Cuts to services will cost state more

With a national budget crisis, trillions of dollars are available to bail out businesses that need help.

At the same time, at state level, there are not the dollars available to help people who need to continue to receive essential human services.

The budget crisis in Illinois is beyond what could be imagined. This legislative session led to the Governor and the legislators leaving Springfield with a huge deficit in the budget resulting in major cuts in funding to all Human Service providers gutting an already lean budget.

If the current budget is signed, the result will be chaos for 1,500 families served by Clearbrook.

As an agency, the reality is that we will have no choice and will be forced to close group homes. For those displaced residents who have parents, some may now be aged and unable to provide for their adult children. For some residents without parents or other family members, a return to state operated facilities may become the only option.

The irony is that the state operated facilities receive nearly twice the funding Clearbrook receives. In effect, the state will probably be paying more for providing the services in the state operated facilities than they pay agencies like Clearbrook that are having to close facilities!

And then there is the unthinkable of some displaced residents roaming the streets without any place to live!

There is no doubt that there are perceptions of mismanagement and a lack of leadership. But is the answer to let "our people go"? NO! The answer must be that the leadership needs to do its job and stand up for all of the people of the state and not some of the people!

Carl M. La Mell

President

Clearbrook

Arlington Heights