2008 State of Illinois: Office Alert History

 

ILLNOIS STATE OFFICE ALERT - Release Date: September 22, 2008

Late this afternoon the Senate passed the fund sweeps bill (SB 790) by a vote of 44 to 15 and then passed the bill restoring various budget items, including human services (which includes youth services), to their FY08 levels (SB 1103). Congratulations, your work helped make this happen.

Now, its up to Governor Blagoevich to sign these bills into law. He can still veto these bills. However, the Senate and House, by their votes, indicated that there is more than 3/5 support for these bills, which is necessary to override a gubernatorial veto.

 

Please contact your Senators and thank them for their support. Also, write or call the Governor's Office immediately and ask him to sign these important bills into law.

 

ILLNOIS STATE OFFICE ALERT - Release Date: September 19, 2008

The Illinois Senate announced it was coming back next week to deal with the ethics legislation and other matters. Shortly thereafter the Governor announced he was calling the legislature back in special session Monday to deal with ethics legislation. It is unclear at this point whether or not the Senate will take up the fund sweeps bill (SB790) or the human services restorations (SB1103).

 

If you have not done so already, please contact your State Senators and urge them to take up the above two bills. Remind them how important these bills are to you, and ask them to vote "yes". 

 

ILLNOIS STATE OFFICE ALERT - Release Date: September 11, 2008

On July 10, 2008, The Illinois House passed a fund sweeps bill (SB790, House amendments #5 and #9). This bill sweeps approximately $266 million from various dedicated funds in the State Treasury.

 

The House then passed SB1103 (House amendment #7) which restored various human services cuts including the $43 million cut for community alcohol and drug treatment programs. The youth services programs had the 2% across the board cuts restored. The exact dollar amount of restoration for each budget line is listed below:

 

                  Community Services                       $139,900

                  Juvenile Justice Reform                   $75,400

                  CCBYS                                             $260,300

                  UDIS                                               $61,600

                  Delinquency Prevention                  $31,600

                  Homeless Youth                              $95,000

                  TEEN REACH                                    $382,300

 

The House also passed HB6350 which restored money to various human services agencies for staff, to restore institutional payment cycles, and to keep State parks open. 

 

This is good however, the Senate has to act on all this and right now there are no clear indications that it will. The Senate is not scheduled to be back in session until the Veto Session which begins November 12th.

 

All three bills were passed with overwhelming majorities.

 

ILLNOIS STATE OFFICE ALERT - Release Date: July 17, 2008

 

On July 16, 2008, the House overrode some of the budget cuts the Governor had made in his veto message on HB5701 which contains the DHS budget among others. The core youth service lines ended up with a 2% across the board cut. There were no override motions introduced to override these cuts. We understand there was a decision made not to override cuts that were 3% or less.

 

There was a motion to override the $1million line item veto of transitional shelters and employment assistance for homeless youth but that motion lost.

 

Substance abuse prevention did not take a cut in its lines but the treatment programs took significant cuts. Addiction treatment for special populations took a $9 million cut. Increasing addiction treatment statewide took a $3 million cut. Administrative expenses related to the Welfare Reform Project took a $2.7 million cut. The House tried to override these cuts in motion #7 to HB5701 but it failed to pass. The House did override the Governor's reduction veto of community based addiction services from $86,599,700 to $43,299,850 in motion #8 to HB5701. However, any of the overrides the House made would have to be also voted on in the Senate, which has 15 days to act on the vetoes. Unfortunately, the Senate isn't scheduled to come back into session until November 12th.

 

The House only had 89 of its 118 members present to vote on the override motions of which there were 33. The House needed a 3/5 majority to override line item vetoes and a simple majority to override reduction vetoes. The results may have been different if more members were present. We will Illinois Collaboration on Youth members a sample roll call on one of the override motions next week to show you which House members were present and which were absent.

 

STATE OFFICE ALERT - May 22, 2008

HB6524 (House Amendment #1) contains increased FY09 DHS funding for youth services.  The CCBYS line was increased by $650,860 to $13,668,060.  The UDIS line was increased by $154,040 to $3,234,840.  A new budget line for $1million was added for our Juvenile Justice/Mental Health Initiative.  Also, another new budget line for $3.5 million was added for Shelter and Transitional Housing and Employment Programs for Homeless Youth.

