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On May 29, 2020, Governor Wolf signed Act 24 of 2020, which allocated funding from the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to assist providers with COVID-19-related costs that were incurred between March 1, 2020 and November 30, 2020. Providers that accepted Act 24 funding agreed to provide documentation to the Department of Human Services (DHS) and were required to submit an Act 24 cost report through a web-based portal between December 9, 2020 and April 30, 2021.
The Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) is urging providers to take the following actions:
DHS knows how important this funding has been to providers to cover COVID-19-related costs such as labor, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), and testing supply costs and is encouraging providers to submit their cost reports by the June 11, 2021 deadline. DHS is obligated to report how these funds were used to the Pennsylvania legislature and return all unused funds to the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Providers that fail to submit a cost report or return their funding by the established deadline will be deemed by DHS to have no COVID-related expenses; DHS will proceed to recoup the Act 24 funding that was distributed to these providers. Questions and concerns can be directed to OLTL.
RCPA members in the Behavioral Health and Drug and Alcohol Divisions recently participated in a survey to gauge their organization’s readiness and potential impacts as the current Alternative Payment Agreements/Arrangements (APAs) are set to end on June 30, 2021.
This is the second RCPA APA survey, as the last one conducted in the late summer of 2020 was instrumental in discussions related to the continuation of the payment agreements/arrangements at a previous expiration deadline. The data we collected will once again be instrumental in our discussions and efforts with DHS and our HealthChoices Behavioral Health Managed Care Organizations regarding strategic fiscal considerations for RCPA members.
To view the survey summary overview and individual question analysis, please visit this link.
If you have any questions, please contact your RCPA Policy Division Director.
Thursday, June 3, 2021
Start time: 9:00 am
End time: 12:00 pm
This meeting will be held virtually via Zoom. The public is invited to call in to this meeting using the following information:
You are invited to a Zoom webinar:
When: June 3, 2021, 09:00 am Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Topic: PA State Board of Vocational Rehabilitation Quarterly Meeting
Please visit here to join the webinar.
Or One tap mobile:
US: +13126266799 / 81331762385# or +19292056099 / 81331762385#
Or Telephone:
Dial (for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location):
US: +1 312 626 6799 or +1 929 205 6099 or +1 301 715 8592 or +1 346 248 7799 or +1 669 900 6833 or +1 253 215 8782
Webinar ID: 813 3176 2385
International numbers available here.
CART and sign language interpreters will be available during this meeting via Zoom. Those using a screen reader can connect via CART Link.
The agenda for this meeting is below. Anyone who would like to make public comment prior to the meeting may submit their comments via email.
Additional auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individuals with disabilities. Please send your request here.
STATE BOARD OF VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION PUBLIC AGENDA — JUNE 3, 2021
9:00–9:20
Welcome & Opening Remarks, Jennifer Berrier, Acting Secretary, Labor & Industry
9:20–9:40
Executive Director’s Remarks, Shannon Austin, Executive Director, OVR
9:40–9:50
Deputy Director’s Remarks, Jeremiah Underhill, Deputy Executive Director, OVR
STAKEHOLDER REPORTS
9:50–10:10
10:10–10:20
BREAK
TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION
10:20–10:40
Update on OVR Policy Workgroups
10:40–11:00
Unemployment Compensation, Bill Trusky, Deputy Secretary for UC Programs
11:00–11:20
OVR/BSE MOU Trainings & Toolkit, Carole Clancy, Director, Bureau of Special Education
11:20–11:30
Impact of OVR/BSE MOU on OVR Customers & Families, Cindy Duch, Director of Parent Advising, PEAL Center
OVR BUREAU DIRECTOR REPORTS
11:30–11:50
11:50–12:00
PUBLIC COMMENT
12:00
ADJOURNMENT
Additionally:
The SFY 20-21 Q3 report required by the Work Experience for High School Students with Disabilities Act (Act 26 of 2016) is now available. A copy of the report is here. It can also be found on OVR’s website, in the Act 26 Information tile.
Capitolwire: New IFO Report Indicates PA Should End FY 2020–21 With a Sizable Revenue Surplus, But With Direct Federal Payments Ending, Things Look to be Far Different for the FY 2021–22 Budget Now in Development
By Chris Comisac, Bureau Chief, Capitolwire
HARRISBURG (May 27) – Pennsylvania’s current fiscal year should wrap up on a very positive revenue note, but the coming fiscal year could be a rocky one to negotiate for state lawmakers preparing a state budget, according to the latest revenue updates released Wednesday afternoon by the Independent Fiscal Office.
Thanks to nearly $78 billion in direct federal payments to individual Pennsylvanians during Calendar Years 2020 and 2021, along with another nearly $79 billion in federal support to businesses, as well as the state government and the commonwealth’s local levels of governments, the IFO forecasts the state’s General Fund will end with $1.674 billion more than the agency had estimated in January.
