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The
Status of Poverty in Santa Cruz County:
Trailing Behind the Economic Boom
October, 1999
1. Living in Poverty
2. Increasing
Jobs/Decreasing Wages
3. 1996 Self-Sufficiency
Study
4. Poverty
and Living on Public Assistance
5. Housing Costs
Go Through the Roof
6. Homelessness/Shelter
7. Healthcare
8. Hunger
9. Immigration
10. Where Do We Go From Here?
11. References
12. Research/Writing Team
1. Living in Poverty
Nationally and locally the economy is booming, the
stock market is on an ever-increasing trajectory,
joblessness is at a record low and welfare rolls are
shrinking. Yet the working poor and other low-income
persons largely do not share the benefits of the nation's
revitalized economy. This report profiles the status
of low-income Santa Cruz County residents and highlights
the growing disparity between those benefiting from
the current economic boom and those who struggle to
maintain their economic well being on a daily basis.
The U.S. Census Bureau reports that overall poverty
in Santa Cruz County increased by 2.6% to 13.37% between
1989 and 1995. This increase is based on the 1995
poverty level that placed a family of four with an
income at or below $15,569 as living in poverty. Children
represented the sharpest increase among those living
in poverty as their numbers increased by 6%. Today,
approximately one in five Santa Cruz County children
lives in poverty. Broken down by school district,
19.4% of Soquel Union Elementary students and 19.1%
of Pajaro Valley Unified School District students
are living in poverty.
For low-income families, the struggle to make ends
meet is becoming increasingly more difficult on many
fronts. While the number of jobs has grown, most are
low paying with little or no benefits. People living
below the poverty line are faced with increased health,
food, utility and housing costs while there have been
reductions in public benefit assistance programs.
The combined effect of these burdens is placing a
growing number of Santa Cruz County residents in dire
circumstances.
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2. Increasing Jobs/Decreasing
Wages
The fundamental question we face locally is why there
is a rise in poverty when the CalWORKS case loads
are decreasing, unemployment rates have dropped and
the economy is strong? This seeming contradiction
becomes clearer with the reminder that poverty is
not solely a function of unemployment but is also
a function of the wages attached to available jobs.
A May, 1999 California Employment Development Department
report, "Labor Market Information," states that 75%
of the occupations with the greatest number of projected
job openings (between 1995 - 2002) provide wages below
what is needed to support a family in this area. For
example, an entry level, full-time food service worker
or a retail clerk earning $12,480 and supporting two
children has an income that is 25% below the 1999
federal poverty guideline.
Relative to the past, low wage workers are earning
less, receiving fewer benefits, and are often downsized
or placed on contingent schedules. Meanwhile, income
for top wage earners has continued to increase. Nationwide,
between 1979 and 1993 real family income increased
by 18% for the top 20% of wage earners, while it declined
by 17% for the bottom 20% of wage earners. Since 1980
the real value of the minimum wage has declined by
15%, while corporate profits are up 118% and CEO salaries
are up a startling 536%. To put these figures in perspective,
if the minimum wage had kept pace with CEO pay since
1980, todayís minimum wage worker would have an annual
salary of $80,500. In contrast to the enormous salary
gains by those at the top, the number of very low-income
people (meaning those who have incomes at half of
the poverty level or below) has grown from 13.9 million
to 14.4 million in the last three years alone.
With itís large agricultural and service sectors,
Santa Cruz County's unemployment rates are consistently
higher than the state and national averages. Certain
jurisdictions within the county are higher still.
For the month of February 1999, unemployment rates
were 9.8% for the County of Santa Cruz; 6.1% for the
state, and 4.7% for the nation.
For working families who are living in poverty in
Santa Cruz County, the revitalized economy offers
little hope for improving their living standards unless
there are jobs available that pay a living wage. A
1996 "Wider Opportunities for Women" Self-Sufficiency
Study identifies the income level needed to meet a
familyís basic needs, taking into account the number
and age of dependent children. In Santa Cruz County,
for a family of three (one adult and two children),
the self-sufficiency hourly wage rate is $15.21 -
$20.42, depending on the ages of the children. These
figures represent an income requirement approximately
2.5 to 3.5 times the federal poverty standard.
