Maine government is applauded for trying to help residents afford to live in the state, with a brand new tax reform package and increases in school funding. Now, Maine has to balance its two-year budget that begins on July 1. Gov. Baldacci has some innovative ideas in the budget, and a few ideas that are not as well thought out.

One troubling budget item is the proposal to take $16.1 million from the state’s child welfare efforts. In this proposal, $5.3 million would be taken from Maine’s public-private partnership, The Community Intervention Program, that intervenes with families before their situations become so dire that the state must consider removing children.

• The Community Intervention Program (CIP Program) was created by the Maine Legislature in 1998 in order for all appropriate child protective referrals to be assessed and stabilized to reduce assessed risk to child safety.

• Since Jan. 1, 1999, more than 25,000 low- and moderate-risk child protective referrals have been referred to the CIP programs to have the risk assessed and stabilized.

• In order to help balance the state budget, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) proposes to “eliminate” the CIP program in fiscal year 2007 and save $4.3 million (and cut $1 million out fiscal 2006). Forty-six current DHHS children’s services workers would provide child protective services to all referrals (because the DHHS proposes to eliminate the children’s services positions). Low- and moderate-risk referrals would only receive services after investigation based on “need” and ability of DHHS to respond.

The Department states: “When all reports are assessed by the State child protective agency, we will improve our ability to better target more intervention services to families where children are at risk of coming into foster care.”

The DHHS should be applauded for its concern for children at risk of coming into foster care. However, this proposal radically decreases Maine’s ability to intervene before the risk to the child is so great that he or she needs to be taken from the family.

Legitimate low- and moderate-risk issues of child abuse may no longer warrant the stabilization services that can keep the situation from ever requiring foster care.

Currently, there are 72 full-time equivalent community intervention program workers at private agencies statewide responding to the legitimate allegations of low- and moderate-risk child abuse. By eliminating the CIP and transferring the workload to 46 new child protective workers, there will be a significant capacity issue for the department to provide stabilization services to families with low and moderate child abuse and neglect issues.

Here are typical low- or moderate-risk situations:

• Father assaulted his ex-wife while holding his 5-year-old child. Father was arrested. Father has primary custody of child. This is the second assault on the woman by the man.

• Young children are physically abused. The children report being hit with a whip and a tennis racquet. The children also say they have been slapped and punched in the face, stomach and chest.

• A teen who is pregnant is kicked in the stomach and punched by a sibling, who threatens to kill her baby. The parent doesn’t intervene.

• Child has high lead levels and his parents are refusing to follow medical recommendations. The child’s lead level is 29; anything over 10 needs to be retested. A level of 45 is considered an emergency. Referent is concerned because the child exhibited developmental delays, for example a marked speech delay.

• A mother of 3-year-old twins and a 5 year old are being evicted from their apartment due to filthy conditions, including bedbugs, clothing scattered, trash bags overflowing, rotten food on floors and counters. Fumigators refused to spray due to condition of apartment; and the children’s hygiene questioned.

The good news is that today, stabilization services are made available to children and families in these situations through the community-based Community Intervention Programs.

However, the budget proposes to eliminate this critical program. The Community Intervention Program providers maintain that moderate risk situations like these and others are concerning enough to warrant voluntary services.

Do Mainers want these issues to fester until they become so serious the child needs to be taken from the home? Not only is it a question of tragic human costs, but foster care is much more expensive than preventative care.

Or, do Mainers want to continue to see stabilization services available for children living in moderate- and low-risk situations so the situations that brought on the referrals can be addressed?

The statewide CIP Coalition estimates between 1,000 and 2,300 Maine children have a high probability of not receiving stabilization services with this proposal. This proposed budget brings Maine back to pre-1998 conditions when “some” child abuse and neglect was acceptable social policy.

That’s not good policy in 2005.

The Legislature should refuse to accept the $5.3 million cut to the CIP program and insist that all appropriate CPS referrals, including low- and moderate-risk referrals, receive assessment and services to stabilize identified risks to children.

There will be a public hearing on this proposal at 1 p.m. Feb. 9 at the State House in Augusta.

Bangor’s Rep. Sean Faircloth has submitted legislation to increase taxes on soda, alcohol and cigarettes. They are commonly called a sin tax, but the far greater sin is dismantling services that stabilize child abuse and neglect conditions. His legislation deserves support, and I welcome ideas for other potential revenue sources.

Joan Churchill is the director of Family Services at Community Concepts in Auburn and South Paris.

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