RESULTS Weekly Update March 5, 2024

Quote of the Week

“Passing H.R. 7024 in the Senate is an opportunity for Sens. Collins and King to advocate for their constituents and expand the Child Tax Credit for children living in Maine and beyond.”

– RESULTS Maine volunteer Natalie Jones in a February 24 letter to the editor in the Portland Press Herald

Table of Contents

• Now is the time to schedule Community of Change lobby meetings
• Tell senators to pass the CTC expansion now
• Quick News on U.S. and Global Poverty
• Announcements
• Upcoming Events
• Grassroots Resources

Now is the time to schedule Community of Change lobby meetings

Right now, we are in the throes of our spring Community of Change campaign. Our goal is to meet with the 350 congressional offices – every office you our RESULTS volunteers cover. And this is the time to do it. Congress will hopefully pass the FY2024 appropriations bills this month (the first six are on track to pass by the end of this week). Once that is done, they will pivot quickly to FY2025 appropriations and other priorities that are behind schedule (e.g., the Farm Bill). They will try to move fast. If we are to get them to put our priorities first, we have to talk to them now.

Thanks to everyone who has already met with congressional offices. You have held 32 lobby meetings. And other meetings are in the works. If we want to make the biggest impact by meeting with 350 offices this spring, we must be persistent with offices about scheduling meetings. Polite, but persistent. Remember, you are their constituents and, in an election year, lawmakers who ignore their constituents do so at their own political peril.

TAKE ACTION: Work with your local RESULTS group to request lobby meetings with your members of Congress. Use our 2024 lobby meeting request letter as a guide. Be sure to request face-to-face meetings with legislators first. Meet with staff if members of Congress are not available. If you need help, please contact RESULTS staff. Once you book a lobby meeting, please book a lobby prep meeting via RESULTS staff member Katie Fleischer. More support materials for your meetings are available on our 2024 Community of Change campaign page.

Tell senators to pass the CTC expansion now

More than a month has elapsed since the House overwhelmingly passed H.R. 7024, the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act. And still the Senate has done nothing. Meanwhile, parents in low-wage jobs are missing out on a higher Child Tax Credit as they file their 2023 taxes. Time is running out.

The holdup is that some Republicans in the Senate want changes to the bill, changes that could endanger its passage into law. Whether the changes are about policy or about delay, the outcome is the same. Families experiencing poverty get nothing. And the longer this process takes, the less likely the meaningful CTC changes passed by the House will ever become law.

But sometimes the worst of politics brings out the best in people. When lawmakers dilly-dally, advocates show up. That’s what we need now. Grassroots pressure. If we are to get this done, senators need to hear from you and hear from you now. For senators who support expanding the CTC, tell them to publicly urge Senate leaders bring H.R. 7024 to a vote. For senators who oppose expanding the CTC, ask them to explain why they are standing in the way of lifting half a million children from poverty. And for senators who are non-committal, tell them to get off the fence, stand up for American families, and publicly support this bill. The Senate is not the key to helping families, you are.

TAKE ACTION: If you have not done so today, please call (202) 224-3121 and when connected to your senator’s office, please leave this message:

Hello, my name is ____________. I am a constituent from ____________ and a RESULTS volunteer. I am calling to ask Sen. ____________ to speak out in favor of the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act. This bipartisan bill expands the Child Tax Credit for 16 million children and provides much needed relief to American families. I urge Sen. ____________  to publicly pledge support for the bill and urge Senate leadership to schedule a vote as soon as possible. Thank you for your time.

Also, urge your friends, family, and action networks to call and e-mail senators to pass the CTC expansion now. And use the media to keep pressure on senators to act.

Quick News on U.S. and Global Poverty

Take action on International Women’s Day. Friday, March 8 is International Women’s Day. As discussed on our March National Webinar, this event is a great opportunity to stand in solidarity with women and girls around the world by funding programs that promote child and maternal health. Use our online action alert on March 8 to urge our members of Congress to fund programs that promote gender equity in health and nutrition!

RESULTS staff to appear on panel about poverty. Yolanda Gordon, Manager of Expansion and Advocacy, has been invited to be a panelist for the ATF Fourth World webinar “Poverty is Violence: The Intersection of Poverty, Racism, and Gender” on March 14, 10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. ET for the United Nations 68th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women. Registration for this webinar is open.

Invite members of Congress and staff to an important tuberculosis Hill briefing. “The Time to End TB is NOW” is a briefing sponsored by Sen. Sherrod Brown’s (D-OH) office. It will feature author John Green and other crucial voices in the movement to eradicate this deadly disease of poverty. The briefing will happen in Washington, DC, on March 14 at 12 p.m. and attendees can RSVP online. Invite your members of Congress and their foreign aid staff today!

