Bad Budget Means Seeking Alternative VR Service

Sunday, September 29, 2002 | 0

California finally has a budget for Fiscal Year 2003!!

Good news for the state (we hope!) but not good news for those of us who need to conduct business before the Board or the Rehab Unit. My particular concern is the Rehab Unit, which is losing two Supervisors and seven Consultant positions plus some clerical positions.

The losses will be particularly difficult for Van Nuys (from three Consultants down to one), San Diego, Sacramento, and the Bay Area (from two Consultants down to one in each location), and Los Angeles (which is losing a Consultant shared with Santa Monica).

A vacant position in Santa Rosa will not be replaced, which means the entire north coast area of the state will not be served. The Unit is losing two of its three Supervisory positions so we cannot expect them to "fill in" to insure timely dispute resolution.

We are already seeing delays in scheduling conferences in some of these areas and we can only expect matters to get worse. Applicants and defendants will either need to find ways to resolve disputes themselves - or look to arbitrators to resolve disputes (see L.C. section 5270-5278).

Contributed by Allan Leno, Leno & Associates, (818) 370-8859. E-mail: allanleno@leno-assoc.com.