Statewide Independent Living
Council of Illinois

Position on Personal Assistants Wages

The Statewide Independent Living Council of Illinois recognizes that the Department of Human Services, Office of Rehabilitation Services' Home Services Program (HSP) has made a significant contribution in keeping people with disabilities out of institutions. We further believe that an ample supply of persons interested in working as personal assistants (PAs) is essential to the continued success and ability of the HSP in enabling persons with disabilities to live independently and not in more costly and inappropriate institutional settings. However, it is our position that the low wage and lack of benefits currently paid to PAs under the HSP is a major obstacle to recruitment and retention of such a supply of qualified persons interested in working as personal assistants.

To this end, the Statewide Independent Living Council supports an increase for all HSP personal assistants wages to no less than $7.50 per hour in FY 2001 for the following reasons:

Homemaker Agencies working with ORS and the Department on Aging receive $10.30 per hour: of that, 73% goes to direct service worker costs (i.e., $10.30 x .73 = $7.52 per hour). It would therefore be equitable for PAs to receive $7.50 per hour.
Direct service workers in Community Integrated Living Arrangements received an increase of $1.00 per hour in the FY 2000 DHS Budget, while HSP PAs received an increase of less than $.50 cents per hour.
During testimony before the General Assembly, we heard Secretary Peters argue for a "Living wage" for TANF recipients. We feel that PAs deserve a living wage as well, and believe it is only fair to raise their rate to $7.50 per hour.
The expansion of the HSP Homemaker Agency rate agreements to include eligible Centers for Independent Living. This expansion would allow CILs to "Employ" personal assistants and offer benefits including an increased salary of no less than 73% of $10.30.
Increasing HSP PA wages to $7.50 per hour would require an increase of $26.25 million in state GRF, with an estimated .50 cents on the dollar being returned through the federal financial participation on Medicaid-eligible HSP customers (80%). Therefore, the actual cost to the state would be approximately $16 million.