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A SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATION FOR
THE OFFICE OF ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY
FACTS AND A PROPOSAL
The Current Situation
In the past few weeks the Administration has made public two decisions
that will have substantial immediate impact on urban programs to fight
poverty and which may materially affect such programs for some time to
come. j
These decisions were:
1. To fund the National Alliance of Businessmen (NAB) program
primarily out of existing Office of Economic Opportunity
appropriations;
2. To not seek supplemental funds for special summer programs
as was done last year.
The first of these decisions will have the greatest impact. The NAB
program will channel $100 million from such activities as Head Start,
Neighborhood Youth Corps, and Job Corps into efforts to train and
place hard-core unemployed. The NAB effort, if effective, would re-
sult in the training/placement of about 28,000 hard-core unemployed
during this fiscal year. However, the funding method used will sub-
stantially reduce, if not negate, the effectiveness of the program
as it will:
Reduce the number of fundable Job Corps Centers by sixteen,
thereby reducing available enrollee openings by 6,800;
Lower Neighborhood Youth Corps enrollment by 170,000 school-
age youths from low-income families;
Reduce Head Start capacity for accepting the very young
children of poverty by 13,000 student places.
The multiplier effect of these reductions is substantial. Community
programs, exclusive of Head Start will be forced to lay-off 7,000
non-professional people, most of whom were previously members of the
poverty population. Head Start will be forced to lay-off 2,500 non-
professionals from that same group.
There is no estimate of the number of mothers who will revert to wel-
fare rolls because they have been deprived of the day-care services
inherent in Head Start.
The impact of OEO cut-backs on individual communities is exemplified
in the cases of New York and Atlanta. Summer Youth Corps openings in
New York City are to be reduced from last year's 24,000 to 8,000, In
Atlanta, the community action programs are to be cut back 32% and
Head Start 25%. By the above stated program cuts the Administration
has been forced to fund the creation of about 28,000 potential jobs
at a cost of 9,500 lay-offs of adults, the cut-back of 170,000 train-
ing places for Neighborhood Youth Corps students, the reduction of
13,000 students in Head Start, and the elimination of sixteen Job
Corps Centers.
PAGE TWO
NATIONAL ALLIANCE OF BUSINESSMEN
The National Alliance of Businessmen, whose membership contains
many individuals also active in the Urban Coalition, met in
Washington this week. Christopher Mould, Deputy National
Coordinator and Staff Director of the Coalition, addressed the
group and stressed the need for the two organizations to com-
plement each other's efforts in securing assistance for the
hard-core unemployed. Mould will also speak to the first of
three AFL-CIO conferences on social security on Saturday, March
2, to explain the work of the Coalition. .
PRIVATE EMPLOYMENT
Printing of the proceedings of the very productive Regional
Private Employment Conference held by the Coalition on December
13, 1967, in Atlanta has been accomplished. The booklet, en-
titled "The Urban Coalition, Phase II, Expanding Employment
Opportunities," is being mailed to the entire Coalition mail-
ing list.
THE OFFICE OF ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY
FACTS AND A PROPOSAL
The Current Situation
In the past few weeks the Administration has made public two decisions
that will have substantial immediate impact on urban programs to fight
poverty and which may materially affect such programs for some time to
come. j
These decisions were:
1. To fund the National Alliance of Businessmen (NAB) program
primarily out of existing Office of Economic Opportunity
appropriations;
2. To not seek supplemental funds for special summer programs
as was done last year.
The first of these decisions will have the greatest impact. The NAB
program will channel $100 million from such activities as Head Start,
Neighborhood Youth Corps, and Job Corps into efforts to train and
place hard-core unemployed. The NAB effort, if effective, would re-
sult in the training/placement of about 28,000 hard-core unemployed
during this fiscal year. However, the funding method used will sub-
stantially reduce, if not negate, the effectiveness of the program
as it will:
Reduce the number of fundable Job Corps Centers by sixteen,
thereby reducing available enrollee openings by 6,800;
Lower Neighborhood Youth Corps enrollment by 170,000 school-
age youths from low-income families;
Reduce Head Start capacity for accepting the very young
children of poverty by 13,000 student places.
The multiplier effect of these reductions is substantial. Community
programs, exclusive of Head Start will be forced to lay-off 7,000
non-professional people, most of whom were previously members of the
poverty population. Head Start will be forced to lay-off 2,500 non-
professionals from that same group.
There is no estimate of the number of mothers who will revert to wel-
fare rolls because they have been deprived of the day-care services
inherent in Head Start.
The impact of OEO cut-backs on individual communities is exemplified
in the cases of New York and Atlanta. Summer Youth Corps openings in
New York City are to be reduced from last year's 24,000 to 8,000, In
Atlanta, the community action programs are to be cut back 32% and
Head Start 25%. By the above stated program cuts the Administration
has been forced to fund the creation of about 28,000 potential jobs
at a cost of 9,500 lay-offs of adults, the cut-back of 170,000 train-
ing places for Neighborhood Youth Corps students, the reduction of
13,000 students in Head Start, and the elimination of sixteen Job
Corps Centers.
PAGE TWO
NATIONAL ALLIANCE OF BUSINESSMEN
The National Alliance of Businessmen, whose membership contains
many individuals also active in the Urban Coalition, met in
Washington this week. Christopher Mould, Deputy National
Coordinator and Staff Director of the Coalition, addressed the
group and stressed the need for the two organizations to com-
plement each other's efforts in securing assistance for the
hard-core unemployed. Mould will also speak to the first of
three AFL-CIO conferences on social security on Saturday, March
2, to explain the work of the Coalition. .
PRIVATE EMPLOYMENT
Printing of the proceedings of the very productive Regional
Private Employment Conference held by the Coalition on December
13, 1967, in Atlanta has been accomplished. The booklet, en-
titled "The Urban Coalition, Phase II, Expanding Employment
Opportunities," is being mailed to the entire Coalition mail-
ing list.