Lutheran Day at the Capitol 2009

Couldn't make it to Harrisburg today? Call or e-mail your state legislators in support of LAMPa's priorities for the day!

You can find your state legislators contact info by entering you zip code into the box on the left side of the LAMPa website (www.lamp.org).  Then, click on the "state" tab.  Don't forget to e-mail lampa@lamp.org to report your advocacy efforts!

Below is information Lutheran Day participants will be receiving on four issues.  Click on the Heading of each section (e.g. "Hunger") to read the appropriate Issue Brief which will provide you with even more details.  As is highlighted below, please feel free to choose an issue.  You do not have to talk about all four!  

Lutheran Day at the Capitol 2009

Advocating for the interests of Low-Income People in the 09-10 Budget

The General Assembly must make tough budget decisions each year. However, today these decisions are even more difficult given the Commonwealth’s unprecedented deficit of nearly $3 billion. During these difficult economic times we cannot ignore the fact that millions of Pennsylvanians are also facing their own tough personal budget decisions. We ask that the General Assembly keep low-income families in mind as they begin their work on the state budget.  Below are four areas we believe are particularly important for people living in or on the verge of poverty.  You may choose one or more of these topics to be the focus of your Lutheran Day advocacy. You do not need to be an expert, you simply need to share your concern for your fellow Pennsylvanians.

Hunger: There are 1.4 million Pennsylvanians who do not have reliable access to adequate food.  There are 423,000 Pennsylvanian’s who are hungry.  These numbers have increased dramatically since last year.

What you can ask the General Assembly to do:  Ask your representative and senator to support increased funding for Pennsylvania’s hunger safety net comprised of six key food and nutrition programs.

The most familiar of these six programs (and the largest in terms of dollars spent) is the State Food Purchase Program, but all six programs together are necessary to effectively combat hunger.  Descriptions of these six programs and the requested funding levels are in your packet. There is also a handout on the programs and funding level requests that you leave with you legislator or their staff. 

Health Care:  At any point in time, nearly a million Pennsylvanians are uninsured.  Over the last two years, close to 2 million have been uninsured for at least a six month period.  By the end of June there will be 250,000 Pennsylvanians on the waiting list for the state supported adultBasic health insurance.  This time last year the waiting list was around 83,000.  Something can and should be done!

What you can ask the General Assembly to do:  Ask your representative and senator to support efforts to expand the adultBasic program so that as many people as possible can be moved off of the waiting list and have reliable access to the care they need. 

In the House, Majority Leader Todd Eachus is championing adultBasic expansion.  In the Senate, the health care champion is Ted Erickson.  Both of these leaders (a Democrat and a Republican) are very concerned about access to health care and the adultBasic waiting list!  Encourage your legislators to support their efforts. 

Education:  Pennsylvania school districts have historically been funded through a combination of state dollars and revenue from local property taxes.  The result is vast inequality, with each district dependent upon local wealth in order to ensure that students receive a high quality education.  In 2008, the General Assembly took the historic step of adopting a funding formula for public education that assured equity and adequacy.  However, the funding levels needed to keep the formula on track must be appropriated each year and are currently in jeopardy!

What you can ask the General Assembly to do:  Ask your representative and senator not to cut state dollars for Basic Education. Urge them instead to appropriate an increase of $418 Million.  This increase would come from federal stimulus money already specifically allocated for education  and would be distributed through the Basic Education formula adopted last year. 

Housing:  The need for affordable housing goes far beyond simply finding shelter for people who are “homeless”.  It is an issue that affects every county, whether urban or rural, when rising costs force families to choose between paying their rent or monthly mortgage and going without food or medications.  Forty states have housing trust funds that help ensure communities have diverse housing options to meet the needs of people with limited incomes, including the elderly and the disabled.

What you can ask the General Assembly to do:  Ask your representative and senator to support the establishment of a State Housing Trust Fund.  In the House this is House Bill 60, the Pennsylvania Housing Affordability and Rehabilitation Enhancement Act (PHARE).

Additionally, ask your representative and senator to increase the funding for HEMAP (Homeowners Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program) to $20 million to provide unemployed people a better chance of keeping their homes.