Introduction
SB 303 was introduced to the Senate on April 10th 2013. The SB 303 is a Bill that is intended to amend 1939 PA 280 which is entitled ‘The Social Welfare Act’. The Bill is to complete the amendment by amending section 57b (MCL 400. 57b), as amended by 2011 PA 131. The section intends to make children under the age of 16 who refuse to go to school to be ineligible for family independence program assistance. The families of such children will also be locked out such benefits from the program assistance. This is a very harsh stand that the law seems to be taking if the bill is passed. The bill is thus oppressive and will be preventing the government from performing its important function of providing services to its services. The bill also undermines the importance of education to the children. Parents are not always to blame for their child’s truancy in school as they are not always in control once the child leaves the house for school. Making the entire family ineligible for the family independence program assistance will also make the other innocent children victims despite their innocence. The bill therefore should not be passed as it will be an additional social burden on the parents. It is only the very needy who apply for grants and being denied the help will leave the families much more hopeless. Our coalition therefore expresses its concerns and urges that the SB 303 bill should not be passed.
People and Organizations to join the coalition and why chosen
There are several factors that will have to be put into consideration when choosing the people and organizations that we will invite to join our coalition. It is important the people and organizations who we invite to join our coalition have similar intentions of stopping passage of the bill.
One of the organizations that has qualifies to be invited as a member of our coalition is the Blue Water Safe Horizon (BWSH). BWSH is a non-profit organization within the state that has shown great commitment in helping to with various social issues. The organization advocates for equality to every member of the state in the provision of the social services especially education. The directors of BWSH would therefore be ideal members of our coalition due to their commitment in ensuring availability of social services to the people.
It will also be prudent to have a member of the community mental health (CMH) as a member of the coalition. This is because the CMH will be in a position to prove that a child’s truancy is not necessarily a result of an act of negligence by the parents. It sometimes is as a result of the child’s mental state and therefore, denying the whole family access to services because of the children is unfair.
It will also be important to have Senator Pavlov who is a legislator of the state as a member of the state. The senator strongly agrees with our view and he would important to the coalition. The Senator is a representative of the people and therefore his presence will be seen as a representation of the interest of the public.
Goals and Time Frame
- Immediate Goal #1- The chairman of the coalition will introduce and identify the tasks of the coalition. By the end of the first meeting every member will have been given their tasks and responsibilities in accordance with their specialties and skills.
- Immediate Goal #2- Every coalition member will source and attain petition signatures in time before the next meeting which will be due in two weeks.
- Short Term Goal #1- the coalition members will attend a training session about SB303 during which they will be able to share their ideas about how to meet the objectives of the coalition.
- Short Term Goal #2- The coalition members will come up with the calendar of events on sensitization of the general public in the event that the bill is passed. This will involve making the public of the provisions of the bill and why it should not be passed.
- Long Term Goal #1- The coalition members will identify and approach a new sponsor for a new bill which will be aimed at nullifying or mitigating SB 303 in the event that it is not passed during the next meeting.
- Long Term Goal #2- The coalition to deliberate on new ideas of a new bill to be introduced to legislation with regard to social changes to improve provision to education services. This should be done within half a year.
Petition
The SB 303 is a Bill that is intended to amend 1939 PA 280 which is entitled ‘The Social Welfare Act’. The bill seeks to lock out many needy families from accessing social services due to their children’s’ truancy.
We, the residents of Michigan State therefore, petition that the SB 303 should not be passed by the house. The bill will deny many needy members in the society from accessing help from the government.
We therefore, demand that such a bill is not passed as it will oppressive and harsh if implemented by the government.
References
Wolff, T., & Foster, D. (2014). Building Coalitions that Work: Lessons From the Field. Chicago: Chicago Press.