In addition, Community Services, Teen Reach, Juvenile Justice Reform, and Delinquency Prevention Lines were among those receiving a 3% Cost of Doing Business Increase.

HB6524 passed the House and is now in Senate Rules Committee.

HB6547 contains increased funding for DCFS.  A $500,000 line for group home rates was added. Also, $12 million was added for a foster care rate increase. This bill also passed the House and is on first reading in the Senate.

You should contact your Senators ASAP to ask them to vote for HB's 6524 and 6547.

The Senate is expected to send its, more modest, version of the budget to the House soon.  The best thinking of State House observers is that the General Assembly will try to pass something close to a maintenance budget and get out of Springfield as close to the May 29th adjournment date as possible.  The Capital bill and any revenue stream to fund that are most likely to be taken up in the Veto Session after the election in November.

Your advocacy efforts were responsible for this additional funding in the House.  Let's do it again in the Senate.  

STATE OFFICE ALERT—May 29, 2008

Based on an advisory from the Statewide Human Services Coalition, in which ICOY is participating and is represented on the Steering Committee, you should contact your House members, both Democrats and Republicans ASAP and ask them to support the funding for youth services that was included in HB6524. You received a previous alert about that bill.  Some House members are balking at passing a final FY09 budget unless it includes more funding for human services.

This is probably our last chance to impact the FY09 budget at this time.  Get anyone you can, friends, staff, board members etc. to call their Representatives.

The Statewide Coalition for Human Services was originally formed to push for an indexed annual CODB for human service providers.  This was seen as a long term goal.  The Coalition plans to start a publicity campaign later this summer to talk about the need to fix the broken human services infrastructure in Illinois.  Increasing funding for education and public safety without increased funding for human services just sets us up for failure.  These areas are all interconnected and funding only certain parts wastes scarce resources.

Thanks again for all your efforts in advocating for increased funding for the youth services community.

STATE OFFICE ALERT—June 2, 2008

 The FY09 budget passed by the legislature keeps the youth service lines flat (as in the Governor's introduced budget).   The lone exception to this is the Homeless Youth programs which got a new separate $1million budget line for Shelter and Transitional Housing and Employment Assistance.  The budget the legislature passed is about $1.7 billion to $2.5 billion over available revenues.  In other words, the Governor is going to have to make some cuts or call the legislature back in session to work on a capital bill.  The Governor is supposed to be having a press conference today at 10:30 a.m. to announce his intentions.

We'll have more information for you once the Governor makes his intentions known.

       
STATE OFFICE ALERT—June 2, 2008

The Governor announced that the FY09 budget contains $2.1billion more in spending than there is revenue. He will meet with the four legislative leaders later this week to see how they should proceed to get a balanced budget.  We will keep you informed of any other new developments.

STATE OFFICE ALERT—June 25, 2008

DHS held meetings today in Springfield and Chicago to announce the proposed cuts the Governor would have to make in its budget to balance the FY09 Budget.
The cuts would include an across the board 2% cut for all DHS budget lines.  In addition, the homeless youth programs would lose the $1.6 million for shelters and employment programs.

According to DHS,  as a result of the 2% cuts, "over 100,000 individuals will see a reduction in services or access to community health and prevention services including access to infant mortality reduction, Teen REACH after school programs, family planning, domestic violence shelters and services, teen parent services, a variety of community youth delinquency and juvenile justice prevention services, and homeless assistance.($3million)"

The cuts that the Department of Juvenile Justice would take will eliminate new specialized staff who would serve 2,400 youth leaving DJJ($2million), and also eliminate 75 community treatment slots for youth with mental health and substance abuse problems leaving the department($3.2 million).