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3. 1996 Self-Sufficiency
Study, Santa Cruz County, CA.
Adult + preschooler
Adult + preschooler &
school age
Housing
$948.00 $948.00
Child Care $450.00
$755.00
Food
$206.50 $321.95
Transportation $117.81 $117.81
Medical Care $139.03
$157.58
Miscellaneous $186.13
$230.04
Taxes
$458.06 $577.82
Earned Income Tax $0.00
$0.00
Credit (-)
Child Care Tax
($40.00)
($80.00)
Credit(-)
Monthly Self -
$2,465.52
$3,028.30
Sufficiency Wage
Hourly Self-
$14.01
$17.21
Sufficiency Wage
Published by Wider Opportunities for Women
Facing such a wide gap between wages and living costs,
most low-income people are finding that while they
are working as much or more than ever, their paychecks
are failing to keep up with the rising cost of living.
This trend continues even amidst today's strong economy.
Locally several factors are directly responsible for
the increase in poverty. In the Pajaro Valley, which
has the largest number of low-income people in Santa
Cruz County, three economic conditions have intersected
to push up the poverty level over the last two decades.
These are the loss of unionized frozen food positions,
the rise in strawberry production, and the demand
for land for the booming Silicon Valley workforce.
Until the late 1980ís, Watsonville was known as the
frozen food capital of the world. Within ten years,
approximately 5,000 union jobs that provided significantly
higher wages as well as benefit packages better then
most other local jobs, were lost as most of these
operation relocated elsewhere. Many moved to the
Bajio region of the state of Guanajuato, Mexico where
wage levels were about $4.00/day, contrasting with
the $7.00/hour entry wage workers had earned in local
plants.
During the same time period strawberry production
expanded dramatically, increasing from 1,355 acres
(in Santa Cruz County) in 1980 to 3,163 acres in 1996.
The new workforce needed for this expansion provided
non-union, lower wage jobs for some of the displaced
frozen food workers. It also brought new immigrants
who faced extreme economic and social conditions in
Mexico. This changing workforce of low-income wageworkers
without health insurance has placed a huge burden
on local health and social service providers as well
as on the housing market.
In 20 years, the strawberry workforce has doubled,
with an insignificant increase in housing options
that are truly affordable to these households. With
housing costs and wage levels being what they are,
farm workers have no choice but to live in overcrowded
and often unsafe conditions. Our failure to ensure
sufficient affordable housing opportunities and wage
levels for farm workers places undue hardships, challenges
and risks, on the lives of thousands of farm worker
families, not only in the Pajaro Valley, but also
along the Davenport/North Coast.
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4. Poverty
and Living on Public Assistance
California's Welfare-to-Work legislation, which eliminated
Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) and
established the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility
to Kids (CalWORKs) program, went into effect in January
1998. California's Welfare-to-Work plan is based on
federal guidelines of the Personal Responsibility
and Work Opportunity Act of 1996 (PRWORA), which created
a new federal program called Temporary Assistance
for Needy Families (TANF). PRWORA made sweeping cuts
and restrictions to Food Stamps and SSI, eliminated
the guarantee of assistance to families on the basis
of need, and created work requirements and time limits
as conditions of the receipt of cash aid.
Adding to the uncertainty of these changes is the
cumulative loss of purchasing power that public benefit
recipients have recently experienced. From 1990 to
1997, AFDC/CalWORKs and Supplemental Security Income
(SSI) recipients in California were the targets of
state budget cuts. As a result, the purchasing power
of the average CalWORKs grant was reduced by 33% and
SSI benefits were reduced by 17% (currently $650 a
month for a disabled individual which is 53% of the
self-sufficiency standard). In 1998 and 1999, the
California Legislature provided the first two Cost
of Living Adjustments (COLAís) of the decade, bringing
the current maximum CalWORKs grant level for a family
of three to $624 per month in Santa Cruz County. In
addition to the cumulative effect of past cuts, sanctions
due to state and federal time limits will undoubtedly
result in greater poverty, hunger and homelessness.
