Category Archives: Taxes

Lent Week 7: Politics by the people, Not the money

Lent 2025: Giving Up Billionaires


Welcome to week 7 of our Lenten series, “Giving Up Billionaires,” as we call on Congress to give up billionaires so our communities can have what we need to thrive. Click here for the rest of our Lenten reflections and actions.

Politics by the People, Not the Money

 

Sr. Emily TeKolste, SP
April 16, 2025

 

Most of us, no matter our race, gender, or language, want to be able to shape our own futures and join in making our communities better.

But billionaires, and the lawmakers who enable them, don’t want us to have a say in the decisions that govern our lives. In my reflection on the second week of Lent, you read how Elon Musk had the opportunity to end world hunger for just 2% of his total wealth and refused to do it. But he was more than willing to spend more than $250 million to fund Donald Trump’s election and buy a place in his Administration.

Today, certain Republican lawmakers and their ultra-wealthy backers are trying to amass even more power in our political system, with a bill called the SAVE Act (S.128). The “SAVE” Act endangers the ability of ordinary people like you and me to exercise our freedom to vote. It particularly targets anyone who has legally changed their name, like millions of married women.

Take action
  • Call your Senators at 1-888-422-4555 and ask them to protect our freedom to vote by voting NO on the dangerous “SAVE” Act.
  • Spread the word. Save the image that I’ve placed below to your computer or phone, then share it on social media or email it to friends and family.

Find more LTE and social media guidance in our Lent toolkit.

The Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United v. FEC (2010) opened the floodgates to unlimited spending in elections. Since the decision, the share of contributions over $10 million to Republican campaigns rose from 4% to 56% of all contributions.

Elon Musk and his billionaire buddies invest in politicians like President Trump knowing they’ll reap many rewards, one of which is the luxury of dodging their taxes. The wealthiest Americans account for a disproportionately high share of tax cheating. Since January, the Trump administration has cut 38% of employees in the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) unit that audits billionaires. This has weakened our ability to ensure that the ultra-wealthy pay what they owe our country in taxes and contribute to our shared national interests.

The Trump administration is a government of the billionaires, by the billionaires, and for the billionaires.

But we believe in government by We the People. We know that the many will overcome the money, and when we act together—across races, faiths, and places—we will build a world where all of us can thrive, no exceptions!

Join us in calling our Senators today at 1-888-422-4555 and telling them to vote NO on the “SAVE” Act!

NETWORK has more shareable content, sample social media posts, and LTE guidance for you in our Lent Toolkit.

Emily TeKolste, SP, NETWORK bio

Sr. Emily TeKolste, SP is NETWORK’s Grassroots Mobilization Coordinator. To read more, check out her column in Global Sisters Report, “The existence of billionaires is immoral.”

Introducing NETWORK’s 2025 Climate Portfolio

Building An Economy for All Means Protecting Our Common Home

Drake Palmer Starling
April 22, 2025, Earth Day

Today is Earth Day! As we celebrate Earth Day and look to the 10th anniversary of Pope Francis’s encyclical Laudato Si’ on May 24, join NETWORK’s Senior Advocate for Energy and Environmental Policy Drake Starling with reflections on our work for a healthy environment. We know that An Economy for All is a sustainable economy—one that ensures clean air and safe water, clean energy jobs, and healthy communities for all of us.

Earth Day time now for clean airFor decades, NETWORK has advocated for an economy that allows all of us, no matter our background, to thrive. But thriving doesn’t just mean fair wages, good jobs, or affordable housing. It also means clean air to breathe, safe water to drink, and land that sustains life, not poisons it.

The same ultra-wealthy actors who exploit workers and rig our economy are the same ones who pollute our air, water, and land. Big Oil and mining corporations exploit our common home for profit, and then use those profits to back politicians who will allow them to keep extracting profits and passing the costs of their destruction onto the rest of us. They poison our communities—especially low-income neighborhoods, communities of color, rural towns, and Indigenous lands—leaving us with a legacy of illness, environmental devastation, and economic hardship.

As people of faith, we know this is immoral. In Laudato Si’, Pope Francis reminds us that “the environment is on loan to each generation, which must then hand it on to the next.” We have a sacred duty to protect creation, to act in solidarity with the workers and families most affected by environmental harm, and to ensure clean air, water, and land for all of us. That’s why NETWORK has joined communities across the country in the work for a healthy climate, clean energy, and environmental justice.

