Category: Take Action

From the Executive Director–A Year in Advocacy

My name is Daniel Hogue, Executive Director of Las Trampas. I have worked in the Intellectual and Developmental Disability (I/DD) service industry since 1993, starting as a direct care worker. Now, in my role as a leader, I am constantly asked about the state and future of our field.  Now, more than ever, this is an important topic that should be addressed. It’s my hope to address concerns, successes, and opportunities for action that will help people with developmental disabilities and the I/DD community.

In the human services field, we as care takers, social workers, and people who work from the heart tend to speak lightly, politely, and focus on the work to be done. Leaders in the I/DD service industry understand that there are many competing interests within the state. We are not used to taking a hard stands. This has to change. While it sounds alarming, the viability of the I/DD service system is on the brink of collapse and it’s time for us to find our voice.


Yet another year has gone by without increases to I/DD funding. The state budget approved by the legislature and the governor at the end of June again neglects to fully fund programs and services for this vulnerable population. So, what are the impacts! Well, to put it frankly, if you have a child or family member with I/DD who receives services, they may be at risk.

Since 2003, state funding for I/DD services has essentially been a downhill spiral with minimal increases offsetting serious cuts during the 2008 financial crisis. So what does this mean.  It means that providers, and more importantly the people served, have to make do with extremely limited resources, and often times, to simply do without. Full-time professional positions like speech language pathologists, a full program staff with clinical training and experience, budgets for transportation and community integration, and more, all of these program components have been cut or seriously reduced over the past decade. Meanwhile, mandates continue to come down from the state level to do more do more, with less, all while the state holds record surpluses.

And older white man wearing glasses and a blue ball cap dances with an older white woman with glasses and white hair.
Photo by Letlove Photography

Each month, I will be discussing the ramifications of the current state including the impacts on providers and the people served as well as how the system is coping, advocacy efforts, progress and setbacks, stories of success in the midst of tough times, and things that you can do to support people with developmental disabilities. I hope you’ll join me!

Take Action Now!

Urgent Action Item: Contact the Chairs of the California State Senate and Assembly Budget Committees today and tell them you support Assemblymember Chris Holden’s proposal to add $25 million to the DDS budget to assist service providers in high cost regions to meet the escalating costs for labor and other essential operations.

Background: Since the rates paid by the State of California to providers of intellectual and developmental disabilities services were frozen in 2003, they have increased by only 7% by the end of 2017 while the cost of operations has risen by more than 70%. The governor’s current state budget proposal for FY 2019 not only proposes no increases for Intellectual and Developmental Disability services, but also proposes cuts through mandated provider furlough days.

The impact of rate stagnation is profound. Service providers in places like the San Francisco Bay Area, including Las Trampas, struggle to provide competitive wages in a labor market where the cost of living is skyrocketing. Assembly member Holden’s proposal would add $25 million to the DDS budget in 2018 to provide some temporary relief for service providers who can document a need for these funds.

Act Now: Customize one of the letters below and fax it to the Chairs of the Budget Committees, or email or call their office at the Capitol. Let them know you support living wages for service providers!

  1. Senator Holly Mitchell (Chair):
    • Fax #: (916) 651-4930
    • email
    • Phone: (916) 651-4030
  2. Senator Richard Pan:
    • Fax #: (916) 651-4906
    • email
    • Phone: (916) 651-4006
  3. Assembly Member: Phil Ting:
    • Fax #: (916) 319-2119
    • email
    • Phone: (916) 319-2019
  4. Assembly Member: Dr. Joaquin Arambula
    • Fax #: (91) 319-2131
    • email
    • Phone: (916) 319-2031

Budget request provider support letter.General
Budget request provider support letter.Service provider