Advocacy at the Capital

Actually the Mental Health Day statewide meeting wasn’t really at the state Capital, but very close. It was at the old Railroad Freight Depot next to the (old) Coca-Cola Pavilion next to Underground Atlanta. NAMI DeKalb members attending were Naomi Godfrey, Marjorie Smith, Judith Greenberg, Jean Pajuelo, Richard Pajuelo and Mimi Lee. Our MC was Ellyn Jeager, who gave us 7 simple rules when talking with your representative: be prepared, keep it short and simple, tell the truth, numbers count, be professional, be optimistic, and be polite. Her suggestions for slogans appear below.

Our main speaker was Alan Essig, executive director of the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute and consultant for the Senate Ways and Means (Budget) Committee. Between 1990 and 2001, he explained, the state budget doubled. We were the fifth fastest growing state. In fact the budget increased $1 billion more than the population. The policy of cutting agency budgets started with Governor Zell Miller and has continued until now. The 5% agency yearly cuts during the boom years did make the government more efficient, by “cutting the fat” and combining departments. These cuts were offset by a steady increase in teachers’ salaries, which had been one of the lowest in the nation. Also it was a policy decision to put more people in prison, from 200,000 in 1991 to 500,000 in 2004. At the same time, there were many tax cuts. Food was no longer taxed.  More exemptions were given on personal income tax. Corporate taxes were reduced from 6% to 3% thanks to corporate lawyers. In budget year 2002-3 alone there was a 5.4% ($2.5 billion) decline in income from corporations. [HB 191 presently before the Legislature, if passed, would cut budget income by another $1 billion.]  New technology has resulted in  even less income! Internet sales and cell phones aren’t taxed, while land phones are. The State Reserve Fund has never been so low in the history of Georgia.

  Georgia is not a high spending state. It never was. It’s just the tax base has changed. We need to rebuild revenues some way. Mr. Essig said he hasn’t been able to convince the Legislators of this fact. Legislators say they go by “the will of the people”. Enough people have to say they are willing to pay a little more taxes to be able to continue necessary public services.

You can’t separate the Brain; it’s part of Public Health.
You don’t have a healthy Georgia if you don’t help Mental Health.
We value individual dignity and personal freedom.
We value self-determination and recovery.
We need to increase Peer Support, jobs, and transportation in rural areas.
CIT police training should be statewide.

Key Legislators: House Speaker Glenn Richardson and Sen. Eric Johnson . Information at www.legis.state.ga.us