RESULTS Weekly Update February 15, 2022

Quote of the Week

“Thanks go to our Sen. Sherrod Brown and several other senators who… make the well-being of children a priority. It seems like this should be a priority for all of us. .’’

– RESULTS Columbus volunteer Ginnie Vogts in a February 6 letter to the editor in the Columbus Dispatch

Table of Contents

• Ask your representative to sign a letter in support of the Global Fund
• Congress must help families now as economy and higher costs leave too many behind
• Join February U.S. Poverty Policy Forum with Roxy Caines on Thursday
• Quick News on U.S. and Global Poverty
• Announcements
• Upcoming Events
• Grassroots Resources

Ask your representative to sign a letter in support of the Global Fund

RESULTS has a strong history of advocating for the end of AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria – the three diseases tackled by the Global Fund for the past 20 years. What’s more, Congress has had a history of bipartisan support for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria over time. This is a powerful combination that we can’t let go to waste.

So, what’s the opportunity? The U.S. will have a remarkable moment to make a difference on COVID-19 and diseases of poverty later this year when it hosts the Seventh Replenishment Conference for the Global Fund. An added element is that, by supporting the Global Fund, we’re also supporting efforts in future pandemic preparedness.

The Global Fund’s community-centered and community-driven approach has helped save 44 million lives since inception. And every U.S.-provided dollar has leveraged $2 from other donors internationally. The U.S.’s leadership in this on-going work is crucial, and this year offers an opportunity for us to continue to lead boldly. At this year’s replenishment, we need President Biden to make a three-year commitment to the Global Fund, pledging a full third of the total need globally.

Congress can start backing the Global Fund in advance of the replenishment thanks to a bipartisan House letter led by Representatives Barbara Lee (CA-13) and Michael McCaul (TX-10). This letter calls for unflinching U.S. leadership during the replenishment and is starting to gain traction. We already have at least 72 signers as we try to reach our 150-signature goal. But we have no time to spare, as the letter is set to close this Friday, February 18. Will you ask your representative today to sign this bipartisan letter?

TAKE ACTION: Take a look at our blog post which includes a tracker indicating those representatives who have already signed on to the bipartisan House letter calling for strong U.S. leadership at this year’s Global Fund replenishment. If your representative has not yet signed, reach out to your foreign policy aide today and ask for your representative to sign using the instructions on the letter itself. Do your outreach today and then follow up by phone or email in a couple of days. If you are in a RESULTS group, you may be coordinating this action through your congressional point person(s) and the direct relationship they have with the foreign policy aide. So to reinforce any actions your group’s congressional point persons are taking, use our February Action Sheet and/or this online action to contact your representative. Share these tools with others so they can take action with you.

Congress must help families now as economy and higher costs leave too many behind

An article in the Washington Post this weekend hits home with blunt precision how the inflation is making the life for low-income families harder and harder to manage. Despite massive job growth and rising wages over the last year, low-income families are still getting left behind. Since inflation began rising in 2021 as the economy recovered from pandemic shut-downs, low-income families – many of whom were first to lose their jobs when the pandemic hit – are getting hit hard as the costs of rent, food, and fuel go up. In fact, economists have found that inflation rose at higher rates for low-income Americans than their wealthier peers; between 2003 and 2018, “textbooks, beef, car insurance and rent pushed price growth higher for lower earners.”

This again hits home the absolute necessity that Congress pass legislation that provides relief for families. Extending the expanded Child Tax Credit (CTC) and monthly payments should be priority number one. In fact, the Post article notes that “several workers interviewed by The Post said stimulus checks, unemployment benefits and the child tax credit had helped them weather job losses 2020 and 2021, but that cushion is now depleted.” In a recent poll, three in 4 voters who received the CTC payments last year said the end of the payments has affected their financial security, including 37 percent who expect a “major” impact.

In addition, housing costs are a key driver of this recent inflation spike, with some areas seeing a 30 percent jump in rent. Americans by the day are being priced out of places to live. Providing more people with access to Housing Choice Vouchers (HCVs) would help mitigate the cost of rising rents on low-income households.

