State budget woes hit programs for kids hard

The Associated Press reported on May 16 that in Hawaii, a program to reduce child abuse and neglect was cut so much that two years after serving 4,000 families, it now serves 100, a program in Arizona that helped blind high school students care for themselves and find jobs has been suspended, and South Carolina has shuttered all five state-run group homes for kids and a program that helped paroled youths get jobs.

To close an overall budget gap of $174.1 billion this fiscal year states have made historic cuts and lawmakers are looking to trim another $89 billion next year. That means slashing services to the one population they've long protected: children.

The scope of the cuts is unprecedented, child advocates say, hitting programs that addressed everything from childhood obesity to child abuse, and from prenatal care to preschool inspections. Some are now serving fewer kids, while others are having to deal with payment delays and many are simply disappearing.

"We were really taken aback at just the sheer magnitude of the cuts," said Linda Smith, executive director of the National Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies, which released a study in January that found programs for children were cut or eliminated in more than 40 states. Click here to read the complete report.