Federal Budget Cuts Felt In DFW Area

FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - Strapped for cash and looking for programs to slice, the latest budget cuts from the federal government could – literally – hit home for thousands of Dallas/Fort Worth Area residents.

Community Development Block Grants are federal dollars that have helped more than a quarter of a million people in Fort Worth alone. They're used to build and maintain housing units in the city and provide aid for 100,000 people through nonprofit groups.

Now, some of those funds could be cut off. Mayor Mike Moncrief is asking voters for help to aid residents like Ruby Ellis.

"I had surgery on my knee in July," Ellis said. "And I have to have surgery on my other knee; I'm just waiting for the cold weather to get out of the way."

Ellis often found herself trapped in her own home, unable to navigate the stairs from her door to the driveway. But her church told her about REACH, Inc., an organization that uses CDBG money to help the elderly with things like handicap access ramps.

"I'm more likely to go out because I don't have a problem getting out of the house now," Ellis said after having a ramp built from her porch to the driveway. "It makes it easier for me to walk."

Fort Worth, which is already struggling with ongoing budget shortfalls of its own, has learned the federal CDBG grants face a 7.5 percent cut in the U.S. Congress. This is money that city leaders say cannot be replaced locally.

Last year, the city used $7 million in grants for after school programs and daycare; elderly housing and care; and money for community cleanups.

Cuts in the funding would leave service providers like REACH Inc. with few options for finding money for their programs.