Forum brings Catholic voices to State Capitol

On March 11, more than 800 Catholics will flock to the State Capitol from all over New York State to lobby their legislators on issues of concern to the Church.

Attendance at the annual Public Policy Forum is expected to remain stable despite a turbulent year for the Church, according to Dennis Poust, director of communications for the New York State Catholic Conference. The Catholic Conference, which lobbies on behalf of the state's bishops, sponsors the event.

Mr. Poust noted that New York State itself has been battling "a year of great fiscal difficulties, which makes advocacy on our issues even more difficult."

With an $11.5 billion budget shortfall and massive cuts proposed to areas like health care and education, Mr. Poust said the Forum's message would be that "the budget can't be balanced on the backs of the poor. We must create a budget that does not hurt the poor more than they are already hurting."

Drug laws

Among the issues targeted for lobbying efforts is reform of the Rockefeller-era drug sentencing laws. The current laws require harsh, mandatory prison sentences for minor drug offenses.

Mr. Poust called it "frustrating" that this issue is still on the list, saying the Catholic Conference expected it to be dealt with long ago.

"It's been 30 years of injustice, of lives being ruined," he stated. "It's time to take a fresh look."

HIV services

While some services to New Yorkers with HIV and AIDS have remained untouched, others would be cut under Gov. George Pataki's budget plan.

Mr. Poust noted that "it's important to remind legislators of the extent of the crisis in New York." In 2002, a sudden upsurge in the number of new HIV cases in New York State was reported.

"This is a public health issue that the politics of budgeting should not affect," Mr. Poust concluded. "It's an issue of life and death."

Housing

Participants in the Public Policy Forum will also lobby for low-income housing for the poor.

"This is a time of economic disaster in New York State," Mr. Poust explained. "When that happens, the people at the lower end of the ladder suffer most. People can't afford their rent; you see fewer and fewer developers wanting to build affordable housing. We need more, or we're going to see another homeless crisis like we had in the 1980s."

In addition, forum-goers will advocate to help the needy through the best use of TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) funds. Mr. Poust noted that last year, the funds were used to balance the budget rather than allocated to those in need.

Health insurance

An area of particular concern to the Catholic Conference is access to health insurance for the uninsured. In his executive budget, Gov. Pataki proposed limiting eligibility for the Family Health Plus insurance program.

"The state has three million uninsured people. That's just unacceptable," Mr. Poust countered. At the forum, Catholics will lobby for more outreach to help the uninsured sign up for the program.

"They don't know they're eligible; or the procedures are so burdensome, they don't enroll," Mr. Poust said. With people turning to emergency rooms for their only care, "the burden goes on a healthcare system already struggling to stay out of the red."

Rural life

According to the director, people often forget how much of New York State is rural. New Yorkers in such areas have different issues than those in cities; Mr. Poust remarked that "one size doesn't fit all" when it comes to meeting housing and transportation needs.

Since public transportation is limited in rural areas, he said, it's hard for residents to get to their jobs. As such, the Catholic Conference supports the "Wheels to Work" program, which provides used cars for people to travel to work.

Affordable, low-cost housing is also a major issue in rural areas, he added.

Unborn children

The life issue at the top of this year's list is one Mr. Poust said can't be disputed even by pro-choice lobbyists: the Unborn Victims of Violence Act. The bill, which was passed in the State Senate last year but stalled in the Assembly health committee, would charge assailants who harm an unborn child during a crime against a pregnant mother.

"It protects women who have made a choice to carry their child to term and have had that choice taken away. It's not an abortion bill," Mr. Poust stated.

If the bill were to be allowed onto the Assembly floor for a vote, the director believes it would have strong support. However, he expressed some frustration that without intense pressure from advocates, the Unborn Victims of Violence Act is unlikely to leave the health committee at all.

Education

The State's education budget is slated to be slashed by 8.5 percent under the Governor's plan. Bishop Henry Mansell of the Buffalo Diocese testified on this subject before the Senate's budget committee last week, citing parental choice in education as a good move to ease the crisis in New York State's public-school system.

Vouchers for school choice and other options, said Mr. Poust, would not only help parents send their children to the school they choose, but also remove the burden of educating them from the State.

Religious freedom

Last year's passage of a law mandating that Catholic employers cover contraception in employees' health insurance coverage is a frightening example of what happens when threats to religious freedom become reality, said Mr. Poust.

That case will be debated in court, but "we're asking that religious organizations be exempt when [a policy] conflicts with their teaching," Mr. Poust stated.

He expects to see even more assaults on religious freedom in the future, including mandating Catholic hospitals to give emergency contraception to any patient upon request. The current policy is to give the contraception only to rape victims.

Catholic voices

Although the abuse crisis has deeply affected the Catholic Church, Mr. Poust said Catholics are still important and valued in speaking up for the voiceless.

"There's no question the Church suffered a tremendous blow to its credibility and moral authority because of this terrible scandal," he stated. However, "we have found in the Legislature that we still are a respected voice. They know we're consistent in our advocacy in terms of the poor and vulnerable. Respect for the human person is always at the center of it: the poor, the imprisoned, children, families."

There's still time to register to attend the Public Policy Forum, and it's more crucial than ever, said Mr. Poust: "It's important that Catholics continue to come to this forum and re-establish our voice, if it's taken a hit."

(The Public Policy Forum will be held March 11 at the State Capitol in Albany. To register, call 453-6650.)

(3/6/2003)

PRAYER RALLY

Knights planning a day

The New York State Knights of Columbus Council will sponsor a prayer rally at the State Capitol, March 25, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., to let state lawmakers know that Catholics feel a sense of "futility and abandonment" when it comes to discussing and enacting issues of concern to the Church and families.

The Knights said that the "growing hostility at the legislative level" leads to "an equally growing hostility at the grass-roots level" along with a weakening in "the confidence and trust of many Catholics, most especially the uninformed and marginal."

The Council will hold the rally to pray for an end to "ignorance, hate and intolerance, which manifests itself in bigotry." They invite all Catholics to attend. (KB)

(3/6/2003)

Other school topics

Public Policy Forum lobbyists will also be asking for:

* funding for Academic Intervention Services, which would help Catholic schools comply with the State Board of Regents' requirement that struggling students receive remedial instruction;

* computer hardware aid, provided to public schools to the extent that some is turned away, while Catholic schools are not currently eligible; and

* transportation aid, so that students may continue to get to Catholic schools even if they live further away than the current 15-mile limit.

"As Catholic schools are closing, [transportation] becomes an impediment to placing a child in Catholic or private schools," Mr. Poust explained. The Catholic Conference is proposing that the limit on transportation be increased to 25 miles. (KB)

(03/06/03) [[In-content Ad]]