BEYOND THE NUMBERS
In Case You Missed It…
This week at CBPP, we focused on state budgets and taxes, health, and the economy.
- On state budgets and taxes, Ed Lazere affirmed that states with temporary budget surpluses should invest in people and not enact permanent tax cuts. Whitney Tucker explained that state proposals to impose tax cuts and voting restrictions will worsen inequities. Samantha Waxman noted that states should prioritize struggling families with targeted tax credits and avoid broad-based tax cuts. We updated a paper by Ed Lazere on how states can best use federal Fiscal Recovery Funds and illustrated how states are using their funds.
- On health, Gideon Lukens, Jennifer Sullivan, and Farah Erzouki maintained that COVID relief provisions have stabilized health coverage while improving access and affordability. Erzouki stressed that careful planning now can reduce health coverage losses when Medicaid COVID-19 continuous coverage ends. Jennifer Wagner and Suzanne Wikle of the Center for Law and Social Policy answered frequently asked questions on unwinding the Medicaid continuous coverage requirement when the public health emergency ends.
- On the economy, Chad Stone explained that a package that invests in our economic future will not add meaningfully to inflation. We updated our backgrounder on how many weeks of unemployment compensation are currently available. We also updated our chart book tracking the post-Great Recession Economy.
Chart of the Week — States Are Using Their Fiscal Recovery Funds
States Are Using Their Fiscal Recovery Funds
Share of total state Fiscal Recovery Funds appropriated (excludes funds granted to local governments)
Note: The American Rescue Plan gave states $197.8 billion in Fiscal Recovery Funds to combat the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Source: CBPP analysis
A variety of news outlets featured CBPP’s work and experts this past week. Here are some of the highlights:
Child tax credit: Expanding it helped 1M N.J. families. But push to revive bigger payments stalled.
NJ.com
March 10, 2022
After Two Years of Covid, the U.S. Economy Is Thriving. We Have the Great Recession to Thank.
New Republic
March 8, 2022
Many Americans are eligible for more generous tax credits this year. They will have to file a return in order to get the money
CNBC
March 8, 2022
States Push Tax Cuts Amid Big Budgets, Inflationary Pressures
Wall Street Journal
March 7, 2022
Federal Money Saved Economy as Pandemic Exposed Weak Safety Net
Capital & Main
March 7, 2022
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