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HOUSE BUDGET IN LIMBO
House leadership had hoped the House would have a revenue package passed
this week and a budget released to all Appropriations Committee members,
but neither happened. The Governor tried to spur them along by issuing
an Emergency Executive Order that gives him the authority to start cutting
state spending and staff in order to balance the 2003 budget which began
on July 1. He told House members he would give them two weeks to come
up with their own budget, but by July 15 he plans to start cutting with
or without House input. But divisions within the House are so deep,
numerous and multi-faceted that leadership effort and high-up threats
are not enough to overcome them in only 5 days.
The revenue package is the first stumbling block. The House needs to
decide how it will raise some more money to fill at least some of the
2003 deficit, before they can craft a budget to cut programs in order
to full the remainder of the deficit. Some House members support closing
corporate loopholes, while other vehemently oppose that. Others want
to raise the sales tax yet again, while others say no way, we already
increased it 1/2 cent last year and that mostly hurts poor and middle
income workers. Some want to take money from the tobacco trust fund,
but representatives of tobacco growing and manufacturing counties are
squeemish. And this in only the Democrats. The Republicans seem fairly
solidly opposed to raising any taxes and would simply cut $1.5 billion
from the budget to fill this year's deficit.
In the end it appears it will be a long hot summer. Some insiders predict
there will be no revenue package next week either. If you haven't done
so yet, there is time for you to contact your legislators and let them
know they need to raise revenue, rather than filling the entire deficit
with cuts to critical programs.
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US SENATE FINANCE COMMITTEE APPROVES MEDIOCRE TANF
BILL
Just before the July 4th Congressional break, the Senate Finance Committee
approved a TANF Reauthorization bill that is very weak and includes
few of the much needed improvements that we and others have identified.
Nonetheless, it is still considerably better than the House version.
This is all very dis-heartening given that in January everyone agreed
that welfare reform had worked, welfare rolls were down and more people
were working, and now Congress just needed to help states better help
families keep work and increase wages. All that changed in February
after the Bush Administration weighed in saying that states weren't
doing enough to get people working and so they were going to up the
work requirements.
I don't know what states they were talking about, but North Carolina's
welfare rolls are down over 60% and 70% of the families leaving, left
with a job. Of the remaining 40% of the North Carolina Work First families
left on the rolls, Bush and now the US House, want to make sure North
Carolina has 70% of them working 40 hours per week. The families left
are the ones with the most barriers to work - things like disabled children,
substance abuse problems, or high unemployment in the area where they
live. To say NC has not done enough to get families to work unless 70%
of the remaining families are working is ludicrous and unfair. Furthermore,
it is also unreasonable to expect all of these families to work 40 hours.
While it sounds reasonable, the reality is that most of these families
have pre-school age children and on average, US mothers with pre-school
age children work only 35 hours per week. Furthermore, those 40 hours
per week include no sick leave or vacation. In other words, if a mom
doesn't work 40 hours per week, every week of the month, she doesn't
get her welfare check for the entire month. Who has a pre-school age
child in day care that doesn’t get sick, have a doctor appointment
or can’t ever get a day off to spend with mom. Just to add insult
to injury, the Bush and House plans, would also add no new money to
the TANF Block Grant to help states meet these higher requirements,
and they would force states to use $1.5 billion TANF dollars in the
next five year to help families get or stay married.
The
problem with all this is that the debate is completely sidetracked from
what states and welfare families really need, to who can be the toughest
on work requirements. Where are our friendly Congress-people voicing
an alternative view, acknowledging state effort thus far and trying
to help families get the supports they need to keep going???? Well don't
hold your breath looking for them. Our Senator John Edwards would be
an excellent person to take this on. He is well spoken and comes from
a state with many rural and manufacturing counties that are struggling
with high unemployment and fleeing employers. Polling data also shows
that the American public supports efforts to support families moving
to work by providing them with child care, transportation and job training
– Just the things NC is trying to do.
While
it is true that North Carolina’s Work First program and welfare
efforts aren’t perfect and can be improved, the current federal
debate is doing nothing to help us. More punitive measures, less money,
and more restrictions are not the answer. It is past time, but not too
late, that members of Congress raise their voice to tell the story of
their constituents and their states. Thousands of children and low-wage
workers will dramatically suffer if they do not.
Go to the Center on Law
and Social Policy web page to get analysis of the Senate TANF Reauthorization
Bill and an updated comparison of all the Reauthorization Bills being
considered. http://www.clasp.org
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