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CAAP Update provides regular information on items of interest to Community Action agencies in Pennsylvania. |
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| Have You Done It Yet |  |
Have you registered for the CAAP annual conference yet? What are you waiting for?
 #CAAPBeyond50
Twenty workshops in four educational tracks will be offered. Topics ranging from the Affordable Care Act to Needs Assessment to Volunteer Management to Fiscal Protections will be offered. All levels of staff will find a number of workshops that are relevant to their responsibilities.
Keeping with the conference theme, and to recognize the individuals and organizations that make Community Action great, the first CAAP Distinguished Service Awards will take place during a 50th Anniversary dinner. Representative David Reed will be the featured speaker. A special award will be presented to Rep. Michael Fitzpatrick for his leadership on the new Community Economic Opportunity Act (HR 3854) which re-authorizes the Community Services Block Grant.
Registration is open now. Hotel discount rate ends April 1.
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| | President Releases Budget, Proposes to Cut CSBG...Again | | |
President Obama released his 2015 Budget Proposal this week. Met with the expected criticism from House and Senate Republicans, and a few Democrats, the budget meets the target agreed to in the two-year Murray/Ryan Budget agreement for 2014 & 2015.
As in years past the President is suggesting cutting CSBG to $350 million. The rationale is: "to build ladders of opportunity into the middle class and promote economic mobility by proposing to target funds to high-performing and innovative grantees that successfully meet community needs, and suspend funding in instances of fraud and abuse."
The CSBG amount is the same as the President's 2014 proposal. Congress rejected the cut and allocated $674 million, and restored cuts from sequestration.
LIHEAP is proposed at $2,550 million in formula grants, $200 million contingency fund and $50 million for competitive "energy burden reduction," an 18 percent reduction.
The Weatherization Request is higher than in recent years. The $227.6 million request is $5 million higher than the FY 2008 appropriation (pre-ARRA funding). Unfortunately, the Department of Energy proposes to use $15 million of the total for "approximately 20 high-impact projects on financing models for the retrofit of low-income, multifamily buildings" thus leaving $206 million for the core programs or 7% less than in 2008.
Head Start is again slated for an increase, but not as large an increase as the President requested a year ago. With $150 million of the increase devoted to Early Head Start - Child Care Partnerships and nearly as much to quality increases in Head Start, the focus on early childhood development continues. The Education Department Budget again asks for large increase in early childhood education.
NCAF is expecting that after the House Budget Committee releases its budget later this month the final agreement will fall slightly above the 2014 levels.
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| | Community Needs Assessment Resources | |
Information on the Community Needs Assessment, a comprehensive tool that provides Pennsylvania's Community Action Agencies with the means to capture information about their community, analyze the data and identify the needs to be met within the community.
CAAP has also developed a toolkit to assist with navigating the CNA website and application. The toolkit, access to the CNA website and other pertinent information can be found on the CAAP website, CNA page.
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| 50 Years Resources | | | In honor of the 50th Anniversary of the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 and of Community Action, CAAP has developed a repository of news articles, academic studies and policy issues related to poverty and the anniversary.
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| | Free CAPLAW Trainings | | |
CAPLAW has the following webinars in their series Strategic Issues Facing CAAs. The webinars are free, registration required.
- March 12th: When the Going Gets Tough, Who Gets Going?: Employment Laws Affecting Staffing Options
- April 16th: The Ins and Outs of the OMB Super Circular, Part 1
- April 23rd: The Ins and Outs of the OMB Super Circular, Part 2
- May 14th: Changing Needs and Expectations for Chief Financial Officers in Community Action
- June 11th: Significant CSBG Issues to Examine when Planning for the Future
- July 16th: Head Start Risk Management
Member agencies of CAAP receive complimentary membership in CAPLAW and are eligible for all their benefits.
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| | House Budget Committee Releases Poverty Report | | |
Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI), Chairman of the House Budget Committee, released  the Committee's report, The War on Poverty: 50 Years Later. The 204 page report examines the effectiveness of anti-poverty programs.
The Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) is described on pages 68-69. The entire report contains useful footnotes and citations of evaluations of education and job training programs, health programs, social services, food aid, veterans, housing, and cash aid.
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| | LIHEAP Advisory Committee Comments on Unspent Funds | | |
The LIHEAP Advisory Contingency Planning Subcommittee provided comments to DPW
Deputy Secretary Padilla on the use of LIHEAP resources available for the current program year. DPW is projecting approximately  $21 million of unspent LIHEAP funds will be available as of April 4, 2014, when the program is scheduled to close.
The subcommittee of the LIHEAP Advisory Committee, in which CAAP is a member, is recommending the following actions:
- DPW should expend available LIHEAP resources to benefit LIHEAP recipients during this LIHEAP program year.
- DPW should immediately extend the amount of the maximum Crisis grant from its current maximum amount of $500 to a maximum of $900 for customers of deliverable fuels who are in crisis. I am certain that you recognize that this has been an unusually cold winter and the cash and crisis grant provided many households who are customers of deliverable fuels has been insufficient to assist them in maintaining heat throughout the winter. Many of these households are presently living without heat and are in crisis. I enclose a memo I have received from Rick Spector, Community Relations Director for the Philadelphia Corporation for Aging (PCA) which highlights this issue. Because of the very short time remaining in this program year we ask DPW to act quickly and aggressively to authorize, act on and publicize this recommended change to its staff, contractors, and to the public.
- DPW should extend the LIHEAP Cash, Crisis and "Term" program for all eligible applicants a minimum of 2 weeks. The subcommittee is mindful and concerned that many customers of regulated utilities will be confronted with utility service shut-off as of April 1st. This year, the challenge has been exacerbated by space heater use to compensate for the lack of delivery fuel in the furnace and by the dramatic price spikes experienced by electric shopping customers subject to variable electric generation rates. These households will also require assistance.
The Subcommittee members were in agreement that addressing the critical needs of households without heat today should in no way delay DPW from moving forward with the extension of the program into the first two weeks of April for those households who face loss of utility service at the conclusion of the moratorium. The $21 million of projected available resources can and should be used to accomplish both objectives.
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| | CAA Month Toolkit | | The Community Action Partnership has issued their annual toolkit for Community Action Month in May. The special 50th anniversary  edition, includes information on both planning special activities and garnering press coverage to celebrate Community Action. |
| | Leaving a Legacy | | |
Roger C. Collins, who has served the Bucks County Opportunity Council since 1994 and as its Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer for fourteen years has announced his retirement.
Roger is a founding member of the Economic Self-Sufficiency (ES) Program that helps low-income people acquire jobs with family sustaining income so they can leave or avoid the welfare system. Collins refers to this as "Economic Development one family at a time."
"When I came to the Opportunity Council in 1994, it was impossible to anticipate what would follow. To work in unity with an uncommon group of many - volunteers, staff, Board, donors, private business, government, educational institutions, farms, media, and most importantly our clients to make a difference - became the experience of a lifetime. I am both humbled and proud to have served in this very special community called Bucks County and cannot adequately express my gratitude for the compassion and generosity of many, many wonderful people. Among the greatest joys has been the opportunity to help others during times of dire need and to see clients thrive and pass on to their children their new success in life," said Collins.
The board of directors and staff of the Opportunity Council expressed bittersweet congratulations on Collins' retirement and reflected on the endless contributions he has made to both the Opportunity Council and the community.
As part of a comprehensive transition plan, the board of directors conducted an exhaustive and successful search to identify a strong pool of candidates from the community at large. The Opportunity Council is delighted to name Allen H. Childs as Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Bucks County Opportunity Council. He previously worked in executive leadership positions, leading six different business units during a 33-year career in a Fortune 500 company in both the U.S and Canada. His long-held goal has been to use his career experience to give back to the community.
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| | About Us | | |
Community Action Association of Pennsylvania
222 Pine Street
Harrisburg, PA 17101
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This newsletter is financed, in part, by a CSBG grant from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Community and Economic Development. |
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David Bradley will talk Washington politics like only he can with 
