On August 23, 2023, First Focus on Children and ZERO TO THREE released Babies in the Budget, a new report that examines federal investment in the nation’s youngest children across more than 120 programs. Their analysis finds that the federal government invests very little in babies and toddlers – the federal share of spending on
On Thursday, July 27, 2023, Congress wrapped up their work for the summer and left town for the August recess. Members will spend the next 6 weeks in their districts and will return to Washington, D.C. after Labor Day to resume business on the Hill. The Senate moved quickly to pass each of the twelve
With just one week left until the August recess, Congress has continued to make progress on a number of their top priorities for this year. Both the House and Senate have moved funding bills through various subcommittees and the full Appropriations committees; the House Rules committee has announced consideration of two of the Appropriations bills
The House Committee on Ways and Means hosted a Subcommittee hearing on July 13, 2023 titled “‘Where is All the Welfare Money Going?’ Reclaiming TANF-Non-Assistance Dollars to Lift Americans Out of Poverty.” The hearing examined Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds in light of recent reports of misuse by states. Prominent speakers included Chairman
On July 13th, 2023, the Senate Finance Subcommittee on Taxation and IRS Oversight held a hearing to assess the last 25 years of the Child Tax Credit and discuss future implementation of the credit. The hearing began with an opening statement from the Chairman and Senator Bennet(D-CA) that called for the expansion of the Child
Representative Barbara Lee (D-CA) introduced a Resolution to Fully Address Child Poverty on June 23, 2023. The Resolution, which has 19 Democratic co-sponsors calls on Congress to address child poverty, recognizing that the United States continues to have a significantly higher rate of child poverty compared to other wealthy nations because we fail to sufficiently
On June 14, 2023, the National Low Income Housing Coalition released Out of Reach 2023: The High Cost of Housing. Published annually, the report highlights the gulf between the wages people earn and the price of modest rental housing in every state, county, metropolitan area, and combined non-metropolitan area in the U.S. This year’s report
On Tuesday, June 13th, 2023, the House Ways and Means Committee held a markup for a series of tax bills, including the Tax Cuts for Working Families Act. The package was eventually passed favorably out of committee by the Republican Majority. The bill would make several tax cuts and would increase the standard deduction; Republicans
On June 14, 2023, the Committee on Finance held a hearing, “Anti-Poverty and Family Support Provisions in the Tax Code,” to discuss tax policies that support children and families. Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) gave an opening statement calling for the expansion of the 2021 Child Tax Credit (CTC) and Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) through
On June 13, 2023, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce held a hearing titled “Examining the Policies and Priorities of the Department of Health and Human Services.” Committee members asked Secretary Becerra of the Department of Health and Human Services questions about children’s health-related to gender-affirming care and unaccompanied children at the border.