By: Sen. Adam Kline

Our historic revenue shortfall threatens programs that offer life-saving safety-nets for thousands across our state. (In Budget Impossible, part 3 I discuss some of the causes and consequences of the shortfall, as well as possible ways to address our revenue crisis.)

The General Assistance-Unemployable (GA-U) is one program I think we must preserve. GA-U provides critical financial and medical assistance to adults who are unable to work due to disability and ineligible for other programs our state offers like unemployment insurance, worker compensation benefits, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. GA-U provides a stipend of $339/month and medical benefits for low-income adults ages 18 to 64 if they have no dependents and are expected to be unemployable for more than 90 days because they are physically or mentally incapacitated. Statewide enrollment averages about 16,000 people; of these, 5,593 live in King Co. That’s about 32% of the total number of people on GA-U statewide.

In our district, 2,870 people rely on GA-U to help cover their basic expenses. These are real people, not just statistics. The GA-U program helps keep thousands of people from becoming homeless and provides them with vouchers for the medical services they need. As it is, the state’s homeless population is expected to grow by 20,000 in the next 12 months. Cutting this program during a recession is the opposite of what we should be doing as a matter of policy. But these cuts are not motivated by any policy at all. We just don’t have the money.

In her proposed Operating Budget released in December, the Governor cut GA-U completely. In the proposed Senate Budget released on March 30, we kept the program intact but reduced the cash benefit by $130 million. We reduced the GA-U medical benefit by roughly $60 million (25%). This proposal would probably result in lowering the enrollment of the program to 13,000. People who receive the stipend would have an even more difficult time than they already have in getting proper medical care.

GA-U fared better in the Operating Budget proposal released by the House of Representatives March 31. The House proposal kept the cash stipend intact, but reduced funding for medical benefits. In the 2007-09 biennium, the Legislature added a mental health component to the pilot project. The House proposes to eliminate this mental health component.

Of all the cuts being considered this legislative session, GA-U is one of the most devastating. It’s estimated that 25% of GA-U clients are homeless, and at least half of them are living with mental health problems. The monthly stipend isn’t much, but it assists folks with basic necessities like food and shelter. These cuts will undermine our local efforts to end homelessness. As well as causing personal suffering for thousands of people, this cut will also result in increased short and long-term expenses.

Without GA-U, it's likely that these folks will end up in situations that will be much more costly than the monthly grant, such as trips to the emergency room. And it's not just the next few years that I'm worried about. Even if we're able to restore funding to these programs a few years, long-term damage will be done. For example, many of the people who aren't able to get adequate medical care in the next few years (and who survive) will develop more expensive health problems down the line. It will take many years for individuals and our community to recover from the damage we cause by making these cuts.

People who receive GA-U funds contribute to our local economy by spending that money directly in our community. While it’s not my primary reason for supporting this program, we have to remember in these hard economic times that these dollars benefit our communities, and not just the individuals who receive the benefit.

I’ve posted several videos of GA-U recipients so you can better understand the importance of this program.

I’m dedicated to keeping the GA-U program intact, but at this point, I can’t make any promises. Stay tuned. The outline of a final state budget is now beginning to emerge. These videos were provided by the folks at http://savegau.com/