d

URGENT APPROPRIATIONS ALERT

Lifespan Respite Care Act (P.L. 109-442) - Funding Alert

The FY 08 Labor, HHS, Education Appropriations bill approved by the House Subcommittee last Thursday does not include any funding for the Lifespan Respite Care Act.

ACTION:
Please contact your Representative if he/she is on the House Appropriations Committee (see list below) and urge him/her to support an amendment in full Committee to add $40 million for Lifespan Respite. To reach your Representative, call the House Capitol Switchboard at 202-225-3121, ask for the Member's office and then for the staff who handles appropriations.

MESSAGE:

• Over 50 million family members provide ongoing care to a child, spouse, sibling, aging parent or other loved ones providing over 80% of the nation's long term care needs. Most of these family members do this with great joy, but often at an emotional, physical and financial cost to themselves and other family members.
  
  
• The Lifespan Respite Act passed Congress and was signed by the President in December.The legislation had tremendous bipartisan support. Despite this, the House Subcommittee on Labor/HHS/Education failed to include any funding at all for the program in the FY08 funding bill.
  
  
• As the only federal program focused on respite accessibility, quality, training, capacity and cost, this program would go a long way with minimal funding to keeping family's together.
  
  
• I urge you to support an amendment in full committee that would add $40 million for Lifespan Respite to the FY08 Labor, HHS, Education Appropriations bill.

Members of the House Appropriations Committee by State

Alabama
Rep. Robert Cramer (DEM-AL-5th)
Rep. Robert Aderholt (REP-AL-4th)

Arkansas
Rep. Marion Berry (DEM-AR-1st)

Arizona
Rep. Ed Pastor (DEM-AZ-4th)

California
Rep. Jerry Lewis (REP-CA-41st), Ranking Member, House Committee on Appropriations
*Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (DEM-CA-34th)
Rep. Sam Farr (DEM-CA-17th)
Rep. Barbara Lee (DEM-CA-9th)
*Rep. Adam Schiff (DEM-CA-29th)
Rep. Michael Honda (DEM-CA-15th)
Rep. John Doolittle (REP-CA-4th)

Connecticut
Rep. Rosa DeLauro (DEM-CT-3rd)

Florida
Rep. F. Allen Boyd (DEM-FL-2nd)
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (DEM-FL-20th)
Rep. C.W. Bill Young (REP-FL-10th)
Rep. Dave Weldon (REP-FL-15th)
Rep. Ander Crenshaw (REP-FL-4th)

Georgia
*Rep. Sanford Bishop (DEM-GA-2nd)
Rep. Jack Kingston (REP-GA-1st)

Iowa
Rep. Tom Latham (REP-IA-4th)

Idaho
Rep. Mike Simpson (REP-ID-2nd)

Illinois
Rep. Jesse Jackson (DEM-IL-2nd)
Rep. Ray LaHood (REP-IL-18th)
*Rep. Mark Kirk (REP-IL-10th)

Indiana
Rep. Peter Visclosky (DEM-IN-1st)

Kansas
Rep. Todd Tiahrt (REP-KS-4th)

Kentucky
Rep. Ben Chandler (DEM-KY-6th)
Rep. Harold Rogers (REP-KY-5th)

Louisiana
Rep. Rodney Alexander (REP-LA-5th)

Massachusetts
Rep. John Olver (DEM-MA-1st)

Maryland
*Rep. C.A. Ruppersberger (DEM-MD-2nd)

Michigan
Rep. Carolyn Kilpatrick (DEM-MI-13th)
Rep. Joseph Knollenberg (REP-MI-9th)

Minnesota
Rep. Betty McCollum (DEM-MN-4th)

Mississippi
Rep. Roger Wicker (REP-MS-1st)

Missouri
Rep. Jo Ann Emerson (REP-MO-8th)

Montana
Rep. Dennis Rehberg (REP-MT-At-Large)

New Jersey
*Rep. Steven Rothman (DEM-NJ-9th)
Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (REP-NJ-11th)

New Mexico
Rep. Tom Udall (DEM-NM-3rd)

New York
Rep. Nita Lowey (DEM-NY-18th)
Rep. Jose Serrano (DEM-NY-16th)
*Rep. Maurice Hinchey (DEM-NY-22nd)
Rep. Steve Israel (DEM-NY-2nd)
Rep. James Walsh (REP-NY-25th)
Ranking Member, House Subcommittee on Labor, HHS and Education Appropriations, Staff: Steve Crane - (202) 225-3481

North Carolina
*Rep. David Price (DEM-NC-4th)

Ohio
Rep. Marcy Kaptur (DEM-OH-9th)
Rep. Tim Ryan (DEM-OH-17th)
Rep. Ralph Regula (REP-OH-16th)
Rep. David Hobson (REP-OH-7th)

Pennsylvania
Rep. John Murtha (DEM-PA-12th)
*Rep. Chaka Fattah (DEM-PA-2nd)
Rep. John Peterson (REP-PA-5th)
Rep. Dave Weldon (REP-PA-15th)

Rhode Island
*Rep. Patrick Kennedy (DEM-RI-1st)

Tennessee
Rep. Zach Wamp (REP-TN-3rd)

Texas
Rep. Chet Edwards (DEM-TX-17th)
Rep. Ciro Rodriguez (DEM-TX-23rd)
Rep. Kay Granger (REP-TX-12th)
Rep. John Culberson (REP-TX-7th)
Rep. John Carter (REP-TX-31st)

Virginia
Rep. James Moran (DEM-VA-8th)
*Rep. Frank Wolf (REP-VA-10th)
*Rep. Virgil Goode (REP-VA-5th)

Washington
Rep. Norman Dicks (DEM-WA-6th)

Wisconsin
Rep. David R. Obey (DEM-WI-7th)
Chairman of House Committee on Appropriations and House Subcommittee on Labor, HHS and Education Appropriations Subcommittee, Staff: Cheryl Smith - (202) 225-3508

West Virginia
Rep. Alan Mollohan (DEM-WV-1st)

Prepared by National Respite Coalition. For more information, please contact Jill Kagan at jbkagan@verizon.net or by phone at 703-256-9578 or visit www.archrespite.org/nrc.htm. Updated June 2007.