A Community Forum on the impact of projected state budget cuts on programs for children and families offered a scenario on what may be facing many more non-profits in the new economy ahead. The scenario is not encouraging.
Last night about 50 concerned citizens, civic officials, and non-profit leaders participated in the Forum sponsored by the Urban League of Greater Madison. The presenter was Jon Peacock, an analyst from the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families.
Peacock provided overviews of the contentious Budget Repair Bill and Governor Walker’s biennial budget proposal for 2012-13. Walker’s goal is to reduce the structural deficit by 90% over the next two years without raising taxes or fees. To achieve this goal significant cuts to Medicaid, BadgerCare, and state aid to local governments and school districts are necessary, according to Walker. Additional cuts in School Equalization Aid formulas, Earned Income Tax Credits, Homestead Tax Credits, and funding for Income Maintenance case workers are also being proposed.
Negative Impact
According to Peacock, these cuts will have direct negative impact on the people who need these programs most: the poor, elderly, single parents, children and persons with disabilities.
A City of Madison official said “cuts across the board will be required and everyone will have to share the pain.” At the federal level additional cuts in programs that serve the poor will inevitably add to the problem.
Here in Madison the focus has been on the state budget situation, with demonstrations at the capitol for the past two weeks. But the federal budget picture is just as grim. The Congressional Budget Office recently reported: “The United State faces a daunting fiscal outlook, both for the next few years and for the long term.”
Non-profits Squeezed
The impact on non-profits will be significant. Demand for their services will go up, and funding from traditional sources (private donors, grants from private foundations, federal grants, and local government sources) will be reduced. According to one non-profit leader, “these changes will add to the legions of the poor. Non-profits will be caught in the middle and rendered impotent.”
To help non-profits and churches cope with the implications of reduced federal and state funding, madisonchristians.com is sponsoring the Funding Your Vision in the New Economy Workshop on March 11, featuring consultant Jerry Twombly.
“One thing I will show them is something that I know no one else has ever told them,” Twombly said. “If they know where they want to be, when they want to be there, and how much it is going to cost to accomplish their goals, I can tell them in quantifiable terms everything they must do to build infrastructure now that will enable them to meet short term needs while building a program that will enable them to achieve their funding goals.”
Click here to get more information and register now for the Funding Your Vision in the New Economy Workshop.