I'm sure we're all equally tired of hearing about the upcoming mid-term election. Between the phone calls, radio ads, running political commentary on the news and those expensive tv spots, I've pretty much reached mid-term election exhaustion, and November 2nd has not yet arrived. I heard last Sunday that $3.5 million has been spent on advertisements for this election, when I hear that number, all I can think about is what kind of good work could be done with that money? I would venture to say that that $3.5 million has brought a lot of frustration, anger, irritation and perhaps worst of all - apathy to the voters in our country. We discuss Return on Investment on a fairly regular basis in the United States. What will that $3.5 million investment bring us?
I am going to urge you to go out and vote on Tuesday. It's your right as an American citizen and it's the one of the most simple ways to participate in our complicated political system. Not to mention, if you don't vote, you do give your vote away to somebody else who does.
We're electing a new governor. Regardless of which candidate wins, a new administration will bring various policy changes that will effect each and every one of us. The candidates have outlined their positions on the issues, and we'd like you to consider the following areas that are so critical to advancing the common good.
The benefits of early childhood education have been proven in countless studies. Programs such as Keystone STARS, Child Care Works, Pre-K Counts, and Head Start all work together to provide our children with high-quality Pre-K education. These programs deliver net benefits to society as much as $17 per dollar invested. Think of what $3.5 million could do here! Children enrolled in Pre-K programs are more likely to arrive at kindergarten ready and able to learn. This reduces the time that teachers must spend on remedial work and enables our kids to progress more quickly. It also reduces the likelihood that children will need to repeat a grade or enroll in more costly special education programs. While Pre-K education has proven benefits, we are still facing a tough economic climate. Even so, state government needs to remain committed to initiatives that work and provide value. Our new Governor must make sure that early childhood education programs are fully funded in order to protect the future of our commonwealth.
With winter's biting cold just around the corner, another important area of focus for the incoming administration is energy and utility assistance. A pressing and consistent issue facing Pennsylvanians in need is an inability to pay utility bills. Many factors contribute to this problem, including energy rate cap removal and an increase in cut-off households. Supplemented funding to the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) can help as can a new focus on outreach to the folks who may be having trouble paying for their utilities.
Health is also an important issue that our new administration must take a look at. Pennsylvania has adopted a number of innovative programs and policies to help keep residents healthy while assisting those who need help. These include the PA Nurse Family Partnership, Early Intervention and disability services. We hope that our next Governor will continue funding to the programs that have demonstrated success in improving overall family and community health and welfare.
Also critical to Pennsylvanians is 211. We are only one of two states where the system is not active. 211 is an easy-to-remember phone number which anybody can dial for non-emergency human service needs. It is a single point of contact, providing information and referral providers who have access to the most comprehensive database on community service and nonprofit programs in their state. In the days following Hurricane Katrina, thousands of people in the affected area called 211 looking for help in locating shelter, family members, friends and other non-emergency assistance needs. Calls were routed to and handled by 211 in neighboring states where the infrastructure was not damaged or destroyed. Should we happen to have a particularly destructive weather event here, there isn't any one central place for people to call and get information. Despite the numerous community benefits and the cost savings to government that 211 presents, Pennsylvania continues to lag behind the rest of the country in developing a 211 system.
And finally, our new Governor must focus on budgetary reform. Our lawmakers and the Governor have been unable to agree on a budget for most of the past decade, resulting in several harmful stalemates. Budget delays are extremely detrimental to health and human service organizations that depend on budget funding for their operations. We should all be encouraging our new administration to develop and adopt policies that will facilitate timely budgets that promote the interest of the commonwealth and the people that live here.
As Pennsylvanians, we have an important upcoming choice, please make your voice heard by voting and advocating to the new administration on behalf of the common good. That's what it means to LIVE UNITED.
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