Economic impact of recession deepens

New economic data paints a disturbing picture of growing poverty. The recession started last year, but its impact has been far greater in 2009. With the jobless rate still climbing and many people unable to find work after months of searching, unemployment insurance benefits 1.5 million out-of-work Americans are expected to lose assistance by the end of this year. Unemployment in the eight Northern Kentucky counties averaged 6.0% in 2008, but rose to a rate of 10.9% by the end of July.

If the current recession follows past trends, unemployment and poverty will continue to rise long after the economic recovery. The Economic Policy Institute estimates that assuming an average unemployment rate of 9.3 percent for 2009, poverty will increase this year to 14.7 percent, and will hit children disproportionately hard. 

For children, the consequences of poverty can be long-lasting, leading to poor nutrition, poor health, and poor prospects for success in school. In the short term, less money to spend means greater hardships for families and low retail sales for communities. Assistance like unemployment, energy assistance, and food stamps must continue to help Kentucky residents who have lost their jobs and need help paying for groceries, housing, health care and other basic needs.

The growing need is palpable. Food Stamp participation rates increased 13% from 2008 to 2009, with about 1 in 6 Kentuckians receiving food stamps by March 2009. At Northern Kentucky Community Action Commission, our crisis assistance requests have risen by 25% since the recession hit, with more than 11,000 families receiving help with rent, food, energy, or other basic needs during the fiscal year that ended on June 30. It was the first time many of these families had requested financial assistance from our agency, indicating that the economy is reaching deeper into Northern Kentucky’s middle class population.

Well-targeted aid can reduce poverty and its painful consequences even during a recession. Among an array of tools Northern Kentucky Community Action Commission (NKCAC) uses against the recession and poverty are a series of workforce training programs aimed at disparate underprivileged populations. YouthBuild of Northern Kentucky, part of a nationwide program, provides educational and vocational training for 16-24 year old dropouts. Our Mature Workers Program provides job training and placement assistance for workers 55 years of age and older. And NKCAC’s newest initiative works in partnership with the Life Learning Center of Covington to provide job placement, counseling, and assistance for a broad spectrum of potential workers.

Without the combination of federal, state, local, and charitable responses more families would be suffering and our economy would be in far worse shape. To avoid choking off the recovery now and to build for the future, we must continue help for the unemployed and work as a region to prevent more layoffs and the resulting hardships.

Improving the long-term health of our economy must start with helping those who are hurting most.  From what we have seen, the need is unlikely to diminish any time soon.

Weatherization Works!

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 includes funding for Northern Kentucky Community Action Commission to weatherize an additional 200 homes this year.  Weatherization helps families save money on their energy bills by air infiltrates leaks and increasing energy efficiency of appliances and heating systems. On average, a family can expect to save from 25-35 percent on their energy bills when their house is fully weatherized. 

Families with an income below a certain threshhold are eligible (about $44,000 for a family of four) The application process takes about 20-30 minutes.  After approved, the weatherization evaluator will visit the home to determine the conservation measures that will provide the greatest benefit and schedule the home for the needed repairs. To schedule an appointment to complete an application, call one of NKCAC’s neighborhood centers.

NKCAC plans to use a combination of staff and private contractors to weatherize homes with the ARRA funding.  In addition, weatherization funds are often combined with other sources of funding to increase the amount of work that can be done on the home.  For example, Duke Energy provides funding for refrigerator testing (and replacements if needed) and Home Depot donates some of the materials used in the home repairs.

It’s about the children

For most of us, summer vacation is meant to be a time of fun and relaxation.  For some families, thought, it means the threat of hunger for their children because it represents the end of the school breakfast and lunch programs, where children can receive free or reduced cost meals.  When school lets out for the summer, families must figure out how to fill this nutrition gap.

The Northern Kentucky Community Action Commission is providing a Summer Nutrition Program again this summer. NKCAC has partnered with several local organizations to bridge the gap when school is not in session. This year for the first time, limited transportation will be available from some neighborhoods this year, through a grant from the Charles H. Dater Foundation.

