From the Executive Director

Fall Out from State Cuts Hit Home

During the summer of 2009, the state announced a 100% reduction in payments directed at a select group of state-funded disability programs.  Agencies began to close programs and lay off staff.  People with disabilities and their families outside of Avenues were desperate and turned to us asking if we could help.   

Unfortunately, we could not.  This crisis eliminated all funding to our Supported Living Arrangements and Vocational Development programs.  As a result, 45 individuals currently receiving residential support and 50 in our Job Placement programs were looking at total elimination of their programs.  Our priority was to prevent our current participants from suffering a fate similar to that of their non-Avenues brethren. 

In addition to people with disabilities having their lives turned upside down, hundreds of employees lost their direct support, case management and other jobs as agencies could no longer make payroll.  From the lay-offs in the disability field alone, Illinois’ unemployment rate dramatically increased over the summer.

Statewide, there was tremendous media coverage over these cuts to human services.  Avenues participated in rallies and publicized the harm that would come to people with disabilities if these cuts were not restored.  Understanding the difficulties that could befall our program participants and their supporting Avenues staff, the Avenues Board and Administration elected to use our limited financial reserves to maintain needed services.  While many program expenditures had to be reduced this summer, no program participant lost services or suffered any significant change in their level of support from Avenues. 

This was possible only because of generous contributions from the many Avenues donors past and present.  Our 56 years of operations have provided a foundation that allows us to weather this current crisis and retain needed services to those people who currently look to us for support every day. 

An overwhelming barrage of letters, phone calls, emails and media coverage eventually pushed Governor Quinn to rescind the 100% cuts.  Funding was restored, but only through December, 2009.  Agencies, exhausted by the ordeal they had been put through, began to undo the actions that had disrupted the lives of people with disabilities.  Television and print coverage faded away as the summer of 2009 came to an end. 

However, it is important to understand that the 2009 Crisis is not over.  The restoration was only at 88% of FY 09’s level, forcing immediate budget changes due to the 12% cut.  When you consider that these same programs were reduced by 10% in FY 08 and all community developmental disability programs have experienced a 40% cut when compared to the cost-of-living since 1990, it’s a miracle that any services can be provided at all. 

Over the past 20 years, the state has transferred much of the financial requirements to operate a disability program from itself to the service organization.  Today, Avenues and the others must now maintain thousands, if not millions of dollars in the bank just to meet day-to-day financial obligations.   Illinois is routinely 150-180 days in arrears on payments; borrowing and credit lines are a daily part of most organizations’ cash management.  Covering these costs come at the expense of direct services for individuals with disabilities.   

The crisis is not over because the funding restoration is predicated on Illinois receiving additional federal funds for its disability programs.  All disability support organizations will be converting their “state only” funding to a mechanism that allows Illinois to capture additional federal funds.  On paper, this looks like a good deal until one examines the impact it will have on people with disabilities. 

Individuals must meet a federal disability definition in order to be eligible for Illinois to capture the additional funding.  Preliminary results show that statewide, there will be thousands of individuals who will lose their community supports after December 31, 2009.  Many people who currently receive supports through the state-only grants receive a minimal level of service that allows them to remain as independent as possible.  These are the individuals who you might see on a daily basis living and working in those communities in which we maintain our programs and services. 

At Avenues, we estimate that 1/3^rd or 15 of our currently enrolled individuals may be deemed ineligible for conversion funding.  While this number may not seem large, those individuals are important to us and staff are hard at work to ensure that they will be able to retain their residential placements with us.   

To make this possible, other residents may have to be relocated from their current Avenues housing to another location within Avenues.  Some will have to increase their individual rent and program fees in order to remain eligible and others may experience changes in their overall array of services.   

We understand that for a person with a disability, many of these actions can be disruptive.  Rest assured that Avenues has the well-being and best interest of its residents at the heart of any decision that is being made.  Any of these changes will be significantly less disruptive than a total loss of service. 

What you are reading about here is only a sliver of what needs to take place in order to provide services in a state that is ranked in the bottom 10% in its funding of community disability support programs.  As you have read here many times before, your collective efforts in contacting the Governor, Legislative Leaders and your own local State Senators and Representatives have to continue in order for this to change.  

Your support of Avenue has enabled us to survive the “Depression of 2009”.  Your continued concern and participation will eventually enable us to help new individuals looking to be a part of the Avenues “Lifelong Commitment”.