Federal funds are endangered

http://www.prdailysun.com/news/Federal-funds-are-endangered

July 24, 2010 by Juan A. Hernandez jhernandez@prdailysun.net

If the bill to reorganize the several government advocate offices goes through, there would be “terrible consequences” to people over 60, Puerto Rico Advocate for the Elderly said Friday.
Rossana López León reiterated her opposition to the reorganization plan, calling it “an indisputable laceration to the rights of the elderly.”
According to López León, should the House Substitute bill to the 2010 Reorganization Plan No. 1 become law, there would be “terrible consequences” and “an indisputable laceration to the rights of the elderly.”
“Current state law delegates our office the authority to act as administrator and recipient of whatever federal funds and appropriations are allowed by this [Older American Act of 1965] and other federal laws and programs for the elderly,” said López León during the hearings of the Senate Government Committee
López León explained that the mandate is also contained in a contract between the Commonwealth and the federal government known as the “State Plan on Aging.”
“Any changes to this plan have to be submitted to the federal government for its approval before going into effect,” López León told the Committee.
The Advocate said she has consistently requested from the chairman of the Modernization Council –State Secretary Kenneth McClintock – any evidence of meetings with federal officials to discuss the proposed changes to this plan. Because no such evidence has been provided, the Advocate said she assumed the meetings have not taken place.
The proposed substitute bill, like the original one, calls for the merging of all advocacy offices into one umbrella-type agency under the authority of the Citizens’ Ombudsman.
López León noted that failure to comply with regulations in the past had led to the loss of several million dollars in federal funding that would have benefited Puerto Rico’s elderly.
“The severity in the breach of federal regulations by the Health Department and the Department of the Family led to the government’s classifying Puerto Rico being classified as a ‘high-risk agency’ by the federal government,” López León said.
Government Committee Chairman Sen. Carmelo Ríos admitted to having several doubts regarding the federal funds the agency now receives.
“We cannot lose federal funds. If anything, we should be looking for ways to get more,” Ríos said.
The Advocate also argued that the merging of the advocacy offices into the proposed suprastructure “eliminates the autonomy and independence of the advocates as specialists on different populations.”
“Also, there’s an insurmountable conflict because, while [the plan] states that the advocates will keep their power to protect the populations they serve, it also limits them to whatever the Citizens' Ombudsman decides.” The proposed substitute bill, like the original one, calls for the merging of all advocacy offices into one umbrella-type agency under the authority of the Citizens’ Ombudsman,” López León said.
Ríos said that his committee is in the process of hearing out every advocate to gather as much information as possible and then start a process to reconcile possible differences with the House and the governor, who may have different views on how the merger should take place.