STATE BUDGET ROUND-UP:
Impacts Many Programs & Services
On July 8th, Governor Romney signed the FY’07 budget into law, but only after vetoing $573 million in funding and language from the budget. Romney later stated that all of his vetoes were overridden.
The Massachusetts House and Senate overrode these health-related vetoes:
The legislature is due to consider technical amendments to the health reform bill. It is not clear when these may be acted on. Formal legislative sessions are due to end July 31. Following this date, the legislature will continue to meet in "informal" sessions, which do not permit debate or roll call votes. During informal sessions, unanimous consent is required to pass legislation.
-Adapted from Health Care For All’s Health Access Update e-mail, July 26, 2006.
Do you help patients applying for MassHealth for long-term care? If so, you need to read this.
In an initiative to protect lower-income spouses of nursing home residents, both houses of the Massachusetts legislature have voted unanimously to override Gov. Romney's veto of a budget provision to restore the maximum community spouse resource allowance (CSRA).
Under the rule that was in effect until Gov. Romney took office, a married nursing home resident could qualify for MassHealth coverage when the combined countable assets of both spouses totaled no more than the maximum permitted CSRA -- currently $99,540 – plus the $2,000 asset allowance for the spouse in the nursing home. Gov. Romney limited this amount to half of the couple's total assets up to this limit, meaning, for instance, that a couple with $80,000 in countable assets would be limited to $42,000. Now, in this example, the couple may keep the entire $80,000 plus the $2,000 asset allowance. The maximum CSRA amount is adjusted yearly.
Married applicants with assets below $99,540 may wish to delay MassHealth application a bit if feasible, until this new provision goes into effect (though it likely will be retroactive).
-Adapted from: Margolis & Associates, ElderLaw News, Legislature Overrides Romney's Veto Of Spousal Protections, July 31, 2006.
Emergency Assistance Family Shelter Account (EA) – Governor Romney vetoed language requiring DTA to give presumptively placed families " aid pending appeal. This was overridden, so families may receive this aid pending appeal. For the fourth year in a row, the Governor vetoed legislative oversight provisions in the EA line item, including language directing the Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) to track and report on the provision of shelter and prevention benefits to families in need and legislative oversight language requiring DTA to provide the Legislature with a minimum of 60 days notice prior to implementing eligibility and program changes in this account. With the override, these legislative oversight provisions are law.
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Residential Assistance for Families in Transition (RAFT) – The Governor Vetoed $2 million For This Homelessness Prevention Program.
Like last year, the Governor reduced the FY’07 funding for this homelessness prevention program by $2 million, from $5 million to $3 million. The $5 million appropriated in FY’06 for RAFT helped approximately 2,500 families avoid homelessness and expensive shelter stays. Even funded at $5 million, the program ran out of funds mid-year. Nationally, the Governor has highlighted his efforts to prevent homelessness, yet for the second year in a row, he has vetoed funding for one of the state’s only homelessness prevention programs. With this override, the $2 million cut is reversed and funding will be at $5 million.
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The Emergency Aid to the Elderly, Disabled and Children Program(EAEDC).
The Governor left the EAEDC program intact, but vetoed legislative oversight language requiring the Administration to notify the Legislature 60 days in advance of the implementation of any eligibility or benefit changes. The Governor has vetoed this provision each year for the past three years. The Legislature has consistently overridden the Governor’s veto of this language. Given the Governor’s insistent attacks on this program in each of the past fiscal years, it is critical that the Legislature maintain its oversight and control over prospective cuts to this program. With the override, the Administration must notify the Legislature 60 days in advance of implementation of any eligibility or benefit changes.
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Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program (MRVP) – The Governor Reduced Funding For This Account By $3.2 Million.
Like last year, the Governor reduced funding for this program, cutting the appropriation to $24.2 million. This is $3.2 million less than the Conference Committee’s appropriation and $1.2 million less than the FY’06 appropriation. The Governor vetoed funding for this critical housing program, even though Massachusetts desperately needs to reinvest in affordable housing given the exodus of households out of the Bay State because of the lack of affordable housing resources. The override restores the $3.2 million in funding for MRVP.
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Transitional Aid to Families With Dependent Children (TAFDC) – The Governor Reduced Funding For This Account by $3.9 Million.
The Governor substantially reduced funding for this line item without indicating a reason. The joint Conference Committee set the appropriation level at $296.5 million for this program after assessing the current caseload and the amount needed to maintain the program. The override restores the $3.9 million in funding for TAFDC.
-Adapted from: MCHalert e-mail, Thank You for Helping to Override the Governor's Vetoes!, July 27, 2006, with additional information from Mass. Law Reform Institute e-mail Welfare Bill - Action Alert/Good news on FY07 budget veto overrides, July 26, 2006.
The Massachusetts Legislature successfully overrode Governor Romney’s veto of funding for family planning services in the FY 07 State Budget and restored the $150,000 that he cut from this program by a vote of 142-13 in the House and 36-0 in the Senate.
A portion of the funding for family planning services was earmarked by the Legislature for the establishment of an emergency contraception information hotline. This hotline will help answer questions and refer women to the nearest location where they can obtain emergency contraception (EC). The hotline will play an important role in the successful implementation of the newly enacted Emergency Contraception Law which includes enabling pharmacies to dispense EC and to require hospitals to offer it to rape survivors.
-From Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts, e-mail Family Planning/EC Hotline Funding Restored!, July 20, 2006.
On July 24th, 2006, the Massachusetts House and Senate overwhelmingly overrode Gov. Romney’s veto of the so-called PCA bill.
The new law will establish a central clearinghouse for Massachusetts’ disabled persons to find qualified personal care attendants, and will allow PCAs to obtain decent benefits, including health coverage. It will set up Personal Care Attendant (PCA) Quality Workforce Council, helping reduce turnover among PCAs and ensuring that people with disabilities and the growing number of seniors using the program can access the care they need to live at home. Advocates believe this will result in a higher quality PCA workforce - it will cost more money, but that is because PCAs are now paid disgracefully low wages without benefits.
Gov. Romney had vetoed the legislation. In his veto message, Romney called “several provisions … deeply disturbing,” and said the bill “appears to be designed exclusively to benefit a particular union by supplementing its membership with private sector and not-for-profit employees at the taxpayers’ expense.” Romney charged the bill could qualify as many as 20,000 people for public-sector employee benefits. Amendments Romney sent back two weeks ago were rejected.
-Adapted from: Legislature Overrides Romney Veto Of PCA Bill (Now Law), from http://blog.hcfama.org/, dated July 25th, 2006.
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