Last fall, the House tried to help by passing an extension of the 2021 expansions of the Child Tax Credit (CTC) and Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), as well as allocating new money to both expand HCVs and build more affordable housing. But 52 senators have to date refused to follow suit.

Many advocates both inside and outside the halls of Congress are pushing hard to get this done, and they need our help. Each passing days leaves low-income workers and families further behind. Elevate these stories – and why you care – to lawmakers so that Congress feels the pressure to act as soon as possible.

TAKE ACTION: Remind lawmakers it’s long past time for them to take action to help Americans struggling with higher prices for basic needs and services. Tell them renewing the CTC monthly payments, extending the EITC for younger workers, and expanding Housing Choice Vouchers will make a difference. And they can more than pay for it by making wealthy Americans and corporations pay their fair share of taxes. The February 2022 U.S. Poverty Action has background and talking points for you to:

• E-mail or Set up a meeting with the tax and housing aides in your House and Senate offices to talk about how to get these vital policies through Congress. Use our 2022 Laser Talks for these conversations.
• Send a letter to the editor calling on your members of Congress by name to take action.
• Send a message to your local action networks to call or e-mail Congress about supporting workers and families struggling to make ends meet.

If you need help, please contact RESULTS staff for assistance.

Join the February U.S. Poverty Policy Forum with Roxy Caines this Thursday

For This Thursday’s U.S. Poverty Policy Forum, we are excited to welcome Roxy Caines, the EITC Campaign Director at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. As a follow up to our amazing National Webinar speaker Dr. Dorothy Brown, she will dive deeper on the 2021 changes to the Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit as we make the case for permanent tax policy changes that can help close racial poverty gaps. Please join us for this interesting and important discussion.

TAKE ACTION: Register for the February U.S. Poverty Monthly Policy Forum, this Thursday, February 17 at 8:00 pm ET. Registration is required to attend. After registering, you will receive an e-mail verification of your registration with login information; we will resend it the day of the forum (please check your spam/junk folder if you do not receive it; contact Jos Linn with questions).

Note that our February Global Policy Forum will be next Thursday, February 24 (you can register for the Global Forum here), with the time of the forum to be determined soon. The focus of the forum will be the Global Fund, and you can read more about our Global Fund advocacy online in advance.

Quick News on U.S. and Global Poverty

Here are your “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:

• U.S. Poverty: The Washington Post is reporting that rising inflation is falling hardest on low-income families. The quickest way to help them is for Congress to extend the 2021 CTC (and EITC) provisions and resume the CTC monthly payments as soon as possible.
• Global Poverty: A new study shows that the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly hampered preventative services for detecting cancer for Americans. It has also setback decades of progress in the fight against AIDS, TB, and malaria worldwide. A strong U.S. commitment to the Global Fund this year is essential to getting us back on track.

Urge eligible workers to file for the EITC this year. From a new ITEP report, 37 percent of workers without dependents between ages 19 and 24 will receive an average income boost of around $800 this year thanks to a temporary expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit included in last year’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).  The accompanying state data, broken down by race and ethnicity, highlights the benefit we expect young workers without dependents to experience when they file their 2021 taxes. If you or someone you know may be eligible for the EITC, please urge them to file their federal income tax return. And then urge your member of Congress to extend these EITC improvements.

New report highlights tax unfairness. Due to tax loopholes written into law, America’s wealthiest family dynasties are set to pass $21 trillion on to their heirs over the next two decades virtually tax free, according to a new report by Americans for Tax Fairness. Just half of the $8.4 trillion these dynastic families may avoid in taxes could pay for 24 years of the expanded Child Tax Credit, which is benefiting more than 60 million children and last year reduced childhood poverty by nearly 40 percent. In addition, because of centuries of policies that built wealth for white people while stripping wealth from Black Americans and other people of color, white families are more likely to have dynastic wealth.

