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A u g u s t - S eptember
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Shaving a thin line
,
In August the state implements cuts in General Assistance
that will hit the most needy—including those with AIDS
▼
by Inga Sorensen
he executive director of Oregon’s larg­
est AIDS nonmedical service provider
says she fears a cut in monthly general
assistance benefits from $286 to $250
could have an adverse impact on many
of her agency’s 1,600 clients.
“Many people living with AIDS rely on ben­
efits to get by,” says Cascade AIDS Project’s
Susan Stoltenberg. “Even the smallest cut can push
someone over the edge in terms of not being able
to pay their rent. It’s terrible.”
General Assistance, a pregram of the Oregon
Department of Human Resources, is for mentally
or physically disabled people who are unemploy­
able for more than a year and have no financial
resources. Under the budget approved by state
lawmakers in June, the monthly benefits were to be
reduced to $210 and take effect July 1. Funding
was partially restored—bringing the monthly al­
lotment to $250—and took effect Aug. 1.
“We don’t know exactly how many of our
clients receive [GA funding]
specifically, but what we do
know is that 25 percent of our
caseload receives some type of
housing
su b sid y ,” says
Stoltenberg. “It’s logical that GA
funding is going to be a part of
that.”
“I am alarmed at the poten­
tial consequences of this reduc­
tion. The least expensive hous­
ing in the area is found in down­
town hotels; many GA recipi­
ents currently live in these ho­
tels. The rent for even this mod­
est housing will be out of reach
for many GA recipients once their monthly ben­
efits are reduced,” says Bobby Weinstock, housing
program manager for Northwest Pilot Project, a
nonprofit organization that serves people facing
economic hardship.
According to Dana Brown of Multnomah
County Community Action, which assists a simi­
lar constituency, there are approximately 900 GA
recipients in Multnomah County. Her group esti­
mates as many as 200 people will lose their hous­
ing in August and September and need emergency
shelter due to this cut.
“These cuts may seem small to some people,
but we’re talking about taking away from those
who don’t have anything,” she says.
In a June 30 letter to Gov. John Kitzhaber, state
Rep. Gail Shibley (D-Portland) urged for funding
to be maintained at the $286 level, citing the
estimated costs needed to provide emergency shel­
ter for those directly affected by the cuts.
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She writes: ‘T o provide emergency shelter for
any one person in Multnomah County costs from
$250 to $300 a month. Total cost must also figure
the social work costs borne by local governments
and nonprofit agencies to help these people move
back from homelessness to housing.
“Because many are frail or ill, increased medi­
cal and hospitalization costs due to difficulties of
living on the streets must also be added. Thus, if
even one-third of the GA clients in Multnomah
County become homeless, emergency shelter for
them will cost from $ 1.8 to $2.2 million in operat­
ing costs.”
According to Shibley, most GA recipients are
in the process of applying for Social Security
Insurance benefits, which she calls a “frustratingly
lengthy process.”
In her letter, she says, “[Upon] the approval of
the SSI applications, the federal government reim­
burses [Oregon] for all monthly GA payments
made to that person. Approximately 80 percent of
all GA recipients ultimately re­
ceive SSI. It seems a short­
sighted solution for the State to
put hundreds of people at risk of
homelessness and push the re­
sulting cost onto local govern­
ments and nonprofit social ser­
vice agencies, when continuing
the current level of GA funding
could prevent this impending
crisis.”
Stoltenberg says the cuts will
indeed lead to added strain on
her agency. “Housing issues
have always been a top priority
for people with HIV/AIDS,” she
says. “We’re talking about people who are strug­
gling to get by, who often can’t work and rely on
their benefits. [CAP] has worked to offer assis­
tance, but it’s never easy.”
Stoltenberg says that even though CAP re­
cently received $327,000 in federal funds to pro­
vide housing assistance to people with HIV and
AIDS, the money had been allotted for particular
purposes before the cut was announced. “The
reduction in GA benefits took us totally by sur­
prise,” she says.
State officials reportedly say the payments will
continue at the $250 level until December, with the
hope that enough money can be secured at a
November meeting of the Legislative Emergency
Board to restore the payments to $286 through
June 1997. They say in order to restore the funding
and stay within the budget, however, they’re de­
pending on receiving federal funds.
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Wfcn
Deschutes human rights
group gains new member
The Hispanic Advocacy Council board of
directors says it will join under the nonprofit
umbrella of the Deschutes County Coalition for
Human Dignity.
Carmen Bauer, a HAC board member, says,
“The vision of the coalition is to become a true
coalition of like-minded people and groups. We
share that vision.”
Coalition members, meanwhile, say they look
forward to working with HAC on justice and
equality issues.
In related news, citizens living in Central
Oregon have a place to turn to in order to report
acts of bias, intolerance or discrimination. It’s
called the Deschutes Discrimination Reporting
Line, a 24-hour reporting and referral line spon­
sored by the Deschutes County Coalition for
Human Dignity. The line was established a year
and a half ago and is designed to provide support
and referrals to individuals and groups who wish
to report an act of intolerance or a bias-related
incident.
The Discrimination Reporting Line needs vol­
unteers to staff the hotline and funds to continue
the service. The hotline’s number is 383-4113.
Those interested in volunteering can call the Bend-
based Deschutes County Coalition for Human
Dignity at 385-3320.
Inga Sorensen