The Adobe Flash Player is required to view this multimedia interactive. Get it here.

Local agencies prepare for state cuts

Dayton gets boost from committee for UAV testing
5/24/12
Patrol searches Springfield dealership for stolen cards
5/24/12
Police headlines: Two accused of child endangering
5/24/12
Ad calls Brown career politician
5/24/12
Local Focus: Clark County for May 25
5/24/12
> More headlines

By Kelly Mori, Matt Sanctis, and Bridgette Outten, Staff Writers 3:09 PM Saturday, June 27, 2009

On June 18, Clark County Health Commissioner Charles Patterson asked the Board of Health’s permission to cut 6.5 positions in the county’s Help Me Grow program if the state continues with a plan to cut $3.2 million from the biennial budget. The board gave Patterson the nod, adding he could reinstate those positions if the budget is adjusted in their favor.

Now Patterson and dozens of other local officials are waiting, worse case scenarios in hand, to see what kind of services they will still be able to offer after July 1, when the state’s new budget year begins.

Clark County Help Me Grow provides services annually to more than 950 children from infant to 3 years old who are either special needs or at risk for development delays due to environmental factors. It could lose up to 64 percent of its funding, Patterson said. Contracted services for Help Me Grow, such as Parents as Teachers and Parent Infant Center have been notified that the heath district will end its contract with them after July 1.

Child and family health services could lose up to 43 percent and state funding for HIV testing and STD testing and treatment services are also expected to be cut, he said.

Mental Health Services of Clark County is slated to lose $2 million, or 12 percent of its funding, said Jim Perry, Mental Health Services, CEO. The severely mentally ill will feel the cuts the most because they are the more dependent on services, such as housing and social services which provide safety to both clients and the community along with preventing homelessness.

Cathy Appel, deputy director of Department and Family Services of Clark County Family and Children Service Division, said cuts could target services for vulnerable children, adults and senior citizens.

“We don’t have dollar figures attached at this point because it’s a moving target every day, depending on what’s going on in Columbus,” Appel said. “At this point, it’s all sheer speculation.”

JFS has already struggled with some $800,000 budget reductions reported in March. Plans to eliminate positions through attrition followed and administrators asked staff to take voluntary furloughs to save money.

If the proposed cuts go through, the number of positions JFS needs to eliminate will go from 45 to 60 and even more tightening of JFS contracts, Appel said.

Ohio spends about eight cents on the dollar on welfare services, the lowest in the nation, Appel said.

JFS operates on a children’s services levy based on 1985 property values, Appel said. The levy generated just over 1 percent of a $271.9 million budget in 2008.

Both Clark County Administrator Darrell Howard and Clark County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Dave Rapp said officials always try to be aware of any potential cuts to the state’s local government fund, but haven’t heard about any specific ones that would affect county government services.

Clark State Community College does not expect a direct hit from the cuts but nearly one half of the college’s students will, said Joe Jackson, Clark State’s Vice President of Business.

About 48 percent of the college’s students receive the Ohio College Opportunity Grant which is applied to a student’s tuition costs before the Federal Pell Grant is applied, usually leaving enough money in the Pell Grant for the student to pay for both books and other expenses. The budget would eliminate the OCOG for two-year colleges and reduce the Choose Ohio First Scholarships for students pursuing degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

For cities, townships and other municipalities, the state’s local government fund typically comprises a large portion of the budget, so cuts at the state level are a concern, said Springfield City Manager Jim Bodenmiller. In Springfield, the $4 million from the state makes up more than 10 percent of the annual budget.

“Specifically my concern is what might happen with economic development funds,” he said.

Economic development dollars are used to woo development and businesses and cutting that money would make it more difficult to bring those opportunities to Ohio, he said.

Income taxes are the major local source for city revenues and as jobs have become casualties of the recession, the city’s local revenues also have been hit, he said.

Champaign also bracing for cuts

The Champaign County Health District is facing cuts similar to those in Clark County, such as a 30 percent cut in programs that include investigations of food bourne outbreaks, school inspections, and abatement of public nuisances, said Shelia Hiddleson, Champaign County Health Commissioner.

There are also proposed cuts to a line item for Women and Children Safety Net Services, Hiddleson said. Locally, that could mean a cut to funding that is used to support the Mercy Well Child Clinic. Numerous children and families throughout the county utilize services provided through that clinic, she said.

Large cuts have also been proposed for Temporary Assistance For Needy Families funding in the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services budget, said Sue Bailey, director for the Champaign County DJFS.

Recently, the with the help of the county commissioners, the county’s child support program merged with the DJFS, allowing the agency more flexibility in its budget, as well as a cost savings. Bailey said that merger should help Champaign County’s DJFS absorb most of the proposed state cuts, at least for this year.

1 | 2 next page »

Share this article