In fact, the fastest- growing homeless populations
are families, women, and children.
During 1998, Santa Cruz County's CalWORKs caseload
averaged approximately 2,400 households. As of December
1998, the caseload average had declined by 20%. By
December 31, 1998, all 1600 parents required to participate
in CalWORKs had been enrolled. In comparison to other
California counties, Santa Cruz County now ranks 14th
in terms of caseload reduction. Eighty Percent of
the family cases (with the exception of child only
cases) are single parent cases and 70% of children
on aid are under age 10. Only 50% of the children
who receive CalWORKs are school age. The other 50%,
made up of children younger than school age, will
require subsidized child-care as their parents are
required to move to employment. Following the transition
period, many of these parents will compete with a
growing number of families for limited subsidized
childcare slots.
The majority of parents receiving cash aid will be
required to go to work within two years and many are
already working. While average earnings of working
CalWORKs participants has increased by 94% between
1997 and 1998, many parents are still not earning
enough to leave CalWORKs altogether. Average earnings
for 1997 were $377 per month, while average earnings
for 1998 were $733 per month. $733 a month falls far
short of what is realistically needed to support a
family in Santa Cruz County.
The Work First model for welfare reform that was adopted
by federal and state legislators allows for little
training or education. Despite the fact that education
has been proven to increase the earning power of low-income
women, California has adopted strict limitations on
education on education and training (18-24 months).
It is likely that many parents who remain interested
in pursuing educational opportunities will be discouraged
from enrolling in school, particularly in long-term
post-secondary programs. This will exclude many low-income
parents from better paying employment opportunities.
Given the lack of training and educational opportunities,
along with jobs that pay a living wage, it is unlikely
that the majority of families leaving CalWORKs will
move out of poverty as a result of merely finding
employment. Santa Cruz County must work to provide
continuing opportunities for low-income families to
access employment with benefits that will support
a family as well as the necessary supportive services.
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5. Housing costs
go through the roof Please note that the Housing and Homelessness section has
been updated
is available at:
tsp_cover_housing_and_homelessness_.htm
Housing costs have skyrocketed in Santa Cruz County
during the last decade. These increases, combined
with a drop in rental vacancies and a scarcity of
subsidized housing units, have contributed to crowded
living conditions for many and homelessness for many
more. Santa Cruz County is consistently listed among
the top five least affordable places to live in the
nation in both home ownership and rental housing.
The California Association of Realtors reported a
7.7% increase in the Santa Cruz County median home
purchase price between April and May 1999 and an 18.9%
increase between May 1998 and May 1999. Rental costs
have also jumped as noted in the 1997 Community Assessment
Report. Between 1995 and 1997, the cost of a one-bedroom
rental unit increased by 28.5% while the rent for
a two-bedroom unit rose by 18%. Unfortunately, just
finding an available unit to rent, not to mention
an affordable one, is extremely difficult. To illustrate
this, The City of Watsonville Community Development
Department found that the vacancy rate for that City
had dropped to 1.1%.
The 1999 Community Assessment Project survey found
that nearly half of all Santa Cruz County households
pay one-half or more of their income for housing costs.
Four percent of those surveyed stated that they had
been without a home in the last five years (homeless,
in a shelter, or on the street). Additionally, more
Santa Cruz County families headed by women are seeking
homeless services now than in past years. According
to the Community Action Board's 1999 assessment of
housing needs, there was a 38% increase in the number
of Hotline calls from women seeking emergency shelter
or rent assistance to prevent eviction between 1997
and 1998.
Faced with this local housing market reality, many
have turned to the Housing Authority of Santa Cruz
County and other non-profit housing programs for help.
However, after more than two decades of cuts in funding
for federal and state housing assistance, few low-income
households have been able to obtain subsidized housing.
The Housing Authority of Santa Cruz County's waiting
period for Section 8 housing assistance has risen
to seven plus years. As of April 1999, 6,452 households
remain on this list. As an indicator of the depth
of this housing crisis, currently less than 5% of
the Santa Cruz County CalWORKS families receive any
form of housing subsidy at all.