Coming Together for Clean Air, Safe Water, and Healthy Land

This year, our advocacy will focus on three policy areas that intersect with ecological and economic justice. Our climate portfolio for the 119th Congress covers three key priorities:

    1. Clean Air and Safe Water. From oil refineries to industrial waste, pollution doesn’t fall evenly on all communities. Historically, corporations have intentionally built polluting factories and toxic waste facilities in low-income and Black and Brown neighborhoods, often leaving them with toxic air, undrinkable water, and higher rates of asthma and cancer. We’re pushing for stronger Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations to curb pollution, hold corporate polluters accountable, and ensure clean air and water for all of us.
    2. Healthy Land and Creating New Clean Energy Jobs No matter where we live, we all want safe, clean, and well-paying jobs, and we all value being able to choose to power our homes with clean energy. The time is now to make the U.S. clean energy dominant, and in a way that is just. Mining reform, responsible public land use, and protections for communities impacted by polluting and dirty industries must be at the heart of becoming clean energy dominant. We are advocating for investment in clean energy, so that we can all enjoy fresh air and healthy land and create a sustainable economy with hundreds of thousands of good, clean energy union jobs.
    3. Investing in People, Not Polluters The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) created historic investments in clean energy jobs, tax credits for families, and communities across the country — from funding new solar panel manufacturing plants in Georgia and wind energy projects in Texas, to providing up to $7,500 in tax credits for families buying electric vehicles, and delivering grants to low-income communities to replace lead pipes and improve energy efficiency in public housing. Since its passage in 2022, the IRA has spurred over 330,000 new clean energy jobs across the United States, with projections estimating the creation of more than 1.5 million additional jobs by 2030. But fossil fuel corporate executives and their paid lobbyists are trying to weaken these investments so they can cash in on taxpayer money instead. We are working to ensure these investments benefit us ordinary people and our communities—not ultra-wealthy polluters.

 

Our Shared Values Define Our Advocacy

Fossil fuel executives and the lawmakers they fund want us to believe we have no say in our future—but we know better. Faith-filled justice-seekers have always been at the heart of movements for the healthy environment we deserve. We won landmark protections like the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act, we set national water quality standards, and we passed the Inflation Reduction Act—the largest climate investment in U.S. history.

An economy that works for all of us can only be a sustainable, clean energy economy. The same faith that calls us to build An Economy for All calls us to be stewards of creation and ensure a livable planet for all. We are answering that call—together.

To find out more about NETWORK’s full climate portfolio and the issues we are working on to create a more sustainable planet, please visit our sister site, NETWORK Advocates.

Lent Week 8: Easter’s Promise of Thriving for All

Lent 2025: Giving Up Billionaires


Welcome to the eighth and final week of our Lenten series, “Giving Up Billionaires,” as we call on Congress to give up billionaires so our communities can have what we need to thrive. Click here for the rest of our Lenten reflections and actions.

We Can Give Up Billionaires and Enjoy Abundance!

 

Sr. Emily TeKolste, SP
April 23, 2025

We are an Easter people!

Together, over the course of Lent, we explored how all of us suffer when some lawmakers allow their billionaire backers to evade taxes and hoard wealth. We also examined how all of us will thrive, with affordable health care, stable housing, nourishing food, and inclusive politics, when we ensure that the ultra-wealthy pay what they owe our society in taxes.

We are Black, Brown, and white. Young and old. Gay, straight, and anything in between. We all want to live in safety, to have enough food to eat and a roof over our heads, and to be able to provide for our families and loved ones. We believe in a world where everyone has what they need. That’s why we’re taking action throughout the U.S.–forming advocacy groups, protesting cuts to the programs our communities rely on, taking care of each other with mutual aid, and more.

And it is precisely in this sharing that we generate abundance.

Sharing creates abundance. That’s what billionaires fail to recognize. That’s what capitalism prevents many of us from seeing. 

But we know that when we share resources, when everyone pays their fair share in taxes, we can all thrive. We can all enjoy having enough healthy food to eat, a safe neighborhood to live in, access to quality healthcare, and a good education. Grounded in the resurrection, we dare to hope and work together to make this future a reality.

We’ve done it before. In the 1950s and early 1960s, the highest top marginal tax rate was above 90%. Almost nobody paid that tax rate, and nobody paid that rate on their whole income. But it generated a thriving middle class for white families. Just imagine our shared prosperity when we reject billionaires’ attempts to divide us by race, faith, or class, and come together so all of us can thrive, no exceptions!

Thank you for joining us throughout Lent as we reflected and took action for a country where resources are for sharing, not hoarding, and as we told Congress: Give Up Billionaires for Lent, and forever!  

With all of us here at NETWORK, I wish you a joyful Easter!

 

NETWORK has more shareable content, sample social media posts, and LTE guidance for you in our Lent Toolkit.

