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SURVEY QUESTIONS FOR LEGISLATIVE CANDIDATES
1. Human service providers care for one in 10 residents, providing care to the most vulnerable
individuals in the Commonwealth, including those with a mental or physical disability, seniors
requiring services or children and women needing protection, just to name a few. Throughout
the recent economic crisis, the need for human services has grown and our providers are facing
new and more difficult challenges to serve our state’s residents at a time they need care the
most. How have you supported human service providers in your region? With which
organization(s) have you worked?
2. More than 185,000 jobs across the Commonwealth are filled by human service providers. These
employees help to generate nearly $5 billion in annual revenue to local communities while
allowing countless other family members the freedom to work because their loved one is cared
for. Were you aware that the essential human services system is also a critical economic engine
which sustains more jobs than our vaunted biotechnology sector?
YES ______ NO ______
3. There has been significant debate in recent years over tax breaks to large, out‐of‐state, for‐
profit corporations and to the Hollywood film industry with arguably limited economic benefit.
Would you support provisions which would draw back some of those corporate or Hollywood
tax breaks and reinvest dollars to support the state’s human service economy?
YES ______ NO ______
4. Massachusetts, as with other states, depends on the Federal Medical Assistance Percentages to
provide federal funding for services. Would you advocate for the federal government to
continue FMAP and create other federal funding dedicated to our human services safety net?
YES ______ NO ______
5. Almost 8 % of the state budget is allocated to purchase essential human services for the
Commonwealth’s most vulnerable residents from the private, community‐based provider
sector. Studies conducted by EOHHS have documented the purchasing policies of the
Commonwealth have caused the financial health of our sector to suffer. While Chapter 257 was
passed unanimously and was signed by the Governor in 2008 in order to set fair rates, the Act is
not being implemented as prescribed by the law.
As a legislator, would you vote to support the full and fair implementation of Chapter 257?
YES ______ NO ______
6. In the absence of the full and fair implementation of Chapter 257, the Providers’ Council has
traditionally asked the legislature for a dedicated salary reserve for the lowest‐paid human
services workers, many of whom make less than $12/hour. This has provided a modest salary
increase, averaging 2 to 3 percent, to allow low‐paid workers to cover increases in their basic
living costs. As a legislator, would you support this salary reserve?
YES ______ NO ______
7. Ballot questions are again of great importance in November. The three ballot questions could
take away funding or housing from our society’s most vulnerable residents. Question 1 would
repeal the tax on alcoholic beverages. Removing the tax would eliminate an estimated $115
million that is generated each year for people with substance abuse issues. How will you vote on
Question 1?
YES ______ NO ______
8. Ballot Question 2 would repeal the affordable housing law, better known as Chapter 40B. This
housing law is critical to many of the vulnerable individuals we serve and it also provides
housing options for our critically underpaid workforce. How will you vote on Question 2?
YES ______ NO ______
9. The final ballot question, Question 3, would roll back the state sales tax from 6.25 percent to 3
percent. Such a move would remove about $2.5 billion in revenue from the state’s operating
budget and its passage could have a disastrous affect on human services. How will you vote on
Question 3?
YES ______ NO ______
10. There is a long history in the effort to close the state’s institutions that once provided services
for people with developmental disabilities. The Supreme Court, in support of the Americans
with Disabilities Act, has also declared that people with developmental disabilities have a right
to live in small, community‐based settings. The Mass. Taxpayers Foundation recently proposed
closing all institutions to reduce inefficient spending. Do you agree that people living with
developmental disabilities are best served in private, community‐based settings?
YES ______ NO ______
Please return all responses to Bill Yelenak (byelenak@providers.org) at the Providers’ Council by Friday,
October 1. For more information, call Bill at 617‐428‐3637 x122 or send him an e‐mail.