Michigan Community Action calls for preserving community service funds amidst Trump funding cuts
With funding cuts being pursued by the Trump administration, which is looking to cut what it determines is unnecessary spending in the federal budget, the Michigan Community Action, or MCA, implored lawmakers during its annual Legislative Day to invest in local solutions.
Advocates from Community Action Agencies affiliated with the MCA association, implored state lawmakers in the Michigan State Capitol Wednesday to invest in Community Services Block Grants, or CSBG's, which allow Community Action Agencies as non-profits to facilitate poverty solution programming, a news release from MCA said.
Michigan receives on average about $23 million a year in CSBG federal funding, the Michigan Department of Health & Human Services reports.
MCA would like to see a 50% state match to the federally funded CSGBs which helps fund programming to fight against poverty through nutritional and health care-related programs, housing solutions and emergency assistance programs.
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Many nonprofits in Michigan were sent into a panic in January after a memo from the United States Office of Management and Budget instructed that there would be widespread freezes on federal funding to ensure spending aligns with the will of President Donald Trump's administration.
'In a time when the future of federal funding for critical community action programs is uncertain, our work on the ground is more important than ever,' Executive Director of MCA Brian McGrain said in the news release Wednesday. 'Today, we elevated the voices of those who are too often left out of national debates. Our agencies continue to deliver results, and our Legislative Day is a chance to ensure policy makers see both the needs and the solutions we have right here in Michigan.'
In Michigan, CSBG's allow nonprofit groups to respond to the needs of their community with speed and flexibility, the MCA asserted, and further investment in the program would unlock new resources in decreasing poverty and increasing self-sufficiency in the state.
However, in a letter sent in early May to U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, from Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought, the Trump administration said it is not confident CSBG funds are being used appropriately.
The letter says programming using CSBG funds in California have focused on diversity equity and inclusion efforts as well as green energy initiatives, while programming in Wisconsin used funds to 'combine clean energy with affordable housing in the pursuit of both economic and environmental justice'.
'Americans in need of job-training and a helping hand would be better served by programs funded at the Departments of Labor and Agriculture,' the recommendation for cutting the $770 million program in the letter said. 'The Budget proposes to eliminate dollars that flow to Community Action Agencies who carry out their own agendas.'
Wednesday's Legislative Day also honored clients, volunteers, and state lawmakers who stepped up to advocate both for MCA and Community Action Agency operations:
Legislators of the Year
State Rep. John Roth (R-Interlochen)
State Sen. Joseph Bellino (R-Monroe)
Client Awardees
Daniel Remington, Gaylord – nominated by Northwest Michigan Community Action Agency
Jack McGrath, Sault Ste. Marie – nominated by Chippewa-Luce-Mackinac Community Action Agency
Mandi Schuch, Alpena – nominated by Northeast Michigan Community Service Agency
Sarah Elizabeth, Alpena – nominated by Northeast Michigan Community Service Agency
Volunteer Awardees
Hazel Sanders, Ypsilanti – nominated by Washtenaw County Office of Community and Economic Development
Kathleen (Kat) Byers, Kalkaska – nominated by Northwest Michigan Community Action Agency
Kathryn Nerychel, Lakeview – nominated by EightCAP
Lorelei King, Crawford County – nominated by Northeast Michigan Community Service Agency
Patty and Tony Soma, Walled Lake – nominated by Oakland Livingston Human Service Agency
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