RESULTS Weekly Update April 26, 2022

Quote of the Week

“When my faith and the facts coincide so clearly, I call on Congress to act. Make expansion and full refundability of the Child Tax Credit permanent.”

– RESULTS Cheyenne volunteer Ann Erdmann in an April 13 op-ed in the Wyoming Tribune Eagle

Table of Contents

• Welcome Congress back to DC with a strong CTC push
• FY23 appropriations continues in the Senate
• Quick News on U.S. and Global Poverty
• Announcements
• Upcoming Events
• Grassroots Resources

Welcome Congress back to DC with a strong CTC push

Congress returns Washington this week after a two-week recess. Our hope is that the return to DC will start a new round of negotiations on a new economic package. If that happens, negotiators will work out the details over the next few weeks behind closed doors. Our goal is to convince lawmakers to include a Child Tax Credit (CTC) extension in any deal.

Extending the CTC should be an easy choice. Study after study show that last year’s CTC payments were a game changer. Data from Census Bureau, Columbia’s Center on Poverty and Social Policy, and the Journal of the American Medical Association all show that food insecurity and other material hardship dropped after the first CTC payments started last July. Parents spent their CTC on the thing that matters most – their families.

And the need has only increased. In Moody’s Analytics updated analysis, the average household is spending an extra $327 per month due to inflation. If Congress restarted the CTC monthly payments – which could go out in a matter of weeks – the extra $250-$300 per child would help offset these rising costs. That’s why more than 130 economists have said that, “the expanded Child Tax Credit is one of the easiest, most effective, and direct tools currently at our disposal to help families deal with the impact of inflation on family budgets.”

When a politician says that inflation is hurting families, the response should be, “Then why haven’t you extended the Child Tax Credit payments?”

TAKE ACTION: Welcome Congress back to Washington with a strong push to extend the CTC and reinstate the CTC monthly payments. Here are actions you can take:

1. Send letters s to tax aides. If you have CTC letters, forward them to your Senate and House tax aides. Urge their bosses to tell congressional leadership to extend the CTC payments now. Forward any new media you’ve generated as well. If you don’t have letters to send, use the April U.S. Poverty Action to draft your own email to the tax aides about the CTC.
2. Generate more letters. Use the April U.S. Poverty Action to generate more letters to members of Congress about the CTC. Host a letter-writing meeting to get more letters and forward them to tax aides.
3. Get more CTC letters to the editor. Continue to call out members of Congress by name urging them to extend the CTC now. Use our online media alert to submit your letter today. Forward any published media to aides in your congressional offices.

If you have question, please contact RESULTS staff for help.

FY23 appropriations continues in the Senate

You did a fantastic job securing hundreds of signatures across three House “Dear Colleague” FY23 appropriations letters supporting global health. (Check out the signature counts online.) Now, we move our focus to the Senate! We have a brand new bipartisan Senate sign-on letter focused on the Global Fund that is available for signatures until May 10. Letters like this one are key influencers in the appropriations process, and a long list of signatures makes all the difference. Ask your senators for their signatures on this important letter, and then please submit our appropriations memos (outlining our global health funding priorities) to your senators as well. While the House offices only have until April 27 to submit their global health funding requests to the State and Foreign Operations Subcommittee (SFOPS), senators have until May 19 to submit. Still, time is of the essence.

Catch updates on letter signatures, and especially keep track of the sign-on letters emerging in the Senate, on the RESULTS blog. On the blog you’ll even find answers to frequently asked questions and sample templates if offices ask you to fill out forms as part of making your appropriations funding requests. Then share this online action alert with others so they can take action in the Senate as well.

TAKE ACTION: Read more about our new Senate Global Fund letter on the RESULTS blog and make your signature requests today. Next, make your follow-up calls on your House appropriations funding requests and make sure your Senate funding requests are submitted, too. Use the support of our new laser talk to make your requests. Send a thank-you for funding requests forwarded to SFOPS and for letters signed. Questions on this process? Contact Crickett at [email protected] or other RESULTS staff.

Quick News on U.S. and Global Poverty

Media hooks of the week. To help you in your media advocacy, here are suggested media “hooks” this week to use in letters to the editor:

• S. Poverty: Members of Congress are back in Washington, DC this week and families are expecting them to do something about rising costs. The first thing on their agenda should be immediately extending the CTC monthly payments.
• Global Poverty: With Congress back on the Hill this week, get their attention with powerful media highlighting the need to support the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. The Seventh Replenishment conference is coming up later this year, and we must build the political will now for a strong U.S. pledge. Gather impactful data and stories from the Global Fund’s own case Seventh Replenishment Investment Case.

Listen to April Policy Forum recordings. If you missed our April Monthly Policy Forums last week, be sure to listen to the recordings from each webinar. On the U.S. Poverty Forum, Barbara Duffield, Executive Director of SchoolHouse Connection, provided an excellent overview of how tax policies, particularly the Earned Income Tax Credit, can impact youth experiencing homelessness. She also shared insights on how to build bipartisan support for anti-poverty policies in a highly polarized environment. On the Global Forum, Joe Kraus, Policy Director for Transparency and Accountability at the ONE Campaign, unpacked the intersection between current world events and global nutrition. Find the recordings on the RESULTS website.

Gaps in affordable rental housing persist. Last week, the National Low-Income Housing Coalition released its annual report The Gap: A Shortage of Affordable Homes. This report found that no state in the United States has an adequate supply of affordable rental housing for the lowest-income renters. The report also examines policy interventions needed to address the shortage of around 7 million affordable rental homes.