What DHS officials and the Governor's Office would like you to do is contact your House members and ask(or beg) them to come back into session to pass the list of bills below which have already passed the Senate and only need approval by the House to reach the Governor's desk.  DHS officials say that the announced cuts can be eliminated if these bills pass.  The House is likely to come back to Springfield after the Fourth of July holiday on the 8th or 9th.  Here we go again.  But we do need to be heard from.  You can and should mention these specific bills to your House members.  The bills are:

SB790--provides $530 million in new revenue through the transfer of funds;
SB788--allows for pension restructuring and saves the State $55 billion total and $400 million in FY09;
HB6339--the Illinois Works Capital Plan. provides the capital appropriations necessary to support the $34 billion Illinois Works program;
HB1496--allows leasing the right to manage a portion of the State lottery and produces $7 billion in needed revenue;
HB2651--allows for a Chicago casino, a land based casino, a new riverboat, expanded positions and slots at racetracks. Education would receive 30% of all revenues;
HB4723--provides the bond authorization necessary to fund Illinois Works capital program projects; and
HB5618--promotes economic development and community improvements in communities of need including hospital capital investment.  

Thank you for making the contact again with your House members (both Democrats and Republicans).

STATE OFFICE ALERT—July 9, 2008

The Governor has called the legislature into Special Session for today and tomorrow to urge the House to pass bills, already passed by the Senate, which would enhance State revenues and give us a capital program.  We beseech you to contact your House members, both Republicans and Democrats, ASAP in Springfield to ask them to vote for these bills.
The House is meeting right now in Committee of the Whole to discuss these bills. Attached is a flyer that was faxed to all House members.  Thanks again for your advocacy on behalf of troubled teens and their families.

STATE OFFICE ALERT—July 10, 2008

Yesterday in the late afternoon the Governor followed through on his threat to cut the DHS budget lines by 2% across the board.  The youth services lines including Teen Reach and Redeploy Illinois were included in the cuts.  The Governor did not touch the $1million new line for transitional shelters and employment programs for homeless youth.

The aftercare line in the Department of Juvenile Justice took a big cut it went from $4,463,400 to $1,260,900.

In DCFS the hardest hit line was pre-admission psychiatric screening which went from $8,671,800 to $3,225,000.  Most other lines cut in DCFS got a 2% or less cut.

Each chamber in the legislature has 15 days to act on the Governor's vetoes or they become law.  Remember, a reduction veto only takes a simple majority in each house to override.

Please contact your legislators again ASAP to ask them to override the Governor's vetoes.  keep making the point that this 2% cut comes at a time when we have not received a cost of doing business increase in seven years. If you keep making that point , it may not sink in now, but it may help down the road.  These are crazy times in Illinois State Government so we have to do the best we can to save our services for troubled adolescents and their families.

Keep up the good fight.  

If you want to check the veto messages yourself, the DHS and DJJ budgets are in HB5701 and DCFS is in SB1102. Go to the General Assembly website, pull up the bill number, go to full text, click on the Governor's message, you may also have to click PDF. To check the actual budget bills click full text and click on enrolled.

STATE OFFICE ALERT—July 15, 2008

We have just been informed that in the Governor line item vetoed out the $1million for the Homeless Transition Shelters and Employment Programs. This can be found in the Governor's Message on HB5701 on the 4th page from the front, Article 12, sec. 290, page 196, lines 17-19.

STATE OFFICE ALERT—July 17, 2008

The House yesterday overrode some of the budget cuts the Governor had made in his veto message on HB5701 which contains the DHS budget among others.  The core youth service lines ended up with a 2% across the board cut.  There were no override motions introduced to override these cuts.  We understand there was a decision made not to override cuts that were 3% or less

There was a motion to override the $1million line item veto of transitional shelters and employment assistance for homeless youth but that motion lost.

Substance abuse prevention did not take a cut in its lines but the treatment programs took significant cuts. Addiction treatment for special populations took a $9million cut. Increasing addiction treatment statewide took a $3million cut. Administrative expenses related to the Welfare Reform Project took a $2.7million cut. The House tried to override these cuts in motion #7 to HB5701but it failed to pass.  The House did override the Governor's reduction veto of community based addiction services from $86,599,700 to $43,299,850 in motion #8 to HB5701.  However, any of the overrides the House made would have to be also voted on in the Senate, which has 15 days to act on the vetoes. Unfortunately, the Senate isn't scheduled to come back into session until November 12th.

The House only had 89 of its 118 members present to vote on the override motions of which there were 33.  The House needed a 3/5 majority to override line item vetoes and a simple majority to override reduction vetoes.  The results may have been different if more members were present. We will send you a sample roll call on one of the override motions next week to show you which House members were present and which were absent.