In Santa Cruz County, the housing crisis is reflected
in the overcrowded conditions of many apartments,
houses, trailer parks, and farm labor camps. An increasing
number of people are living in cars, camping, staying
with friends or relatives, or surviving in shelters.
Such grim statistics are clear illustrations of our
society's failure to meet the basic housing needs
of too many people.
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6. Homelessness/Shelter Please note
that the Housing and Homelessness section has been updated
is available at:
tsp_cover_housing_and_homelessness_.htm
The only scientific and comprehensive survey of homelessness
in Santa Cruz County was completed almost ten years
ago. The survey, "Assessment of Shelter and Housing
Needs of the Homeless Population of Santa Cruz County-Summer
1990," provided Santa Cruz County with a wealth of
data that has been used to create many documents necessary
to compete successfully for federal and state funding
for homeless services.
It is essential that baseline data collected in 1990
be compared to 2000 data through the 2000 Homeless
Survey and Needs Assessment. This is necessary in
order to verify the otherwise anecdotal evidence that
the number of homeless individuals in Santa Cruz County
as well as the proportion of the homeless population
comprised of households with children has increased.
Of the 1,187 homeless persons counted in 1990.
In the absence of hard data, conservative figures
estimate that the homeless population in Santa Cruz
County is now between 3,000 and 3,500 people. When
one compares this number of people needing shelter
to the number of available shelter beds the crisis
comes into focus. There are 428 beds available when
the Armory shelters are open in winter and that number
drops to 174 beds from April to October.
Two recent non-scientific surveys have indicated that
homelessness in single mother households and families
with children is a growing concern.
The Shelter Project, a CAB program, conducted a survey
to assess the status of homeless shelter availability
in Santa Cruz County during 1997. The survey collected
responses from three sources: organizations that provide
shelter services, organizations that refer people
to shelter, and lastly the homeless and previously
homeless population. The survey concluded that homeless
people in Santa Cruz County, including families with
children and disabled people, are being turned away
from shelters because the shelters are full. The survey
also found that many have given up looking for shelter.
The number of children included in the burgeoning
homeless population is increasing at an alarming rate.
A 1990 study identified 235 homeless children in Santa
Cruz County. A County Office of Education 1992-93
survey, sent to each school in the County, showed
that the number of students living in cars, shelters,
motels, and overcrowded homes had grown to 818. Their
1995 survey found that the number had grown to 900.
And a spring of 1996 survey found that this number
had grown to 1,000. These children have been attending
school with no stable place to call home and the effects
are detrimental to their overall well being and survival.
Single mothers are also at increasing risk. A report
entitled "The Shelter Project, Direct Client Services
- 1998" found that the number of single mothers in
need of help with emergency shelter and rent assistance
to prevent eviction is growing steadily. The report
documents the number of people served by programs
administered by The Shelter Project. Of particular
concern was data collected by Shelter Hotline workers.
In 1998, 1,598 households called the Shelter Hotline
asking for emergency shelter or rent assistance. A
total of 2,834 people, including 973 children, lived
in the households requesting help. Of the calls, 1,169
came from women and 429 from men. ìWomen-callerî households
numbered 2,204 people including 851 children, while
ìmen-callerî households numbered 630 people with 122
children. The 1998 report found a 38% increase in
the number of calls from women asking for emergency
shelter (32.5%) or rent assistance (43.7%) over 1997
requests. Most of the children who are homeless or
at risk of becoming homeless live with single mothers.
Beyond the crisis facing single mothers facing homelessness,
The Shelter Hotline data shows a 27% increase in requests
for emergency shelter and a 47.5% increase in rent
assistance requests.
The Santa Cruz shelter situation should be updated
and solutions identified.
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7. Healthcare
Access to affordable health and dental care is vital
to the well being of the community. A recent report
by the U.S. Census Bureau found that nationally 47.5%
of full-time workers living below the poverty line
were uninsured in 1998. Many of these workers were
moving from welfare to work. The report also stated
that 44.3 million Americans lack health coverage and
that number is growing at over 1 million people per
year.
