HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0122.059 2000-2002 'T'he Island of ~Iaw~.i`i Y NZ C ~
® "Serving the County of
~cazvai `i, in the Aloha State"
, ~
May 3, 2001 CORPORATE OFFICE • P.O. Box 70¢7.-• .xamuela, HI 9G743 • PH: $08-885-7420 • FX: 808-885-5370
County Council Chair James Y. Arakaki
Hawaii County Council ' .
25 Aupuni Street
Hilo, HI 96720
RE: Funding for the YMCA Mediation Services
Dear Mr. Arakaki,
On behalf of The Island of Hawaii YMCA, we respectfully request that the County Council reconsider the
recommendation from the Committee on Human Services and Economic Development concerning funding for
the YMCA Mediation Services for the East Hawaii community.
The YMCA Mediation Services has been providing continuously expanding mediation and conciliation services
to individuals, families and businesses in the East Hawaii community since 1983. This program provides case-
based mediation services similar in scope to the West Hawaii mediation organization. While case-loads and
operating expenses have steadily increased over the years, state and county funding have remained relatively
flat. The county funding support for this valuable service is considered critical to continuing the high level of
service to the East Hawaii community.
The need for this critical work in East Hawaii is statistically equal to or greater than the need in the West
Hawaii community (served by Big Island Mediation) as demonstrated by the table. These statistics are all "real
cases" and were taken directly from reports provided by the respective programs for the state Judiciary contract.
Both the YMCA and Big Island Mediation have contracts with the state Judiciary with identical scope of
service requirements and are funded by the state at the same level.
The table below compares the level of service and funding support for both State and County funding for the
two mediation ro rams in Hawaii County.
YMCA Big Island
Mediation Mediation
East Hawaii West Hawaii
Actual Mediation Cases Serviced: 265 224
FY endin June 30, 2000
Actual Mediation Cases Serviced: YTD FY ending June 30 2001 219 143
(as of March 31, 2001)
State Judiciary Funding for Case-based mediation services $45,687 $45,687
FY endin June 30, 2000
Coun Fundin for mediation services FY endin June 30, 1999 $9,500 $0
County Funding for Case-based mediation services $0 $9,500
FY endin June 30, 2001
Recommended County Funding for Case-based mediation services $0 $10,000
FY endin June 30, 2002
Mission: t~„nTfi~s ~ . ~.,,~:W~d;,~.,~,,~;;.~,.,~.~,
A/oha Ke Akuu-"God is Love" l'7.Lc~„ 'VQ. ~
The Mission of The !stand ojHawa!'t Y.~t1CA is to share God's C O V ~ C / I
Love with children, adul[s, and famines of all races and faiths b ~ ~d. \ MEMBER
puttiing Christian principles into practice through programs y Z ! , ~
F_._ p,~ . HAWAII ISLAND
that build healthy spirit, mind and body for all. 1. 1.~~d r}(~f1'I UNITED WAY
f. Bate ~
The YMCA Mediation Services provides services to a larger population with a larger number of cases, while
being handicapped by decreasing funding support from Hawaii County sources.
The recommendation to not fund the YMCA application centered around 3 points: A. Critical work,
B. Too much emphasis on youth and C. State support of alternative dispute resolution.
A. Critical work- The YMCA Mediation Services provides quality case-based mediation services for a wide
array of disputes. The program handles neighbor/neighbor, landlord/tenant, divorce/family and community
disputes. These cases sometimes involve the criminal and/or civil court system, adding to the complexity of the
case. The program also handles disputes involving Special Education, Oi~ice of Regulated Industries (RICO),
Real Estate Commission, and the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission (the program is paid a fee by the referring
agency for these cases (approximately 15 cases per year)). These case types are similar to Big Island Mediation.
B. Too much emphasis on youth- YMCA Mediation services has a core component of community mediation.
T`he YMCA shares a master contract with six mediation centers in the state (the contract includes Big Island
Mediation) for these core services. The Big Island Mediation program also has a youth school based
component, as do 2 other mediation centers in the state. These programs are not included in the state contract.
The Character Development component (the youth A~erschool component) was added to the YMCA
Mediation Services in 2000 and comprises only 16% of the total program's revenue and thrust for Program
Year 2001-2002. Of the program budget of $90,951, only $15,000 will be utilized for the Character
Development component, the remaining $75,951 is restricted to the core mediation component. The Character
Development component (youth program) is not funded by either the County or the State. it is funded through
private foundations and other community sources. If County funding is approved, it will not be used to
support the Character Development component, County funding will be restricted to case-based mediation
services.
C. State support of alternative dispute resolution- the state supports both YMCA Mediation Services and Big
Island Mediation with identical funding. We agree with the County that the state should contribute funding at a
higher level, and are doing everything we can to accomplish that goal. Nevertheless, until increased state
funding can be obtained, funding from the County is critical to program survival.
We are not asking that the County rescind its recommendation to fund the Big Island Mediation program.
Mediation services are critically needed throughout the entire county. However, the YMCA Mediation Services
are providing more services to a larger population, and we feel that we have exceeded the same criteria used to
recommend funding for the Big Island Mediation program. Therefore, we respectfully request that the County
Council adjust funding levels for mediation to provide similar funding to both the East Hawaii and West Hawaii
mediation organizations ($10,000 for FY 2002).
Should you have any program specific questions, please contact Dorothea Auldridge at 885-5388.
Sinc el ,
o rt . i~~IasuG~d~a
President/CEO
C: County Council Members