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In early October Tempe Community Council hosted a roundtable discussion with the Executive Director's from our partner agencies. A great deal of discussion centered around the economic downturn and how it is affecting their agency's and client base. We have summarized the findings below.
Roundtable Discussion Question posed by Tempe Community Council (TCC):
Please share your agency's response to the economic downturn; as it began, during the height and currently?
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Increase in demand for service, changes in intake and/or referral
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How agency operations changed to respond to the economic downturn
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Some basic needs services received funding, how did the funding help, did others
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Receive funding
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What other changes in funding occurred, have you made service changes for this year, do you propose service changes for next year
Predominant Roundtable Themes:
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Agencies are beginning to provide services to new types of clients, typically those who have not previously requested services
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Demand for services across all service categories is increasing
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Majority of resources are decreasing
Roundtable Statements per Service Category:
Homeless Shelter & Services
- Organization's leadership is suffering due to the hesitation on the state budget
- Shelter stays are longer due to lack of job availability
- New types of clients who have never requested services before
- Clients line-up in the middle of the night to wait for services
- Lost state funding for programs
- Street outreach cuts meant layoffs -difficult to cover operational costs
- DES asked for 15% cut exercise (will need to close beds even though there is space capacity for more)
- Funding not enough for demand
- Single women with children are increasing
- Housing and food demand increasing
- In-kind donations increasing but not cash donations
- Emergency Services, rent and utilities - increasing requests for help
- Food boxes are being distributed to higher income families than before
- Food requests are up by 45% in last year
- Added Saturday appointments for food distribution
- Some new foundation money is available
- HUD Rapid Re-housing money available
Domestic Violence Shelter & Services
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New types of clients who are homeless without domestic violence as the presenting issue - cannot serve the population
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Victims are staying in their unsafe situations longer due to unstable job/housing market, therefore numbers are not increasing
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There is no dedicated housing for those afflicted with mental illness so the individuals go to the domestic violence shelters
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Shelter licensing fees are increasing
Programs for the Working Poor Services
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Increased demand for affordable housing
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New face of clients who have not previously requested services
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Families who exceed income guidelines need help
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Individuals eligible for disability are not receiving benefits due to lack of organizations resources
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A 50% increase in requests for unemployment compensation (75% of the requests are eligible)
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Legal representation for domestic violence is up by 65% in past year
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A 15% staff reduction so fewer clients are served
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A 60% increase in food box requests
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Adding staff for fresh food donations, distribution, and transportation to cover need
Programs for those with Disabilities
Youth Prevention & Programs
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DES cuts
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Contracts lost
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There are long DES childcare waiting lists, where are the individuals turning
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Kith and kinship relationships are increasing
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Suicide hotline calls have increased - more men are calling
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Licensing fees are increasing causing a regulation vs. unregulation issue
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Child Protective Service (CPS) should be investigating calls however some are falling through the cracks due to lack of resources
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First Things First money available
Senior Services
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Title V regulation changes
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Medicare Advantage Plan changes
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Retirees have training, but there is little job availability
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Increase in crisis oriented calls
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Emergency Services, rent and utilities - increasing requests for help
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Food boxes to higher income families
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Payment delay problems
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One time funding available through Reinvestment Act funds, however funds are not sustainable
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Increased collaboration with other agencies due to lack of resources |
The bottom line is that this economic downturn, or "The Great Recession", is impacting Arizona like no other recession before it. Not only has it worsened the lives of adults and children that were already struggling to make ends meet before the recession, but it has impacted many people that have been long-time donors to human service nonprofits. People that had organized food drives, now line up for a food box. The only way the Tempe community will emerge from this recession is to come together as friends and neighbors and take care each other.
If you are one of the lucky ones that has a job, give back to your friends and neighbors by volunteering or donating to a human service nonprofit (check out www.tempekarma.org for ideas). In these difficult times, the problems and needs appear greater than any one person's capacity to make a difference. But I believe that Tempe's greatest strength is that we stand together to face difficult challenges, we unite around problems that seem too big, and we come together as a community to preserve our wonderful quality of life - for all.
Kate Hanley
Tempe Community Council |
