Category Archives: Policy Update

Supporting Tax Policies that Benefit Women and Families

Supporting Tax Policies that Benefit Women and Families

Anna Chu and Jillian Edmonds
August 16, 2017

The Trump administration and Republican leaders in Congress have promised to release a tax reform plan this summer, which is likely to include some of the largest tax cuts in decades. As elected officials debate tax reform, we must ensure policies that slash taxes for the wealthy few and big corporations under the guise of growing the economy do not become the new law of the land. The fallacy that tax cuts for the rich and corporations grow the economy has been the conservative talking point since Ronald Reagan first touted trickle-down economics, and has been widely discredited.[i] But not only is President Trump sticking to the same failed playbook of the past, the tax principles he released in April lack some of most important tax strategies that would help working families. For example, his principles do not mention expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), an effective anti-poverty program which would greatly benefit working women and families. In 2013, the EITC lifted 6.2 million people – including 3.2 million children – out of poverty (when taking into account the indirect employment and earnings effects of the EITC, this number nearly doubles).[ii]

Although there are reports that President Trump is considering improvements to the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit, those potential improvements alone do not mitigate the other troubling aspects of his tax plan. For instance, President Trump proposes reducing the corporate tax rate by 60 percent and getting rid of the estate tax, which impacts only the richest 0.2 percent of estates (including his own estate).[iii] Coupled with his budget, which guts crucial programs that provide basic living standards to low-income Americans, what emerges is a clear picture of the Trump administration’s economic policy—giving big payoffs for the wealthy few and big corporations, while pulling the rug out from everyday women and their families.

Tax Cuts for the Rich Just Make the Rich Richer

President Trump’s tax plan would be a massive giveaway to wealthy Americans and big corporations, and would harm women and families if enacted into law. He proposes slashing the top marginal individual tax rate to 35 percent and consolidating the current seven tax brackets into three. He also proposes slashing the corporate tax rate to an astoundingly low 15 percent. While he claims that such tax cuts would grow the economy and “create 25 million new jobs over the next decade,” this couldn’t be further from the truth. A Congressional Research Service analysis of the top tax rates since 1945 found little or no association between reducing taxes on the wealthy and increased savings, investment, or productive growth.[iv] A review of research by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities of the impacts of a 1993 tax hike and the 2001 tax cut also revealed that job creation and economic growth were actually stronger in the years after the 1993 tax increases than in the years following the 2001 tax cuts.[v]

Instead of creating jobs or economic growth, tax cuts for the rich just make the rich richer. An analysis of OECD countries found that there was no correlation between the top tax rates and economic growth, but there was a correlation between lower top tax rates and greater income inequality.[vi] The earlier CRS study also found that cutting the top tax rate concentrates wealth at the top of the income spectrum because it incentivizes higher pay at the top end of the scale and allows those people to keep more of that money. By cutting taxes for the wealthy and corporations, President Trump’s tax plan will contribute to growing economic inequality in our nation, which harms both our current economy and future growth.

Tax Cuts Threaten Funding for Critical Programs

While women and families likely won’t get a fair shake in this upcoming tax plan, it’s not their only worry. President Trump’s tax principles work alongside his federal budget, which would cut programs that provide a basic living standard to low-income families. His budget proposes eliminating heating assistance for people in poverty, funding for meals for seniors, and several housing assistance. These cuts will affect women the most, potentially creating an even greater poverty gap between men and women. The Tax Policy Center found that cutting the corporate income tax to 15 percent would cost $2.4 trillion 10 years — and that number skyrockets to $4 trillion if the 15 percent rate applies to pass-through income.[vii]

Unless the White House plans to simply increase the deficit, these tax cuts must be paid for somehow. The Trump administration has claimed it would pay for these cuts by raising tax revenue from other sources and from economic growth, but the budget shows they are more than happy to slash critical programs that provide a basic living standard for women and families. President Trump’s budget proposes dismantling Medicaid as we know it and cutting its funding above and beyond the cuts in the ACA Repeal Bill. SNAP funding would be cut by nearly $200 billion over the next decade – which would result in many states making it more difficult for families to get food assistance..

The President’s desire to give huge tax cuts to wealthy people such as himself and take away critical programs that are lifelines for many women and families flies in the face of what his voters wanted and is a recipe for economic disaster. We can learn from what happened in Kansas, where massive tax cuts enacted in 2012 led to decreased revenue, underfunded schools, and cuts to services. Massive budget cuts won’t make America great again – but they are likely to hurt many people.

