Don't kick them when they're down

There's no money, but we've got to find some somewhere.

Last week, Minnesota's budget forecast was released, and the prediction was as stormy as expected: The state's $935 million in the red, and with inflation, the deficit is expected to exceed $1 billion. Governor Pawlenty said that the budget must be balanced without raising taxes. "I will not allow this session to turn into a parade of DFL tax hikes,” he said through a press release.

So, depending on who you ask, Gov. Pawlenty is trying to protect taxpayers or hurting state-funded programs. But the $935 million has to come from somewhere, so it will come in the form of budget cuts.

Catholic Charities' Office for Social Justice wants to make sure that the cuts don't hurt the most vulnerable in the state. Kathy Tomlin, OSJ's director, addresses in this week's Catholic Spirit the temptation the Legislature may feel to cut social service spending. Minnesota does not spend too much on welfare programs, Tomlin says.

The highest-costing Minnesotans who receive state funding are the elderly and disabled. To abandon them would be wrong. They're not capable of supporting their needs, and many do not have family to provide stability. At the same time, the number of children living in poverty has increased, as have the number of people living in extreme poverty.

And all this while we're facing what may be an economic recession. According to Tomlin, Minnesotans lost 23,000 jobs in the final six months of 2007.

I don't know where the budget needs to be cut. (If I figure it out, I'll let you know.) However, we can't remove the safety nets upon which thousands of people in Minnesota rely. These are the services that provide basic needs, like food and shelter, when they have nothing. These are the services that help them develop skills to be productive in the work force and, hopefully, eventually leave poverty behind. These are the services that affirm each person as having worth, whether or not they have had a rough go of it and can't make it on their own.