The House select committee met to hear testimony from parents, children, service providers, and researchers concerning the effects of job and income loss on families in central Illinois. The testimony of the first panel consisted of personal narratives. A high school student whose parents may move the family in order to find better paying jobs discussed the threat of leaving friends, relatives, and school. Three men discussed personal and family hardships that resulted when they were laid off from jobs in farm machinery manufacturing. Another man told how he feels about raising a family while working at a minimum wage, dead-end job. Two social workers from agencies serving families in the region discussed the effects of chronic unemployment on families, as well as economic crisis. The second panel consisted of researchers and service providers. Their testimony outlined the effects of the long-term agricultural depression on rural health care, examined the parallels between 1930s depression families and today's farm families, reported perceptions of farm residents regarding quality of life and levels of stress, and documented the need for mental health and other family support services. This report includes transcription of the hearing proceedings, prepared statements, letters, and supplemental materials. (JHZ)