Announcements

Listen to March webinar recording. Thank you to our amazing speakers on the March National Webinar this past weekend. The panel of Anne Kraemer, Dr. Deborah Ash, and Hilda Kwezi were excellent in helping us better understand the challenges and opportunities to advancing health equity, child survival, and gender equity around the globe. It was a wealth of information and inspiration. If you missed it, view the recording and slides. Also, remember to register for the April webinar with RESULTS founder Sam Daley-Harris!

Join training on effective lobby meetings. What are the best practices for requesting, planning, holding, and following up on congressional meetings? Join us on Monday March 11 at 9:00 p.m. ET for our “Pulling Off Effective Congressional Meetings’ webinar to get tips and share what you know. Bring your experiences, questions, challenges. Register for the webinar today. (After you register, take a look at this short, helpful segment on how to prepare for successful lobby meetings, taken from a recent National Webinar. Regional Coordinator Beth Wilson give us her top tips!)

Quiet Leadership coaching training. Regional Coordinator Misty Novitch will be taking us through a two-part series on David Rock’s book Quiet Leadership, a potent and compelling coaching tool that provides you with resources to support others in their clarity of thinking. All advocates welcome. Join us for the Quiet Leadership training! The series are March 20 and March 27 at 9:00 p.m. ET, and you’ll get a reminder for each session.

Join Grassroots Town Hall on March 14. Join the RESULTS Grassroots Board Members for a town hall focused on sharing your story. At the town hall, GRB members will focus on crafting and practicing our stories of self; being able to articulate concisely and powerfully the value we get from being a RESULTS volunteer. They’ll offer training on creating your Story of Self, provide some examples of stories, take time to write and practice, and show you the resources available for on-going support. They’ll also invite volunteers to run for the open Grassroots position on the RESULTS/RESULTS Ed Fund Board this summer. The town hall is Thursday, March 14 at 9:00 p.m. ET. Join online at: https://results.zoom.us/j/92385525442.

The first Friends and Family Fundraiser of 2024 is live! Thank you, Jacoby Gonzales, a member of the 2024 RESULTS Fellowship cohort. Jacoby is sharing his story and his work with RESULTS to inspire others to support our great mission. As a landscape architect and an advocate, Jacoby aims to “create spaces that are safe and inviting to their communities, develop routes that are accessible to those who can’t afford a vehicle, and to advocate for policies that bring financial stability and equitable transportation to those in need.” Learn more about Jacoby’s journey and support his fundraiser for RESULTS. Then consider launching a Friends and Family fundraiser of your own or as part of a team this year!

Upcoming Events

Congressional schedule: This week, the House and the Senate are in session.

Typically, registration ends one hour prior to the start of all webinars and trainings.

Wednesday, March 6: Session 3 of Group Leader Training, 8 p.m. ET. Register today for the remainder of this series. Each session lasts 2 hours.

Wednesday, March 6: New Advocate Orientation, 8:30 p.m. ET. Register and join!

Monday, March 11: Pulling off Effective Congressional Meetings, 9 p.m. ET. Register for this great webinar today.

Wednesday, March 13: Motivational Interviewing 101, 8 p.m. ET. Register today.

Thursday, March 14: Outreach and Events Office Hour, 2 p.m. ET. Join via https://results.zoom.us/j/94004748060 or call 312-626-6799, meeting ID 940 0474 8060.

Thursday, March 14: Global Allies (Returned Peace Corps Volunteers) webinar, 8:30 p.m. ET. Register today.

Thursday, March 14: Grassroots Town Hall meeting, 9 p.m. ET. Join online at: https://results.zoom.us/j/92385525442.

Friday, March 15: Anti-Oppression Learning Community, 12 p.m. ET. Register for this important 90-minute gathering.

Tuesday, March 19: U.S. Poverty Free Agents, 1 p.m. ET and 8 p.m. ET. Contact Jos Linn for more information.

Tuesday, March 19: Together Women Rise advocacy chapter webinar, 8:30 p.m. ET. Learn more about this opportunity.

Wednesday, March 20: Action Network Manager Calls, 12:30 p.m. ET and 8 p.m. ET. New single Zoom link coming.

Wednesday, March 20: Media Office Hour, 2 p.m. ET. Join at https://results.zoom.us/j/93668005494 or (312) 626-6799, meeting ID 936 6800 5494.

Wednesday, March 20: Quiet Leadership Training (session 1 of 2), 9 p.m. ET. Register to learn about this unique coaching tool.

Thursday, March 21: New Advocate Orientation, 1 p.m. ET. Register today!

Friday, March 22: Anti-Oppression 201 – Structural Racism and Oppression – the Missing Perspectives, 12 p.m. ET. Register for this important 90-minute learning opportunity.

Monday, March 25: Global Poverty Free Agents, 7 p.m. ET. Contact Lisa Marchal if you are interested in joining.

Saturday, April 6: National Webinar, 1 p.m. ET. Register for the webinar today!

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 story about advocacy you feel could inspire others, use our new online form to tell us your story. Also, if you want to celebrate the actions of a new volunteer, sharing about the experience today.

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

RESULTS Staff directory and job postings.