Budget Remarks to Appropriations Committee

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Rep. Phyllis Mundy

Good afternoon Chairman Evans, Chairman Civera, and members of the committee. Thank you for the opportunity to share my top priorities for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2008-2009 state budget. My testimony will focus on two critical areas: early childhood education, including education and outreach for first-time/at-risk parents, and access to home- and community-based services for senior citizens.

Research consistently shows, and the evidence continues to mount, that the most critical developmental stage, for any human being, is the time from birth to age three.  No period is more important in helping to determine how we learn and live.  As a nine-term legislator, I have been dedicated to promoting the issue of early childhood education and development for many years - and many budgets - now.

Over the past four years, Pennsylvania has taken tremendous strides and made significant investments in early childhood education and development. And while the governor deserves credit for his leadership in this area, legislators on both sides of the aisle, in each chamber of this august Capitol, can take pride in the key role that they have played in making initiatives such as Pre-K Counts a reality. So, I ask Chairman Evans, Chairman Civera, and the members of the committee to respectfully consider these FY 2008-2009 budget items for deliberation and support.

Pennsylvania has many programs that deal with children who have problems: we pay for juvenile courts and detention centers, alternate education for disruptive students, and remedial classes to help children try to catch up once they've fallen behind; programs such as these focus on intervention - they are vital, but they are very costly. The real solution lies in prevention - and prevention lies in early childhood education and development.

Investments made in the early years of a child's life generate significant benefits for the child, the family, and society as a whole. Investments in early childhood education produce considerable long-term benefits for our economy, especially when it comes to sustaining financial support for seniors - helping to keep Social Security solvent - and the influx of aging Baby Boomers into the long-term care system.

But don't take my word for it, the evidence is overwhelming. The High/Scope Perry Preschool Project, for those who don't know, is a study assessing whether high-quality preschool programs can provide both short- and long-term benefits to children. The study monitored children from ages 3 to 27 and found that for every dollar invested in early childhood education, over $8 in benefits were returned to children and society as a whole, an 8 to 1 return on investment. A 40-year follow-up of the study shows savings of $17 for each dollar invested. Those are returns that would make even the most frugal "budget hawk" very proud; the very definition of a "win-win."

And it's not all dollars and cents. The study showed that children who had not participated in the program were five times more likely to become chronic law-breakers and were 70% more likely to be arrested for a violent crime by age 18 than those who participated. Children who participate in quality childhood education programs have an advantage that begins early and stays with them for the rest of their lives, which ultimately makes our communities safer and more secure.

The proposed FY 2008-09 budget calls for $28.4 million in Child Care Services. This includes an increase of $4.8 million to maintain Keystone STARS - the largest, most comprehensive, voluntary, quality child care rating program in the nation. The success of the Keystone STARS Program has received both state and national acclaim. This increase will help to provide a quality early learning program to more than 170,000 children and assures that nearly 235,000 low- income working families, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients, and former TANF families who are now fully employed will continue to have monthly access to quality school-readiness services through the child care system.

The budget also calls for $19.9 million in child care assistance. Within this item is the subsidized Child Care Program. This program allows low-income children access to quality child care while their parents are training or working.  Using state and federal funds to supplement parental copayments, it encourages families to be self-supporting and self-sufficient, while allowing the choice of various child care options such as registered family child care homes, relatives, or neighbors. Local Child Care Information Service (CCIS) agencies offer families a choice of child care services and provide information/counseling on how to select a quality early childhood program.

Full funding in both of these areas is even more critical considering that in FY 2008-2009, the child care system will serve almost 41,000 more children of low-income working families than in 2000-2001, an increase of 75%.

Finally, the Nurse Family Partnership Program is a proven approach to supporting first-time, at-risk parents and promoting their children's healthy development. Registered nurses visit their homes during pregnancy and throughout the first two years of the baby's life. Started in 2001, this program has produced compelling results for families in Pennsylvania. The Nurse Family Partnership Program has significantly reduced smoking by mothers during pregnancy, significantly increased safety at home by decreasing incidents of domestic violence during pregnancy, and significantly increased the number of babies receiving recommended immunizations to 90%.

This budget includes a $1 million increase to expand the number of families participating in the Nurse Family Partnership Program. As a result, 240 additional families will receive services in FY 2008-2009, bringing the total number of families served to 4,287. While this increase is commendable, it is, in my opinion, not enough. I ask for your support in securing additional funding for this vital program.