A Tax Plan that Actually Helps Women and Families

Our tax policies should help the most vulnerable Americans by improving family tax credits and raising enough revenue for programs and services that support struggling families, rather than giving more tax cuts and loopholes to the wealthy and corporations. To have a tax plan that actually helps working women and families, President Trump and Congressional leadership should consider abiding by the following principles:

  • Don’t give more tax cuts for the wealthy and big corporations.They should pay their fair share in order to have a tax system that works for all of us.
  • Tax policies shouldhelp the most vulnerable now. Tax reform should preserve — and improve — tax credits like the Earned Income Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit, and Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit that help families make ends meet.
  • Support progressive tax reforms that would raise needed revenue— and expand opportunity for a stronger future for everyone. Every year, special interest tax loopholes cost the federal government billions of dollars. That’s money that could be used to support struggling families and give them a chance for a better life.

A tax policy that supports women and children requires that everyone pays their fair share regardless of their income or political power. It allows the government to fully support families that need assistance when they are struggling, as well as fund public parks, clean air enforcement, and other government activities that benefit everyone. Rather than giving the wealthy and corporations the largest slice of the pie, a tax policy that supports women and children expands the pie for everyone, resulting in more opportunities that keep America great.

[i] CNN Money. “The ‘trickle down theory’ is dead wrong.” http://money.cnn.com/2015/06/15/news/economy/trickle-down-theory-wrong-imf/

[ii] Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP). “EITC Boosts Employment; Lifts Many More Out of Poverty Than Previously Thought.” http://www.cbpp.org/blog/new-research-eitc-boosts-employment-lifts-many-more-out-of-poverty-than-previously-thought

[iii] CBPP. “Repealing Estate Tax Would Provide Windfall to Heirs of Wealthiest Estates.” http://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-tax/repealing-estate-tax-would-provide-windfall-to-heirs-of-wealthiest-estates

[iv] Congressional Research Service. “Taxes and the Economy: An Economic

Analysis of the Top Tax Rates Since 1945.” https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R42729.pdf

[v] CBPP. “Recent Studies Find Raising Taxes on High-Income Households Would Not Harm the Economy.” http://www.cbpp.org/research/recent-studies-find-raising-taxes-on-high-income-households-would-not-harm-the-economy?fa=view&id=3756

[vi] Piketty, Thomas and Emmanuel Saez. “Top Incomes and the Great Recession: Recent

Evolutions and Policy Implications.” http://www.imf.org/external/np/res/seminars/2012/arc/pdf/PS.pdf

[vii] CNN Money. “A 15% corporate tax rate could be very expensive.” http://money.cnn.com/2017/04/24/news/economy/trump-corporate-tax-rate/

[viii] National Women’s Law Center. “Cutting Programs for Low-Income People Especially Hurts Women and Their Families.” https://nwlc.org/resources/cutting-programs-low-income-people-especially-hurts-women-and-their-families/

Originally published in Connection Magazine. Read the full issue here.

Jeff Sessions is Wrong On Crime – Again!

Jeff Sessions is Wrong On Crime – Again!

Joan Neal
May 26, 2017

When Attorney General Jeff Sessions ordered federal prosecutors to seek the harshest penalties possible under the law for all drug crimes, he signaled he wants to send us back in time.  We tried that strategy and research has shown that it didn’t work.  Under the ‘tough on crime’ approach, during the War on Drugs in the ‘80s and ‘90s, the U.S. prison population soared and the costs of incarceration increased dramatically.  Why, then, would we want to go back to a system that failed to lower crime levels or to make us safer?  Such a policy is clearly wrong on crime.

This order is a direct attempt to undo all of the progress the Obama Administration was attempting to make by focusing on rehabilitation of drug offenders, especially low level, non-violent offenders, and reducing the federal prison population, resulting in millions of dollars of savings in the federal budget.  In contrast, this ‘law and order’ policy will have exactly the opposite effect.  It will not stop – nor even slow down – the drug trade because it is not targeted and it will cost taxpayers more money.  ‘One-size fits all’ sentencing does not deter crime, save money, or make us safer.

