Quick Updates; TeenNOW California

California's 2010-11 Budget - How Will YOU be Affected?

The 2010-11 Budget Bill was passed by the Legislature and signed by the Governor on October 8. In May 2010, the administration estimated that there would be a gap of $17.9 billion between General Fund resources and expenditures in 2010-11. An almost $18 billion budget problem means many cuts to many programs that require state funding to stay afloat. How are these budget cuts going to affect you and your programs?

The elimination of CalWORKS Stage 3 child care ($256 million), effective November 1, 2010. This will mean the loss of subsidized child care for approximately 55,000 children from low-income families who formerly received cash aid through the CalWORKS program. CalWORKS, for those of you who don't know, accompanies the welfare-to-work program and allows families to be able to afford child care so that they can work and eventually get off welfare. Stage 3 is the final stage, when a family is now off of cash aid and has received childcare for the maximum 24 months. Stage 3 ensures extra help so that the family can continue to work and stay off welfare by maintaining affordable childcare costs. The cost to each family depends on their family size and income and the assistance last until the child is 12, though many families stop receiving the assistance sooner.

Here is a response from State Schools Chief Jack O'Connell on the veto of Stage 3 funding:

"The Governor's veto of funding for the CalWORKS Stage 3 Child Care Program is an attack on working families with children. This 12-year-old program has played a significant role in helping California families leave welfare and become financially independent.

"The Stage 3 program provided child care services to more than 81,000 children and some 60,000 families during Fiscal Year 2008-2009, allowing parents to work. This veto will terminate needed child care services for all these families who have worked so hard to leave welfare and maintain employment for at least two years or more. It will undermine the efforts of these working families, who are primarily single parents with one or two children, to become and remain self-sufficient.

"At a time when California is experiencing an unemployment rate of over 12 percent, it is unconscionable that this administration would deliberately eliminate the child care service necessary for working parents to maintain their jobs, and put them at risk of returning to the welfare rolls."

Using the line-item veto, the Governor vetoed $52 million for HIV/AIDS programs from the $87.5 billion budget for those programs. The $7.6 million in cuts to the AIDS Drug Assistant Program means many Californians living with HIV or AIDS will not received lifesaving medication. The governor cut funding for education and prevention and left monies for surveillance and epidemiological studies.

We will keep you updated on how politicians, parents, and providers are fighting back on these cutbacks! And ways YOU can get involved and make a difference!

Happy Ally Week 2010!

It's National Ally Week which supports straight allies across the United States and around the world as they "come out" in support of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth. Advocates for Youth is inviting everyone to participate in Ally Week in three ways:

1. Sign the Ally Pledge created by GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network at www.allywork.org.

2. Publicly show your support by changing your Facebook or Twitter status. Add this as your Facebook status: "This week I am coming out as an ally to the GLBTQ community because I believe all young people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression, deserve to feel safe and supported."

3. Make a Video for the Make It Better Project!