In Senate hearings, Health and Human Services officials have made a last ditch effort to restore funding for drug and alcohol prevention and treatment programs.
NHPR's Dan Gorenstein has the story.
Officials who run the state's drug and alcohol programs have seen the money for their efforts come and go.
Governor Craig Benson originally set aside five million dollars, an increase over current spending.
The House Finance Committee then passed two budget proposals, one that maintained the five million figure, one that did not.
But under pressure from Benson and House leadership to pass a budget without a new tax, alcohol and drug programs were eliminated entirely.
Now program officials are bringing their case to the Senate Finance Committe.
The Senate finance chair asked Riley Regan, Director of the Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention and Recovery, how zero dollars would affect services.
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1:47 it would basically devastate the programs.
Regan says even current funding levels don't meet the need that exists.
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:40 we had waiting lists in every one of our treatment programs.the nature of addiction is that people don't just walk down the street and say I would like to get into treatment. Something happens, it's almost like they compare it with a toothache. You don't say I will have a tooth pulled, it has to hurt.
Democratic Senator Clifton Below, a member of the Finance Committee assumes it is the state that would end up hurt if funding isn't restored.
1:14 Judge Kelly is here, and I would like to hear from him on what his concerns is on the impact and if we don't maintain the level of funding for current programs, what the impact will be on the judiciary system. B/c I think spending here saves in other areas, both short and long term.
Judge Edwin Kelly chairs the Governor's Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention, Intervention and Treatment.
1:41 just use one example, one of the 24 programs that was funded and now is up and running, a 65,000 dollar grant to the Grafton County Corrections Dept. With that money they have hired a licensed drug counselor who will be housed at the jail who will provide counseling to inmates at the jail and will help to arrange their case plans, and interface with the court system to perhaps have some people released earlier if they can be put into alhocol and drug programs.
HHS's Riley Regan estimates HHS needs about 3 million dollars a year to maintain its programs.
And he argues it's a small sum given the scope of the problem.
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2:27 30% of the general hospital budgets are alcohol and drug related. 80% of the correction budget. 80% of the battered spouses. 65% of the child abuse in this state, directly related to drinking, drug addicted parents. And we need to address these issues.
Chair of the Senate Finance Committee, Richard Green says the money the state spends on drug and alcohol programs is well spent.
He says, personally, he wants to at least provide enough money to continue current programs.
:51 they had plans to increase funding and develop new programs, and get more people served, and that is a worthy goal, however, they understand the state is having a real difficult time balancing our budget. We'll do the best we can, I feel, this program should be continued at some level of funding.
The Senate Finance Committee will continue to meet with HHS officials over the coming weeks.
The Committee must send a budget on to the full Senate by May 29th.
For NHPR News, I'm DG.
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