Budget Letter to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger

Sacramento Office 926 J Street, Suite 701 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: (916) 448­9852 Fax: (916) 448­9823

Raul Yzaguirre, President

January 13, 2004 Honorable Arnold Schwarzenegger Governor of California State Capitol Building, First Floor Sacramento, CA 95814 Dear Governor Schwarzenegger: On behalf of the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest constituency­based national Hispanic organization with over 70 affiliates in California, I write to encourage you to begin laying out a strong foundation for California’s future. Specifically, I urge you to reconsider proposed budget cuts and unwise changes to higher education, health and human services. In the short­term, these proposals unfairly balance the burden of the State’s fiscal problems on the backs of low­ income, immigrant, and minority families who already face numerous obstacles in their daily lives as they strive to climb the economic ladder. In the long­term, they jeopardize the well­being of the State.

Recent data show that over 50% of children born in California are Latino. Clearly, this has major implications for the State’s economic and social progress, and requires thoughtful and comprehensive policy­making, particularly in light of the State’s fiscal situation. We urge you to carefully address these implications in your budget by safeguarding a number of key items that are essential components of a forward­looking plan for California.

Higher Education Despite representing 42.4% of all 18­to 24­year­olds (the traditional college­bound age group) in California, Latinos constituted only 24.3% of all students enrolled in California’s public colleges in the fall of 2000

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NCLR urges you to preserve outreach programs within the University of California and California State University systems. At a time when the State is becoming increasingly diverse, eliminating outreach programs, which have already been cut by over 50%, would only serve to perpetuate the severe economic and educational disparities that currently exist within our State. These outreach programs focus their services on educationally disadvantaged students, who do not have equal access to college preparatory resources. In the aftermath of Proposition 209, which ended the use of race, gender, and ethnicity as consideration in public university admissions, K­12 outreach programs are an effective tool to ensure that our public colleges and universities are open to all Californians. The percentage of new students enrolling in UC/CSU who have received outreach services is

NCLR Offices: Chicago, IL  Kansas City, MO  Los Angeles, CA  Phoenix, AZ  Sacramento, CA  San Antonio, TX  San Juan, PR  Washington, DC LA RAZA: The Hispanic People of the New World

Sacramento Office 926 J Street, Suite 701 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: (916) 448­9852 Fax: (916) 448­9823

Raul Yzaguirre, President

substantial, proving the effectiveness of these programs in maintaining diversity within the postsecondary system in the post­Proposition 209 regulatory environment. Eliminating

NCLR Offices: Chicago, IL  Kansas City, MO  Los Angeles, CA  Phoenix, AZ  Sacramento, CA  San Antonio, TX  San Juan, PR  Washington, DC LA RAZA: The Hispanic People of the New World

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outreach funding would be a step backward to closing the opportunity gap that currently exists in the State of California.

Health Latinos carry the brunt of California’s “uninsured epidemic," despite having the highest work participation rates in the State. Latinos are the largest uninsured group with almost 30% of Latino children and 41% of Latino adults without regular health care. Recent data show that fewer Latino children are reported to be in excellent or very good health compared to children in other racial/ethnic groups. 

NCLR urges you to maintain the administrative and funding integrity of the Medi­Cal and Healthy Families programs to avoid exacerbating uninsurance rates among Latinos. When compared to all ethnic groups, Latinos depend on Medi­Cal and the Healthy Families Program significantly more than any other group. Twenty­six percent of the Latino community or 2.3 million individuals rely on Medi­Cal and the Healthy Families Program for health coverage. Capping enrollment to Medi­Cal and Healthy Families and consolidating these programs into a single block grant for immigrants only does not make fiscal or policy sense. Access to preventive care for all Californians can help state and local governments in a variety of ways, bringing about significant savings in emergency room costs for treating non­urgent conditions, better overall health of communities, and greater student and worker productivity. Cuts to these programs will severely affect Latinos’ ability to access health and human service programs that their taxes help support.

Human Services Immigrants work, pay taxes, and contribute to every sector of California’s economy. Immigrants continue to come to the U.S. for the same reasons they always have: to work, to reunite with family members, and to pursue the American Dream. Immigrants are part of our economic and social fabric.

They are an essential portion of our workforce and contribute to our communities. The Wilson Administration therefore created several human service programs to provide assistance to immigrants who were no longer eligible for federal benefits due to the 1996 federal welfare law. The preservation of human service programs for legal immigrants is critical to the promotion of self­ sufficiency and family stability. 

NCLR urges you to maintain the administrative and funding reliability of the California Food Assistance Program (CFAP), which provides nutritional assistance for immigrants who are working and contributing to the State’s economy. CFAP helps address the rise in hunger and malnutrition among legal immigrants in California. Studies show that the prevalence of hunger among legal immigrants is seven to ten times greater than for families who have not lost their Food Stamp benefits. Hunger and malnutrition exacerbate diseases and speed the onset of degenerative diseases among the elderly. This not only leads to a poor quality of life for many elderly persons, but also increases the cost of health care. In addition to having long­term effects on the cognitive development of children, malnutrition results in lost knowledge, brainpower, and productivity.

Sacramento Office 926 J Street, Suite 701 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: (916) 448­9852 Fax: (916) 448­9823

Raul Yzaguirre, President 

NCLR urges you to maintain the administrative and funding reliability of the Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants (CAPI), which assists elderly and disabled legal immigrants who may otherwise be pushed into indigence without these supplements.

CAPI protects an extremely vulnerable population. For many disabled legal immigrants, CAPI supplements are the only way to make ends meet, whether by providing access to food and housing or by helping defray the costs of necessary medical services. Without this program, many would be destitute.

California is facing difficult times. However, Californians can overcome these tough times with careful policy­making that enhances our ability to progress as a state. On the other hand, drastic cuts to health and human services and elimination of education programs will result in unintended consequences that will negatively affect the State for years to come. NCLR and its California affiliates urge you in the strongest possible terms to send a message to the State’s Latino community that your Administration understands its concerns and shares its views on the issues it considers important. These budget revisions will signify a level of seriousness about expanding opportunities for Latinos that our community expects from your Administration. It is clear that ensuring a healthy, well­prepared Hispanic workforce is in the best interest of the State as a whole, and that carrying out these proposals will help achieve that. More important, making these investments in Hispanic families communicates this important message to all Californians.

Sincerely,

Raul Yzaguirre President

NCLR Offices: Chicago, IL  Kansas City, MO  Los Angeles, CA  Phoenix, AZ  Sacramento, CA  San Antonio, TX  San Juan, PR  Washington, DC LA RAZA: The Hispanic People of the New World