A Human Face of

Budget Cuts

When you’re on a tight budget, you learn to manage your precious resources carefully, build strong, supportive connections with your family and community, and make smart decisions. That’s what workers in Nebraska’s nine Community Action agencies have been helping struggling families do for years. And they’re good at it. Nebraska Community Action agencies serve 83,360 Nebraskans annually, representing over 38,000 families. They reach all 93 counties in the state.
America has suddenly awoken to the stark reality of our $14 Trillion national deficit. The burden is the product of decades of overspending by Republicans and Democrats alike. It will take bi-partisan efforts to bring spending under control and difficult decisions will have to be made. The President has proposed essentially freezing discretionary spending at 2008 levels. The House of Representatives has voted to dramatically slash discretionary spending in the current fiscal year. The problem, as Sen. Mike Johanns pointed out to constituents in Lincoln on February 22nd, is that discretionary spending is such a small proportion of the overall budget that cuts in this area have little impact on the budget shortfall and do nothing to control the spiraling costs of mandates and military expenditures which are driving the deficit.

More disturbing is the impact that these cuts will have on Nebraskans and our local communities. The President’s 2012 budget proposes to cut the Community Service Block Grant by 50%. On February 19, the House of Representatives voted to eliminate the program immediately. The primary recipients of the Community Service Block Grant are Community Action agencies, a quite but mighty group of local organizations established under the Economic Opportu­nity Act of 1964 to seek funding and provide training and opportunities that lead families in need to economic stability.

The Community Service Block Grant is the cornerstone funding mechanism of Nebraska’s nine Community Action Agencies. The agencies provide vital services for individuals and families, including job training and placement services, GED preparation, household budgeting, food pantries, home weatherization, crisis rent and utility assistance, health services, Head Start and Early Head Start programming, housing and transportation services. The aim of the programming is to provide Nebraskans the tools and partnerships needed to lead families to self sufficiency. Our Community Action agencies are local, private, non-profit organizations, not government agencies.

Currently, the Block Grant is an annual investment in Nebraska of $4.6 million. Through the Block Grant, the Nebraska agencies leverage an additional $50.3 million in public and private investments in the State. In addition, in 2010, the statewide campaign to get eligible taxpayers to claim the earned income tax credit, a campaign coordinated by Community Action of Nebraska, brought $278 million back into our Nebraska communities; dollars that otherwise would have been lost by the families who need them most.

In May 2010 Community Action of Nebraska conducted a scientifically rigorous survey of 10,000 randomly selected households in our state .

It is important to remember that there is a human side to budget cuts. The full impact of the recession wasn’t felt in Nebraska until months after it started. Unfortunately, the recovery has been slow as well. There will not be a single county in the state of Nebraska that won’t feel the impact of these cuts.
It is extremely short sighted to, in the name of national self-sufficiency, cut programs that actively remove people from public assistance and promote the development of the work skills and assets that allow them to become self sufficient taxpayers. As we look toward national solutions for a stronger economic recovery, we must continue to empower local coalitions to promote economic security for Nebraskans in need. Programs that support employment in our communities benefit us all and make Nebraska a better place to live.

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Contact:
Roger Furrer, Executive Director, Community Action of Nebraska, (402) 471-3714 extension 223 or (402) 840-1263, rfurrer@canhelp.org.

At over 40%, the response rate was very high, giving us a high level of confidence in the responses. The entire Community Assessment report can be found at www.canhelp.org.

Community Action of Nebraska

Nebraska Statewide EITC Coalition

For more information about services provided by Community Action agencies, click on the Community Action Agencies tab at left.