Campaign for What Works

Support our 3 goals for 2012-13:

1. Stop cutting. Start adding. Fix funding. Last year, and for many years before, Pennsylvania has dramatically cut funding for vital – and successful – human service programs. As a result, Pennsylvanians face longer wait lists, increased homelessness, cost shifts, closed programs and unemployment. The 2012 state budget cut deep into the bone. C4WW urges the Governor and legislature to stop the cuts to human service programs and restore funding to what works.

2. Rename the Department of Public Welfare. What 93% of the work in the Department of Public Welfare entails is protecting our most vulnerable Pennsylvanians, including those needing long-term or permanent support to live as meaningfully and independently as possible. Some of these services are provided regardless of a family’s income. This is not welfare. And in this day and age, Pennsylvania is the only state that still has a department called “welfare.” Let’s call it what it is —the Department of Human Services.

3. Formalize smart decision-making. When elected officials have to make tough decisions with limited resources, using evidence and performance-based program analysis should be standard operating procedure. C4WW is encouraging the legislature to institutionalize this kind of analysis within the newly created Independent Fiscal Office.

NEWS

Sen. Bob Mensch (R-Montgomery) and Sen. Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) Introduce Senate Bill 840 to Rename Department of Public Welfare.

Rep. Thomas Murt’s (R-Montgomery) House Bill 993 Clears House Human Services Committee, Awaits Full Vote

Greater Pittsburgh Nonprofit Partnership Chair Brian Schreiber Op-Ed: “Welfare” is a Misnomer

Sens. Mensch and Costa Op-Ed: Remove the Stigma of “Welfare”

Critics decry Pennsylvania’s revived asset test on food stamps

Report says Pennsylvania would profit by expanding Medicaid access

Sign the Petition to Rename DPW

PA is the only state in the country that still has a department calling itself ” Public Welfare.” The name is outdated and misleading – 95% of what the Dept. of Public Welfare does is human services, not welfare. Let’s remove the stigma and change the name to reflect the mission. It’s time.

We believe in doing what works for Pennsylvania

The Campaign for What Works (C4WW) is exactly what its name implies — a civic effort that supports publicly funded, human and social service programs that work for consumers, providers, and yes, taxpayers. The Campaign is dedicated to keeping children safe, supporting seniors and Pennsylvanians with disabilities, young adults struggling with addiction, and families who need help making ends meet.

We believe in supporting work like the Nurse Family Partnership program or Multisystemic Therapy for Juvenile Offenders. Both spend a dollar upfront in early intervention to avoid hundreds of dollars in future societal problems.

Pennsylvania works when our state budget supports what works. Join Us.