A Budget Update from Commitment 2 Community

Dear Friends of C2C,

On November 28th, the 2012 Operating and Capital Budget was launched at City Hall – it contains over $88 million in new cuts to services and programs that support children, seniors and other vulnerable Torontonians. A 9.8% cut was proposed to the Community Partnership Investment Program (CPIP), which provides funding to community services, health programs, housing supports and arts & culture programs. At this point, we need concerned community residents to speak to the Budget Committee about the value of city funded programs – deputations are between 9:30 am and 9:30 pm  December 7 & 8^th at City Hall; you must register before December 6^th at 4 pm at either buc@toronto.ca or 416-392-7340. Helpful tips on making deputations are below.

A 10% Budget Cut to CPIP Means:

• A total of $1,720,000 would be cut from community services, which is the equivalent to a reduction of approximately 83 programs/ projects, as well as 6,000 volunteer opportunities in 2012. This cut will impact non-profit organizations funded through Graffiti Transformation, Access & Equity and Human Rights, Community Safety Investment, Service Development Program, Youth Led initiatives, Community Festivals, Major and Minor Recreation programs, as well as FindHelp Toronto.
• A total of $634,000 would be cut from Public Health programs – this reduction is equivalent to 58 fewer student nutrition programs (impacting 14,049 children and youth), eliminating the Global AIDS initiative and 2-3 fewer citywide HIV/AIDS programs, and 3 fewer Drug Prevention projects.
• A total of $250,000 would be cut from Shelter, Support & Housing Administration, which is  equivalent to a reduction of 2 investment projects and less training to housing help workers and drop-in workers.
• A total of $1,939,000 would be cut from Arts & Culture programs – this reduction is equivalent to 139 fewer programs and projects. For the complete breakdown of the cuts to CPIP, please click here.

Other cuts to community services include:

• The elimination of the Hardship Fund in June 2012 – sign the petition now! http://togethertoronto.ca/campaigns/hardshipfund/
• elimination of priority recreation centres (no more free registered programs for children and youth in priority centres)
• cuts to arenas, increase in recreation facility permit costs, increases in user fees for recreation
• closure of three emergency shelters (Birchmount, Downsview Dells and Bellwoods)
• closure of some wading pools, outdoor pools, elimination of programming at some school board pools and shared use schools
• closure of visitor cafeterias in long term care homes
• 10 cent TTC fare increase with cuts to 56 bus & 6 streetcar routes as of January 8
• no more Wheel Trans service for dialysis patients
• cuts to library hours, purchase of library materials

For an updated list of budget cuts, click here. You can also learn more about the proposed budget & sign up to receive updates throughout the process by signing up here.

TAKE ACTION!

In order to stop service cuts from being approved in January, every program participant, board member, volunteer, faith leader, parent, concerned resident and good neighbour needs to take action. You can make a deputation on the impact of budget cuts to city councillors, and take a few minutes to call your local councillor to express your concern:

1.Register in advance to depute to City Councillors on December 7 & 8, 2011 between 9:30am to 9:30 pm   at City Hall about how the proposed 2012 Budget will impact city residents.  Participate in the Public Hearings on the budget and speak out about the value of programs delivered through city funding.  Prepare to speak for 2-5 minutes on the value of the programs you have benefited from & tell your story.

Over the last few months, record-breaking numbers of deputations have strongly impacted our city councillors’ approach to service cuts and the 2012 budgeting process. December 7^th & 8^th are the last opportunities for public statements to be made about the impact of the 2012 Budget.  Councillors need to hear that their constituents do not support cuts to community services – please be sure to register before December 6^th at 4pm; email buc@toronto.ca or call 416-392-7340.

Deputing Tips:

• When you register to depute, ask what number you are on the list so it’s easier to coordinate your schedule.
• Learn how to depute using the step by step guide here: http://commitment2community.org/?p=237
• Want more background on what’s proposed in the 2012 budget? Attend a community budget event, find one near you: http://commitment2community.org/?p=507
•  Background info on how previous budget shortfalls have been addressed without major service reductions can be found in this Wellesley Institute report: http://www.policyalternatives.ca/publications/reports/countdown-zero
• Your deputing time may be cut down from the standard 5 minutes – plan to deliver your key points in as little as 2 minutes.
• Find out more about the CPIP program’s benefits  at the latest C2C Budget Update.
• Concerned about how to respond to questions about how to fund city programs? Read this document for suggestions.
• Track what number the deputations are at on December 7 & 8^th by clicking on Budget Committee after visiting this link: http://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/decisionBodyList.do?function=prepareDisplayDBList

2. Call or write to your City Councillor and express your concerns about the impacts of proposed budget cuts to programs and services in your community. To find out who your councillor is, enter your address here: http://app.toronto.ca/im/council/councillors.jsp. You can also find contact info for all 44 councillors by downloading this document.

Thank you for taking action to stop these cuts to community services and programs. Please share this message widely and be sure to register to depute on December 7 & 8^th.

C2C.