Domestic Weekly Update April 13, 2010
New and Urgent in This Week’s Update
Latest from Washington, DC
Organizational Updates
Help Families in Poverty and the Economy with Low-income Tax Credits (April Action)Thanks to everyone who participated in the April 2010 RESULTS Domestic monthly conference call on Saturday, including guest speaker Debbie Weinstein of the Coalition on Human Needs. As part of our Economic Opportunity for All campaign, Debbie pointed out that we are raising a “recession generation” where “our whole country will pay the price because poverty exacts such a toll on children.” She reminded us that we don’t want to look back and say that we did nothing. Thus, we can help avoid that fate with low-income tax credits like the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC), which are so effective in the fight against poverty. Not only the anti-poverty benefits, Debbie also highlighted the economic benefit these tax credits create. First, because they are targeted toward low-income families, the income these families receive in tax credit refunds is quickly spent (on basics like food, clothing, rent, utilities, and transportation). Since the U.S. economy is driven by consumer spending, getting money into the hands of people who will spend it quickly is a key component of economic recovery. Second, studies have proven the economic effectiveness of these tax credits. As pointed out in our February 2010 Action, researchers reported in a 2009 study that for every $1 spent by an EITC recipient in Michigan, $1.67 in new earnings were generated for that state ($688 million in total new earnings in 2006 alone). Similarly, a 2004 study showed that an estimated $190 million in spending by EITC recipients in San Antonio, TX would generate $289 million in total economic activity for that city, and help support over 5,100 full and part-time jobs. This not only means more spending and more job creation, but also increased tax revenue to help state and local governments lower budget deficits due to the recession. In other words, low-income tax credits are not only good anti-poverty policy but good economic policy as well. Unfortunately, we could deal ourselves a heavy blow later this year both in our progress in reducing poverty and recovering our economy. When the EITC and CTC were expanded in 2009 to help more low-income families claim these credits (as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act or ARRA), these improvements were also set to expire at the end of 2010. These sunset provisions were likely included not because of any policy justification, but for political reasons — it lowered the cost of the bill making it easier to pass. Now we are rapidly nearing the expiration date and the need for these expansions has not waned. As Debbie pointed out on the call, allowing these expansions to expire could result in 600,000 children falling fall back into poverty and another 4 million falling deeper into poverty. Millions of children and families have benefitted from these important changes. We cannot let them expire and risk forcing these families into a worse economic position. If Wall Street banks can be deemed “too big to fail”, America’s children are certainly “too important to fail.” TAKE ACTION: This being Tax Week, take the April Action. Write your representatives and senators and urge them to talk to House and Senate leaders to make the ARRA expansions of EITC and CTC permanent so that low-income Americans don’t lose their benefits at the end of this year. The action sheet provides talking points for your letters and background information on the EITC, the CTC, and the ARRA expansions. Be sure to highlight the economic benefits of these tax credits, in addition to their success at reducing poverty. Millions of Americans are counting on them to do the right thing — making tax policy must work for everyone, not just those already on top. If you cannot send a letter this week, join our partners at Bread for the World in calling the tax aides for your representatives and senators in support of protecting the EITC and CTC. You can call toll free at (800) 826-3688. Be sure to use the talking points listed in the April Action sheet for your conversations. We greatly appreciate Bread for the World allowing us the use of its toll free number. Finally, if you were not on last Saturday’s monthly conference call, you can listen to a recording of the call on the RESULTS website. Call Senators and Tell Them to Sign the Dodd-Snowe “Dear Colleague” Letter for Head Start and Child Care FundingSenators Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) are circulating a “Dear Colleague” letter requesting a $1 billion increase for Child Care Development Block Grant (CCDBG) and a $1 billion increase for Head Start in the FY 2011 Labor-HHS appropriations bill. As you know, Head Start and CCDBG are important programs in the educational, behavioral, and emotional development of children. Head Start provides low-income children preschool education, health screenings and nutrition assistance, while CCDBG provides help to working parents needing safe, and nurturing child care services while they are at work. Despite seeing more funding for both programs in the economic recovery bill in 2009, funding levels are still too low to serve all eligible children. This funding would allow more low-income children to get these important services. TAKE ACTION: Call you senators this week and urge them to sign onto the Dodd/Snowe Head Start and CCDBG letter to the Appropriations Committee. Current signers are Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Tom Udall (D-NM), Kristen Gillibrand (D-NY), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and Bernie Sanders (I-VT). The deadline for signatures is by close of business on Thursday, April 15. If you need a copy of the letter for yourself or your Senate office, please contact Jos Linn to have a copy forwarded to you. Call This Week in Support of Low-income Tax Preparation ServicesAn important component in the success of the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit is helping low-income individuals and families actually claim the credits. The way to claim a tax credit is to file a tax return. Yet as we all know, completing a tax return is not always easy. To help low-income populations with filing their taxes, the IRS created the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA) over three decades ago. During tax season, VITA sites around the country provide free income tax return preparation and filing for people who cannot afford professional assistance (households earning around $50,000 or less). The sites are staffed by volunteers and are usually administered by non-profit organizations like the United Way. These sites are vital in not only helping low-income people get their returns done quickly and easily, they also increase the chances people will actually claim credits like the EITC and CTC. Without VITA help, many people might not be aware of these credits and that they are eligible to claim them. As a result, VITA sites generate millions of dollars in refunds for low-income people around the country. Unfortunately, like many successful programs, VITA sites do not receive enough funding to meet the demand for their services. For example, 379 programs applied for over $30 million during the 2010 tax season, yet the VITA Program was only able to make awards to 147 of them with a median grant size of $56,000. To make matters worse, the president’s proposed FY2011 budget would cut funding for the VITA Grant Program from $12 million to $8 million. This will force significant cuts to services in an already underfunded program. TAKE ACTION: Use your voice this Tax Week to support the VITA program! Our partners at the National Community Tax Coalition have set up an action alert for calls to members of Congress about funding the VITA program. Call the tax aides for your representatives and senators and say:
For more information about this funding request and the importance of the VITA program, see NCTC’s VITA Grant Fact Sheet (pdf). To find the names of tax aides and contact information, please use our Elected Officials page of this website. Come Celebrate 30 Years of RESULTS in Washington at the RESULTS International ConferenceAs many of you know, each summer, RESULTS volunteers from around the world invade Washington DC during annual international conference. The conference is a unique and wonderful opportunity to meet your fellow RESULTS volunteers, get trained on the latest legislative developments, and most of all meet with Congress and their staff in person on Capitol Hill. This year’s conference is June 20–22 at the Washington Marriott Hotel at Metro Center in Washington DC. And a very special conference it will be. 2010 is RESULTS’ 30th Anniversary so our theme this year “Celebrating the Past, Shaping the Future — 30 years of RESULTS.” At the conference, we’ll be looking back at all the successes we accomplished over the years and looking forward to the ways we can create a world free of hunger and poverty. This year we’ll be partnering with Citizens Climate Lobby, a RESULTS-style lobby organization working on global climate change. Because of this partnership, Lester Brown, a world-renowned environmental activist and founder of both the Worldwatch Institute and the Earth Policy Institute, will be speaking at the conference. We’re also having morning and evening receptions on Capitol Hill during Lobby Day, which will include members of Congress. Already, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin of Illinois has been confirmed as a speaker for our morning reception that day. Please plan to join us for this exciting event this summer. To register for the 2010 conference, go to our International Conference page, where you can find conference and hotel registration forms, the conference schedule, a forum for finding roommates, and the Campus for Change application for college students. REGISTER TODAY! The early registration deadline is May 3! Also, if you would like to come to the conference but need financial assistance with travel expenses, we have some scholarship money available through the Karen McQuillan Fund. You can find the scholarship application on our International Conference page; the deadline to apply is Friday, April 23. Also, if you cannot come to the conference, please consider making a donation to the Karen McQuillan Fund to help fellow RESULTS volunteers attend. Let’s do the best we can to make a 30th Anniversary impact on Washington DC by having as many of us as we can attending the conference and lobbying on Capitol Hill. We look forward to seeing you there! Quick NewsUnemployment Benefits Likely to Get Short-term Extension. On April 12, the Senate cleared a procedural hurdle for extending unemployment insurance (UI) benefits. In a 60-34 vote, the Senate invoked cloture on the bill that would extend UI through May 5. Four Republican senators joined Democrats in moving forward on the bill. With that threshold met, the Senate is expected to pass the final bill sometime this week. The Senate had failed to enact an extension of UI before leaving for the spring recess in late March. A more expansive bill that would extend UI and COBRA benefits through the end of 2010, and increased Medicaid funding for states through June 2011, may also get a final vote in the coming weeks. AnnouncementsPro-bono Grant Writer Wanted. In our effort to maintain and expand RESULTS’ important domestic anti-poverty advocacy, we are looking to strengthen and grow our funding base. As such, we are looking at foundations and grants as possible funding sources. Because many times grant proposals must meet certain formats and criteria, we are looking for someone who could donate time to work with the domestic staff on this process. If you have experience in writing grants and/or would like to participate in this effort, we would welcome your help. Please contact Domestic Outreach Organizer Jos Linn for more information at jlinn@results.org or (515) 288-3622. Upcoming Washington State Fundraising Events. There will be two exciting RESULTS fundraising events on the Seattle area in April and May:
Check Out these Southern California RESULTS Events. If you live in southern California or know people in that area, please see the RESULTS Social website which lists number of upcoming RESULTS meetings and events in that area. Please Submit Your Group Planning Forms. Please complete your Group Planning Form and e-mail, mail or fax a copy to Meredith Dodson at the RESULTS DC office. Upcoming Events(Click to see a complete calendar) April 21 and May 5: RESULTS/Friends of Marianne Williamson training calls, 10:00 pm ET, (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262. These calls are designed to introduce RESULTS to attendees of last month’s Sister Giant Conference in Los Angeles and other friends of RESULTS Board member Marianne Williamson. Note that the April 7 call was postponed due to many people being in Kenya for the Microcredit Summit (call dates also include March 10, March 24; you can listen to recordings of these calls on our For New Activists page). To attend the call, RSVP to Meredith Dodson. April–May: New Activist Orientation. Four sessions: April 5, April 19, May 3, May 17. Call (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262. This is for people new to RESULTS as an introduction to our organization and our work. Contact Lisa Marchal to sign up and for more information. April 27: Puget Sound fundraising event, 7:00 pm PT. May 23: Kitsap, WA, group fundraising luncheon, 1:00 pm PT. June 20–22: RESULTS/RESULTS Educational Fund International Conference, Washington Marriott Hotel, Washington, DC. Register online TODAY! RESULTS Contact InformationMain Office: (p) (202) 783-7100, (f) (202) 783-2818, 750 First Street NE, Suite 1040, Washington DC 20002. Domestic Legislative and Grassroots Support Staff: Meredith Dodson, (202) 783-7100, x.116 (dodson@results.org); Jos Linn, (515) 288-3622 (jlinn@results.org). The RESULTS Domestic Update is sent out every Tuesday over e-mail to RESULTS volunteers and allies all over the country. The purpose of these updates is to inform and activate RESULTS activists to take action on our domestic campaigns. |