Locally, the United Wayís Community Assessment Project
for 1998 found that over 27,000 county residents did
not have health insurance and 65,000 lacked dental
coverage. More troubling is that 49.5% of Latino respondents
to the United Way survey reported that they lacked
health insurance. The study also pointed out that
7.2% of those surveyed had a need for medical care
in the last 12 months and did not seek help. The primary
reasons given were: 50% could not afford care, 26.5%
had no insurance, and 11.8% had insurance that would
not cover the care needed. The Second Harvest Food
Bank found that 17% of its clients delayed needed
health services due to the cost.
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8. Hunger
In 1998 The Second Harvest Food Bank completed an
exhaustive study titled, "Hunger: the Faces and Facts."
The results of this survey contradicted the common
stereotype of food assistance recipients being healthy
single men, transients, people with chemical dependencies,
or those who do not work and do not wish to. The study
found that 69% of the Food Bank's clients consist
of the following vulnerable populations: 48% children,
13% elderly, 8% disabled. Ninety-seven percent of
their clients were permanent residents of their communities.
Regarding employment status, 35% of the households
had one or more adults working, 8% were disabled,
5% were retired, and 2% were in job training programs.
Of the remaining 50%, 43% worked in the previous six
months and 79% were looking for work. The Food Bank's
provider network estimated that 69% of their clients
were employed or underemployed and still in need of
their services.
The 1998 Food Bank study concluded that reduced government
social spending is forcing more marginalized people
to seek food assistance from private sector agencies
and programs. Sixty-five percent of the agencyís clients
received no food stamps (almost half applied and were
rejected while among those receiving food stamps,
28% saw the amount reduced in the past year). The
receipt of food stamps is no cure, as 64% of surveyed
recipients reported that food stamps did not provide
enough assistance to last through the month. The final
result is that 19% of the adult clients and 3% of
the children had missed a meal in the past month due
to a lack of food. CABís Davenport Resource Service
Center estimates that at least 25% of its clients
would go hungry without the food assistance they provide
to North Coast residents.
The survey also showed that the efforts of Second
Harvest and its local network of 99 agencies could
not generate enough food to meet the need. 33% of
Food Bank agencies turned away clients in the year
previous to the study and 54% of the programs had
to ration or limit the food distributed due to shortages.
Additionally, the slightest upset of the balance,
whether environmental or economic, results in the
increased need for food.
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9. Immigration
Many of the low-income persons in Santa Cruz County
face barriers to moving out of poverty related to
immigration. In particular, citizenship has become
more imperative given the recent changes in federal
law and policies regarding immigrants and public assistance.
Without U.S. citizenship status, many workers are
excluded not only from some employment opportunities,
but also from training, education, public benefits,
and other social services. Although some benefit programs,
such as SSI and Food Stamps, have restored a measure
of eligibility to non-citizens, restrictions and exclusions
remain. Citizenship continues to be the key to survival
for many of our most vulnerable residents.
While the need for citizenship is unmatched, the naturalization
process has become ever more difficult to navigate.
There is currently a tremendous backlog at the San
Jose Immigration and Naturalization Office of citizenship
applications. Thousands of applications filed two
or three years ago still wait to be processed. Changes
requiring applicants to follow new procedures in terms
of fingerprinting, testing, and other procedures have
made the process even more confusing for applicants,
requiring a higher level of assistance.
Although citizenship is the ultimate goal for many
Santa Cruz County residents, there remain many more
who require immigration assistance at some other level
short of citizenship. Many families need to start
the process of legalizing family members so that their
residency here will not be threatened, and more significantly,
so they can obtain legal authorization to work.
After obtaining legal permanent residency, or authorization
to work, INS requires these persons to renew their
ìgreen cardsî every ten years, and the work authorization
every year. Currently, there are thousands of legal
residents who obtained their ìgreen cardsî in 1989
or 1990 through the INS amnesty programs of the 1980ís.
The ten-year expiration of these cards is now upon
us, and a flood of renewals - to preserve their legal
residency - is expected.
