TAKE ACTION: CALL, SEND MESSAGES, WRITE LTE'S
Congress passed a budget this spring to avoid the debt ceiling crisis. So, why are we back here again–at a budget impasse that threatens jobs, food and housing security, and to separate families at the southern border?
Justice-seekers across race, place, and faiths can make a difference when they tell their community that Congress, Keep Your Promise! See below to Call, email, and Tweet the House. Write a Letter to the Editor (LTE) to do just that!
Call the House
Send email and a Tweet, too!
Call Your Member of the House NOW: 888-897-9753!
Tell them to pass a budget that includes funding for human needs programs and protects immigrant families. 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 while the shutdown crisis is over for the next few weeks, I am still concerned that the House is still proposing cuts to vital programs that will put millions out of work, hurt small businesses, and make life harder for people already struggling to make ends meet.”
Many people in my community face food and housing insecurity, high child care costs, and other hardships that make it hard to thrive without assistance. [Definitely share your own experiences and/or add local/state data here!] We cannot have a shutdown in November!
[REPRESENTATIVE’S NAME], can I count on you to work to pass a clean bipartisan continuing resolution that prioritizes funding for human needs and rejects any and all anti-immigrant proposals?
Resources to support your advocacy
Congress, Keep Your Promise Webinar
Webinar Q & A
During the webinar, questions were asked that we were unable to answer at that time. See them, and their answers, below.
With only 11 days until the shutdown, what is the best way justice-seekers can help?
Moderate House Republicans are the key to moving forward. If your House Representative leans moderate, give them a call and encourage them to pass a budget that funds programs that support our communities – to keep the promise they made when they voted for the bill that raised the debt ceiling.
You can also raise the public profile of this issue by writing a letter to the editor of your local paper. See our guidance for LTE writers (including a video and training slides).
Can you give us a link to the Child Tax Credit study?
The Center on Poverty and Social Policy at Columbia University has a number of great publications on the Child Tax Credit. You can access them here.
Can you please say more about the work-reporting requirements and how/whom they serve or disadvantage?
For more information about work-reporting requirements, check out our one-pager here.
What do states lose if they opt-out of the SNAP lifetime ban re: drug felons?
SNAP is an entitlement program, which means that there’s automatic funding for everyone eligible. There is no cost to states for waiving the ban.
NETWORK Advocates Share CTC Testimonials
“Many families with young children that I know, including my own, live paycheck-to-paycheck, and the significant inflation that we are facing has caused many of us to deplete our savings and increasingly rely on credit cards to get us through the month. With interest rates as high as they currently are, this is digging us into a deeper financial hole. An expansion of the Child Tax Credit could help us avoid using credit at a time when financial experts advise us to do so.” Natalie M., Shaker Heights, OH
“[The CTC] will allow my children the opportunity to participate in extracurricular activities and expose them to new experiences and friends, promoting the growth of their whole self.” Ivelisse C., Cleveland OH
“I have nieces in Ohio who are struggling to make ends meet to feed and clothe their children and also to afford daycare so they can get a job. The Child Tax Credit helped them before and it can help them again!” Sr. Joyce K., CPPS, Dayton, OH
“Several of my church families along with others in the community are struggling to make ends meet and to provide for their children. Some are looking at the loss of homes and eviction. The expanded Child Tax Credit will help to minimize theses effects of inflation and low paying work situations.” Rev. Karen B., Jeffersonville, IN
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