Emily TeKolste, SP, NETWORK bio

Sr. Emily TeKolste, SP is NETWORK’s Grassroots Mobilization Coordinator. To read more, check out her column in Global Sisters Report, “The existence of billionaires is immoral.”

Giving Up Billionaires for Lent

Lent 2025: Giving Up Billionaires


Welcome to week 1 of our Lenten series, “Giving Up Billionaires,” as we call on Congress to give up billionaires so our communities can have what we need to thrive. Click here for the rest of our Lenten reflections and actions.

Why Catholicism Calls Us to Give Up Billionaires

 

Sr. Emily TeKolste, SP
March 5, 2025

 

This year, we’re giving up billionaires for Lent. It’s not like giving up a sweet indulgence like chocolate. When we say we’re giving up billionaires, we mean we are working toward a future where no one is allowed to hoard excessive wealth and power–so that we can live in a world that looks more like the Kingdom of God.

This Lent, we are urging Congress to reject tax cuts for billionaires and to protect programs that provide critical services like access to food and health care in our communities. We’ll be doing this by calling Congress, writing letters to the editor, posting on social media, and sharing about the campaign with others in our lives. 

Let’s put “billionaire-ism” into perspective

Billionaires in the United States hold nearly $7 trillion in total wealth. If you earned $100,000 per year, paid no taxes, and had no living expenses, it would take you 10 years to save $1 million. In 10,000 years you could save $1 billion. It would take you 10,000,000 years to save $1 trillion.

It’s not just that it is wrong that billionaires exist while so many of their fellow Americans face homelessness or don’t know where their next meal is coming from: the existence of billionaires is why so many of us don’t have stable housing or food. Our economic system concentrates resources that should be for everyone into the hands of a tiny group of people. This is a policy failure and a moral failure.

Take action

Join us in spreading the word about giving up billionaires for Lent! Save the “imagine where we can go” image I’ve placed below to your computer or phone and share it on social media and in emails to friends and family. And, consider writing a letter to the editor (LTE) of your local newspaper about why Congress must give up billionaires.

NETWORK has more shareable content, sample social media posts, and LTE guidance for you in our Lent Toolkit.

Catholicism teaches: tax billionaires! 

Catholic Social Teaching offers a principle called the “Universal Destination of Goods.” The Catholic Church has long taught that the fruit of creation was given to us by God, and that private property exists to protect access to the fruits of creation for all people. When private ownership fails to do that, “Political authority has the right and duty to regulate the legitimate exercise of the right to ownership for the sake of the common good” (Catechism, 2406). It is long past time that Congress makes billionaires pay their fair share in taxes.

Giving up billionaires this Lent and beyond 

So this year, we’re giving up billionaires for Lent. Beyond Lent, we’re committed to coming together to elect leaders who will make the ultra-wealthy pay their fair share of taxes so that we can live in a world that looks more like the Kingdom of God: where everyone has clean water to drink, healthy food to eat, a safe place to live, and time to spend with our loved ones.

Over the next few weeks of Lent, look out for weekly emails from me about our “Giving Up Billionaires” campaign, which culminate with our Easter call to tax billionaires out of existence, so that all of us can share in the fruits of creation!

 

Sr. Emily TeKolste, SP is NETWORK’s Grassroots Mobilization Coordinator. To read more, check out her column in Global Sisters Report, “The existence of billionaires is immoral.”

The Whole Body Suffers

 

The Whole Body Suffers

This Black History Month Tests the Health of Our Union and Communion 

Joan F. Neal
February 25, 2025

Joan F. Neal, Deputy Executive Director and Chief Equity Officer at NETWORK

Joan F. Neal, Interim Executive Director at NETWORK

This Black History Month has been hard. I simply cannot sugarcoat it. Just as cold and flu season have ravaged so many people during the month of February, this month has also offered one terrible episode after another which should make all of us worry about the health of our country.  The destruction of government infrastructure and institutions combined with the normalizing of racism and anti-immigrant sentiment have ravaged the U.S. in ways that put all of us more at risk of being less financially secure and even less healthy. 

For years, the United States has been credited with having the “best health care in the world.” But if that is true, what else is also true is that access to that system is not equitably shared. Health care continues to be an issue for Black communities, and Black History Month reminds us of that fact.  It shows us how the structures of society can be weaponized against people just as easily as they can promote stability and justice. 

In the U.S., structural racism can be as simple as where a hospital or a grocery store is built; which communities can receive urgent, life-saving care and which lack even adequate transportation to access quality health care.  Structural racism decides which neighborhoods have ready access to the fresh fruits and vegetables so essential for a healthy life and which communities are literal food deserts with only small grocery stores and limited options or fast-food outlets. Caring for our health involves both being able to access medical care when needed as well as being able to maintain good health by eating well. 

