At the Sept. 23 meeting, commissioners asked city staff to investigate the possibilities for reinstating the position, which has been unfilled since December 2003, when the previous case manager retired. The city did not replace her due to budget constraints.

Since then, seniors have been referred to a Council on Aging hotline for any case-management needs. Case managers look after the health needs of seniors and also act as liaisons between seniors and their families.

Carol Atwood, Cupertino's director of administrative services, said the city's budget problems stem from four years of economic recession and subsequent removal of city funds by the cash-strapped California government; the state will not pay the city back until 2005, and the payback will be without interest.

In addition to the unfilled case manager position, the loss in revenue has forced Cupertino to cancel programs for seniors including evening entertainment, a health and safety fair and flu shots. However, the city is now working to find ways to fund a case manager in some capacity.

One option would be to use funding of $19,750 from a Council on Aging grant. The city council would then have to approve an additional $52,530 to fund a full-time case manager. The Council on Aging grant would also come with restrictions.

"The Council on Aging grant would [require] a full-time position," said Frank Yap, chairman of the senior citizens commission.

"We could only serve certain populations," added Senior Center manager Julia Lamy. "The grant would require all our clients to live in the West San Jose and Cupertino areas." It would also require at least 120 clients a year.

Another option would be to give up on the Council on Aging grant and run a part-time program that charged a nominal fee for service. "That way we could see if we could get a person part time," Yap said.

Cupertino's parks and recreation department staff--which oversees the senior citizens commission--will now study these options and make a cost-benefit analysis, said Yap. The staff's findings will be presented to the public at the next senior citizens commission meeting on Oct. 27.

Until a case manager is reinstated, Yap said, "Seniors are left to fend for themselves, and I don't know if they have other places to go."

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 10 percent of Cupertino's residents are age 65 or older.