But Jeff Sessions has been ‘wrong on crime’ for a long time.  As a Senator, he constantly opposed the growing congressional bi-partisan consensus on sentencing and prison reform, eventually, successfully blocking passage of any reform measure in the Senate.  Now, as Attorney General, he is seeking to institutionalize his outdated, ill-conceived policies that will only prolong the injustices already inherent in the criminal justice system.

History shows that mass incarceration, overcriminalization and prison warehousing have a disproportionately negative impact on communities of color and other marginalized groups.  Having a criminal record is a one-way ticket to intergenerational poverty.  It is an obstacle to employment, housing, education, healthcare and more.  It devastates families and is a drag on the American economy.  Jeff Sessions’ orders will insure that these conditions continue.

Thankfully, proponents of criminal justice reform across the board are still fighting for common sense reforms.  Both houses of Congress have bills pending.  Just this week, Senators Patrick Leahy and Rand Paul re-introduced the Justice Safety Valve Act which is aimed at restoring judicial discretion by giving federal judges the authority to impose sentences below the mandatory minimums when appropriate.  Reforms such as this will begin to restore fairness and equity.

The U.S. has the highest prison population of any country in the world.  This is not a distinction worthy of our values and identity as a proponent of freedom and liberty.  Our union is not yet perfect but we should always be working toward that goal.  Indiscriminately locking up people for long periods of time, no matter the severity of the crime, is unjust and immoral.  Our faith teaches us that there is always the possibility of rehabilitation.  The Attorney General’s approach to fighting crime denies the right of every person to be treated with dignity and respect.  It is inefficient, ineffective and un-American and we should do everything possible to turn it around.

NETWORK Statement on NAFTA

Renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement

Laura Peralta-Schulte
May 18, 2017

Download as a PDF.

When the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) passed almost a quarter of a century ago, proponents promised it would lead to job creation in North America, increased living standards for workers and protection of the environment. The current agreement has been beneficial to some, but reality shows the agreement falls woefully short of being the boon it was promised to be. NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice is committed to mending the gaps in income and wealth disparity, and it is clear that our trade agreements have been one of the drivers of that inequality, both domestically and abroad.

Some of the most adversely impacted communities are small farmers in the U.S., Mexico, and Canada. In Mexico, for example, we have seen population losses in the countryside and increased food insecurity. In the U.S. and Canada, there are fewer farmers left to work the land as industrial agriculture takes over production. Rural dislocation has been a leading cause of migration from Mexico to the North because small farmers cannot support themselves at home. Trade policies like NAFTA widen the gaps between rich and poor.

Renegotiating NAFTA offers the possibility to address food insecurity, remedy the incentive that drives rural dislocation, and fix other problems. However, to do so, the Administration must seek changes that puts the needs of vulnerable communities first. To do so, there must be an open and transparent process so that all communities – not just the corporate community – have a seat at the table. We need a trade policy that puts people and the planet first.

Pope Francis reminds us that access to adequate food is a basic human right, one that people of faith are called by the Gospel to address. “We are in front of a global scandal of around one billion — one billion people who still suffer from hunger today. We cannot look the other way and pretend this does not exist… We need, then, to find ways by which all may benefit from the fruits of the earth, not only to avoid the widening gap between those who have more and those who must be content with the crumbs, but above all because it is a question of justice, equality and respect for every human being.”

Trade policy must address issues of inequality and the alleviation of poverty. A people first agenda means creating an environment where small farmers are not be forced to migrate to ensure that their families can survive, workers receive living wages, people have access to life-saving medicines, and the environment is protected from destruction.

NETWORK Opposes Legislation that Terrorizes Immigrant Communities

NETWORK Opposes Legislation that Terrorizes Immigrant Communities

Laura Muñoz
May 18, 2017

NETWORK opposes H.R. 2431, the Oliver-Davis Act, formerly known as the SAFE Act, which was introduced this week. This bill includes harsh and terrorizing interior enforcement proposals that would separate families through mass deportation efforts, encourage racial profiling by local law enforcement, and threaten community safety. Equally as horrifying is the policy proposal that would criminalize religious leaders, houses of worship, and people of faith who provide humanitarian assistance to all persons regardless of immigration status.

Sister Simone sent a letter to Congress expressing NETWORK’s opposition to H.R. 2431. Read the full text below:

Download as a PDF.

