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News for Nonprofits, May 2010

NEWS FOR NONPROFITS connects nonprofits in Santa Clara, San Mateo, and Santa Cruz counties with news and resources. The content provided is for informational purposes; no endorsement is implied.

Please feel free to forward this newsletter to other nonprofit leaders in our area. If you have questions about items in this newsletter, state legislation, or state agencies, or would like to submit an item for the next issue, please do not hesitate to contact Hema Sareen Mohan, my District Director and Nonprofits Liaison, at (650) 688-6384 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

You can subscribe to this newsletter and access additional resources at www.senatorsimitian.com. To unsubscribe, click the link at the bottom of this email.

Contents:


Budget Update
Last year, Governor Schwarzenegger and the Legislature addressed a staggering deficit through a combination of spending cuts and revenue increases. Nevertheless, the global economic downturn has placed a significant strain on California’s state budget.
 
In November 2009, the Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO), which provides nonpartisan fiscal and policy analysis to the Legislature, released a report that found the state will face a shortfall of $20.7 billion between now and the end of the 2010-11 budget year.  This represents a projected $6.3 billion deficit for 2009-10 and a $14.4 billion gap between projected revenues and spending in 2010-11. 
 
On January 8th, 2010, the Governor released the 2010-2011 state budget. He also called a special session of the Legislature to address the $20 billion deficit in the current and upcoming fiscal years. 
 
Since January, the Legislature sent a series of bills to the Governor to reduce the budget gap by $4 billion. In March, the Governor signed several pieces of legislation. However, he vetoed the largest component of the package, Assembly Bill 8X 2, which would have reduced the deficit by $2.2 billion through various program cuts and payment deferrals.
 
Following is a breakdown of the annual losses that each county in my Senate district will bear in human services funding as a result of the Governor’s proposed cuts if the proposed budget is approved:

                                                                                                                                                   
San Mateo County  
Children’s health benefits or coverage $12,059,000
SSI/SSP and CAPI     $5,758,000
CalWORKS     $21,005,000
Santa Clara County 
Children’s health benefits or coverage $37,377,000
SSI/SSP and CAPI     $15,127,000
CalWORKS     $126,566,000
Santa Cruz County 
Children’s health benefits or coverage $7,559,000
SSI/SSP and CAPI     $919,000
CalWORKS    $17,765,000


The Legislature will continue working with the Governor to find common ground and implement the necessary solutions. Economic development and job creation will be key.  The Governor will release a revised budget for the upcoming fiscal year in a couple of weeks.  In the meantime, you can visit the following sites for more information about the budget:
 
Legislative Analyst’s Office: www.lao.ca.gov
California Budget Project: www.cbp.org

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Senate District 11 Woman of the Year: Judy Chirco
Every year around this time, legislators honor women who live or work in their districts.  This year, I selected Judy Chirco, Vice Mayor of San Jose, as my 11th Senate District Woman of the Year.

There are so many remarkable women doing good work in my district that it is always a challenge to single out just one for recognition.  But Judy’s service as a city leader, a school leader, a neighborhood activist and an advocate for social justice has been extraordinary. 

Judy, a resident of San Jose’s Cambrian neighborhood for four decades, has represented her community on San Jose’s City Council since 2002. A passionate and effective community activist, she previously served on the Cambrian School Board for eleven years. 

She has also championed numerous projects for children. As a board member of the San Jose-based nonprofit organization PACT - People Acting in Community Together, she worked to fund San Jose’s Homework Center Program and guarantee children’s access to health care. Judy currently chairs the city’s Healthy Neighborhood Venture Fund, and is a representative to the San Jose City/School Collaborative.

Please join me in honoring Judy at a community celebration on Thursday, May 6.  It will take place from 4:30 - 6:00 p.m. at the Camden Community Center at 3369 Union Avenue, San Jose.  The event is free and open to the public.  To RSVP, go to: http://www.senatorsimitian.com/chirco

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Where you can find me in the District
In addition to the event for Judy Chirco, I’ll be hosting my annual open house and ice cream social in my Santa Cruz office.  I invite you to discuss issues of concern to our community, join the conversation on legislation that affects you, and meet my District and Capitol staff.  The event will be held on Thursday, May 27 from 4:00 to 6:00 pm at the  Santa Cruz County Government Center at 701 Ocean Street, Room 318A, Santa Cruz, California.  The event is free and open to the public.  For more information, call (831) 425-0401.

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Regional Announcements

     
  • Parent Project, a national program that empowers parents to deal with destructive behaviors in teens, is available in Santa Clara County.  It provides a straightforward, step-by-step action plan that allows parents to take immediate steps toward preventing or intervening when their teenagers are dealing with truancy, drug and alcohol use, gangs, violence, family conflict or running away.   The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s office, working with other agencies, has implemented the program with groups in both English and Spanish in San Jose and Sunnyvale.  Cost is $120 per person or $155 a couple, with payment options and scholarships available.  For more information, call San Jose (408) 808-3794 or Sunnyvale (408) 730-7145 or email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
     
  • Three publications about the educational experiences of young people in the foster care system were recently released by the John W. Gardner Center (JGC) for Youth and Their Communities. They are the result of a partnership between the JGC and Advocates for Children; the San Mateo County Human Services Agency; school districts, and others.  The documents are available at http://gardnercenter.stanford.edu/current_initiatives/youth_archive.html.  For questions, contact Kara Dukakis at (650) 721-2971.
     
