Webinar presented July 10, 2013 by Michigan League for Public Policy. Sponsored by the Council of Michigan Foundations, Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan and the Jewish Fund.
Verified Love Spells in Little Rock, AR (310) 882-6330 Get My Ex-Lover Back
Why Policy Matters to Southeast Michigan
1. July 10, 2013, 10 a.m.
Gilda Z. Jacobs, President & CEO
Renell Weathers, Outreach Director
Why Policy Matters to
Southeast Michigan
1
2. 1223 Turner St. Suite G-1, Lansing, MI 48906-4369 (517) 487-5436
Fax: (517) 371-4546 Web site: www.mlpp.org
A United Way Agency 2
The League is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research and advocacy organization dedicated to economic
opportunity for all in Michigan.
The Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan is a
permanent community endowment that works to improve the quality of life in Southeast Michigan by
connecting those who care with causes that matter.
The Jewish Fund The Jewish Fund was established in 1997 from the proceeds of the sale of Sinai
Hospital to the Detroit Medical Center. The Jewish Fund continues the tradition of assuring excellent and
compassionate care for those in need in Metropolitan Detroit through its annual grantmaking.
The Council of Michigan Foundations is a nonprofit membership association
of more than 350 grant-making organizations working together to strengthen, promote and increase
philanthropy in Michigan.
4. • Child poverty in region up by 28%
• Detroit has most concentrated
poverty of 50 largest cites
• Unemployment in region higher
than before Great Recession
4
SE Michigan families struggle long
after Great Recession receded
5. A decade of disinvestment
-30%
-15%
0%
15%
30%
45%
60%
53%
21%
-7%
-0.8%
-5%
-29% -25%
16%
7%
PercentChange
Change in Detroit
CPI FY 2003-FY 2013: 21%
5
6. The (wrong) solutions
• Cut business
taxes
• Raise taxes on
working poor
• Cut programs
for kids and
families
• Disinvest in
education
• Fight
Obamacare
• Sequestration
…. 6
7. The cost of not expanding Medicaid
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
Wayne Oakland Macomb Livingston Monroe St. Clair Washtenaw
47%
38% 38%
34%
38%
41%
45%
Percent of Uninsured In SE MI That Would Be
Covered with Medicaid Expansion
7
8. • Without expanded
Medicaid, many
women will not get
needed
preconception care.
• Infant mortality
reduction plan
remains
underfunded at $2
million in FY14.
Infant
Mortality
Michigan
7.1 deaths per
1,000 live births
8
11. Poverty in SE Michigan
0%
10%
20%
30%
Total Poverty Child Poverty
13.7%
20.0%
17.8%
25.7%
2007 2011
Source: American Community Survey, U.S. Census Bureau
11
12. Overall ranking in child well-being
County Rank
Livingston 2
Oakland 5
Washtenaw 6
Monroe 16
Macomb 18
St. Clair 33
Wayne 76
12
21. SE Michigan sequester fallout
Automatic
across-the-board cuts
Head start, education,
healthcare, job training
21,000 kids
losing clothing allowance
for one year
21
22. Changes since 2010
• 48-month lifelong limit on cash assistance.
• Asset test added to limits on who can receive food assistance.
• Annual clothing allowance rules tightened for kids on cash assistance
• Clothing allowance eliminated in FY13
• Unemployment benefits reduced
• Cash assistance cut to parents of truants
• Pending bill to reimburse the department if they’ve won more than $600 from the Michigan
Lottery in the past decade
• Pending legislation would mandate public assistance applicants or clients undergo testing if
they’re suspected of drug use. Those testing positive would have to undergo treatment to
keep their benefits.
• New legislation would create an asset test to further limit the number of parents qualified
for public-funded child care.
• The state Earned Income Tax Credit rate was dropped last year to 6 percent of the federal
rate, down from 20 percent.
• The homestead property tax credit, also a state income tax write-off, was reduced.
• A $600 per-child state income tax exemption was eliminated. It applies to everyone, but hits
low-income people the hardest.
• Charitable tax deductions were eliminated, causing a drop in donations to food banks,
homeless shelters and other resources for the poor. 22
23. Policy changes impact SE MI
ANNUAL LOSS OF ASSISTANCE:
= $82.2 Mil = $53.6 Mil
TOTAL = $135.8 million
each year for region
23
24. Education matters
• State has cut $1.6 billion a year in
spending over the last decade
• Half came from education
• Good news: $65 million for
preschool
24
25. Questions?
Click hand icon to raise your hand to ask a
question. You will be unmuted.
OR
Type your question in the webinar tool
box.
25
26. • Put it in writing
• Make a call
• Put in face time
• Build a relationship
26
Advocacy tools
27. • Friends
• Title or position
• Information
• Numbers
• Constituents
• Money
27
What influences decision makers
Voices Leadership Training Michigan's Children
28. Voices Leadership Training Michigan's Children
Fur Affection
Costliness
Sneezing
Shedding
Kitty LitterCleanliness
Cat Food
Vets
Cat frame
28
29. “When you need a
friend, it’s too late to
make one.”
—Mark Twain
29
31. Form emails
Form letters
Phone calls
Individualized emails
Individualized letters
In-person meetings
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
A lot of
influence
Some
influence
No influence
at all
Influence of Advocacy Communications on Legislators
Source: Congressional Management Foundation
31
32. o Learn if you need to be a
registered lobbyist, and if you do,
register to be a lobbyist and
become an active participant in
impacting policy decisions.
o Registration handled by the
Michigan Secretary of State’s office
- http://www.michigan.gov/sos/.
Know the rules
32
33. No No's
• Nonprofits classified 501(c)(3) cannot endorse,
contribute to, coordinate with, or align in any way
with candidates or political parties.
• Nonprofits may not lobby using government funds.
When in doubt…
• As an individual, you are entitled to engage in
unlimited lobbying and political activity, provided
you do so on your own time without using
nonprofit assets.
33
34. • The Michigan League for Public Policy is here
as a resource to you as you advocate for
low-income Michigan residents
• Sign up for our Budget Briefs series at
www.mlpp.org
• Join the Prosperity Coalition
• Access the League’s advocacy trainings
We can help!
1223 Turner St. Suite G-1, Lansing, MI 48906-4369 (517) 487-5436
Fax: (517) 371-4546 Web site: www.mlpp.org
A United Way Agency
34