What makes that upward adjustment to $40.111 billion even more impressive is that when the IFO forecast in January the state’s General Fund would end Fiscal Year 2020-21 with $38.437 billion, that total, after applying estimated tax refunds and expected state expenditures, produced a revenue surplus of $1.481 billion.
And while there are more state expenditures to rectify than had been contemplated by the IFO in January, the total revenue surplus from which those additional expenditures will be deducted now appears as though it will be more than $3.1 billion.
It’s important to note the IFO’s revenue estimates and overall General Fund forecasts differ from those used by the state Budget Office. Revenue collections for May won’t be released until the start of June next week, but the figures for the month are expected to be in excess of estimate by a sizable amount given that the deadline for personal income tax (PIT) return filing was delayed from April 15 until May 17. That pushed into May a significant portion of PIT collections that would have been received by the state in April. Even with those delayed payments, Pennsylvania’s General Fund collections in April managed to stay slightly ahead of estimate, with the Fund, through April, having $1.3 billion more than expected.
So, while the state might not end the current fiscal year on June 30 with a surplus of more than $3.1 billion, things do appear to be trending in a positive direction.
That’s a good thing, since there’s around $1 billion in state Department of Human Services spending, in excess of approved appropriations, that will have to be paid, and having a surplus makes that easier to do. And whatever is left over may be needed to address what the IFO says will be a decidedly different story in Fiscal Year 2021-22.
The IFO initial General Fund revenue estimate for FY2021-22 is built on the expectation that once there’s an end to the massive amount of COVID-19 federal spending – much of it direct payments to individuals in the form of unemployment benefits and stimulus payments – the state’s economy, and the revenues generated from various sources, will revert back to the former path it was on prior to COVID-19.
While that doesn’t sound problematic, it is forecast by the IFO to result in FY2021-22 General Fund revenue retreating to $37.96 billion, a decline of $2.152 billion compared to FY2020-21.
That’s bit of a problem since the IFO in January projected state expenditures would hit $37.975 billion in FY2021-22, and the $37.96 billion in General Fund revenue forecast by the IFO for FY2021-22 isn’t the final amount of revenue that would be available, as tax refunds (normally around $1.3 billion) would still have to be deducted. There’s also the matter of the considerable amount of one-time revenues and expenditure offsets – approaching $5 billion – used to construct the FY2020-21 state budget, with at least a portion of that adding to the hole to be filled in FY2021-22.
Additionally, this all assumes the General Assembly doesn’t approve plans to generate additional expenditures or revenue, both of which Gov. Tom Wolf would like to do as part of the FY2021-22 budget he proposed in February.
While it remains unclear how much of a hole will have to be filled for the FY2021-22 budget to balance, it will be a daunting figure.
Of course, the state lawmakers developing the budget always seem to find ways of moving money around to fill holes, and with some amount of FY2020-21 surplus likely to be available after all the bills are paid, and potentially some amount of the $7 billion in federal COVID-19 stimulus available for budget stabilization (though lawmakers have been warned about using those federal dollars to pay for recurring expenditures), it’s not outside the realm of possibility that the hole – whatever it ends up being before the budgeteers get to it – could be made smaller or erased as has been repeatedly done in the past.
Not factored into the IFO’s revenue forecast is the more than $13 billion in federal funds from the latest round of stimulus, of which, as already noted, roughly $7 billion is coming directly to state government (the rest of which is flowing to local governments throughout the state), and has yet to be appropriated for anything.
IFO director Matt Knittel said that money could have some impact on the state’s economy, though not nearly the same effect that the nearly $78 billion in direct payments made to individual Pennsylvanians who injected quite a lot of that money directly into the state’s economy.
The IFO forecast also does not contemplate the impact of additional stimulus initiatives, such as plans to direct more federal dollars to infrastructure or other items that could provide more direct payments to Pennsylvanians.
“Bear in mind, there’s a lot of moving parts for the revenues … it’s more complicated than usual,” said Knittel at the outset of his presentation Wednesday, noting the difficulty in determining what will occur when federal dollars are no longer being injected into the state’s economy and the effect that will have on the behavior of Pennsylvanians who no longer have access to those additional federal dollars, as well as the tax shifting that could occur as businesses not only react to those dollars but also potential tax changes being considered at the federal level (with the Biden administration suggesting a repeal or at least a trimming of the business tax reductions made during the Trump administration).
The IFO report identified one of the big wildcards as employment, as the state is still well over 400,000 jobs short of where it was pre-COVID-19.
Knittel warned it’s unlikely all those Pennsylvanians currently unemployed – roughly 900,000 potential workers as of April (which excludes most high school and college students) – will find a job when their unemployment benefits run out, particularly if they wait until September when the extra federal unemployment benefit is scheduled to end.
