Neighborhood Partnerships

Neighborhood Partnerships is pleased to release its 2010-2011 Annual Report. Each year, we release an Annual Report to quantify our work over the past year. You can also view previous Annual Reports. Each year, we build and manage strong partnerships that create change and advance progress in our community, and work to enhance the lives of Oregonians across the state through high profile collaborations, initiatives and programs. We work to ensure that Oregon remains the state we all value: a place that offers all of us a chance to thrive; a state where the ladder of opportunity is within reach; a place where race and class inequities are addressed and not overlooked; a place with adequately supported systems to move us forward together; and a place in which we build on our traditions of acting together for the common good.

As you know from reading this blog, there have been a lot of changes to safety net programs for Oregon families over the past several months due to state budget cuts. The Oregon State Legislature needs to know what the impact of the cuts were, and you now have an opportunity to help us tell the story!

In August, a workgroup was formed which is seeking to help the Legislature understand the impact of the budget cuts that were made during the 2011 Legislative session. The workgroup is mainly comprised of DHS staff, but also incorporate partners, including members of the TANF Alliance, such as Neighborhood Partnerships.

As part of the workgroup’s interest in understanding the impact of the budget cuts, we have created a survey. The survey is sponsored by the workgroup, the Family Services Review Commission, the Oregon Department of Human Services, among others.

We need your help! Please consider filling out this survey on changes to the TANF Program! Have the changes to the TANF program affected your agency or your agency’s ability to serve clients? We want to hear from you!

We’d like to hear from organizations or churches that serve people who also receive TANF, current or former TANF clients, family and friends of someone with TANF benefits, people who have applied for TANF, and DHS case workers or JOBS contractors.

Help us tell the Oregon legislature how changes to the TANF program are affecting families with children by filling out this survey: http://www.fsrcoregon.org/. The survey is available now until Wednesday, November 9th. Please fill it out today!

This survey is anonymous and participation will NOT affect anyone’s TANF benefits. You will not be asked to share your name.

Thank you for sharing your story. This information can help shape the future of TANF in Oregon. Interested in passing along the survey to others? Download a flyer here: http://bit.ly/v73dmf. Questions? Contact Alison at amcintosh@neighborhoodpartnerships.org or Jessica at TANFsurvey@gmail.com or 503.595.5501 x305.

For Immediate Release
October 3, 2011

For More Information, Contact:
Janet Byrd
503.516.4698

Cuts continue to impact Oregon families

Oregon’s Department of Human Services implemented additional cuts on October 1 as a result of the budget passed by the Legislature for 2011-2013 in June. These cuts impact hundreds of Oregonians, and are on top of cuts that took effect on July 1.

The Department of Human Services made additional cuts to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program on October 1. The TANF program supports families in times of crisis by providing safety net services such as small amounts of cash assistance, help finding employment and meeting basic needs.

“The 2011 Legislative session was a disaster for low income families in Central Oregon,” said Kenny LaPoint, Housing and Resident Services Director for Housing Works in Redmond. “The continuing recession and cuts to safety net services have left too many of our neighbors at risk of homelessness. These devastating cuts to essential services and supports will hit hardest and be hardest felt by those who are already most affected by the recession. “

On October 1, there will be additional cuts implemented as a result of the 2011-2013 budget. As a result of these cuts, there will be cuts to a program that helped provide supplemental assistance for families with disabilities. On October 1, there will also be changes to the eligibility process for TANF, which may make it more difficult for families in crisis to get the help they so desperately need.

“The Legislature can make different choices. We can have a strong safety net in Oregon to protect those among us who are struggling,” said Mike Fieldman, Executive Director of United Community Action Network in Roseburg. “The TANF program provided a safety net for families who were struggling to keep a roof over their head and their children fed. We need a state that will help protect families and children and give children an opportunity to succeed in school and life.”

These cuts come a few months after a series of other devastating cuts to these critical safety net services. On July 1, there were cuts to a program which helps families get back to work, including services such as job placement and training, child care assistance and transportation assistance. These services often were the only services available in communities to help families get the skills and assistance they needed to go back to work.

“Cuts to the safety net that we provide for families in Oregon have been devastating. We all have moments of needing assistance, and too many of our families are without personal safety nets to protect them during times of recession,” said Janet Byrd, Chair of the Housing Alliance. “We need the Legislature to prioritize providing basic needs to help families most affected by the recession, including restoring any available funding to the TANF program.”

The Housing Alliance is calling on the Legislature in February to consider the impact of their 2011-2013 budget, and the consequences for our families and neighbors.