Just as we need to ensure that our youth have the skills and training necessary to support our ever-increasing older population, we must also ensure that our aging Baby Boomers - many of whom began reaching retirement age this year – and other seniors have access to the care and services they need and desire.

As chairman of the House Aging and Older Adult Services Committee, I have been a staunch advocate for expanding access to home- and community-based services for seniors. It's clear that older Pennsylvanians want to remain at home for as long as possible.

Allowing seniors to age in place not only makes sense from a quality of life standpoint - by enabling them to maintain their independence and self-autonomy - but it's also more cost-effective for the Commonwealth and taxpayers. Supporting individuals in the community is much cheaper than keeping someone in institutional care, the importance of which will only increase with our aging Baby Boomer population.  According to the Office of Long-Term Living, it costs approximately $52,000 per person to provide one year of nursing home care compared to $21,000 for home- and community-based services.

I applaud the administration for their efforts to rebalance the state's long-term care system so that more seniors are able to direct their own care and age in place. I was proud to assist in the passage of the assisted living licensure bill last year and support the expansion of the Department of Aging's PDA Waiver, which provides home- and community-based services for Medicaid recipients who are nursing home eligible. However, we must not overlook other important programs if we are to fully realize our goal of helping seniors delay or avoid institutional care. One such initiative is the Aging Block Grant or PENNCARE, which funds OPTIONS and various aging services.

The Aging Block Grant is utilized by local area agencies on aging to provide extensive personalized services so that individuals can remain in their homes and communities.

Unfortunately, funding for OPTIONS has not kept pace with rising costs, resulting in waiting lists for many services, such as meals, respite for caregivers, and transportation. There are over 4,000 Pennsylvanians on the OPTIONS waiting list; this does not include those currently being underserved - meaning those who are receiving some, but not all, of the needed services.

Although the FY 2008-2009 PENNCARE appropriation - which is $247 million - contains an increase for the Attendant Care Waiver, it does not contain any increased funding for OPTIONS and the previously mentioned services. While our local area agencies on aging do a tremendous job, we must provide them the resources necessary to ensure that the needs of our seniors are properly met. The earlier we do so, the less likely these individuals will be to require more expensive/intensive care later on.

I ask for your support and advocacy for providing additional funding for the OPTIONS, including a 3% cost-of-living adjustment for all area agencies on aging to address the increased costs of doing business. Our local area agencies on aging and the direct care workers who provide much of this care do yeomen's work and must be given the support they need.

To illustrate this point further, I recently learned that there are many direct care workers in the community who have been covering a significant portion of their work-related travel expenses because the reimbursement they receive for gas, etc. has not been adequate. This is simply not acceptable and must be addressed.

Another important tool in helping seniors remain at home is the Family Caregiver Support Program. This program provides eligible family members financial support and services in caring for a functionality dependent older relative.

To expand access to the program and better maximize resources, my staff and I worked with the Department of Aging to introduce House Bill 1830. This legislation would make Pennsylvania's Family Caregiver guidelines consistent with the federal government, as well as increase the monthly reimbursement limit and grant caps - representing the first adjustment since the inception of the state program in 1990.

It's important to note that HB 1830 does not require any additional appropriations. In fact, the FY 2008-2009 budget calls for the same level of funding as last year - $12.1 million. All this bill would do is enable our local area agencies on aging to more effectively target the funding they already receive.

House Bill 1830 unanimously passed the House of Representatives and the Senate Aging and Youth Committee last year. It is currently in the Senate Appropriations Committee, where it was referred on January 14, 2008. We must not forget that today's caregivers are not limited to traditional family members but increasingly include friends and neighbors. It is with this in mind that I ask for your assistance in making sure this important legislation is enacted either before or in conjunction with the FY 2008-2009 budget.

Before I conclude my remarks, I'd like to take a few moments to talk about senior centers. I believe senior centers play an important role in our communities. Many older Pennsylvanians participate in senior center activities on a daily basis - benefiting from continued social interaction with their peers, as well as from educational and recreational opportunities.

Seniors can also take advantage of additional services while at the center, including hot meals. Senior centers also provide a wealth of information about programs available to older adults.

Clearly, senior centers enrich and engage our elderly population and allow them to live independently and stay connected to their communities. I believe that we should do all we can to support these valuable resources and respectfully request your support for ensuring adequate funding.

Thank you again for the opportunity to share my budget priorities with you.