Write the Governor! Now!

Tuesday I went to an event sponsored by On Our Own Maryland and MDLC. It was a kick off event for Action Annapolis (AA), a lobbying / policy educating day / rally which will be held January 20th (a Wednesday). We will be meeting in the Miller Senate office building (11 Bladen St) at 9:00am. If you would like more info just post a comment to this and I will point you to the right people.

Prior to AA day we would like people to bombard the Governor with letters. You see we are still in a huge budget deficit and unlike most states the Governor has full say on all budget matters. The legislature can strongly suggest that such and such be done, but ultimately he has the power to say "the hell with you" if he wants to and go rogue. Below is a handy letter writing prompt that was given out at the meeting. I suggest that the letters be hand written on brightly colored stationary. This really stands out in the pile. Who writes anything handwritten nowadays? I wish I remembered the statistic on how much more attention those letters receive as opposed to emailed form letters. It's a lot.

Tips On Drafting & Submitting a Letter to the Governor about the Mental Hygiene Administration (MHA) Budget

(sample letter)

Send Letters to:

The Honorable Martin O’Malley

100 State Circle
Annapolis, Maryland
21401-1925

*NOTE: the letter should NOT be longer than 2-pages (typed single-sided).

Below is an example of a sample letter:

*Sample Letter*

The Honorable Martin O’Malley

Chairman of Senate Committee on Finance
100 State Circle
Annapolis, Maryland
21401-1925

Re: Requesting No Cuts to Community Mental Health Services

Dear Governor O’Malley:

• First say: “I am writing this letter as a mental health consumer / advocate / family member. I am requesting that no further cuts be made to mental health community services. If cuts must be made, then please make cuts to MHA inpatient facilities instead of community services . . .”

• Then, explain why mental health community services are important. Talk about your personal experiences receiving mental health community services. For example, you can discuss how these community services are recovery-oriented. You can also mention how essential/important community services are to your recovery. If you experienced difficulty obtaining community services, you can talk about how under-funded they are now and how important it is that more funding is not cut from vital community mental health services.

• If you are recommending that funding for MHA inpatient facilities should be cut over community services, you can talk about your personal experiences in psychiatric facilities. If you were treated poorly in state facilities or if your rights were violated, etc., you can speak specifically about your experiences in these facilities and how inpatient facilities do not promote recovery.

Sincerely,

(your name)
(your address)