“Summertime can really affect a family’s food budget. With rising food prices, Northern Kentucky family’s can take their children to one of our sites in Campbell or Kenton or Pendleton Counties and receive a free, nutritious meal and have some fun too.” said Susan Rushing, Nutrition Services Director for Northern Kentucky Community Action Commission. Most of the locations serve hot lunches with items that kids love like and macaroni and cheese and chicken fingers. Most of the sites even serve free breakfast.

While enjoying their lunch the children can also participate in some fun recreational activities, too. Kids love creating sidewalk art. They also enjoy making beaded, macramé bracelets and necklaces. Greater Cincinnati Foundation is helping with the costs of the activities and materials.

The free breakfast and lunch site locations, times and dates are:

  Campbell County

• Newport Head Start – 502 West Ninth Street – Monday through Friday – June 1st – July 31st  11:00am-1:00pm – Lunch     (Breakfast 8:00am-9:00am)
• Holy Trinity School – 840 Washington , Newport – Monday through Friday June 22nd – July 31st 11:00am-12:30pm

Kenton County

• OASIS ( 9th Street Baptist Church) 231 E. 9th Street, Covington – Monday through Friday  June 1st  – July 31st  11:30-1:00pm – Lunch
• Covington Head Start – 510 Keene Street Covington – Monday through Friday – June 1st through       July 31st 12:00am – 2:00pm  (Breakfast 9:00am – 10:00am)
• City Heights Covington Housing Authority – 2500 Todd Street – Monday through Friday  June 15th – July 31st   12:00pm – 1:30pm (Breakfast 9:00am – 10:00am)

Pendleton County

• Falmouth Head Start – 409 Barkley Street, Falmouth – Monday – Friday June 1st – July 31st 11:00am – 1:00pm  (Breakfast 8:00am – 9:00am)  Lunch 11:00am – 1:00pm.

Any child 18 years of age or under can receive free meals at any of the summer feeding sites. There is no sign in or sign up and parents do not need to accompany the children to receive a free meal. Meals are the same for all children regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age or disability and there will be no discrimination in the course of the meal service.

Low Income Families Matter: the 2009 Needs Assessment Results

As a part of our Community Services programs, NKCAC conducts an annual client Needs Assessment. The process is designed to give us feedback from low-income members of the community about what their situations are, and what services and support they need and want.

 

Some notable results from the 2009 Needs Assessment:

 

● The number of clients looking for a job, or looking for a better paying job, has increased in the last year. The number of clients reporting that they need to obtain a GED, education or job training decreased, reinforcing the news that skilled workers are losing good paying jobs in the community, and finding themselves needing to apply for assistance programs for the first time. Overall, 40% of respondents said help getting a job was greatly needed.

 

● Unemployment or underemployment is also a concern to families as they try to manage their monthly expenses. Nearly 60% of respondents said “to have enough money to pay my bills each month” was their first money management goal, and nearly half said in order to manage their money, they needed to get a better paying job.

 

● 10% of low-income community members reported that they need a checking account to manage their finances. The unbanked – those without access to mainstream financial services such as checking and savings accounts, pay a significantly higher amount for financial services, in the form of check cashing fees, money order or money transfer fees, and in some cases, predatory pay-day loans. Over 12% of respondents reported having a debt problem with a pay-day loan, and nearly a quarter said help clearing up a pay-day or other high debt was greatly needed.

 

● Lack of affordable health care and health insurance is a significant problem for low-income families, and causes further financial hardship. Over 45% of families reported a debt problem with high medical bills. Nearly 70% of respondents said that medical services and help with prescriptions were greatly or somewhat needed by their household.

 

● The majority of low-income households are renters (over 70%), and a third of respondents said that their main housing goal was to find affordable housing.

 

For more information, see the full results from the 2009 Needs Assessment. If you would like more information, or prior year results, contact Jennifer Belisle, Community Services Director at jbelisle@nkcac.org, or 859/655-2933.

