MERCER COUNTY HUMAN SERVICES ADVISORY COUNCIL

BUDGET TESTIMONY
APRIL 19, 2010

Housing

State Rental Assistance Program

The State Rental Assistance Program is an important tool in getting our most vulnerable households into permanent housing, through both individual and project-based vouchers.

SRAP keeps thousands of people in New Jersey in decent homes they can afford. Local agencies receive SRAP funds for their clients and then leverage these to fund supportive services at levels appropriate to the assessed needs of the client. Most of these families and individuals would be homeless but for this assistance from the State.

SRAP is flat funded in the new budget at $52.5M. Note, however, that the Governor proposes taking $32.5M from money set aside to fund future project-based SRAPs, thus putting those projects at risk.

Recommendation: Don’t take money from SRAP to balance the budget.

New Jersey’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund (formerly “Balanced Housing Fund”)

New Jersey’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund provides crucial gap financing for housing production. The Governor’s budget is taking $15 million out of this fund. Not only will this eliminate most state matches, which are crucial to the development of projects using Federal and other local dollars, but it will also end the Office of Housing Advocacy's support for non-profits to produce new housing to meet the huge unmet need.

Recommendation: Don’t take money out of the Affordable Housing Trust Fund to balance the budget.

Income Support

Reduction of the State Earned Income Tax Benefit from 25% of the Federal benefit to 20%:

The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) has enabled low income households to have an additional tool to help them meet rising costs, even if their income is flat. New Jersey established the State EITC under Governor Whitman, and it has significantly enhanced the impact of the federal benefit. At a time when costs are increasing and wages are, at best, stagnant, a cut in this benefit means that low income workers will see a significant decrease in their income. Since those who qualify for the EITC are the lowest-wage workers, the money is usually spent in the local economy in order to cover the cost of basic necessities, pay off credit card debt or provide job-enhancing education and training. The EITC, therefore, has the effect of being an economic stimulator for local and statewide businesses and institutions, as well as a hedge against crippling debt.

Recommendation: Don’t cut the Earned Income Tax Credit to 20% of the Federal Credit.

For more information, contact Herb Levine, Executive Director, Mercer Alliance to End Homelessness. 609-844-1006. hlevine@merceralliance.org

Child Care

Child Care Health Consultant Coordinators

Even though there is a nurse in every public school, for the past ten years the only contact the typical child care center or family child care provider has had with a health professional has been through the one child care health consultant coordinator available in their county. These professionals provide hundreds of child care programs with hours of valuable training in health and safety annually. They provide education on topics such as medication administration, asthma prevention, nutrition, obesity prevention, CPR and First Aid First Aid, SIDS prevention, dental caries, immunization requirements, special needs, abuse and neglect, and universal precautions. Without child care health consultant coordinators available to the child care centers and family child care providers, opportunities will no exist for staff professional development and technical assistance in health and safety. Effective April 1, these positions have been eliminated. The services that they provide will not be able to be absorbed. There will be a tremendous void in the community where children are spending the majority of their waking hours.

Recommendation: Reinstate the funding for one child care health consultant coordinator in each county.

After-School Programs

Non-school time represents the largest block of time in the lives of America’s youth. Violent crime triples between the hours of 3:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., and it is during these same hours that children face the most serious danger of becoming victims of crime. Several recent studies confirmed the relationship between the availability of after-school programs and reduced juvenile crime. Research indicates that a host of positive benefits result from participating in high-quality after-school programs, including better grades, work habits, emotional adjustment, and peer relations. Children who participate regularly experience better academic and social outcomes, as well as higher education and career aspirations.

Recommendation: Restore funding to support accessible, affordable after-school care for low-income working families.

For more information: Contact Nancy Thomson, executive director, Child Care Connection, 609/989-7770, ext. 138. nancythomson@ccc-nj.org

Hunger

State Food Purchase Program

New Jersey has funded the State Food Purchase Program for the last four years, administered through the Department of Agriculture. The current 2011 budget proposal has continued level funding for the State Food Purchase Program (SFPP). The SFPP has proven to be invaluable during this current economic crisis as emergency feeding sites in Mercer County have experienced up to a 30-40% increase in emergency food requests. Mercer Street Friends Food Bank has added 7 new food pantries to our membership roles, 5 of which are located in the suburbs/on the borders of Trenton. Some food pantries have seen an increase of 100% or more from October 2008- October 2009.

Recommendation: Support the level funding of the State Food Purchase Program in the 2010-2011 budget.

School Breakfast Program and Improve Nutritional Quality of Food Served in our Schools

New Jersey ranks 45th out of the 50 states and the District of Columbia in school breakfast participation. We are serving school breakfast to only 37.9% of the children receiving free or reduced school lunch. If we increased this percentage to 60%, New Jersey would receive an additional $19,172,047 in federal funds and serve 83,337 children who are currently not being served. For example, Trenton school district started serving breakfast to all students regardless of income in November 2009. Participation in School Breakfast has increased in Trenton by an average of 31.6% in the five schools where Universal Breakfast has been the rule since September. The largest increase has been in Trenton Central High School- a 420% increase in number of breakfasts served (October 2008, 716 to October 2009, 3037).

A recent study released by the Center for State Health Policy at Rutgers University illustrated the prevalence of childhood obesity in New Jersey’s communities. For example 47.3% of Trenton’s youth are either overweight or obese. Since healthy food is usually more expensive, cutting funds to our school meal programs will leave schools with fewer resources to provide healthy foods to our children. It is imperative that New Jersey invests in the health and well being of our most vulnerable, our children, in order to have healthy communities in the future.

Recommendations:

1. Reinstate the $3 million State enhancement to School Breakfast (10 cents/breakfast). For example, Trenton Central High may stand to loose $2,736/year, the district up to $50,000.

2. Reinstate the State enhancement to the Free and Reduced School Lunches to 10 cents per lunch. The proposed Budget cuts the State’s reimbursement to 5 cents per lunch and eliminates reimbursement to Private, Non Government Operated Schools.

3. Implement a “Universal” school breakfast program. This program would mandate that all schools in which 60% or more of the children qualify for free or reduced price meals would serve breakfast to all children.

For more information, contact Susan Jones, director of Agency Services and Programs, Mercer Street Friends Food Bank, 609-406-0503 ext.5543.