Dear Member of Congress,

On behalf of NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice, I urge you to oppose H.R. 2431, The Michael Davis, Jr. and Danny Oliver in Honor of State and Local Law Enforcement Act. This bill will lead to the mass deportation of men, women, and children who are full participants in our communities and add substantially to our churches, schools, and neighborhoods.  We believe that no amount of markup in the Judiciary Committee would make this bill palatable to the Catholic Sisters and activists of NETWORK who are committed to fixing our broken immigration system and whose mission is answering our faithful call to welcome the stranger and love our neighbor.

U.S. immigration policy must prioritize family unity and provide a pathway to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented people currently living in America.  The Davis-Oliver Act instead will embolden racial profiling, create deep fear in the immigrant community, and lead to family separation through deportations.  It must be rejected.

Further, the bill also criminalizes individuals who provide humanitarian assistance to the immigrant community. Should it be passed into law, the faith community could not comply with this act and still be faithful to our Gospel call.  Our mission is to provide assistance to all vulnerable people without regard of immigration status. H.R. 2431 criminalizes our mission to do justice.   An integral part of our Catholic identity is to respect the dignity of the every human person. Any policy that encourages family separation through mass deportations is inhumane and unjust.

I would like to remind you of the words of Pope Francis. During his address to Congress, Pope Francis asked you to remember the Golden Rule for our immigrant sisters and brothers:  “Let us treat others with the same passion and compassion with which we want to be treated. Let us seek for others the same possibilities which we seek for ourselves. Let us help others to grow, as we would like to be helped ourselves.”

The Davis-Oliver Act violates our faith mandate that we be a welcoming country that values and inspires people to love their neighbor, no matter the circumstances.   NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice urges you to reject H.R. 2431, the Davis-Oliver Act.  Instead, commit to fixing our broken immigration system to ensure family unity and provide a pathway to citizenship for the people who are undocumented in the United States.

Immigration reform, not the Davis-Oliver Act, is the faithful way forward.

Sincerely,

Sister Simone Campbell, SSS
Executive Director
NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice

Time for Moral Leadership on the Federal Budget

NETWORK Lobby’s Federal Budget Priorities

Download as a print-friendly PDF to share with your friends, or elected officials!

Download PDF.

NETWORK believes the federal budget is a moral document that reflects the priorities of our nation. Our budget must prioritize human needs programs, ensure funding to care for vulnerable members of our society, restore economic opportunity, and invest in community.  The challenges facing our nation and our world are serious and require a serious response from government.

The Budget Reality

Since 2010, powerful forces have converged to use the federal budget as a vehicle to lower the federal deficit by cutting social spending. These cuts are drastic and destructive, and they undermine programs that provide critical assistance to our nation’s most vulnerable. Meanwhile, tax breaks for wealthy corporations and outsized military spending, which cost billions of dollars, have been expanded.

From FY 2010 through 2016, funding declined for large numbers of human needs programs. FY 2017 funding was the seventh straight year of austerity for human needs programs, driven by the multi-year caps from the 2011 Budget Control Act and further reduced by additional budget cuts. In 2018, human needs funding is set to fall by $3 billion if Congress does not take action to stop the cuts.

Our Values:
  • The budget is a moral document.
  • Catholic Social Justice teaches us to uphold the dignity of each person as an equally valuable member of the human family.
  • As people of faith, we must be in solidarity with those who are living in poverty in the struggle against structures of injustice.

Federal Policies Must Mend Gaps, Not Widen Them

Elected officials must make budget decisions that promote the common good. This requires adequately funding programs benefiting vulnerable people while rejecting superfluous spending.  Investment in human needs programs will create stronger, safer, and healthier communities and promote the common good. Increasing funds for immigration enforcement and borders will not increase our security and must be rejected.

For FY 2018, NETWORK’s priorities are funding for the Census and Housing. We reject additional funding requests that would further militarize our border and harm immigrants in our communities.

Learn about funding in the Federal Budget for: Census, Housing, and Homeland Security.

Time for Moral Leadership on Housing

NETWORK Lobby Housing Budget Priorities

Download as a print-friendly PDF to share with your friends, or elected officials!

Download PDF.

NETWORK believes that housing is a basic human right, and a foundation for a person’s ability to meet their own needs. Right now, there is not adequate affordable housing for people with low-incomes, and there is a dire shortage for households at the extremely low- income level, at or below 30% of the area median income. Further, people often spend too high a percentage of their income on securing housing, to the detriment of other critical expenses like nutrition, healthcare, childcare, and more.