Increases in INS filing fees represent a formidable
barrier to low-income residents. The filing fee for
the citizenship application was recently raised from
$95 to $225, and similar increases were also implemented
in 1998 for other types of INS applications.
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10. Where Do We Go From
Here?
The varied elements needed to end poverty in Santa
Cruz County are beyond the scope of any one agency,
group, or governmental entity to address. But there
are broad-based efforts, both within and across Santa
Cruz County, that are infusing our community with
moral and practical responses to the new type of structural
poverty we are experiencing today--the poverty of
low-wage workers. One of these voices is that of the
CAB, both through its own projects and advocacy and
in partnership with other groups and coalitions.
Building on its 34-year history of identifying and
responding to the challenges of poverty in Santa Cruz
County, CAB looks ahead to the year 2000. CAB is committed
to insuring a stronger voice for those who are or
who have been in poverty, as well as to continually
renewing our sense of community.
To this end, CAB will also continue to provide and
expand the following services for Monterey County
low-income residents: energy assistance, weatherization,
job training and immigration services.
Together with others committed to a progressive response
to poverty, we raise the following goals to be addressed
in the year 2000:
Employment and Living Wages Jobs that provide a
living wage are essential to helping people to move
out of poverty. A new set of standards for wages and
working conditions that includes decent pay, safe
working conditions, job security, and ongoing training
opportunities, as well as stronger enforcement of
labor protections, must be developed.
Immigrant Rights We are a society of immigrants,
many of whom have come to this country to escape poverty
arising from uncontrolled global economics and political
upheavals. To help ease this transition, expanded
protections and access will be ensured for all immigrants
especially in the areas of health care, housing, and
educational opportunities.
Housing and Homelessness All people have the right
to a safe place to sleep. Families with children,
injured and sick people, elderly people or disabled
individuals must not be turned out of their homes,
away from shelters or be forced to live without basic
utilities.
Universal Health Care All people have a right to
basic health care. All low-wage workers and those
in poverty should have equal access to health coverage.
Juvenile Justice Juvenile offenders are just as
much a part of the future of our community as other
young people. Expanded opportunities for participation,
restoration and treatment for juvenile offenders needs
to be imbedded within our social institutions.
Safety Net Programs Public benefit assistance programs
need to be available to all of those in need. At a
time when the safety net has been weakened, and poverty,
especially for families with children, has increased,
we need the assurance that public benefit programs
are available for all people in poverty and that the
benefit levels are adjusted annually to keep pace
with inflation.
CAB Will Address These Challenges Through Its Work
In The Following Areas:
Employment Five CAB programs provide employment,
training and workforce preparation for low-income
women, youth and adults. During 2000, Women Ventures,
Natural Resources and Employment Program, Youth Community
Restoration Program, Student Training and Education
Partnership, and Energy Services will continue to
offer these valuable services s as well as coordinate
their efforts to share information, training, and
resources.
The goal of these programs is to prepare a workforce
that can earn a living wage as opposed to entering
dead-end, low paying occupations.
Living Wage CAB is designating resources in the
year 2000 to coordinate efforts to create a living
wage ordinance that can be adopted by the local jurisdictions.
Such ordinances would require local employers who
benefit from taxpayer dollars to pay their employees
a living wage.
A living wage would provide working people with the
means to control their own healthcare, childcare and
housing expenses, with a likely positive effect on
the productivity of business. Local governments would
benefit by spending less money supplying aid to working
families living below the poverty line once their
income has been raised. Establishing a living wage
allows working people to help themselves.
Immigrant Rights CAB will continue, through its
Santa Cruz County Immigration Project, to offer a
wide range of legal services to recent immigrants.
CAB will monitor pending legislation and legislation
implementation to make sure that the rights of immigrants
are protected. CAB's Davenport Resource Service Center
will expand its outreach to Davenport/North Coast
farm workers to ensure that they are aware of the
services available to them in this community.
