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Memo To: All Staff, Board,
Families, and Friends of Elm City Center
From:
Tom Frederick
Date:
June 3, 2002
Re:
2003 Budget Updates |
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As you may know, late last night
the Illinois Legislature passed a budget for 2003 that included $74.5M to
restore many of the recommended cuts from the previously proposed budget.
Attached is a copy of the fax I received this morning from IARF, our trade
association in Springfield, giving details of the budget that relate to Elm
City. Virtually all of the news is good. Based on what I am reading it
appears that the funding for the Clyde York social center, the existing
programming grants, the 2.5% cost of doing business increase, the 2.5%
across the board cut from ODD and the 5.5% across the board cut from OMH
will be restored. Details are not yet final, but the news could not have
been better. In straight English it means all of the money Elm City was
supposed to be cut has been restored. The paranoid side of me says something
will happen, but that is a symptom of paranoia. |
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Before you start dancing, please write another
letter (hey, this is politics and this is part of how it works) to Demuzio,
Ryan, and Watson. Thank them for their leadership, hard work, and support of
people with disabilities. Even if you do not like them write the letter,
they did the work and helped make this happen.
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The Honorable Vince Demuzio
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State Senator
140 Carlinville Plaza
Carlinville, IL 62626 |
| The Honorable George Ryan |
Governor of Illinois
State House
Springfield, IL 62706 |
| The Honorable James Watson |
State Representative
224 West State Jacksonville, IL 62650 |
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I have been to the hearings and
have consistently heard how prepared the legislative people from across the
state were to understand the financial impact that program like Elm City
would face. That only came from people back home calling and writing their
reps. It came from visiting the reps. It came from a well coordinated effort
from IARF, Don Moss and Associates, United Cerebral Palsy, ARC/ILL, and many
other statewide groups. No one group did this alone, but working together
did. |
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Please accept my sincere thank you
to everyone who wrote a letter and was part of this effort in some way. This
is hard work and many groups want a piece of that funding pie. DD/MI
programs have been shorted many times. This time it appears we have come out
on top as an organized political force in Illinois. It is a good spot to be
in. We need to stay there. |
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So what is next? |
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As the IARF
fax says 2003 will likely be a transition year. The impact of Medicaid will
return due to the financial impact for Illinois. Program eligibility
requirements will likely be shifted. One year is not a long time. ECC has a
lot of work to do for realistic ICAP scores, active treatment goals,
becoming a Medicaid agency, and numerous other areas.
Again, thanks
for all the work. Onward. |
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Illinois
