CA Regional Centers
I'm pasting from an email my work forwarded me so if it doesn't work out I'll try again...:)
Regional Center - Cash Flow Crisis 2009
Call and Write Your California Legislators
Unless the Governor and Legislature take action to address California?s cash flow problem by February 1, the state will delay payments for most state-funded programs -- including regional centers -- for 30 days. There is a possibility that the Regional Center?s bank may be willing to lend the Center enough money to stay open and continue paying service providers, at least for an additional month. However, if this does not happen, payments to service providers will stop and RC will have to close its doors on March 15. The Center will reopen and payments to vendors will resume if and when State lawmakers make a budget deal.
The Governor and Legislature are continuing to work on this issue, and there is still time for them to reach a resolution. If a budget agreement is reached by mid-February, there should be no disruption of any sort to services. Here are three things you can do to help:
3. Sign and circulate a petition
Call each of the six leaders of the State Senate and Assembly. Click here for names and contact information. It is not necessary to speak to a particular individual ? the person answering the phone will give your message to the elected official. Be brief and courteous, and only call each office one time. Give your name and city of residence to the person answering the phone, and tell them you want the elected official to get the following messages ? be sure to use your own words to make these points:
? If California runs out of money, Regional Centers will stop being paid and they will have to close.
? If Regional Centers stop being paid, they will not be able to pay the service providers who care for people with developmental disabilities and they will close, too.
? I/my family/thousands of Californians depend on these services every day to be able to live safe, healthy and productive lives in the community.
? Please get together and solve the financial crisis and make sure that Regional Centers and service providers stay open and that California?s commitment to people (like me) with disabilities is protected.
Also call your own State Senator AND Assembly Member with the same messages. Click here for a roster of the Orange County legislative delegation.
Write letters to each of the six leaders of the State Senate and Assembly. Also write to your own State Senator and Assembly Member with the same messages. If you have access to a fax machine, fax your letter rather than putting it in the mail so the elected official receives it right away.
Keep your letter short and include your name and city of residence so the elected official will know that you live in his or her district. It is also a good idea to include something about yourself and why you care about this issue. For example, consumers should mention the services they will not be able to get if California cuts off funding for services for people with developmental disabilities and their families. Service providers should address the impact on those they serve should there be an interruption of funds.
Click here for contact information for the State Senate and Assembly leaders.
Click here for a roster of the Orange County legislative delegation.
Click here to see some sample letters, but be sure that your letter is about you and your life.
2. Sign and Circulate A Petition
California?s elected officials need to hear from as many people as possible, urging them to take action to ensure that services and supports for people with developmental disabilities are not interrupted. Click here to print out a petition that you can sign, and get your friends and family to sign. Gather as many signatures as you can, but be sure to fax them no later than February 6 to (714) 547-4365. If you do not have access to a fax machine, you can mail them to: Executive Office, Regional Center of Orange County, P.O. Box 22010, Santa Ana, CA 92702.
Contact Information for the California State Senate and Assembly Leaders:
Senate President Pro-Tem Darrell Steinberg
State Capitol Building, Room 205
Sacramento, CA 95814
PH: (916) 651-4006
Fax: (916) 323-2263
Speaker of the Assembly Karen Bass
State Capitol Building, Room 219
Sacramento, CA 95814
PH: (916) 319-2047
Fax: (916) 319-2147
Senate Republican Leader Dave Cogdill
State Capitol Building, Room 305
Sacramento, CA 95814
PH: (916) 651-4014
Fax: (916) 327-3523
AssemblyRepublicanLeaderMikeVillines
StateCapitolBuilding, Room3104
Sacramento,CA 95814
PH: (916) 319-2029
Fax: (916)319-2129
Senator Mark Leno, ChairSenate BudgetSub 3?Health and Human Services
StateCapitolBuilding, Room 4061
Sacramento,CA 95814
PH: (916)651-4003
Fax: (916) 445-4722
Assembly Member Jerry Hill, ChairAssembly Budget Sub1?Health&Human Services
StateCapitolBuilding, Room4146
Sacramento,CA95814
PH: (916)319-2019
Fax: (916)319-2119
Contact Information for Orange County State Senators and Assembly Members:
More than one Senator or Assembly Member may represent different parts of the same city, so if you are not sure who your state legislators are, call the County Registrar of Voters at (714) 567-7600 or go online to www.senate.ca.gov and click on Senators, then click on Your Senator and enter your address and zip code in the spaces provided. The names and contact information for both your State Senator and Assembly Member should pop up on your screen. You can call either the Capitol office or the local district office phone number.
Download Orange County legislative delegation list
Sample Letters to Elected Officials:
These sample letters are just a guide. Be sure that your letter is about you and your life.
Dear Senator:
I live in Santa Ana, and I have Cerebral Palsy I need the services I get from Regional Center and (name of your service provider) to have a place to /work and earn a paycheck in the community. Please solve the budget crisis and make sure that the Regional Centers don?t close. If the Regional Center closes, I will not be able to work because they will not be able to pay my job coach. I am worried. Please don?t take away my services.
Sincerely,
John Smith
Dear Assembly Member:
I am a Regional Center consumer and live in Anaheim in a group home for people with developmental disabilities. I am worried about what is happening now about the budget. Please do something soon to make sure that Regional Center has the money to pay for my group home and other services.
We need your help.
Mary Jones
Dear Assembly Member:
As a resident of Santa Ana and the mother of child with autism, I am writing to urge you to come together with your colleagues to resolve the budget crisis that threatens to shut down the regional centers and the service providers who deliver critical services and supports to families like mine. Those of us who rely on the community care system ask that you put the interests of California?s most vulnerable citizens first, and do the work necessary to ensure that their services are not interrupted.
Sincerely,
Jane Johnson
Dear Senator:
I live in Orange and work as job coach for Project Independence, a provider of services to people with developmental disabilities. The people I work with rely on me to help them be successful and productive in their jobs in the community. I am concerned that the budget crisis that threatens to shut down the regional centers also threatens to shut down service providers that do important work like ours. This will leave our clients without the supports they need to live safe, healthy and meaningful lives in the community. I urge you to work with your colleagues to reach an agreement that will ensure that people with developmental disabilities continue to receive essential services from providers like us.
Sincerely,
John Doe
Re: CA Regional Centers
BFP 3/9/12 Natural M/C 4/11/12
This is a great thing to post - hopefully people will start sending letters, etc.
Quick reminder - this affects Regional Centers throughout California so make sure you contact the ones in your district. The more people throughout CA contact their representatives - the faster this will hopefully be resolved.
My mom works for Redwood Coast Regional Center (for Northern CA). They have already been forced to take off one day per month as no pay. And like the post above said, they won't be able to pay their vendors for services soon. My mom has worked there for over 30 years and I remember one year CA didn't pass a budget for months and they issued IOUs to employees so that we could still pay for groceries, etc. It was very difficult for all of their consumers because many vendors simply stopped providing services because they weren't getting paid.