cut to operations funding over the past two years; current proposals would boost that amount to $300 million by 2011. 

We in Hamilton County were projecting -- before the governor made his latest proposal -- funding to run operations would drop from $116 million in 2007 to $60 million in 2011. Further cuts would be beyond crippling at a time when more and more people are walking through our doors. Our food stamp, child care and Medicaid rolls are at or near record highs. 

We have cut our operating expenses, reduced services and decreased staffing levels. We have 30 percent fewer employees today than this time last year. We are searching for ways to remain responsible stewards of the citizens’ tax dollars.

But, while we are committed to delivering services that help this community’s citizens to a better place in life, our ability to do so is compromised as the cuts continue. Waiting times in lobbies, on phone lines and to process paperwork have increased dramatically over the past year. We have managed to cut mostly at the management and support levels, but whether it be child support, public assistance or even child welfare, cases are not receiving the attention they once did.  

Ohio’s lawmakers are in the midst of deciding what services our crucial to the state’s residents over the next two years. If you feel the services JFS provides – child protection, elderly protection, child care, child support enforcement, workforce development, cash assistance, food stamp disbursement, Medicaid disbursement, etc. – are worthy of continued funding at appropriate levels, I urge you to contact your legislator. Our safety net is crumbling. 

Sincerely,

Moira