And while we may not realize it, these healthcare gaps are at the heart of today’s debates over the federal budget. Republicans in Congress have once again proposed to slash essential food and health care programs to give tax cuts to billionaires, balancing the budget on the backs of children, families, and ordinary people, many of whom are Black and Brown.  These actions not only exacerbate the healthcare situation but also perpetuate the racial wealth and income gap and reverse the gains that Black History Month celebrates.   

Families should not lose the ability to feed their babies through SNAP benefits in order to give Elon Musk another tax break. Nor should they lose their Medicaid in order for Jeff Bezos to further pad his considerable bottom line. Our very health and lives are literally caught up in this budget fight, and it is time for all people to speak out! 

Families should not lose the ability to feed their babies through SNAP benefits in order to give Elon Musk another tax break … Our very health and lives are literally caught up in this budget fight, and it is time for all people to speak out! 

Troubling signs are all around us. At the beginning of February, the report emerged that Black women die at a rate nearly 3.5 times higher than white women around the time of childbirth, an increase from 2.6 times higher only a couple years earlier. The Black maternal mortality crisis is real, a concern of NETWORK, and just one of many indicators of persistent structural racism in U.S. health care. And if the proposed cuts to SNAP and Medicaid go through, they will be no exception. 

 NETWORK is fighting against these discriminatory policies through our new policy agenda: An Economy for All, which presents a clear plan to create an inclusive economy where everyone thrives – no exceptions.  This is the vision that is central to the celebration of Black History Month. 

Moreover, in areas such as health care, impacts spread.  Scripture tells us that when one part of the body suffers, the whole body suffers (1 Cor 12:26). This is important to remember as the Trump administration rolls out its cruel and discriminatory agenda. No one can say “this won’t affect me.” Everyone should be concerned. This month’s Senate confirmation of vaccine skeptic RFK Jr. as Health and Human Services secretary portends a picture of a future where the health of all people in the U.S. will be weakened, where women won’t be able to get the health care they need, where children will die from easily preventable diseases, undoing decades of medical progress that made this country—and the world—healthier. 

The whole body also suffers from the moral wound that is inflicted on society by the acceptance of racist policies, whether in health care, foreign assistance, or immigration. It is all morally unacceptable, and it hurts our souls to permit it, even passively. For U.S. Catholics, this Black History Month has tested our Union, the structures that enshrine  “We the People” of the country. But it has also tested our Communion, our capacity to be one Body with all God’s children. If we are indifferent to our Black or immigrant friends or abandon our fellow neighbors abroad, we have lost our sense of Communion. 

I believe that our country and the church are still healthy enough to rally and offer the moral witness necessary to fight off the harms of entrenched racism and Christian nationalism now ravaging our body politic. But it will require a renewed sense of solidarity, a commitment to being not just one people, but one Body, accountable to all its members without exception. That is a history well worth writing with our actions today. 

Legislative Review of 2023

Legislative Review of 2023

One of the Most Dysfunctional, Unproductive Congresses of Modern Times

Laura Peralta-Schulte
February 19, 2024

Laura Peralta-Schulte is NETWORK’s Senior Director of Public Policy and Government Relations.

Following the 2022 midterm elections, 2023 brought “divided government” to Washington, DC as Republicans took control of the U.S. House of Representatives, while the Presidency and U.S. Senate remained under Democratic control.

Policymaking is always more difficult with a divided government because only compromise allows success. The federal system, by design, encourages deal-making and compromise, half-measures, and rare bipartisan achievements. The reactive nature of the federal system often frustrates those seeking revolutionary change.

The first session of the 118th Congress stands out as a year of abject legislative failure. It was a year of squandered opportunity, petty infighting, and deep frustration. The blame for this lack of progress lies directly at the feet of the House Republican Caucus and, by extension, former President Trump.

It is no secret the two major parties have competing visions on key policy issues. The key distinction between the parties is generally informed by what they believe to be the federal government’s proper role. These differences profoundly impact the lives of vulnerable people and the earth, our common home.

NETWORK’s Build Anew agenda requires an active federal government to address the social sins of the day: a broken, inhumane immigration and asylum system, shocking levels of wealth inequality and an ever-growing wage gap, increasing levels of child poverty, destruction of our planet, and more. NETWORK, in Washington and through the actions of our members back home, plays a critical role in bridging the divides to build support for core policy initiatives informed by Catholic Social teaching.

Why does this session stand out as being particularly troublesome? The design of the federal system remains the same; however, the norms of the system — civility and goodwill at minimum to a member’s party — have vanished. The problem did not start this year; institutional norms have slowly eroded, dating back to the speakership of Newt Gingrich and the government shutdowns of 1995 and 1996. The Trump administration accelerated this decay in Washington leading directly to the insurrection of January 6 and an attempted overthrow of the 2020 election.

