The Pittsburgh Foundation

Gov. to sign law creating Department of Human Services via Campaign for What Works

PITTSBURGH, Sept. 18, 2014 -- The PA House - by a great 155 to 35 vote - approved changing the name of the Department of Public Welfare to the Department of Human Services on Wednesday, Sept. 17. The bill is now before Gov. Corbett, who says he will sign it.

We have taken a giant step towards removing the stigma unfairly attached to people who need vital human services in Pennsylvania: children needing help, a grandmother seeking nursing home care for a husband she can no longer care for at home, persons with intellectual disabilities, and persons suffering from debilitating mental illnesses.

100+ Organizations Join Coalition

More than 100 organizations across Pennsylvania joined our crusade. Despite the failure of previous attempts, we called on the General Assembly to change the name. We recruited key champions - Rep.Tom Murt, R-Montgomery, who wrote House Bill 993 that now sits on Gov. Corbett's desk, and Sen. Bob Mensch, R-Montgomery, who set aside an identical bill that he introduced to make sure the proposal moved in the Senate.
 
In this time of political polarization, this proposal had broad bipartisan support. It was supported by leaders from the four legislative caucuses, and was endorsed by the Corbett administration, including Secretary Bev Mackereth, who publicly championed the proposal.

We offer special thanks to the leaders of the four legislative caucuses - Majority Leader Mike Turzai and Democratic Leader Frank Demody in the House, and President Pro Tempore Joseph Scarnati, Majority Leader Dominick Pileggi, and Democratic Leader Jay Costa in the Senate. We also are grateful to the two Appropriations Committee leaders in the Senate, Chairman Jake Corman and Democratic Chair Vincent Hughes.

Mother 'Gratified' by Vote

Bridgette Gaussa, a mother of two from Allegheny County who needed human services assistance after her children were born prematurely, said she is "gratified to see this happen. There should be no stigma attached to getting help for your children. This change is way past due."

Pennsylvania is the only state that continues to use the term welfare in the name of the agency providing human services to its residents. Every Pennsylvania county has a human services department that handles services funded by the Department of Public Welfare.

Ninety-eight percent of the funds for the Department of Public Welfare go to human services support, including long-term care for the aging, mental health services, state-funded medical assistance, and funding for intellectually disabled persons. Only the remaining two percent are used for items some call welfare.

Culmination of 20-year Journey

"This has been a 20-year journey," said Kevin Jenkins, Vice President for Public Policy and Civic Leadership for The Pittsburgh Fund, and a Campaign for What Works leader, said of the effort to change the department's name. "We are grateful to Rep. Murt, who wrote the legislation, and to the leaders on both sides of the aisle of the House and Senate who made sure this was completed before the end of this two-year session."

Rep. Murt drafted the bill to ensure its approval in a way that limits the costs of implementation. Stationery will not be changed until new supplies need to be ordered. Software within the department will not be changed until it is time for normally scheduled maintenance or upgrades.

Before it was passed finally the bill was amended in the Senate to require the new Department of Human Services to upgrade its toll-free telephone number and system where citizens can report suspected cases of fraud.