He said many businesses have already adjusted to the current economic climate and labor market, filling some jobs with workers earning higher wages, and finding other ways to improve productivity – through such things as automation and using other forms of technology – to replace the jobs that employers can’t currently fill.
It’s possible those who wait until the fall to begin looking for jobs may find there are more people looking for jobs than there are available jobs, said Knittel, a situation that will put negative pressure on wages and ultimately impact state revenues based on personal income and consumer spending.
Note: This is just a reminder; no changes have been made to date.
Over the past week, RCPA has received some inquiries about the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry (L&I) final rule regarding overtime pay under the Minimum Wage Act. Back in late fall and early winter, RCPA sent out notices informing RCPA members that the new rule would become effective January 1, 2021. RCPA is sending out this alert as a reminder to members. To view the new rule in its entirety, please visit the Pennsylvania Bulletin’s website.
The highlights of L&I’s final rule are as follows:
If you recall, the Federal Department of Labor published its final rule on Friday, September 27, 2019. The Federal rule:
Please contact Jack Phillips, RCPA Director of Government Affairs, with any questions.
RCPA is pleased to announce that the Ability Network of Delaware (A.N.D.) will be joining our 2021 Annual Conference. This is in addition to our previous announcement that the Community Behavioral Health Association of Maryland (CBH) would also be part of the Conference. We are all working in conjunction with both of these organizations to develop a unique collective approach. Leading in 2021: Hope, Help, Heal is set to take place from September 28, 2021 through September 30, 2021.
We are currently working out details of this event, but it is assumed that it will be a primarily virtual event with concurrent planning for a hybrid event if possible. We are working to maximize some in-person conference events that will take place at the Hershey Lodge in Hershey, PA. More to come on that aspect of the event.
RCPA is excited to have this opportunity to work with A.N.D. as well as CBH. This will highlight our ability to share ideas and best practices across state borders and will further enhance the Conference experience for our members. Additional information will be made available as conference planning continues.
We look forward to your participation.
The Department of Human Services’ Office of Children, Youth, and Families (OCYF) is pleased to announce the release of the Pennsylvania Citizen Review Panels’ 2020 Annual Report. The report, which includes Citizen Review Panel recommendations for improvements to our child welfare system and OCYF responses to those recommendations, can be found here.
If you have questions, please contact RCPA Children’s Policy Director Jim Sharp.
Harrisburg, PA – Department of Human Services (DHS) Acting Secretary Meg Snead today joined Attorney General Josh Shapiro to raise awareness and understanding of mental health and wellness, mental illness, and substance use disorders and encourage people who are experiencing these to seek help. The COVID-19 pandemic and economic crises have created anxiety and grief that are affecting all of us in different ways, but resources are available across Pennsylvania, so no one has to go through this alone.
“The past year has made each of us acutely aware of our mental health, and many of us have been struggling with feelings of fear, depression, and anxiety. It is okay to feel this way, but please know that help is available so you do not have to endure this alone,” said Acting Secretary Snead. “These feelings may seem isolating but recognizing them in yourself or a loved one can help you begin to work through and process these challenges and trauma. Clinicians have expanded the use of telehealth throughout this past year making it easier to access services. If you need help, do not hesitate to reach out.”
“I traveled across Pennsylvania to talk to students about Safe2Say, and they told me over and over that they were most concerned about their peers’ mental health,” said Attorney General Josh Shapiro. “It was important to my office that we respond to these concerns and provide students with the help they need and are asking for. As our students return to the classroom, we must continue to find innovative ways to reach young people in need, including making child protective and mental health services available 24/7.”
Pennsylvanians struggling with anxiety and other challenging emotions due to COVID-19 and the accompanying economic insecurity can contact the Persevere PA Support & Referral Helpline toll-free, 24/7 at 1-855-284-2494. For TTY, dial 724-631-5600. The helpline is staffed by skilled and compassionate caseworkers who will be available to counsel struggling Pennsylvanians and refer them to resources in their community that can further help to meet individual needs. Since its launch in April 2020, the helpline has received more than 22,900 calls.
The Attorney General’s Safe2Say program is available to Pennsylvania children and teenagers to anonymously and safely seek assistance and report threats of violence, harassment, and bullying, is also still operating and can be reached 24/7 at 1-844-723-2729 or at Safe2SayPA.
Many other resources also remain available to Pennsylvanians in need of support, including:
Available online resources include:
The pandemic has created economic uncertainties for many Pennsylvanians, making it difficult for some to access essential needs or feel secure about the future. Resources are available in your community to help address these feelings of stress and anxiety. The United Way of Pennsylvania can help connect you to resources that are available in your community to help you meet these needs. Text your zip code to 898-211 to be connected to programs and resources in your community or visit United Way of Pennsylvania. People in need of assistance can also visit Compass to learn more and apply for assistance programs that can help with health care, food, rental and utility bills, and other needs.
More information on mental health resources can be found here.
MEDIA CONTACT: Erin James