The schism in the Republican party is most apparent in the House of Representatives and exists between two distinct factions: institutionalists, a quickly shrinking number of Members who respect traditional norms and recognize the need to compromise, and radicals, those who view compromise as capitulation and weakness and act with little regard for the institution or their fellow Republicans.

Tension between the two factions has been displayed in the House since the beginning of the term. This first became apparent during the nomination of Rep. Kevin McCarthy for Speaker of the House. A group of hardline House Republicans blocked McCarthy from securing the speakership to extract policy concessions to their radical agenda. McCarthy won the speakership after 15 humiliating votes. The nomination debate foreshadowed the tumult that was McCarthy’s short tenure as Speaker.

It is critical to note that Senate Republicans, led by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, have largely rejected chaos, instead opting to collaborate with Senate Democrats to achieve mutual policy objectives. As 2023 came to a close, it was sadly apparent that a core issue that intersects both House and Senate Republicans’ agenda is a strong desire to end the U.S. asylum system and “build the wall.”

The radical nature of House Republican conservatives — in policy and political norms — is nothing less than shocking. Action on key policy initiatives stopped except for must-pass legislation — lifting the debt ceiling and passing two continuing resolutions to keep our government operational. Each bill moved forward only after House Republicans attempted to use the deadlines to alter core human needs programs for struggling families significantly. Then, after failing to develop a consensus among their caucus, the government was kept afloat due to the support of House Democrats under the leadership of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

Cuts to poverty programs are being heralded by House conservatives as necessary austerity measures. The great irony is that the same House conservatives proposing to take food from babies are poised to spend billions of dollars for more tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations on top of the $2 trillion spent under President Trump’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed in 2017.

Then-Speaker McCarthy lost his speakership due to passing a bipartisan continuing resolution with the support of Democrats in September. Compromise is the enemy of House conservatives, regardless of the chaos resulting from policy failure. Chaos is a key tactic and desired outcome.

It is worth noting that these radical members are working very closely with former President Trump in the lead-up to the 2024 election. Many are on record as election deniers and supporters of the insurrection. The former president urged these House Republicans to replace McCarthy in September. He rejected several candidates for Speaker to replace McCarthy, ultimately praising the nomination of ally Rep. Mike Johnson. It bears remembering that now-Speaker Johnson led the effort in the House to reverse Trump’s 2020 election loss.

The first session of a new Congress is typically a time when work gets done before the election cycle begins. Unlike previous congressional terms, the 2024 elections have been front and center in the House from day one. House legislative efforts have relentlessly attacked immigrants and U.S. asylum laws, voting rights, and the LGBTQ+ community.

There have been calls for book bans and ending diversity initiatives, attacks on the Internal Revenue Service as they actively work to ensure wealthy taxpayers pay their taxes, and drastic cuts on all key anti-poverty programs, including WIC, SNAP, healthcare, Social Security, Title One school funding, housing vouchers, and so much more. House Republicans also started formal impeachment processes for Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and President Biden.

The House Agriculture bill provides a great example of the harsh austerity measures radical House members are seeking. After successfully making it harder for older Americans to receive SNAP in the new debt ceiling law, key provisions of the Agriculture bill were nothing less than a frontal attack on communities living with high rates of poverty. The bill had cruel cuts in funding to prevent hunger and food insecurity, including hallowing out key programs for fresh fruits and vegetables for children.

Shockingly, the bill would eviscerate long-standing bipartisan support for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) at a time of great need. A lack of funding means waiting lists, poorer health outcomes, and other hardships for new families and their babies.

House conservatives are heralding cuts to poverty programs as necessary austerity measures. The great irony is that the same House conservatives proposing to take food from babies are poised to spend billions of dollars for more tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations on top of the $2 trillion spent under President Trump’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed in 2017.

As the year ends, Congress, due to inaction in the House, has pushed all decisions on major legislation into 2024, making this the most non-productive, dysfunctional Congress in the modern era. The House of Representatives completely failed in their responsibility to the American people. As always, the high cost of inaction falls hardest on the most vulnerable.

This story was published in the Quarter 1 2024 issue of Connection.

Call Elected Leaders to Advocate for Social Justice

Action Alert: Call Your House Representative

Tell them to pass the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act of 2024!
January 17, 2024

Hardworking families need your help right NOW. Call 1-888-738-3058 today and urge Congress to pass the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act of 2024 (H.R.7024). Republicans and Democrats worked together on this important legislation that would increase the tax credit for hardworking parents who’s low income keeps them in poverty, struggling to make ends meet as they.

The Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act of 2024 (H.R.7024) will make meaningful progress toward the goal of ending child poverty. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a half-million kids will be lifted out of poverty and about 5 million more will be less poor. Hardworking families need this tax credit! The bipartisan proposal to expand the CTC was led by Senate Finance Chairman Ron Wyden (Oregon) and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (Missouri-08). NETWORK calls for its urgent passage. We need your help to get it passed!

How can you help? Call your Representative today to help get the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act of 2024 (H.R.7024) passed?

CALL NOW! Tell Your Representative:
Pass the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act of 2024!

*Dial 1-888-738-3058 to reach your member of Congress.
____________________________

When you call, here’s what you might say:

“Hello, my name is [YOUR NAME] from [YOUR TOWN]. I want to let [REPRESENTATIVE’s NAME] know that our country needs to reduce child poverty–which has doubled since 2022. That’s why I support the bipartisan-supported Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act of 2024 (H.R.7024). As a NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice advocate, I believe it is immoral for children to go without meals, medical care, housing, and other vital needs. This CTC proposal will give lower-income parents the money they need to properly provide for their families.

Expanding the CTC to more families is more important now than ever. For people in my community, in our state, and across the country, wages don’t cover the high cost of monthly bills, like groceries and childcare. And hardships like this add up–pushing far too many people into poverty. This is not the time for politics as usual. Congress must work together. Will [REPRESENTATIVE’S NAME] work with their colleagues to pass the bipartisan CTC bill immediately?

More about the proposed expanded Child Tax Credit bill

Although it is not as generous as the tax credit in the American Rescue Plan Act, this proposal will provide full CTC benefits to approximately 16 million children who are currently deprived of CTC resources solely because their families do not earn enough money. More than 20 percent, or one in five children, will benefit from this tax credit. 

Under the current law, 19 million children are ineligible for full CTC benefits, solely because their families do not make enough money. The Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act of 2024 expands the tax credit to include nearly 16 million more children of parents who make lower incomes. While the monthly checks that NETWORK supporters advocated for are not included, this is a meaningful CTC expansion. More than one in five children would benefit.

Advent 2023 Week 3 Calls Us to Bring Rejoicing

This Advent Calls us to Bring Rejoicing

Jarrett Smith
December 12, 2023

Readings for the Third Sunday of Advent, December 17.

Is 61:1-2A, 10-11
Lk 1:46-48, 19-50, 53-54
1 Thes 5:16-24
Jn 1:6-8, 19-28

The readings on the Third Sunday of Advent are meant to be a time of rejoicing and gladness amidst solemn anticipation. This spirit could readily apply to expanding the Child Tax Credit (CTC). The prophet Isaiah speaks of God bringing glad tidings to people in poverty, healing the brokenhearted, proclaiming liberty, and giving freedom to imprisoned people. A “year of favor” is one way to describe the year that Congress passed the expanded CTC and lifted a record number of children out of poverty. Across the U.S. millions of families were able to flourish where they had previously been held back or held down by lack of basic resources. This was a resounding victory for justice-seekers who envision a world in which all people have what they need.

Read NETWORK’s Advent 2023 reflections here!

When Congress allowed the expanded CTC to expire at the end of 2021, child poverty rose from 5.2 percent in 2021 to 12.4 percent in 2022. This hit Black, Brown, and Indigenous families especially hard, and this staggering setback was about one thing: the choices of Congress.

It is reckless policy, and morally repugnant, to extend tax breaks to corporations without also enacting robust expansion of the CTC. Congress must pass a Child Tax Credit that allows the 19 million who do not qualify for the entire credit to get the entire credit phased in faster. And it must apply to all children in the household.

In recent years, NETWORK has sought to tell this story and spread it far and wide. In doing so, we have centered two justice-seekers — Fr. Bryan Massingale and Dr. Robert P. Jones — whose voices cry out in the desert of white supremacy as it manifests itself in U.S. Christianity. In October, we hosted the third of our White Supremacy and American Christianity dialogues with them, this time focusing on how “a consistent ethic of hate threatens our democracy.”

Read NETWORK’s Advent 2023 reflections here!

For people of faith, especially Christians, it should be especially clear that a policy that helps so many children out of poverty should receive enthusiastic support and not be allowed to expire. In the Gospel this Sunday, John the Baptist refers to Jesus as “one among you who you do not recognize.” Similar to the judgment account in Matthew 25, we so often fail in our policy choices to recognize Jesus in those who are marginalized and harmed.

