| Written by Chuck Bean & Kerrie Wilson, on January 30, 2008 |
I am Chuck Bean of the Nonprofit Roundtable of Greater Washington…and, I am Kerrie Wilson of Reston Interfaith… and we’re writing with some serious concerns about a piece of onerous legislation currently before the Virginia Assembly. HB439, a bill filed by Delegate Jackson Miller would be bad for nonprofits – and the people we serve – in Virginia. These regulations, if enacted would greatly limit our ability to help those in need.
Today: Email or Phone the Chairman of the House Rules Committee - House Speaker William Howell, and members of the special subcommittee and tell them why HB439 is harmful and imposes unnecessary cost and burden on nonprofit organizations.
* Del. William Howell, Chair, House Rules Committee
(804) 698-1028
* Del. Morgan Griffith, Chair, Special Subcommittee
(804) 698-1008
* Del. Kirkland Cox
(804) 698-1066
* Del. Steven Landes
(804) 698-1025
* Del. Clarke Hogan
(804) 698-1060
* Del. Joseph Johnson, Jr.
(804) 698-1004
2. House Rules Subcommittee Hearing (Thursday, January 31, 3pm): Travel to Richmond on Thursday to meet with lawmakers and attend the hearing and speak out against HB439. Contact Kerrie.wilson@restoninterfaith.org or cgg@cg2consulting.com if you plan to be in Richmond and are willing to make visits or speak at the public hearing.
3. Contact State Nonprofit/Faith Affiliates: Share the HB439 briefing paper and alert and ask affiliate organizations - particularly those in districts with members who serve on the House Rules Committee or special subcommittee - to email, phone and fax members expressing opposition to HB439.
4. Ongoing: Communicate with your elected representatives (House and Senate), particularly newly-elected delegates and Northern Virginia about the harmful impact of HB439 and related services bills. Ask them to contact the sponsor, Delegate Jackson Miller and House Rules Committee and urge that HB439 and related bills that impact services by nonprofits be defeated in committee.
* To find your legislators, click: http://conview.state.va.us/whosmy.nsf/main?openform
Background: Last year, Delegate Miller introduced similar legislation - HB2937 - a bill that would have required private organizations to verify legal presence of participants
in any publicly funded program, or face loss of funding or other penalties. HB2937 was introduced and approved in the House with little public input. HB2937 was referred to the Senate Rehabilitation and Social Services Committee. After hearing from nonprofit and faith organizations, foundations and government agencies, members of that committee agreed with our concerns and defeated the bill.
Despite valid concerns about the impact of the bill, Delegate Miller has reintroduced this legislation (now HB439). In September 2007, the Roundtable’s Board asserted its position against any legislation that would “prohibit the ability of nonprofit organizations to provide services to people in need” and began working towards creating a unified voice for the sector in opposition to this type of legislation.
Why we should all be concerned:
1) HB439 is Duplicative and Costly….
This type of legislation will duplicate at great cost the eligibility verification process already in place to prevent ineligible applicants from accessing restricted benefits. Under federal and state laws, all public agencies and their vendors who administer restricted public benefits programs already have eligibility determination processes in place that are sufficient to prevent access by ineligible persons. Qualified eligibility workers are trained to understand myriad complex government regulations and work with applicants over time to obtain necessary documentation before they may receive benefits under restricted programs. Asking nonprofits or faith groups to duplicate this system would impose an onerous burden and add significant costs.
2) HB439 Impedes Service Delivery….
This type of legislation will impede the nonprofit community's ability to deliver quality services to individuals in need. The complexities, cost and effort required for organizations to establish a new verification process will result in delays in delivery of critical social services and fewer resources available to serve legal residents. In addition, many legal residents served by the nonprofit community do not have proper documentation to prove their status, as they may be homeless or fleeing their homes due to domestic violence or other emergencies. These families could be denied food, shelter, and other emergency services.
3) HB439 Harms Quality of Life….
This type of legislation will have a significant impact on other community members including low-income citizens, persons with disabilities, lawfully present immigrants, and others who may not have easy access to existing documents. Proposals to restrict access can harm quality of life in our communities by deterring legal residents from accessing services, or delaying delivery of emergency or public safety programs that then impact the health and safety of others in our community.
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