HAMILTON, Ohio — Amelia Murphy, 24, sits down with a pen and paper to meticulously plan her American Sign Language (ASL) lesson. She writes out every detail, every activity, every moment she'll spend teaching seven deaf and nonverbal clients at Empowered Community Services.
For Murphy, who has attended the Butler County Adult Day Habilitation program since she was 21, these carefully crafted lessons represent more than just an activity. They're her reason for getting up each day.
"It kind of gives me a sense of purpose," Murphy said. "Like, okay, I go to Empowered today. Say today is an ASL Day. I have to have my plan ready."
But that sense of purpose hangs in the balance as the Butler County Board of Developmental Disabilities (BCBDD) faces a fiscal crisis that threatens to eliminate services benefiting hundreds in the community.
When asked what her life would look like without the program, Murphy said: "Oh, I would be sitting on my butt, doing absolutely nothing."
A life-changing letter
December. That's when Murphy's mother, Pam Wendel, got the letter informing her that she would no longer receive funds to cover the cost of the day program.
It didn't just announce a budget cut — it threatened to dismantle years of careful planning and searching for the right support system.
"We looked around for an appropriate place for her to go, and we were thrilled when we found this day program," Wendel said. "We want some place that is enriching for her and gives her life meaning."
WATCH: Butler County disability services at stake as levy heads to May ballot
The search hadn't been easy. Wendel and her husband have two 24-year-olds with disabilities, and Murphy's needs are particularly complex.
She's endured over 100 surgeries, battles seizures and memory loss, faces mobility challenges and cannot be left alone. The family moved from Seattle to Cincinnati to be closer to specialized medical care.
As a child, Murphy had a tracheostomy. It was removed after six months, but as a result, her vocal cords were paralyzed for two and a half years. During those early years, both Murphy and her mother learned ASL — a skill Murphy now uses to bridge communication gaps at Empowered Community Services, where none of the staff know sign language.
"Day programs provide lots of other people and us a regulated schedule, so it is something she can count on," Wendel said. "She has some memory loss from some of her surgeries, and it was really important that she knew every day of the week she went to Empowered, and she was going to get to choose and go."
At the program, Murphy makes daily choices about her activities — crafts, outings, cooking or helping teach ASL to other participants.
"She's made great friends there, and she feels comfortable there, whether she's having a good health day or a bad health day, because they get her and that is really hard to find," Wendel said.
But the December notice shattered that stability. What started as a June deadline kept shrinking as Wendel made phone calls.
"Then I heard that it was April. Then I called some more people, and then I heard it was the end of March," Wendel said. "So, that's pretty quick to hear in December that you're going to lose the place that she goes five days a week, all day, in three months. So, it has absolutely rocked our family."
A fiscal emergency
BCBDD declared a state of fiscal emergency in September, projecting that expenses will far exceed local tax collections in the first quarter of 2027.
In 2025, the agency reported $37.6 million in expenditures against just $28.9 million in revenues, creating an $8.7 million deficit.
The board serves 4,293 Butler County residents across all ages — from 1,831 infants and young children to 1,438 adults over the age of 22. The organization has operated on the same funding structure since 2004, the last time voters saw and approved a levy increase.
In the 22 years since, demand has amplified. The number of people receiving waiver services has grown from about 250 in 2004 to over 1,200 in 2026.
"The waiver supports that we provide, those are federally mandated supports," said Patricia Dawson, public relations coordinator for the BCBDD. "So there's no leeway on that. Those are supports we have to provide. Those have more than tripled since our last levy."
Now, 97% of the board's levy-generated revenue goes to waiver programs. When direct support professional wages increased by 38% a few years ago, the financial pressure became unsustainable.
"Those increases are good. We're happy those happened. It was the right thing, but that's had a big impact for our financial situation," Dawson said.
The board has implemented $3.7 million in cuts since entering a fiscal emergency. Staff were either eliminated or took pay cuts through reduced hours.
The board has also made several other changes. The $12 voucher program for transportation reimbursement will end Feb. 28. Individual employment supports were reduced based on job tenure. Family Support Services funding was slashed by 50%. All locally funded service requests were put on indefinite hold.
"We tried to make those cuts in a way that impacted the people we support the least," Dawson said.
Financial support for 100% locally funded adult day and vocational habilitation services — like the one Murphy uses — will be cut starting April 1. Her brother will continue to use the program because his funding comes through a waiver.
"We'll see every day we will see that van come and pick him up, and she won't be able to get on it," Wendel said.
For families like Murphy's, there's no way to minimize this impact. Their options are brutal: pay for the program out of pocket — financially impossible for most families — or hope voters approve a new levy in May.
In the hands of voters
The Butler County Commissioners approved a 2-mill levy resolution on Dec. 9. If voters pass it on the ballot, it would cost property owners about $70 per year for every $100,000 in home value — roughly $5.83 per month. That would equate to more than $26 million for the BCBDD annually.
Even if the levy passes, the board won't collect revenue until well into the first quarter of 2027, meaning cuts will continue throughout 2026 and into much of 2027.
The board has demonstrated fiscal responsibility over two decades, Dawson said, staying off the ballot for 22 years while consolidating facilities, reducing workforce and even returning $7.2 million to taxpayers through rollbacks in 2020 and 2021.
"We take the fiscal responsibility very seriously," Dawson said. "We've done a lot of creative stuff throughout the years in order to make those tax dollars stretch as far as possible."
If the levy fails in May, the board may return to voters in November while continuing aggressive cuts to remain solvent through 2027.
More than money at stake
Wendel said the choice facing voters is far beyond budget numbers.
"These are not people who are taking services that they don't need from taxpayers," she said. "Anyone who has services through Butler County DD has them because they need them, and they're very important for the whole family, which also means for the community."
Murphy said her carefully planned ASL lessons, her role as a teacher and leader and her sense of contributing to something larger than herself all depend on voters understanding what the programs provide.
"Get the levy to pass," Murphy said.
"Hopefully the levy passes because the services that the county DD provides to individuals is imperative," Wendel said. "It gives their clients their sense of self-worth, and their sense of individualism, and you can't put a price on that."
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