Since the 1980s, funding to ensure that all human beings have housing has been steadily decimated. The result is increased homelessness and housing insecurity. We must invest in We the People by funding affordable housing, programs to end homelessness, and infrastructure. Only then can we truly consider ourselves a civilized and successful society.

NETWORK opposes any cuts to housing funding and the voucher program. Having a place to live is critical to human life and dignity.

What Congress Can Do

Increase funding for housing programs in FY2018:  

  • Increase the number of housing vouchers to return funding for the Housing Choice Voucher Program to pre-sequestration levels, and increase it to account for inflation.
  • Fully fund the national Housing Trust Fund (HTF), rental assistance programs and the Community Development Block Grant.
  • Increase funds for the McKinney-Vento program for the homeless and the Rapid Re-Housing program which is demonstrating success in moving homeless people into affordable units.
  • Fully fund programs for construct of new and maintain existing affordable housing units.
    Increase funding for repair and upkeep of public housing units.

Promote tax policies that support housing:  Reform the Mortgage Interest Deduction, which costs the federal government $70 billion a year and largely benefits the highest-income families, and reinvest the savings in a housing program like the national Housing Trust Fund or rental assistance programs which serve families with greater needs. Create a new renter tax credit to help the lowest-income renters afford decent, stable housing. Families living in renters’ credit units would pay no more than 30% of their income for rent and utilities, and the rental unit owner would receive a federal credit in return for rent reduction.

Time for Moral Leadership on Census

NETWORK Lobby Position on Funding the Census

Download as a print-friendly PDF to share with your friends, or elected officials!

Download PDF.

NETWORK believes it is every citizen’s right and responsibility to participate in the political process. No individual or community should be disenfranchised by federal policy. A modern, accurate, and equitable 2020 Census is necessary for a fair democracy in which everybody counts.

What We Know

Since 1790, the U.S. Census Bureau has conducted a count of the country’s population every 10 years, as required by the U.S. Constitution. In conjunction with this count, the American Community Survey (ACS) gathers more detailed information on the changing economic and social conditions of the population. Both of these programs are crucial for informing policymakers, apportioning Congressional districts, and distributing over $450 billion in federal program funding each year that is used for public healthcare, education, development, transportation, housing, the enforcement of civil rights, and much more.

Our Values
  • Our faith traditions compel us to care for those most in need, and providing adequate funding for an effective 2020 Census is a crucial prerequisite for federal policies and programs to respond to the needs of marginalized communities.
  • Our faith mandates that everybody counts.
  • Political participation is vital to fulfilling the moral obligation to concern ourselves with the common good and to strive for a just society.

Investing in the Common Good

The census and ACS are crucial sources of information for state and local governments, researchers, businesses, and many other stakeholders working for the common good. Despite the importance of this Constitutional requirement, preparation for the 2020 Census is threatened by uncertain and insufficient funding. A failure to provide adequate funding for the Census Bureau will not only impact the effectiveness of the census, but also cost taxpayers billions of dollars as the Census Bureau is forced to fall back on more costly counting methods of the past.  For effective governance to respond to the needs of the people and promote the common good, we need to invest in Census Bureau preparations so that nobody is left out.

Federal Policies Must Mend Gaps, not Widen Them

Providing adequate funding for an effective and accurate 2020 Census is a crucial prerequisite for federal policies and programs to respond to the needs of marginalized communities. Past decennial censuses have tended to undercount communities of color, people experiencing poverty, young children, and rural residents. The systematic undercounting of these communities decreases their access to federal funding and proportional representation. If the Census Bureau is not able to ramp up spending to conduct necessary tests and prepare for 2020, we fear that these gaps in the census will persist.

A modern, accurate, and equitable 2020 Census is needed for effective governance to promote the common good. Many of the programs that help to mend the gaps in our society and allow all to live in dignity depend on data from the decennial census. The 2020 Census will have implications for the funding of:

  • Rural business and industry development loans
  • Job training and other employment programs under the Job Training Partnership Act
  • Health care for infants and children
  • Child care to enable low-income and working families to work, train for a job, or obtain an education
  • Water and waste disposal systems
  • Policing agencies and community-based entities to work together to reduce crime
  • Monitoring and enforcing employment discrimination laws under the Civil Rights Act
  • Local agencies for food, health care, and legal services for senior citizens and individuals with disabilities

An underfunded, inaccurate 2020 Census would skew the projections of needed resources and programs away from the communities that need them. An equitable census is the foundation for a society in which everybody has a chance for success, all have dignity, and everybody counts.