 

NKCAC teams up with Cincinnati Museum Center and PNC

Area preschool children will have more opportunities to learn science basics and experience-related activities that are educational and fun through a grant to Cincinnati Museum Center and the Northern Kentucky Action Commission (NKCAC) from the PNC Foundation.

The funding is part of Grow Up Great with Science, PNC’s new initiative to help foster a foundation in science for area preschoolers at a time when many educators have sought increased emphasis on the discipline.
With the grant, Museum Center and NKCAC will create ECSITE (Early Childhood Science and Inquiry Training for Educators), an innovative professional development program that seeks to improve the overall quality of science learning by better equipping early childhood teachers and their classrooms.

Read more . . .

Job training opportunities for senior citizens

Northern Kentucky Community Action Commission provides job training for senior citizens.  Participants get a training wage while in training position at local nonprofit and government agencies.  If you know someone who is 55 or older, unemployed and has a low income, they may be eligible to participate.  Trainees learn job skills, receive job search assistance, and updated work record to help them succeed in today’s job market.

NKCAC is recruiting participants for the program, and nonprofit agencies to provide work experience and training.  For more information, visit our website or call 859 581-6607.

A Head Start Center in Boone County

The Community Recorder has been covering our efforts to secure a facility to house a Head Start Center in Boone County.  Finally, the Fiscal Court has approved our proposal to use a county-owned facility in Burlington for such a purpose. 

Beyond “just” Head Start, it will mean so much for the residents of Boone County.  See the Guest Column by Executive Director, Florence Tandy, from the Boone County Recorder.

Weatherization Works for NKY!

Families with moderate to low incomes, about $44,000 for a family of four, may be able to qualify for help through Northern Kentucky Community Action Commission’s Weatherization Assistance Program.  To apply for this free service, families should visit one of NKCAC’s neighborhood centers, located throughout Northern Kentucky. NKCAC expects to weatherize about 250 homes over the next year.  Besides families interested in the services, we are looking for construction and HVAC contractors interested in bidding on the work.

By reducing the energy bills of low-income families instead of offering aid, weatherization reduces dependency and liberates these funds for spending on more pressing family issues. On average, weatherization reduces heating bills by 32% and overall energy bills by $358 per year at current prices. This spending, in turn, spurs low-income communities toward job growth and economic development. Besides the energy savings, the program provides non-energy benefits as well.  Crews help with health and safety repairs, making sure the home is free of carbon monoxide, and conducting safety checks of the major appliances. 

Energy conservation reduces the burning of fossil fuels, which make our air cleaner and reduces global warming. Nationally, weatherization decreases U.S. energy use the equivalent of 17.9 million barrels of oil every year. 

The program is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy through Kentucky’s Department of Community Based Services.  Duke Energy provides funds to test refrigerators, and if found to be energy wasters, replace them.

Let’s put the brakes on predatory lending!

Please consider contacting your representatives to show your support for House Bill 444 introduced by Representative Johnny Bell. It will create a data base to track and monitor who uses check cashing businesses. More important, though are two amendments to the bill that would place a 36% rate cap on pay day loans, which is the same rate in place now for loans to members of the armed forces and their families. The bill would also put limits in place similar to the legislation passed last year in Ohio. We hear stories from families in Kentucky who have borrowed $300, only to see it turn into a debt trap that eventually takes over $2,000 to pay off. Research shows that 90% of pay day lending profits leave the state.

The 23 Community Action Agencies in Kentucky are working with the Kentucky Coalition for Responsible Lending, AARP, Kentucky Association of County Officials (KACo), Metro United Way, Kentucky Youth Advocates, Kentucky Domestic Violence Association and others to get this important legislation passed.

It is time to stop the all too common practice of payday lenders charging as high as 390% APR for loans (and no, that is not a typo). Please contact your state representative at 800-372-7181 or 502-564-8100 and ask them to vote yes on house Floor Amendments 1 & 2.

Kentucky Enquirer features YouthBuild

You will want to check out the February 23 article on YouthBuild of Northern Kentucky.

http://nky.cincinnati.com/article/AB/20090223/NEWS0103/902230371/-1/today