  • Qualified low-income individuals with one or more minor children and income less than 200% of the Federal Poverty Level have a new subsidized employment program, SMC Works, that provides employment opportunities.  SMC Works subsidizes wages and other costs, with participating employers receiving up to 100% of wage subsidies.  The program is funded through ARRA of 2009.  Current CalWORKS clients are eligible.   Employers interested in taking part  will  fill out an application form, then work with an SMC Works staff person to complete the subsidy agreement.  Organizations may refer potential job seekers by submitting a referral form to SMC Works, which will contact the job seeker directly to determine eligibility and begin the job-matching process.  To obtain the forms, email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or call (650) 877-5627.
     
  • For caregivers, Mills-Peninsula Senior Focus has a Caregiving Library with books and DVDs available free to provide information about managing such issues as hands-on personal care skills, dementia care, stress management, brain workouts, facility placement and legal issues.  The library is located at 1720 El Camino Real, Suite 10, Burlingame, and is usually open weekdays from 8 AM to 4 PM.  Call (650) 696-3660 for an appointment.
     
  • A new program to provide eight weeks of leadership training for local young people with disabilities has been started by the Silicon Valley Independent Living Center (SVILC) in San Jose.  A competitive grant for $150,000 was awarded by the California Department of Rehabilitation through ARRA.  The new program provides peer mentoring services to support the transition of people with disabilities into community-based housing.  The grant was awarded to SVILC jointly with the California Foundation of Independent Living Centers based in Sacramento.  Call (408) 894-9041 for more information.
     
  • WebGrants is the City of San Jose’s grant management system that provides a single convenient point of entry to view and apply for the City’s active grant opportunities.  Once you pre-register your organization and your registration is approved, you will be able to view and apply for City grants as they become available.  WebGrants will also generate email alerts on the status of each application throughout the submission cycle.  More than 200 returning grantees are pre-registered; to see if your agency is already in the system, contact Andrew Freeman at (408) 793-4182 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). 
     
  • The Energy Partners Program sponsored by PG&E provides free services to renters and homeowners who meet income guidelines.  Included are weatherization measures such as caulking, door weather stripping, attic insulation and more.  Eligible customers may qualify for free energy-efficient appliances such as refrigerators and wall air-conditioners.  For information, call PG&E’s Smarter Energy Line at (800) 933-9555 or visit www.pge.com/myhome/customerservice/financialassistance/energypartners.
     
  • The Community Information Program (CIP) has had the greatest demand for the current issue of its Community Information Handbook 2010 in the 30 years of the pamphlet’s publication.  The 72-page booklet, a joint effort of the San Mateo County Human Services Agency and the Peninsula Library System, has information on general human services for San Mateo County residents.   Email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) for free printed copies in English or Spanish or the website http://cip.plsinfo.org  to download a PDF version.  Provide your name, phone, number of copies and mailing address.  (For more than 20 copies, please arrange a pickup.)  Call (650) 802-7950 for more information.
     
  • The Foundation Center issued a research advisory, Climate Change:  The U.S. Foundation Response, that reveals that foundation funding to address issues related to global warming has gown rapidly, climbing from less than $100 million in 2000 to more than $850 million in 2008.  In a separate Foundations’ Year-end Outlook for Giving and the Sector Overall, the Center predicted that foundation giving overall will likely decline by more than 10 percent in 2009 and experience a similar decline in 2010.  Visit http://foundationcenter.org/gainknowledge/
      for more information.
     
  • Volunteer attorneys and law students at the East Palo Alto-based Community Legal Services provide free legal services in consumer law.   Help is not limited to East Palo Alto residents.  Topics include contract disputes, fraud, identity theft, automobile purchase problems and more.  Call (650) 326-6440 for more information.
     
  • A new Job Center at the San Mateo Main Library, 55 West Third Avenue, offers job seekers computers to search and apply for jobs.  It is open Monday through Friday, 11 AM to 2 PM.  Volunteers with experience in human resources, coaching and teaching are on hand to help.
     
  • Check with CEN (Center for Excellence in Non-Profits) for currently available roundtables for executive directors who are members.  They are an opportunity to share experiences and learn from colleagues who speak the same language and face the same challenges.  Members of each small group choose their own topics and spend two hours a month in the six-month course ($200, including lunch).  Meetings are located in Palo Alto, Half Moon Bay, San Jose and San Mateo.  Call (408) 945-4500 for more information.
     
  • To help families pay for  their children’s medical care not covered by their commercial health insurance plans,  the United Healthcare Children’s Foundation (UHCCF) gives grants of up to $5,000.  The grants help pay for medical services and equipment such as physical and occupational therapy, prescriptions, wheelchairs, orthodontics, eyeglasses and hearing aids.  Grants are also provided in cases where insurance may cover only a portion of the expenses. Last year UHCCF awarded more than 450 grants for treatments associated with medical conditions such as speech and developmental delays, hearing loss, autism, diabetes, cystic fibrosis, Down syndrome and cerebral palsy.  Children must be 16 years old or younger.  Families must meet economic guidelines, reside in the United States, and have a commercial health insurance plan.  Parents and legal guardians may apply for grants online at www.uhccf.org.
     
  • Recent earthquakes in Haiti and Chile have demonstrated the importance of disaster preparedness.  United Way Silicon Valley and the American Red Cross Silicon Valley Chapter have joined forces to save CADRE (Collaborating Agencies’ Disaster Relief Effort), which was threatened when the Volunteer Center of Silicon Valley was no longer able to provide support.  Community-based nonprofit organizations are vital in a time of crisis, and CADRE offers a way for them to coordinate efforts efficiently.  CADRE, founded 20 years ago,  is made up of nearly 300 nonprofits and community service providers.  The network uses such centralized resources as the phone number 2-1-1 and website www.211scc.org to provide critical information about services that are available, including shelter, food and water, evacuations, road closures, and response and recovery efforts. 

Related Pages: Nonprofit Newsletter