As we look to the Third Sunday of Advent, the church also celebrates the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12. This feast celebrates the love that Our Lady has for all of her children. What better way to translate that love into concrete action in the world than for Congress to pass a CTC that supports the most vulnerable?

Call to Action:

Send a message to your Members of Congress. Tell them to pass a fully refundable, monthly Child Tax Credit so all of us have what we need to take care of ourselves, and our families.

Tax Justice is Racial Justice

Tax Justice is Racial Justice

Undo the Hidden Racism of the U.S. Tax Code

Jarrett Smith
November 16, 2023

 

Jarrett Smith, pictured above at an August 25 reparations event outside the White House, is a NETWORK Government Relations Advocate.

It is no secret that the U.S. suffers from a staggering degree of wealth inequality. Resources are increasingly concentrated in the possession of the top 1 percent, creating a degree of inequality never before seen in the country’s history.

This wealth stratification is most acute across racial lines. A Pew Research study in 2016 found the median income of white households was $117,000, while Black households had only $17,000. And while a white person in the U.S. has an equal chance of being a millionaire and having no wealth, a Black person is 20 times more likely to have no wealth than to be a millionaire. Between 1983 and 2016, Black wealth decreased year over year, and education did not stop this trend.

This vast inequality did not happen by chance. As NETWORK’s Racial Wealth and Income Gap workshop helps to illustrate, the Transatlantic Slave Trade, Jim Crow, and centuries of the U.S. government’s racist policies created and still preserve this hoarding of wealth in the hands of a small class of white folks. Many of these policies shaped our tax system. Indeed, the U.S. tax code plays a central role in not only keeping rich people rich, but also rewarding white people at the expense of Black folks.

The marriage joint filing bonus, for example, privileges married couples, especially when one spouse makes high income while the other isn’t employed. A high earner can split their income with their spouse, and thus split their tax liability. Usually, these couples are white, as the highest-earning demographic in the country is overwhelmingly white. Because Black married households make the least household income in the country, rarely does one member of the household make enough money to enable their spouse to stay at home. Joint filing or married filing separate tax incentives do not help Black or Brown households because they earn so little income compared to their white counterparts.

In addition, tax incentives are structured to reward the things that wealthier, white folks can afford. For example, there are tax incentives for home ownership, but not for renting or for buying cars. Moreover, medical insurance is tax-deductible, but medical debt is not — penalizing Black and Brown communities who face inequities in access to affordable health care.

Long-term capital gains, usually enjoyed by white wealthy folks, are taxed at a lower rate than “ordinary income” — that is, wages, salaries, or even short-term capital gains. In 2021, an unmarried middle-income worker like a teacher or truck driver paid 22 percent of income tax on every dollar of taxable salary she made over $40,525. Meanwhile, a billionaire living entirely off long-term capital gains or dividends paid no more than 20 percent on millions of dollars of unearned income.

Over the past several centuries, white families have been able to amass wealth off the backs of enslaved and underpaid workers. They then pass that wealth on to their descendants, usually without having to pay their fair share of taxes on what is passed down. The tax code specifically protects this preservation of generational wealth in white families, and even helps it build up, by providing tax benefits to assets that are inherited. Under one policy called “Step Up in Basis,” if the owner of an investment or asset that has increased in value dies, neither the owner nor the inheritor owes any tax on that gain!

We know that for all nations, not just the United States, social and health outcomes — including for the richest folks — are worse in countries with high wealth inequality. Wealth inequality is immoral. It harms the most vulnerable and marginalized among us, especially Black and Brown communities, and it harms the wellbeing of the country as a whole.

The fact that racism is written into our tax code makes three things clear. First, it confirms that racism is systemic and is enacted through policies and structures. Second, the road to equality is reparations now, to begin to heal our society and close the ever-widening gap between those who have been allowed to amass and hoard resources, and those who have had to go without – so that all communities can truly thrive. And third, as we think, dream, and envision a future with reparations, transforming the tax code must be part of what it means to repair and build anew our society.

 

This story was published in the Quarter 4 2023 issue of Connection. 
Join the Thriving Communities Campaign So We All Thrive

Thriving Communities

Thanks for your advocacy!

NETWORK’s Thriving Communities Campaign ran MARCH 28 to JUNE 2, but our advocacy and lobbying for social justice continues. We thank all who joined our community of Spirit-filled supporters to advocate for food, medical care, housing, and other human needs.

We look forward to working with you again soon to continue the push for thriving communities for all of us — no exceptions!

