At the Tenant Resource Center today, we will be watching the State Assembly hearing today while trying to do our other work. We’re just waiting for the hundredth shoe to drop, so we can start updating all our written materials.
If SB107 passes, we have to update our website, reprint our brochures, re-write our Housing Counselor Training Guide and our Apartment Management in Wisconsin book. And probably eventually, the City of Madison Tenants’ Rights and Responsibilities brochure. Remember, this is at the same time the state cut our funding, and the feds eliminated the program we used to get funding from. The County is poised to cut our funding $20K and are already $40K short in funding our services. Thankfully, the city will give us the same amount of money as last year – and we will just hope we have no increases in our expenses, I guess.
As a result, I have no Program Director, no Office Manager – I get to do all three jobs in essence – and supervise 3 – 4 DVR people (data entry and housing counseling – placed for only 3 – 6 months before you have to train someone new), 5 – 6 W-2 (Wisconsin Works ) “volunteers” (working on the weekly housing list, folding brochures, answering the phones, odd jobs – also placed for only 3 – 6 months before you have to train someone new) and nearly 20 mostly new housing counselor volunteers, three part-time employees and 2 full time employees while keeping 3 offices open. Supervising that many part-time people alone is more than a full time job! But thank goodness they are there!!!!! Meanwhile I get to spend my Sunday teaching another volunteer training this weekend and of course am grateful the Board is planning our fundraiser for the 11th (5 – 7 Brink Lounge).
In the middle of this, I keep trying to figure out, how is SB107 is creating jobs? It’s creating more work, that is clear. It might keep the copier repair guys busy, er, busier. It might create an extra print job for one of our local businesses to reprint our books, but I won’t print that many because I don’t have cash flow (or any funding) to do so. Meanwhile, our W-2 folks will be folding brochures and getting $20 less per month (Imagine living on $653 per month).
This simply makes no sense. None. at. all.
