[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 61 (Wednesday, May 17, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4114-S4115]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
By Mr. GRAHAM (for himself, Mr. Jeffords, Mr. Grassley, and Mr.
Rockefeller):
S. 2585. A bill to amend titles IV and XX of the Social Security Act
to restore funding for the Social Services Block Grant, to restore the
ability of the States to transfer up to 10 percent of TANF funds to
carry out activities under such block grant, and to require an annual
report on such activities by the Secretary of Health and Human
Services; to the Committee on Finance.
protecting the social services block grant
Mr. GRAHAM. Mr. President, I rise today with my colleagues Senators
Jeffords, Grassley, and Rockefeller to introduce a bill to restore
critical funding to the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG).
Mr. President, the Social Services Block Grant, Title XX of the
Social Security Act, was created in 1981 by combining funding for
social services and related staff training, and was intended to be the
primary source of federal funds for social services. Funds are
allocated to states on a per capita basis and they can use them to
address abuse and neglect and to encourage self sufficiency and
independence.
Since its creation, SSBG has successfully provided states with funds
to address the social service needs they see as most pressing. States
have broad flexibility in determining which services meet the needs of
their unique populations, who should deliver the services and which
families and individuals to serve. The array of needed programs covered
under this important block grant range from adoption services to adult
protective services--from home delivered meals to day care--from
education and training programs to residential treatment services.
In the 1996 welfare law, an agreement was made between Congress and
the States to decrease the SSBG from $2.8b to $2.38b until welfare
reform was firmly established. The Finance Committee guaranteed states
that SSBG would be funded at $2.38 billion per year until FY03 when it
would be restored to $2.8b. In order to allow them to continue to fund
critical social service programs, Congress allowed states to transfer
10 percent of its Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block
grant to SSBG. This was an important promise that has been broken. This
legislation allows us to return to our promise and an agreement that
was critical to the success of the new welfare system.
As members of the Finance Committee, we have an acute understanding
of the value of the programs over which we have oversight
responsibilities. We have consistently worked, with some success, to
ensure the foundation of SSBG.
This overarching commitment was exemplified during the FY 2000 budget
process. The Senate showed its bipartisan support for this important
program by voting 57-39 to restore Title XX funding to its authorized
level of $2.38 billion. Unfortunately, in the final omnibus
appropriations bill, Title XX funding was cut from its authorized level
of $2.38 billion to $1.775 billion. This $600 million cut is having a
direct impact on the availability of necessary services for the
nation's neediest citizens.
This year, the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health, and
Human Services and Education has included draconian cuts to this
critical program by decreasing the funding levels from $1.7 billion to
$600 million. This level of reduction is simply unacceptable and would
virtually bankrupt the program.
Our bill would ensure that Title XX funds would remain available to
support needed services for children and families in crisis. The block
grant has also been one of the only funding sources available for
community-based services for elderly and disabled persons. It is
unconscionable that this critical source of funding for the most basic
and necessary of social services has been cut by over $1 billion in a
short five years, and that the Senate Appropriations Committee would
suggest a billion dollar cut in one year alone.
If adequate funding for this program is not restored to SSBG,
vulnerable children, families, elderly, and disabled persons will be
without the assistance they need to live independently. Title XX
provides the support necessary for families in crisis, the elderly, and
many persons with both physical and mental disabilities to live
independently in the community. These funds also provide support
through childcare and counseling, both of which are necessary for
persons with multiple barriers to employment to successfully leave the
TANF rolls.
The importance of the Social Services Block Grant is not only
recognized
[[Page S4115]]
by state and local governments, but also by non profit providers across
the country who have joined together with governments in support of
this block grant. Congress needs to also recognize the Social Services
Block Grant as the critical safety-net program that it is, and pass our
bill to restore funding to the levels necessary to keep our promise to
our neediest citizens.
I hope that my Senate colleagues will join us in cosponsoring this
critical piece of legislation.
Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I am very pleased to join my esteemed
colleagues, Senators Graham and Jeffords, in introducing this important
piece of legislation. Title XX, the Social Services Block Grant, is
crucial to states. Congress needs to meet its earlier commitment to
this program and restore funding to the level authorized in 1996.
The Social Services Block Grant allows states the flexibility to fill
in the gaps in their human services system. Through this funding,
states, local governments and non-profit organizations can supplement
other federal programs and leverage additional funding and resources to
support an array of social service programs that are critical to those
in need.
Millions of elderly people have benefitted from Title XX as have
hundreds of thousand of individuals with disabilities. States use these
funds to help support crucial services such as respite care for the
elderly, adult protective services, supported living and transportation
for the disabled. In recent years, more than a quarter of these funds
have been used to support children's services. Child protective
services, foster care and adoption programs have all been supplemented
with these funds.
In my home state of Iowa, Social Services Block Grant funds are used
to supplement numerous service programs. One program uses these funds
to help transport individuals with developmental disabilities to their
jobs and so that they may receive medical treatment. Funds are also
used to help people with disabilities live in their communities, saving
significant amounts of money that would otherwise go to caring for them
in institutions.
Congress has consistently cut this important program in order to pay
for other things. It is time that we restore funding to the level we
authorized in 1996. Without this funding, important services that
protect children, the elderly and the disabled will not be provided. I
urge my other colleagues in the Senate to support our efforts to
restore this program to the necessary level of funding.
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