Seniors, home care workers and child care providers rallied in front of State Representative Beiser’s office on Friday to call on the Alton legislator to stop devastating cuts to vital programs by telling his leader that he’s ready to reverse is vote and pass a fair income tax increase.

The Alton Telegraph has the full story:

With proposed state budget cuts looming, demonstrators gathered Friday outside an Alton lawmaker’s office to raise awareness of their possible impact on individuals and families receiving services.

The group that converged on the office of state Rep. Dan Beiser, D-Alton, included home care and child care workers, along with members of area community groups.

Billions of dollars in cuts are set to take effect in Illinois on July 1. SEIU Healthcare Illinois members have organized rallies throughout the state to demand accountability from those members of the Illinois House who voted against an increase in the state’s income tax.

“We have come here to talk about the budget cuts and ask for Rep. Beiser’s support, so we don’t face these drastic cuts,” said Amy Devine, executive director of Cerebral Palsy of Southwestern Illinois. “We’ve brought some consumers here that will be affected by cuts.”

Marcy Berry and Frayda Esterman, who live in Community Integrated Living Arrangements, would be forced into either nursing homes or institutions if the proposed 40 percent cut becomes reality. CILA facilities will be forced to close because of the state’s budget deficit.

Both women have lived in CILA housing for almost 20 years.

“I won’t have a place to live,” Berry said. “It will be devastating to me.”

Besides the cuts to CILA programs, families who qualify for day care assistance and seniors and people with disabilities who require other types of in-home care also would be affected.

Thousands of people who are employed within this sector also would lose their jobs.

Beiser, who was away from his office, spoke by telephone with both Devine and Cathy Houston of Family Advocacy House in East St. Louis.

“I wanted to make sure that Rep. Beiser understands that these cuts are causing great anxiety and turmoil to the people being served,” Devine said. “We would like to see the state come up with a plan, and there is none.”

This entry was posted on Friday, June 19th, 2009 at 3:48 pm and is filed under Budget News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.