Abortion concerns have blocked the effort to fund Arizona's 2-1-1 system
Sandy Berlanga is one of three people who sits in a nondescript office building in Tempe helping people during some of the roughest times of their lives.
“Thank you for calling Arizona 2-1-1, how can I help you today?” Berlanga says over the phone to a person calling in. This is one of many calls she answers that day.
Arizona 211 is part of a federal initiative that aimed to create a system that people could call which would refer them to services in their community that help address issues related to poverty, domestic violence and more.
Like many programs, Arizona’s 211 had its budget slashed during the Great Recession. To cope with multi-billion-dollar deficits, lawmakers removed the entire $2.6 million state budget for 211, and funding has never been restored. The program is currently funded from other sources to the tune of only about $300,000 a year.
Read more: https://www.azmirror.com/2019/03/25/abortion-concerns-have-blocked-the-effort-to-fund-arizonas-2-1-1-system/