The Senate Finance committee has started hearing testimony on Senate Bill 1, the General Appropriations Bill, and specifically, Article II, which covers Health and Human Services. TCC Executive Director Andrew Rivas and Associate Director Jennifer Allmon will deliver testimony on the concerns of the Texas Bishops on Wednesday, February 2, 2011. You may read the text of their testimonies below. You may read our policy paper on the revenue shortfall here, and you can also view a video resource on the budget here. We will also post testimony on other articles in the bill as it is available. 

• Human Life and Dignity must be Protected - Andrew Rivas
• Protect the Eligibility System, CHIP, Medicaid, Mental Health Services, and Services for the Elderly and Disabled - Jennifer Allmon

Good morning Mr. Chairman, my name is Andrew Rivas and I am the executive director of the Texas Catholic Conference. The TCC is the statewide association of the 15 Roman Catholic dioceses in our state and it is our responsibility to advocate the public policy positions of all the dioceses and Bishops of Texas.

First, let me begin by thanking you Mr. Chairman, and the committee, for allowing me to testify today on certain provisions in Senate Bill 1. As many of you are aware the Roman Catholic Church teaches that life is a precious gift given to us from our creator. It is a gift that should be glorified, nurtured, and protected at all stages of a human life.

With that in mind, the TCC supports section 2117 which states that “no funds shall be used to pay the direct or indirect costs (including overhead, rent, phones and utilities) of abortion procedures provided by contractors of the department.” We also support the language that says “no funds appropriated under Strategy B.1.3, Family Planning Services, shall be distributed to individuals or entities that perform elective abortion procedures or that contract with or provide funds to individuals or entities for the performance of elective abortion procedures.”

The Texas Catholic Conference supports state funding for abortion alternatives providers such as our Gabriel Project and Catholic Charities, who offer true guidance to women in overwhelming pregnancies and aid in decreasing the number of abortions in Texas. We support the current funding level proposed in Senate Bill 1 for abortion alternatives.

The TCC would like to state support for funding adult stem cell research obtained from adult tissue, umbilical cord blood, and other sources that pose no moral problems. From our review of Senate Bill 1there does not appear to be any such funding in the current draft and we think that should be rectified. Thousands of lives have already been saved by applying therapies gained from adult stem cell research—such as for treating leukemia, Parkinson's disease, spinal cord injury, sickle-cell anemia, heart damage, and dozens of other conditions. Let’s continue to fund adult stem cell research here in Texas.

Finally, the Texas Catholic Conference supports abstinence-only education in our public schools.  Public schools have an enormous responsibility to young people, to their parents, and to society. Programs for sex education or for personal development offered in the public schools can be important for the wellbeing of our young people and of our society, so long as our sex education programs promote the value of chastity.  The education of our children in the areas of sexuality, marriage and the raising of families is quite possibly one of the most profoundly significant areas of public policy in Texas law and we support the funding proposed in Senate Bill 1.

Thank you again for allowing me to speak today.

Download a PDF of this testimony here.

Jennifer Allmon, Associate Director, Testifying on behalf of the Texas Catholic Conference and the 15 active Roman Catholic Bishops of Texas

Mr. Chairman and members, thank you for the opportunity to share our concerns about the state budget. The Texas Catholic Conference supports a balanced approach to solving the revenue shortfall, including seeking new revenue to adequately fund needed public services and to prepare Texas for the future. The charitable community in Texas does not have the capacity to absorb the needs created by these cuts.

Cardinal Daniel DiNardo has said, "A task of good government is to use its funding power to direct resources where they will best serve and respect human life, not to find new ways to evade this responsibility." The budget is a moral document that should reflect this state's commitment to protect human life and human dignity. Unfortunately, the draft before you falls short in several key areas. Today, I will speak generally about some of the areas of concern in SB1.

To ensure access to food and health care assistance during this recession, it is critical that the benefits eligibility system be funded at a higher level in order to meet increased demand.

The provider rate cuts in the current biennium combined with cuts proposed in this budget will have a devastating effect on access to care for the poor and vulnerable and we call on you to reconsider the depth of these cuts. Further significant rate reductions will result in:

• loss of federal funding;
• cost-shifting to local governments and taxpayers, and
• fewer physicians in the Medicaid system – resulting in more emergency room visits

We support the enrollment of every eligible child in CHIP and Medicaid and in particular we call on you to restore the funding for the CHIP perinatal program. This vital program respects human life in the womb and provides medical care to mothers who choose life for their unborn children despite financial hardship.

We call on you to maintain funding levels for mental health services. Cuts to funding for these services will have the inevitable negative impact of forcing more emergency room visits as mental health patients seek care.

Aging Texans and Texans with disabilities are among the most vulnerable in our society. The 33% rate cut to Medicaid nursing home care is perhaps one of the most devastating contained in this budget. Although Texas is facing enormous economic challenges, we must preserve quality care for seniors.

Before considering reductions in public services, we call on the Legislature to:
• Use all of the Rainy Day Fund,
• Maximize use of available federal funding without extending funding for immoral medical procedures or research;
• Create new sources of revenue that are equitable and can grow along with the growth in need for public services;

Our position on addressing the state budget is shaped by the church's extensive teaching on exercising the preferential option for the poor and vulnerable. The state has a responsibility to provide for the common good, including access to basic needs for all. In light of the global economic recession, in July of 2009 the Holy See stated, "Even more than an expression of solidarity, it is a matter of justice to overcome the temptation to reduce public services for a short-term benefit against the long-term human cost." This message is especially relevant for Texas today, and for you, the members of the Senate Finance Committee. We will be praying for you, that your budgetary decisions will protect and preserve life and dignity in Texas.

Download a PDF of this testimony here.