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POLICY INSIGHT
BEYOND THE NUMBERS

In Case You Missed It…

| By CBPP

This week at CBPP, we focused on the federal budget and taxes, state budgets and taxes, health, food assistance, family income support, and the economy.

  • On the federal budget and taxes, Chuck Marr, Emily Horton, and Roderick Taylor explained why policymakers need to increase the IRS budget to implement and enforce the new tax law. Janne Huang marked Earned Income Tax Credit Awareness Day with resources to help reach eligible workers.
  • On state budgets and taxes, Michael Leachman and Michael Mazerov detailed how states should respond to the recent federal tax changes, and Leachman summarized the recommendations. Leachman also emphasized that states should respond cautiously to the possibility of a revenue boost and explained why claims of state “windfalls” from the tax change are overstated.

    Mazerov concluded that the tax cuts Kansas enacted in 2012 and 2013 are compelling evidence of the failure of “supply-side” tax cuts, and argued that proponents’ excuses for the failures of the tax cuts don’t hold up.

  • On health, Edwin Park warned that policymakers must act quickly to meet Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands’ Medicaid needs. Jessica Schubel clarified that the Trump Administration’s reversal of Medicaid’s family planning guidance doesn’t change federal law. We noted how Medicaid work requirements will harm people with disabilities and serious illnesses.
  • On food assistance, Brynne Keith-Jennings explained that food-insecure households are more likely to have chronic diseases and higher health costs.
  • On family income support, Tazra Mitchell and LaDonna Pavetti found that most Kansas parents leaving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) cash assistance after the state made punitive eligibility changes had unsteady work and earnings below half the poverty line. Mitchell summarized these findings. Mitchell and Pavetti also rebutted a fundamentally flawed study praising Kansas’ harsh TANF work penalties.
  • On the economy, we updated our chart book on the legacy of the Great Recession.

Chart of the Week – Parents Exiting TANF Due to Work Sanctions Experienced Only Small Employment Gains

A variety of news outlets featured CBPP’s work and experts recently. Here are some highlights:


What Donald Trump needs to do to fix America’s infrastructure
Vox
January 26, 2018


Where the Work-for-Welfare Movement is Heading
Stateline
January 25, 2018


USDA Chief to People on Food Stamps: Get a Job
Mother Jones
January 24, 2018


You Should Not Need a Job to Get Help
The New York Times
January 23, 2018


What to watch for as Obamacare gets Trumped
CBS News
January 22, 2018

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