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Statement by Christine James-Brown, President and a CEO, Child Welfare League of America on President Bush's Proposed Cut To the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG)
For more information, contact
Joyce Johnson
Phone: 804/492-4519
Cell: 703/980-7641
E-mail: jjohnson@cwla.org
February 4, 2008, Arlington, VA -- The president's proposed budget for 2009 makes an unconscionable mistake in calling for a drastic cut of half a billion in the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG) and its elimination in two years.
SSBG represents 12% of all federal funding states receive from the federal government to provide child abuse prevention, adoption, foster care, child protection, independent and transitional living, and residential services for children and youth.
Under the President's budget SSBG would be decreased from $1.7 billion to $1.2 billion. He compounds this damage by further advocating for its elimination by 2010. While the Administration justifies this proposal by condemning SSBG as a block grant they cannot track for results, at the same time the Administration continues to advocate for converting foster care funding into an optional state block grant.
In FY 2005, the latest data available for SSBG, states spent over $755 million in SSBG funds on services to children and youth, including adoption, foster care, child protection, independent living, and residential services:
- 30 states used $38 million in SSBG funds to assist in the adoption of children. In 2005, more than 181,000 children and families received support funded in part by SSBG.
- 38 states used nearly $359 million in SSBG funds for foster care services to more than 500,000 children. These funds helped to subsidize some of the costs for children in care.
- 41 states used more than $257 million in SSBG funds to protect children from abuse and neglect. More than 1.8 million children and adults received services funded in part by SSBG dollars.
- 18 states used $8 million in SSBG funds to provide independent and transitional living services to more than 2,800 youths.
- $93 million in SSBG funds supported residential treatment to more than 27,000 youth in 23 states.
- 35 states used $145 million in SSBG funds to help more than 846,000 children, adults, and families for prevention and intervention services. Services and activities designed to provide early identification and to target services that might prevent incidents of abuse, neglect, or family violence, along with other harmful behaviors.
In addition to child welfare services, SSBG funds are used to provide child care, home delivered meals for senior citizens, family planning services, services to the disabled and domestic violence services; substance abuse treatment, education and training, and a range of home-based services.
It is unfortunate that the President failed to use his last budget as a way to fortify services for children who have been abused and neglected and instead is compounding cuts enacted last year. We call on Congress to reject the President's budget and in particular the unconscionable elimination of the SSBG program.
Founded in 1920, the Child Welfare League of America (CWLA), has been the pre-eminent organization dedicated to ensuring that disadvantaged and vulnerable children are protected from harm and have the tools and resources necessary to help them grow into happy and healthy adults.
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