CSBG Funding Pipeline Has Dried Up During CR

I’m getting calls from a number of state Community Action Partnerships who haven’t received first quarter Community Services Block Grant dollars during the continuing resolution. With some stimulus dollars still not out, the Community Action pipeline is extremely dry and layoffs loom.

With all the CSBG funding that has been appropriated, this should be a time when CAPs are able to meet the growing needs in their communities. It is unacceptable that, instead, they are seeing layoffs on the horizon.

We are on top of it. I have talked to the Department of Health and Human Services. And, this afternoon, I will begin talking to congressional members and leadership to try to find out what the hold up is.

I will hopefully have a report on positive activity very soon.

-- David Bradley, NCAF Executive Director, Washington

Food Stamp Use Reaches All-Time High

If you have not read Sunday’s front-page New York Times article about record-high food stamp use, click here and do so now.

It probably isn’t news to most in our Community Action network that one out of every eight Americans -- and one in four children -- are fed with food stamps. According to the article, in more than 800 of the counties Community Action serves, the food stamp program helps to feed one in three children!

Community Action Agencies are on the front lines and see firsthand how people are hurting in so many American communities. They know how demand for their programs and services has grown in the past couple years, so it probably will not shock any of them to read that the food stamp program is expanding 20,000 people a day.

Occasionally I read articles like this that just reinforce the job we are doing in Community Action to provide programs and services that help low-income people become more self-sufficient and secure. Even if it does not come as news to you, perhaps this article will give you additional motivation, as it did me, to continue our fight for the things in which we believe and for the millions of vulnerable Americans who need help getting back on their feet.

-- David Bradley, NCAF Executive Director, Washington

Weekly Calls with DOE

National Community Action Foundation has been participating in weekly phone calls with the Department of Energy about the progress of weatherization stimulus dollars and expenditures.
I have been finding these weekly calls to be very satisfying. We have been able to share concerns we have with DOE staff and they have been quick to investigate and get back to us with answers. The weekly call has become not only a useful and efficient way to work with DOE to resolve concerns, but also a wonderful forum for learning more of the insider views of the Obama Administration.

For instance, I am learning more that reveals the administration wants bigger and better things for the Weatherization Assistance Program. President Obama is asking how weatherization can be used in a larger context to really help fuel a green economy and job creation. I get the sense, both within DOE and the White House, that more focus is being placed on weatherization than on any other program within the stimulus.

I really like the team at DOE and have become even more comfortable with its leadership through our weekly calls.

-- David Bradley, NCAF Executive Director, Washington

The Next Three Weeks

Congress, just back from Thanksgiving recess, is in a three-week rush toward adjournment. All eyes are on health care, with a bit of appropriations and jobs bill discussions mixed in there.

I hope to meet a House Democratic leader for coffee later this week to get a better handle on the jobs bill plan. I am somewhat optimistic that Community Action could play a part in a jobs bill. Democratic leadership in both the House and Senate has expressed a desire to provide more relief to state and local governments. Under that scenario, the Community Services Block Grant could be included as part of the strategy.

We continue to deal with slow expenditures of existing stimulus dollars, so we will see how that plays out. I don’t think a jobs bill would pass yet this year. It would pass in early 2010, if at all. But, it is certainly something to keep an eye on.

-- David Bradley, NCAF Executive Director, Washington

Bookmark or Share

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving at our house just isn't complete without pumpkin pie. It is my favorite part of the celebration.

How do you celebrate Thanksgiving in your home?

However you celebrate, I wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving!

-- David Bradley, NCAF Executive Director, Washington

'Tis the Season of Political Phone Calls

I am swamped with calls from both Republicans and Democrats seeking support in the 2010 elections. The pressure to participate is intense. There is a collective nervousness about the 2010 elections that I haven’t seen in quite a while.

Independents are clearly unhappy, according to the polls. Both major parties are uneasy about what challenges and opportunities will emerge as a result in 2010.

-- David Bradley, NCAF Executive Director, Washington

Bookmark or Share

Future CSBG Stimulus Hinges on Success of Current Stimulus

I have been asked a lot of questions about the specific ideas NCAF has brought up with congressional leadership regarding the Community Services Block Grant in a future stimulus package.

We are envisioning a flat allocation for every agency. In other words, rural and urban Community Action Agencies would receive the same specific dollar amount. The remaining money would be distributed through the regular formula, in which states would be allowed 5 percent for administration and 5 percent discretionary. The rest of the formula dollars would go to agencies to expand job creation.

As a side note, I am frustrated with Community Action personnel who seem reluctant to hire workers with CSBG stimulus dollars because they fear they will have to lay off the new workers after the stimulus dollars run out. I strongly encourage agencies not to hold back when it comes to hiring using stimulus dollars! The purpose of the stimulus is to get the economy moving. The only way we can convince Congress to continue that kind of investment is to create jobs.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: it is difficult to work on an additional investment in CSBG when so much of the first stimulus is not being utilized.

Weekend Vote is Only the End of the Beginning on Health Care

The Senate voted Saturday to debate and amend the health care bill upon returning from Thanksgiving recess next week.

We still have a long way to go yet on health care reform. I still think Democrats will get a health care bill passed, but for the life of me, I don’t know how. It will be a very difficult process to say the least.

Although each eventually voted to open debate on the health care bill, moderate Senators Ben Nelson, D-Neb., Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., Mary Landrieu, D-La., and Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., voiced serious reservations about the bill. This clearly illuminates the difficult road ahead for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to try to get health care through the Senate.

Everyone I know in Congress, members and staff alike, are focused on health care right now. For example, Senate Appropriations Chair Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, is a major player in the health care debate. I think it is possible that the appropriations process will become even more slowed as a result.

Congress on Thanksgiving Break

Congress is out this week (thank heavens), so Hill work this week should be minimal (I hope). This is a much-needed break for us all. I do feel a bit guilty scheduling a few meetings with congressional staffers this afternoon. I know they are ready to kick back a bit, too.

The big question on all of our minds is when and how long the next break might be. How late will Congress be in this year and when will they come back in 2010?

While some think they will break Dec. 20 or 21, my bet is that they will be in only until Dec. 18. If they do not finish up health care, they are likely to be back the second week of January.