

	Site visit activity as part of safety course in 2010.

ERC Director: Niklas Krause, MD MPH PhD
Professor, Environmental Health Science
UCLA School of Public Health

ERC Deputy Director: Dean B. Baker, MD, MPH UC Irvine School of Medicine

ERC Administrator: D.T. Evans, MPH
UCLA School of Public Health

Save the ERCs

Through the efforts of lots of people, the ERC's survived being cut from this year's 2011 budget.

But the President's budget for fiscal year 2011/12 (referred to as FY2012) proposes eliminating all Education and Research Centers (ERCs), of which the Southern California ERC is one. This 2012 budget is not final and is being discussed now by the House of Representatives and the Senate before approval.

UPDATE (9/30/11): The Senate Appropriations Committee approved the FY12 bill. The Senate bill provides $24.3M for the NIOSH ERCs, the same as the FY11 level

If you feel inclined to participate actively in educating the President or our representatives in Congress, you may consider writing letters of support for the ERCs to them. Experience tells us that letters of support from both affected individuals and from major organizations or businesses do matter a lot. They alone may decide the battle. Let us know if you need more information.

TOOLKIT

Below are links to information that may help you in your communications:

STAY INFORMED

What are ERCs?

What is the Southern California ERC?

"NIOSH Education and Research Centers on the chopping block in Obama’s 2012 budget

Rebuttal of the Proposed Elimination of the NIOSH Education and Research Center

NIOSH-supported Education and Research Centers (ERCs) Justification Statement

Businesses Benefiting from ERC Training

NIOSH predicts shortage of qualified occupational safety and health professionals (10/21/11)

A survey by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) indicates that the national demand over the coming year and beyond for occupational safety and health services will significantly surpass the number of men and women with the necessary training, education and experience. Although employers plan to hire at least 25,000 occupational safety and health professionals over the next five years, only about 12,000 new graduates are expected to be available from the academic programs that provide the national pool of expertise.

The report on the survey, "National Assessment of the Occupational Safety and Health Workforce," attributes the shortage to declines in funding for degree programs in occupational safety and health; inadequate or limited financial aid and lack of knowledge about these degree programs; and the desire of employers to hire workers with added training in leadership and communication. Visit the NIOSH Web page to read the full report.

Updates

WHAT CAN I DO?

Relatively short letters directed to specific Congressmembers or Senators, work best, especially if you personalize why this field is important, what it has done for you, your associates, business, etc. Generic or form letters are not so good (but below is a sample letter you may use and edit). We would appreciate copies for our files. Please forward them to your Program Director (if you are an ERC student) or D.T. Evans at UCLA. If you are connected to others through social networking, you may want to inform them and request their support as well.

Sample Support Letter

White House Contact Information

Best Link : Write the President, your Senator and Congress Representative with one click: http://capwiz.com/caiha/home/

Quick link to Congressional Members by Zip-Code:
https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml

Quick link to Senate Member by Zip-Code:
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

Congressional Committee Members and Contact Information

Support Letters From Professional Associations

Letter from Congress Members Miller and Murray to the Director of the OMB

Letter to the House Appropriation Subcommittee on Labor, HHS, and Education from 31 Members of Congress

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

We are also supporting the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing Centers supported by NIOSH; these were also terminated in the President’s proposed budget. These centers serve businesses with the highest rates of injury in the country. Read more about them here. The rebuttal of the justification is shown here

Updated 11/1/11

Please check back for updates.

Save the ERCs Facebook Community

The Southern California Education and Research Center gratefully acknowledges its support from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).