PathWays PA E-Newsletter: June 29, 2009

June 30: Public Meeting on Health-Care Reform

State Representative Josh Shapiro, D-Montgomery, has been selected as one of 32 state legislators nationwide to help President Obama reform health care.

The group, named the White House Team of State Legislators for Health Reform, has been asked to solicit input from constituent groups on health-care reform and report back to the White House with feedback as the administration works to craft health-care reform.

Shapiro will hold one of the first of these meetings on Tuesday, June 30th at noon in Room 421 of the Irvis Office Building in Harrisburg. The topic will be Women’s Health.



As the Budget Turns…Help Save Industry Partnerships and Child Care Work Subsidies!

Currently in Harrisburg, legislators are grappling with the state budget. In order for important programs, like the Industry Partnerships and Child Care Works Subsidies, to continue to receive funding, legislators need to hear from you.

Please contact your representatives and let them know how important these programs are.

If you would like to sign onto a letter supporting the Industry Partnerships you can click here.

If you would like to send your own letter to your legislators we have prepared a letters that discuss the importance of the Industry Partnership Programs and the Child Care Work Subsidies. Please feel free to include your own personal stories.

Here is some information about the programs that you can share with your representatives:

The Industry Partnerships are consortiums that allow employers to improve and expand their workforce by bringing together companies committed to the development of their workforce. This program provides workers with access to training that gives them the skills necessary to maintain jobs and obtain employment with sufficient wages so workers can adequately support their families. In Pennsylvania more than 6,300 businesses are involved with more than 70 Industry Partnerships across the state and more than 70,000 workers have been trained since 2005. On average, those workers have seen their wages rise by 6.62 percent within the first year after receiving the training.

The Child Care Works Subsidies allow parents to afford to work by assisting them with the expense of child care. For many parents the cost of child care may be more than they bring home in a paycheck. Currently in Pennsylvania, over 15,000 people are eligible for the child care subsidies but are currently on the waitlist, where some families remain for months. In the meantime, they must pay more than they can afford for child care, provide childcare through an unreliable patchwork of friends, family, or substandard facilities, or risk losing their jobs at a time when employment is hard to find.

Particularly in these tough economic times when employment is of significant importance, Pennsylvania cannot afford to cut programs that provide training and make work possible for so many.



Programs Not Prisons Rally – Improving Life Chances for Youth and Young Adults

The Greater Philadelphia Urban Affairs Coalition along with program partners, grassroots organizations, youth, and families made their voices heard at in Love Park on June 24 at a rally to advocate for the restoration of prevention dollars in the State Budget. Thirteen speakers, including violence prevention organization leaders, young people, and pastors, took to the stage to show the power and impact of effective prevention programs on their lives.

Organizers gathered 572 signatures on a petition that urges members of the Pennsylvania House and Senate to pass a budget with a minimum of $12.6 million for violence prevention initiatives supporting positive youth development, afterschool, mentoring, and life skills programs.

If you would like to sign the petition contact Farrah Samuels at 215-851-1713 or fsamuels@gpuac.org. Help reach the goal of 2000 signatures!

If you would like to call or write your legislator contact Farrah for a sample letter or telephone script you can use to write or speak to your legislator.



Find Your Unclaimed Property!

Approximately one in ten Pennsylvanians have unclaimed property – do you?

Each year, the Pennsylvania Treasury Department receives millions of dollars in unclaimed property – things like abandoned bank accounts, forgotten stocks, uncashed checks, certificates of deposit, life insurance policies, safe deposit box contents, and recovered stolen property. Treasury maintains custody of this property and works to return it to its rightful owners.

Search your name and the names of your friends and family in the Unclaimed Property database or call 1-800-222-2046