What Congress Can Do Now

Ramp up Census Bureau funding in FY 2018:
The Trump Administration’s request of $1.5 billion for the Census Bureau is woefully inadequate. Congress should ensure the Census Bureau has adequate resources to prepare for the 2020 Census in the crucial FY 2018 budget year.

Oppose efforts to weaken the Census:
Congress must oppose efforts that would steer money away from the Census Bureau to other programs funded by the Commerce, Justice, and Science bill. We also urge Congress to oppose any amendments during consideration of FY 2018 appropriations bills that would change the mandatory status of the American Community Survey

A child wearing a cap walks with a backpack and a stuffed animal at the US-Mexico border

Time for Moral Leadership on Homeland Security Funding

NETWORK Lobby Position on Homeland Security Funding

Download as a print-friendly PDF to share with your friends, or elected officials!

Download PDF.

NETWORK believes security is achieved when communities come together in a spirit of fraternity and solidarity and cooperate generously for the common good.  The militarization of communities and the separation of families is an anathema to this objective.  As people of faith and a nation of immigrants, we are called to welcome the stranger and love our neighbor.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has consistently received additional funds each year to carry out operations at the border and in the interior. The Trump Administration has requested an additional $4.5 billion to the DHS budget for fiscal year 2018 to allow for: the construction of a concrete wall alongside the U.S. – Mexico border, 1,500 new enforcement agents, continued detention and removal costs, and the expansion of E-verify.  The goal of this spending is to restrict the flow of immigrants and asylum seekers, create a deportation force and vastly expand private detention centers in the name of national security.  Such expenditures will separate families and create terror in immigrant and border communities.  These proposals should be rejected.

What Congress Can Do

Reject funding for President Trump’s deportation force:  Hiring 1,500 new Customs and Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents only fuels a deportation forces that will separate families. There is little oversight and almost no accountability for these agents.  We must ensure that humane practices are used when detaining undocumented individuals and interacting with people at the border.  Communities of color will be the targets of racial profiling and hiring new agents will lead to the separation of families instead of detaining criminals that harm our communities.

Reject funding for President Trump’s expansion of detention centers and close existing ones:  We have seen the awful effects of detaining women and children, and an increase in detention bed spaces from 34,000 to 45,700 is unimaginable. New detention centers are being built to accommodate such an increase in this quota, allowing the private detention industry to become more profitable. Instead of this wasteful spending that benefits corporations, there are just and affordable alternatives to detention that DHS can utilize. Private detention centers should be closed.

Reject funding for a U.S. – Mexico border wall: Congress has previously acknowledged that additional barriers to the southern border are not necessary. The requested amount of money to expand upon the existing 650 miles of fencing is extremely wasteful, and additional fencing alone is projected to cost approximately $6.5 million per mile.  Border communities oppose a wall along the Southern border because of effects on private property, indigenous communities, and the environment.  Additionally, an internal Customs and Border Protection study in April 2016 showed that a concrete wall would make it more difficult for agents to see activity on the other side of the border, hindering effectiveness.

Blog: Secrecy Threatens Chance for Tax Justice

Secrecy Threatens Chance for Tax Justice

Colleen Ross
April 13, 2017

President Trump and Republican Congressional leadership have given themselves an August deadline to pass tax reform legislation. As that debate nears, it is unconscionable that President Trump continues to refuse to release his tax returns. We cannot have our elected officials passing laws that may personally enrich themselves or serve foreign interests without disclosing that information to the public.

We at NETWORK often say “the budget is a moral document” to advocate for funding federal programs that provide for the common good and work to mend the gaps. The reverse, however, is also true. The way we fund the budget, our tax code, is a moral declaration.

The tax code demonstrates what sources we decide to collect revenue from and their rates, as well as what escapes taxation. For an in-depth look at the individual, corporate, and other taxes used to raise revenue, read NETWORK’s guide “We the Taxpayers.” We cannot fund responsible programs – such as Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) – without reasonable revenue, and equally important, that revenue must be raised through tax policies that are transparent, fair, and equitable. Ultimately, the tax code must not widen the income or wealth gap in our nation.