Announcements

Register for the “Back to our Roots” Conference on Feb. 26. On Saturday, February 26, 12:00-4:00 pm ET, we invite you to join the “Back to our Roots: Connecting Policy to the BIPOC Community in a Historical Context” Conference. Inspired by the RESULTS BIPOC Caucus, Back to our Roots is a half-day conference where we will have the opportunity to come back to our roots and learn more about the historical context of the issues we advocate on. The day will feature speakers from the African-American, Asian-American, Pacific Islander, and Native communities; panels and workshops that present a deeper understanding of the roots of systemic oppression (and how it grows into the issues of poverty we witness on a domestic and global scale); and most importantly, what needs to be done now to end systemic oppression and build a future where everyone can thrive. All are welcomed. Register for this exciting event. This event will not be recorded, so register today!

Join next Motivational Interviewing training tomorrow. The next installment in our series “Getting unstuck with your Member of Congress using Motivational Interviewing techniques” is this Wednesday, February 16 at 9:00 pm ET. This will be a space for you to bring your toughest cases you’ve experienced while advocating to your members of Congress. If you haven’t registered, you can do so here. Also, if you have not attended one of the previous sessions, you can view the recordings and slides here. Join us!

Join us for our RESULTS Anti-Oppression (AO) Working Group Open Forum. The AO Working Group includes grassroots volunteers and staff working together to advance RESULTS’ anti-oppression values and create opportunities for ongoing learning. Want to learn more? Join our open forum on Wednesday, February 23 at 8:30 pm ET. Register here.

Register for our next Diversity and Including 101 training. To advance our work dismantling systems of oppression, we have a goal of having all RESULTS volunteers attend our “Diversity and Inclusion 101” training in 2022. The next session is Thursday, February 24 at 12:00 pm ET, with numerous other offerings over the next few months. Seating is limited, register for upcoming session today. Also, because we have limited spots for each session, if you are unable to attend a session you registered for, please cancel your registration to allow others to participate (see instructions in your confirmation e-mail).

No fear! Read the inspiring story of Crystal Sexton, RESULTS advocate in New Hampshire, who persevered to achieve media success and has lifted her advocacy to a new level. Well done, Crystal!

Upcoming Events

Congressional schedule. The Senate is in session this week; the House has a Committee Work week.

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

Tuesday, February 15: U.S. Poverty Free Agents, 1:00 pm and 9:00 pm ET (new time). If you are interested in joining, contact Jos Linn for more information.

Wednesday, February 16: Motivational Interviewing Techniques, 9:00 pm ET. Register today.

Thursday, February 17: U.S. Poverty Monthly Policy Forum, 8:00 pm ET. Register here.

Wednesday, February 23: Anti-Oppression (AO) Working Group Open Forum, 8:30 pm ET. Register here.

Thursday, February 24: Diversity and Inclusion 101 – Implicit Bias, Microaggressions and Understanding of Systemic Racism and Oppression, 12:00 pm ET. Register here.

Thursday, February 24: Global Poverty Monthly Policy Forum, Time TBD (note special date). Register here.

Saturday, February 26: Back to Our Roots – Connecting Policy to the BIPOC Community in a Historical Context, 12:00-4:00 pm ET. Register today. All welcome.

Monday, February 28: Global Poverty Free Agents, 7:00 pm ET. If you are interested in joining, contact Lisa Marchal for more information.

Saturday, March 5: RESULTS National Webinar, 1:00 pm ET. Register today.

Wednesday, March 9: Diversity and Inclusion 10 – Implicit Bias, Microaggressions and Understanding of Systemic Racism and Oppression, 11:00 am ET. Register here.

Thursday, March 10: Global Allies – Ending Poverty with RESULTS Monthly Webinar for Returned Peace Corps Volunteers, 8:30 pm ET. Register here.

Weekend of June 4. RESULTS International Conference. Keynote speaker: Jelani Cobb of The New Yorker. More information soon on this virtual event.

Grassroots Resources

Learn about the RESULTS Experts on Poverty.

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