Housing and Homelessness CAB will continue to advocate
that: 1) vulnerable homeless populations such as the
ill, the elderly or families with children receive
shelter, 2) all people have a safe place to sleep,
and, 3) affordable farm worker housing opportunities
are expanded. The basic need for temporary shelter
for homeless people with medical emergencies will
continue to be met by CAB's The Shelter Project (TSP).
TSP will continue to seek out new funding sources
to expand its services to people who need rent assistance
to avoid eviction. Energy Services will provide utility
assistance, weatherization, and housing rehabilitation
services to reduce the percent of income that low-income
county residents must pay for utilities.
Universal Health Care CAB's Davenport Resource Service
Center will continue to provide Medi-Cal and Healthy
Families application assistance as an effort to ensure
that North Coast farmworker families and others receive
adequate medical care. In conjunction with Planned
Parenthood, the Center will continue to provide on-site
family planning services. This and other key issues
that low-income advocates identify as priorities will
continue to be reviewed by the CAB Board.
Juvenile Justice Youth, as the future of our community,
need programs, services, and educational opportunities
that emphasize accountability and opportunity. In
order to promote a "restorative" approach for juvenile
offenders in CAB's Youth Community Restoration Project,
a new job development, placement and mentoring program
is being launched for "graduates" of the weekend public
works program.
As a nation, state, and county, we face tough choices
regarding public policy priorities during the next
century. But one of the most fundamental decisions
we face is whether to allow the trends described in
this report to continue the further deterioration
of the quality of life for low-income residents of
our county or to take steps such as those outlined
by CAB to chart a different course of action. Please
join CAB in the year 2000 as we work to make the principles
and practices of equity and opportunity a reality
for our community!
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11. References (a partial list)
Aroner, Dion. Press Release from the Office of Assemblymember
Dion Aroner, Chair Assembly Human Services Committee.
May 7, 1998.
Assessment of Shelter and Housing Needs of the Homeless
Population of Santa Cruz County. Short-Term Housing
Coalition, 1990.
CalWORKs First Year Implementation Report, January-December,
1998. Human Resources Agency of Santa Cruz County.
Community Assessment Project, Comprehensive Report,
Santa Cruz County. United Way of Santa Cruz County.
County of Santa Cruz General Plan. County of Santa
Cruz, page 21, 1990.
Federal Poverty Guidelines, 1999. State of California,
March 1999
Housing Crisis in Watsonville Santa Cruz Sentinel,
June 4,1999, Page A-3
Hunger: the Faces and facts, Santa Cruz and San Benito
County Hunger Study Report. Second Harvest Food Bank
of Santa Cruz and San Benito Counties, 1998.
Labor Market Information. Employment Development
Department, State of California,
Pearce, Diana. Self-Sufficiency Standards. Wider
Opportunities for Women, 1996.
Pollin, Robert, and Stephanie Luce. The Living Wage.
1998.
Public Assistance Tables, A Coalition of California
Welfare Rights Organizations (CCWRO). January 1, 1998
Recipient Profile, updated as of April, 1998, Human
Resources Agency of Santa Cruz County.
Report on TANF Child Care Needs, Human Resources
Agency/Human Services Commission Community Planning
Session, February 1997.
Section 8 Wait List, April 1999, Housing Authority
of the County of Santa Cruz.
Self-Sufficiency Standard. Wider Opportunities for
Women, Californians for Family Economic Self-Efficiency
Project, 1996.
Shelter Availability in 1997, The Shelter Project,
Community Action Board, October, 1997.
U.S. Census, 1990.
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12. Research/Writing
Team: Paul Brindel, Sandy Brown,
Jerry Busch, Tom Helman, Doug Keegan, Christine Johnson-Lyons,
and Robin Rosenfeld.
Photographers: Tarmo Hannula (Register-Pajaronian),
Christine Johnson-Lyons, and Susana Sotelo.
Special Thanks to Production Team: Hans Brinker, Anita
Heckman and Community Printers, Inc.
For More Information Contact:
Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County, Inc.
406 Main Street, Suite 207, Watsonville, CA 95076
Tel: 831/763-2147
FAX: 831/724-3447
eMail:
info@cabinc.org
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