Much of our current tax code fails in that regard. Corporate tax loopholes and tax breaks for wealthy individuals have contributed to growing economic inequality in our nation over the years. Today, we are not mending the gaps with a progressive tax code, and signs of future tax reform do not look promising. House Speaker Paul Ryan’s “Better Way” plan proposed additional tax cuts that would disproportionally benefit the top 1%, while President Trump’s recently scrapped tax plan would also benefit our country’s highest-income households the most.

We understand that paying taxes supports our national interests and promotes the common good. As U.S. Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. said “Taxes are what we pay for civilized society.” In the past, NETWORK members and friends have boldly proclaimed our Taxpayer Pride for government services ranging from student loans to public transportation.

This year, as we approach Tax Day, we call on President Donald Trump to have Taxpayer Pride and to release his tax returns. We also urge the president and members of Congress to support tax reforms that would ensure large multinational corporations pay their fair share and close loopholes that encourage corporations to shift jobs and profits overseas. It’s time for our nation to get closer, not farther away from Tax Justice!

Sister Simone Campbell will be at the Washington, DC Tax March on Saturday, April 15, 2017 to call on President Trump to release his tax returns. See more details about the DC march, or other local marches here: www.TaxMarch.org

Is There Reality in Funding the Federal Government?

Blog: Is There Reality in Funding the Federal Government?

Sister Marge Clark
March 13, 2017

Funding for the current fiscal year ends on April 28. Congress needs to complete plans for funding the federal government for this current fiscal year and at the same time begin to create a budget for 2018.   Since Congress is on recess for four weeks before the April 28 deadline, there are only five weeks to get the job done. Decisions on appropriations will impact a number of NETWORK “Mend the Gap” priorities, but three programs are particularly vulnerable:  housing support for those in poverty, healthcare funding and funds to conduct the 2020 Census.

We know that funding for these programs mean so much to the lives of those in poverty.  Pope Francis reminds us that, behind every statistic, there is the face of a person who is suffering, … “Poverty has a face! It has the face of a child; it has the face of a family; it has the face of people, young and old. It has the face of widespread unemployment and lack of opportunity. It has the face of forced migrations, and of empty or destroyed homes.”

Housing vouchers are particularly at risk for this year. The current budget allotted $500 million less than the amount needed to fund currently held vouchers for the rest of the year. CBPP estimates that more than 100,000 vouchers could be lost in the next few months. 100,000 households could become homeless unless we can secure new funding.

The Affordable Care Act continues to be under attack.  One of the key ways opponents may move to cut the program is to defund its operating system.  House appropriators, for several years have denied the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the IRS new funding to cover the administrative costs of ACA implementation.   These funds and more are at serious risk.

Past decennial censuses have tended to undercount communities of color, people experiencing poverty, immigrants, young children, Native Americans and rural residents. The systematic undercounting of these communities decreases their access to federal funding and proportional representation. If the Census Bureau does not receive increased funding to conduct necessary tests and prepare for 2020, we fear that these gaps in the census will persist.

This year, the funding decisions are particularly daunting, as the administration and many House Republicans are determined to increase military spending while adhering to the top level spending caps established in the Budget Control Act, 2011.  Doing this necessitates cuts in non-defense spending – mostly human needs programs – in order to not exceed the caps.

Further, at the Trump Administration request, Congress is considering a 2017 Supplemental Budget.   They propose that it would cover the added cost of the President’s “deportation force,” which we have seen escalate its activities in the last week.  It would include some war costs, but mostly would cover the cost of President Trump’s Border Wall which ranges from estimates $8 billion to $21 billion.  Removing this from the FY 2017 appropriations does not relieve all of us from paying for it. We would still need to fund the Supplemental through our tax dollars.  NETWORK will actively work to stop this bill.

In addition to completing work on the FY 2017 Appropriations, Congress faces passage of a Budget for FY 2018 – which goes into effect October 1, 2017.  They have yet to receive direction from the President, other than broad statements of cutting non-defense spending by a stunning $3.7 trillion over ten years. This equates to a 43 percent drop in meeting the basic support of people with limited income.

Increases in military spending and unwillingness of Congress to increase revenue put the burden of balancing the budget on the backs of people in need by reducing spending on human needs such as housing, healthcare and the census. This is in direct opposition to what NETWORK Lobby and Advocates for Catholic Social Justice continue to work to achieve. It is imperative that all of us engage with our members of Congress frequently to influence their spending decisions. We need to work hard to protect the dignity of all people in our communities.