U.S. Poverty Campaigns

Weekly Update | September 1, 2015

In This Week’s Update:

• Got Two Minutes? Find a Labor Day Parade and Tell Congress to Save Key Tax Provisions for Working Families (August Action)
• Got Ten Minutes? Prepare for a Busy September Generating Media Coverage on Poverty and EITC/CTC
• Got Twenty Minutes? Invite Contacts to RESULTS Outreach Event in Memphis or Other Upcoming Events  
• Upcoming Events

Quick Action: Urge Congress to Save Key Tax Credits for Working Families

Got Two Minutes? Find a Labor Day Parade and Tell Congress to Save Key Tax Provisions for Working Families (August Action)

What do millions of hardworking families want for Labor Day? Congress to save key Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC) provisions! Curious about the kind of workers that face a cut in these tax credits? The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) has a new paper and infographic breaking down the kinds of workers of low-wage workers with a lot at stake in tax policy decisions in DC.

RESULTS advocates have been hard at work raising their voices – you have already discussed the importance of EITC and CTC with 98 members of Congress face-to-face this year, along with hundreds of Congressional staffers and at least seven different Presidential candidates. With many candidates and members of Congress appearing in Labor Day parades and participating in other events over the last few days of the Congressional recess, let’s make sure more hear from people who care back home before they return to DC!

TAKE ACTION: Take two minutes to circle back to House and Senate schedulers to ask about meetings, town halls, and upcoming appearances in Labor Day parades in the next few days.  See the August Action for tips and resources to help with preparing for events. You can find scheduler names and contact information on our Elected Officials page). If you do anticipate a chance to talk with a member of Congress or a candidate, please contact Meredith Dodson [email protected] to set up a call to help you prepare. Also, please fill out the RESULTS Lobby Report Form to let us know how your meetings or town halls went.

Got Ten Minutes? Prepare for a Busy September Generating Media Coverage on Poverty and EITC/CTC

As Congress returns to Washington, we will pivot our work to keeping public pressure on them to do the right thing for hardworking families by saving key EITC/CTC provisions. The U.S. Census Bureau will release 2014 poverty data on September 16 and we will work with local media to connect the dots between poverty and tax policy priorities in Washington. We will release our full September Action Sheet after the Census Bureau data comes out with talking points for op-eds and letters to the editor, along with an updated editorial memo for local papers. our September U.S. Poverty National Webinar will be held on Saturday, September 12 at 12:30 pm ET.

TAKE ACTION: Mark your calendars for the U.S. Poverty National Webinar on Saturday, September 12, at 12:30 pm ET. In addition, we will do a rebroadcast of the highlights from the webinar with a live Q&A about the new Census data and how to use it on Wednesday, September 16, at 8:00 pm ET. In addition, prepare for our September media push by:

-Mapping out who in your group will approach different media outlets and researching their contact information

-Monitoring your local media’s coverage about poverty issues and reaching out to local journalists to thank them for their coverage and introduce yourself and RESULTS.

-Drafting your opinion piece or letter to the editor, focusing on why you care about these programs and the impact they have on your community or state. See CBPP’s state fact sheets for some great state-level data you can use… AND/OR

-Composing an email to your local editorial writer(s), introducing yourself and reminding them about the upcoming release of the Census poverty data. RESULTS will have an editorial memo available next week that you can send along to them ahead of the poverty data release (and an updated version after the data is released).

-Participating in the Coalition on Human Needs September 9 webinar with RESULTS International Conference speaker Jared Bernstein. Register for the 2-3:30 ET webinar online. 

Got Twenty Minutes? Invite Contacts to RESULTS Outreach Event in Memphis or Other Upcoming Events

RESULTS U.S. Poverty Organizer Kristy Martino is traveling to Memphis, TN on September 3-4 to speak at the National Conversation on Prosperity. In addition, RESULTS REAL Change Fellow Carl Schneider is hosting an outreach event on Thursday (September 4), 6-8:30 pm, at the New Memphis Institute, 22 North Front Street, Suite 500. In addition, RESULTS staff and local leaders are working to start a new group in the Raleigh, NC area (group start October 15),  Alabama (Birmingham, Mobile, Auburn), Atlanta, New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Kansas City, and New York City this fall

TAKE ACTION: Invite any Memphis-area friends to the outreach event Thursday, and if you know people in any of these targeted communities, please contact Kristy at [email protected]. And, don’t forget to invite anyone who might be interested in RESULTS to an upcoming RESULTS Introductory Calls – these are the perfect starting point for new activists. All are welcome! See our website for more details and to sign up for an Intro Call.

Quick News

Sign Up for VolunteerMatch Webinar Featuring RESULTS and the Alliance to End Hunger. On September 16, RESULTS Director of U.S. Poverty Campaigns will join the Alliance to End Hunger and the Alliance for Justice on a special VolunteerMatch webinar at 1 pm ET focused on advocacy and service organizations. Read more and register here.

Fill Out the RESULTS Conference Survey. We want to hear about your experience at this year’s conference by taking the 2015 RESULTS International Conference Survey. Let us know what you thought of the conference and how we can make it better next year. Mark Your Calendars: Plan to create your own empowering experience at next year’s RESULTS International Conference, June 25-28, 2016 in Washington, DC.

Nominate RESULTS Grassroots Board Member. We have an open Grassroots Board seat this year. All active RESULTS grassroots volunteers are eligible to serve. To nominate a grassroots volunteer to the RESULTS/RESULTS Educational Fund Board, please send the person’s name to [email protected] or call 202-783-4800 x152 no later than September 15. 

Upcoming Events

Go to the RESULTS Events Calendar to see a full list of RESULTS events.

Congressional Recesses: House: July 31 – September 7; Senate: August 8 – September 7. Request face-to-face meetings.

RESULTS Introductory Call, September 9, at 9:00 pm ET. If you want to learn more about RESULTS, register for an upcoming Intro Call on the RESULTS website.

RESULTS U.S. Poverty National Webinar, September 12 at 12:30 pm ET. Join the meeting online at http://fuze.me/28130766 or dial in by phone at (201) 479-4595, meeting ID: 28130766#. Listen to previous conference calls and meetings on our National Conference Calls page.

RESULTS U.S. Poverty Free Agents Call, September 15 at 1:00 pm and 8:00 pm ET. Join online at: http://fuze.me/27491886; or by phone at (201) 479-4595 and enter Meeting ID: 27491886. For more information, contact Jos Linn ([email protected]).

Rebroadcast of National Webinar with Live Q&A, September 16 at 8:00 pm ET. Login details coming soon.

2016 RESULTS International Conference, June 25-28, 2016 in Washington, DC. Save the dates!

Find a list of the RESULTS U.S. Poverty staff with contact information on the RESULTS website. ​