This week at CBPP, we focused on the federal budget, state budgets and taxes, food assistance, housing, health care, and poverty and inequality.
- On the federal budget, Robert Greenstein and Joel Friedman explained why balancing the budget over ten years and with no new revenue are flawed goals.
- On state budgets and taxes, Elizabeth McNichol urged states to make needed infrastructure investments without taking funds from other priorities, like schools and health care.
- On food assistance, Dottie Rosenbaum highlighted our updated report on the decline in SNAP (food stamp) caseloads and costs as the economy improves.
- On housing, Barbara Sard supported the conclusion of Matthew Desmond’s new book, Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City, that we should do more to help low-income families afford housing. Ife Floyd pointed out that Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, the main cash assistance program for poor families, covers only a fraction of their housing costs.
- On health care, Jesse Cross-Call explained why Oklahoma likely won’t get federal approval for its plan to end Medicaid coverage for 110,000 low-income parents.
- On poverty and inequality, Isaac Shapiro applauded a new proposal to expand broadband Internet access among low-income households. Arloc Sherman highlighted an American Academy of Pediatrics statement on poverty’s harsh toll on children.
Chart of the Week: SNAP Costs Falling, Projected to Fall Further
A variety of news outlets featured CBPP’s work and experts recently. Here are some highlights:
The Folly of State-Level Tax Cuts
The Atlantic
March 10, 2016
Congress Is About to Take Food Away From the Poorest People in America
The Nation
March 9, 2016
Clinton-era welfare reforms haunt America's poorest families, critics say
The Guardian
March 7, 2016
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