Rally targets cuts to assistance
Jason Olson, Deseret News At the state Capitol Thursday, Michael Avila, surrounded by members of Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church, tells how he was helped by the General Assistance Fund.
Jason Olson, Deseret News At the state Capitol Thursday, Michael Avila, surrounded by members of Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church, tells how he was helped by the General Assistance Fund.
Rally targets cuts to assistance
A cut of that proportion to Utahns receiving general assistance creates a big gap for about 1,300 who cannot work and are waiting for federal benefits. General assistance bridges that gap for people determined by a doctor to be temporarily unemployable due to injury or disability and helps them financially as well as with job training and employment searches.
General assistance also helps expedite the process of receiving federal disability benefits, which can otherwise take up to two years for approval.
“People on general assistance are often homeless, or at risk of being homeless, and face severe medical problems,” said the Rev. Libby Hunter, longtime member of the Coalition of Religious Communities and deacon at St. Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral. “Many have pending applications with Social Security due to multiple disabilities. The stipend is their only resource until a disability determination is made. This program is about keeping the most vulnerable members of our society alive.”
Bill Tibbits, with Crossroads Urban Center, said the reason for the rally was to urge lawmakers on the Health and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee to take public comment on the cuts proposed to general assistance.
“That is especially frustrating about this part of the budget,” Tibbitts said. “It seems like legislators would want to at least hear from a couple people on GA before recommending cuts in funding for the program.”
E-MAIL: jthalman@desnews.com