Expanded CTC successful, but actions needed to maximize benefits. The Center for Legal and Social Policy (CLASP) released a report about the expanded Child Tax Credit (CTC) and the continuing outreach needed to make sure the credit can have its full impact. This outreach is even more crucial for traditional non-filers, low-income filers, Hispanic filers, and filers with lower educational attainment.

Read Blake Turpin’s new RESULTS Blog post. This year’s Bill Emerson National Hunger Fellow Blake Turpin has published a blog post for Fair Housing Month sharing  their experiences with the housing crisis as a young, Queer person with disabilities.

Second Global COVID-19 Summit coming in May. A jointly led Global COVID-19 Summit has been scheduled for next month, according to a White House joint statement with Belize, Germany, Indonesia, and Senegal. Read more about this important event.

Announcements

Register for the RESULTS International Conference. Join us June 4-5 for the 2022 RESULTS International Conference. The agenda features author and professor Jelani Cobb of The New Yorker, informative policy sessions, powerful advocacy trainings, and fun! At the IC, learn what you need to have powerful lobby meetings during RESULTS Advocacy Month (May 30-July 8). Advocacy Month will include lobby meetings your home state and in Washington, DC. Don’t miss out – register for the 2022 RESULTS International Conference today!

Join “race literacy” webinar this Saturday. Go deeper in your understanding of racism by joining the “Race Literacy and Healing 101: A Foundation for Change” webinar with Milagros Phillips this Saturday, April 30 at 2:00 pm ET. Learn the context of racial biases, how racial trauma gets passed on, and how racial conditioning affects all areas of life. This webinar is organized by volunteers in Washington, DC but is open to all RESULTS volunteers. Space is limited, so register to reserve your spot.

Register for May 3 Diversity and Inclusion 101 training. Join our work to dismantle systems of oppression and help reach the goal of having all RESULTS volunteers attend our “Diversity and Inclusion 101” training this year. There are only three sessions left this spring. The next session is Tuesday, May 3 at 11:00 am ET (note the new date). Seating is limited so register for an upcoming session today.

Last week to make Grassroots Board nominations. Ever thought of serving as a RESULTS Grassroots Board Member? Now is the time to submit your nominations for the open seat this year. Please send nominee’s full name, along with email address and phone number, to Jesse Marsden at [email protected]. Nominations are due next Monday, May 2.

Join May 12 Grassroots Board Town Hall. Join our next quarterly Grassroots Board Member Town Hall on Tuesday, May 12 at 9:00 pm ET. The focus of this Town Hall will be the upcoming Board election. Join via Zoom or by phone at (301) 715-8592, Meeting ID 922 0921 5298, passcode 985046.

Upcoming Events

Congressional schedule. The House and Senate are in session this week.

Unless otherwise noted, registration ends one hour prior to the start of all webinars and trainings.

Saturday, April 30: Race Literacy and Healing 101: A Foundation for Change webinar with Milagros Phillips, 2:00 pm ET. Register today.

Tuesday, May 3: Diversity and Inclusion 101 training, 11:00 am ET. Register here. Note: this training was originally scheduled for April 26.

Saturday, May 7: National Webinar, 1:00 pm ET. Register here.

Thursday, May 12: Global Allies Program with Returned Peace Corps Volunteers, 8:30 pm ET. Check out our Events calendar for more information.

Thursday, May 12: Quarterly Call-in with Grassroots Board Members, 9:00 pm ET. Join via Zoom or by phone at (301) 715-8592, Meeting ID 922 0921 5298, passcode 985046.

Friday, May 13: Diversity and Inclusion 101 training, 12:00 pm ET. Register here.

Tuesday, May 17: U.S. Poverty Free Agents, 1:00 pm and 9:00 pm ET. If you are interested in joining, contact Jos Linn for more information.

Tuesday, May 17: Together Women Rise, 8:30 pm ET. Go to our Events page for more information.

Wednesday, May 18: RESULTS Action Network Managers webinars, 12:30 pm ET and 8:00 pm ET. Register for the 12:30 pm ET option or the 8:00 pm ET option.

Thursday, May 19: U.S. Poverty Monthly Policy Forum, 8:00 pm ET. Register here.

Thursday, May 19: Global Poverty Monthly Policy Forum, 9:00 pm ET. Register here.

Monday, May 23: Global Poverty Free Agents, 7:00 pm ET. If you are interested in joining, contact Lisa Marchal for more information.

Wednesday, May 25: Diversity and Inclusion 101 training, 8:30 pm ET. Register here.

Saturday, June 4-Sunday, June 5. RESULTS International Conference. Keynote speaker: Jelani Cobb of The New Yorker. Registration is open! Also check out our resources for the companion Advocacy Month.

Grassroots Resources

Learn about the RESULTS Experts on Poverty.

Find actions and volunteer resources on our Volunteers Hub, including our anti-oppression resources. To join the RESULTS listserv for more RESULTS conversation, send an email to [email protected].

Remember to please report your recent advocacy successes in lobby meetings, media, and outreach activities. Also, use our Volunteer Information Form to add or edit volunteer info and to sign up for updates and alerts.

If you have a question, comment, or suggestion for the RESULTS/REF Board, please e-mail Lindsay Saunders at [email protected]. View Board minutes and Annual Reports.

RESULTS Staff directory and job postings.