If you are part of Donors Forum's policy work, you know that the State budget crisis is tearing apart our safety net, a network of services that enhance the lives of Illinois’ neediest citizens and strengthen our communities.  Across Illinois, children in need, seniors, people with disabilities and mental illness, and families and individuals who are homeless are at risk of losing the services they depend upon.  Illinois Partners for Human Service, a coalition to which Donors Forum belongs, recently released the results of a survey (PDF download) that quantifies the human cost of the State budget crisis.  The figures speak for themselves:

• 95% of survey respondents (a total of 282 human service providers responded) have been affected negatively in some way by the crisis.
• 70% report that their programs and services have been directly impacted by budget cuts and late payments. 

In order to cope with cuts in government funding and late payments from the State:

• 53% of reporting nonprofits have reduced hours or levels of service,
• 49% have laid off staff. 

 “Illinois residents who need help have been on the chopping block at budget time for many years.  Now we see the results: fewer children in child care; fewer after-school programs for teens; less help for people to get and keep jobs, and less assistance for those with mental illness,” said Judith Gethner, coalition manager for Illinois Partners, in a blog post by Greg Hinz of Crain’s on the subject.

The drastic measures human service organizations across the state have taken in order to continue providing critical services are unsustainable.  Also unsustainable are the continued cuts to human services, a fall-back strategy for legislators looking for an ‘easy’ way to shrink the deficit.  Those reductions are unproductive as well, as they reduce economic activity and increase the strain on other government-funded programs.  An honest, balanced, and comprehensive budget solution is the only way for Illinois to get back on its feet.

For more background information on the state of the human services system in Illinois, see this blog post on Donors Forum’s release of Urban Institute data showing Illinois’ rock bottom status for contracting with nonprofit providers.

For regular updates on the State budget crisis and actions you can take to help lessen its toll on the people of Illinois, subscribe to Donors Forum's free e-newsletter, Policy Update, and its occasional policy alerts.  Send an email to [email protected] and include your name, title, the name of your organization, and an email address.

~ Laurel O'Sullivan, Vice President, Public Policy

photo credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Illinois-counties-map.gif via Wikimedia Commons