Support Abuse and Neglect Prevention Programs

Help Prevention Programs Now!

If you have been following the news recently, you may have read about the projected shortfall of over $18 billion to the Texas budget for the next biennium. The Department of Family and Protective Services has proposed a budget that reduces funding to their Prevention programs by 84%. These cuts will drastically affect Boysville's programs and the children living on our campus. Now is not the time to stop prevention programs. Please help let our state legislators know that we need prevention programs. Follow the steps below and generate a letter to your State Legislator. We have provided a sample letter for you to use. With your help, we can Keep San Antonio strong!

Steps

1. Follow this link - http://www.senate.state.tx.us

2. Click on "Senators" tab on the left side of the Texas Senate website

3. Click on "who represents me".

4. Enter your information and click on "submit". (This will give you the names and addresses of the Senators and Representatives who represent you in the Texas Congress.)

Sample Letter:

Dear Representative ________________________,

As a concerned citizen that supports preventing child abuse and neglect and juvenile delinquency, I am deeply alarmed by the news that the Department of Family and Protective Services proposed an 84% reduction to prevention and early intervention programs to meet the agency 10% budget reduction. This is a truly harrowing proposal with multigenerational consequences for the roughly 70,000 children in Texas confirmed as victims of child abuse.

The age old saying, "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" is a cliche because it is proven time and time again. The University of Houstonn found that each year, the effects of child abuse cost Texans roughly $6.25 billion dollars a year. Conversely, quality prevention and intervention programming has the potential to yield a return of $5 for every $1 spent while improving the lives of thousands of children. The annual budget for prevention programs is only $45 million and Texans can ill afford the cost of providing for additional abused children. Reducing the prevention and early intervention programs will ultimately cost Texas money.

Children are one of the most vulnerable populations in the world. Reductions in prevention and early intervention programs will only serve to ensure the roughly 70,000 confirmed victims of child abuse do not realize their full potential because they are more likely to participate in at-risk behaviors. Studies show parents abused as children are high rishs for abusing their own children creating a vicious cycle. Programs through prevention and early intervention reduce the occurrence of child abuse and help teach parents how to gain self-sufficiency so they can raise successful children.

The 84% reduction in prevention and early intervention programs is not an acceptable measure. We urge you to use your leadership to thwart the reduction simultaneously defending children from the trauma and tragedy of child abuse. Please prioritize prevention and early intervention programs.

Sincerely,

Your Name