Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, December 2, 1994 TAG: 9412020043
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: ROBERT FREIS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
New political regimes and widespread public dissatisfaction with governmental social programs may result in the elimination of some health and human services or the reduction of others to the point of ineffectiveness, they say.
Ripple effects of Gov. George Allen's Strike Force proposals on downsizing state government or the Republican-controlled 104th Congress' Contract with America won't reach here for several months.
"Right now, we're in limbo," said Russ Rice of Montgomery County's Office on Youth, one of the programs facing extinction.
Without the office's efforts to combat teen delinquency and pregnancy, many of the county's at-risk youths "would probably fall between the cracks," he said.
Local officials have learned that the county's share of Federal Emergency Management Assistance funds for 1995 will be cut in half. That means the county will have $40,000 less to spend on shelter for the homeless.
Others detect a "punish, don't treat" chill in the current political winds. "I don't know what they're expecting to happen," said Pat Brown of the Women's Resource Center, which deals with domestic violence victims. "People are still going to be hungry. They're still going to need something to eat and a place to stay. I don't know if it's going to be anarchy or what."
Despite their confusion and anxiety, social workers say it's apparent the changes will bring more responsibility to the state and local level - and more pressures on local dollars to fund programs.
Anticipating that, the Montgomery County Human Services Commission held a symposium Thursday on survival for social programs in an unfriendly world.
"It's a terrible thing. It's like society is turning on us" said Stephonia Munson of the commission. "We don't know what to do. We've been trying, but the problems haven't gone away. They've become worse."
"We feel as a nation that our programs have gotten out of control. There's fraud, waste and abuse in the system," said Don Lacy of Virginia Tech's Institute for Community Resource Development. "There's an environment of cynicism about the public trough."
Instead of circling their wagons, reformers need to assertively tell government officials and the public why their social program are important, and be prepared to back up their advocacy with facts and figures, Lacy told the 20 social service agency representatives in attendance. "You must get systematic."
To accomplish that, agencies need to share information and resources about the impact of budget cuts. Without that kind of organization, social services will be more likely to fall victim to the political changes, he advised.
by CNB