Thriving Communities Campaign

No matter where we live, how we pray, or the size of our paycheck, most of us want to be sure our families are well-fed, have a warm place to sleep at night, and can see the doctor when needed. Some politicians want to cut food, medical, and housing assistance programs that struggling folks need to pay down our country’s debts. It is immoral to place the debt ceiling burden on the backs of struggling people. Our national budget is a moral document that must allow everyone to thrive — not just the wealthy. When wealthy corporations and billionaires stop getting unfair advantages from the government that let them dodge what they truly owe in taxes, our budget will have what it needs to take care of veterans, families, and anyone in need — no exceptions. Just as we did when we fought for the Affordable Health Care Act 15 years ago, and last year for the Infrastructure Reduction Act, we will press our elected leaders to provide the supports and services our families need. Will you join the campaign?

Get Started with the Thriving Communities Toolkit

We know what our communities need to thrive, and we have the faith and love to advocate for our neighbors, and we have the strength to advocate for what we need, because we are seeking justice together!

Ready to get started? View our Thriving Communities Toolkit here, download it here. You can also view LTE’s that justice-seekers have had published in their communities around the country. See a selection of letters to the editor here.

We know that resources are bountiful in God’s beloved community. There’s enough for all of us — Black, white, and Brown — to thrive. But House Republicans want to meet the burden of our shared budget debt by cutting vital programs that those struggling in our country need to survive, like WIC, SNAP, housing assistance, and Medicaid.

We cannot balance a budget on the backs of poor people. It’s time that wealthy corporations and billionaires pay their fair share of taxes.  Spirit-filled justice seekers are coming together through the Thriving Communities Campaign to advocate for a moral budget that provides for all of us… no exceptions!

The Thriving Communities Campaign has actions that we all can take to demand that Congress protect spending for vital human needs programs — so that everyone can have the food, shelter, and medical care they need to thrive. See our Thriving Communities Campaign Toolkit here. 

The toolkit has guidance, messaging help, social media hashtags and posts, images to share, and more to make it easy for you to participate in the way that best suits you.

Watch Our Thriving Communities: #CareNotCuts Rallies

Long Island

Erie

Youngstown

Learn More with Campaign Support Guides and Videos

Thriving Communities One-Pager

The Thriving Communities One-pager helps you share the message of our campaign at events that you organize. It’s also a resource to help you persuade friends, family, and others to join our campaign.

This Work Requirements 1-pager helps you learn about existing work requirements and why adding such requirements is unnecessary and unjust.

Feel confident when you spread the goals and underlying messages of the Thriving Communities Campaign with this comprehensive talking points document.  url=”

Watch the Government Relations team explain why a moral budget is needed and how the country can fund our federal budget to cultivate thriving communities.

Watch LTE Training: Let’s Talk Debt Ceiling facilitated by the Grassroots Mobilization team. See the Letter to the Editor Training slides.

See a selection of letters to the editor written by NETWORK advocates here.

Join the Campaign!

Let Congress know you want to protect Medicaid, housing, and food programs like SNAP!

Yes, I'll E-mail Congress!

Call Your Members of Congress!

Tell them to protect vital human needs programs in our federal budget!
*Dial 1-888-897-9753 to reach your House Representative
_____________________________

*Dial 1-888-496-3502 to reach your Senators
(Call this number two times to reach both Senators.)

When you call, here’s what you might say:

“Hello, my name is [YOUR NAME] from [YOUR TOWN]. I want to ask [MEMBER OF CONGRESS’S NAME] to protect SNAP, WIC, Medicaid, housing, and other vital human needs programs from any harmful budget cuts.

Hard working families, people with disabilities, kids aging out of foster care, and others who need the life-affirming support are our neighbors, friends, and loved ones, and our nation’s budget must prioritize their needs. As a person of faith, I believe that it is immoral to balance the budget on the backs of those who are struggling the most.

Congress must reduce the deficit by having the wealthy people and corporations pay what they truly owe in taxes, not by making cuts to our neighbors who need the support that our social safety net provides. [MEMBER OF CONGRESS’S NAME], as the budget process moves forward, please reject all proposals that weaken access to healthcare, food, or housing programs.”

Our Values Root Our Call for Vital Human Needs Programs

No matter our background, faith, or color, most of us work hard for our families. ​This includes people that receive assistance from vital human resource programs like Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Medicaid. Congressional Republicans want to make cuts in these programs to pay down our country’s budget. Instead of pointing the finger of blame at people struggling to make ends meet, our elected officials must make wealthy corporations and billionaires pay what they owe to our shared economy — so that everyone in our communities can thrive, not just the rich.

Every Member of Congress serves constituents that rely on Medicaid, SNAP, and housing, and other programs that help people and families eat food at night and see a doctor when they are sick. We must tell our federal budget makers to love their neighbors and protect these life-affirming programs.

Keep Up with NETWORK

Just Politics Catholic Podcast Season 2