Take Action – Debt Ceiling/Spending Cuts for Human Needs
We must emphasize human needs and community concerns in the current Budget and Debt Ceiling negotiations.
The House has proposed changes, cuts, and caps that undermine nutrition, health, and housing programs while unspooling environmental programs and protections in the Inflation Reduction Act.
Please take UUSJ’s action now — tell your member of Congress they should emphasize human needs and community concerns In the FY24 Budget and Debt Ceiling Negotiations.
This House proposal represents a serious threat to funding for vital programs that have helped communities sustain, persist and even thrive despite the pandemic and inflation volatility of the economy.
Legislative update from our Washington Interfaith Staff Community collaborators, Network Lobby: (Full Statement)
Last week, the Republican majority in the House of Representatives passed the “Limit, Save, Grow Act of 2023” (H.R. 2811). For all of us, especially those in already vulnerable, underserved communities, the GOP bill would eviscerate crucial health, safety, and security safeguards immediately and for generations to come. Just some of the protections that would be threatened by a 22% funding reduction are:
- Rail safety inspections that could prevent further hazardous waste derailments would be cut by 30,000 fewer miles of inspected track annually.
- Suicide Lifeline service reductions would eliminate 900,000 potentially lifesaving contacts a year.
- Food and drug safety inspections would lose more than $500 million and jeopardize the safety of the nation’s food and medication supplies.
- FEMA’s ability to respond to natural disasters with a decrease of $2.5 billion while climate-change-related floods, tornadoes, and fires are increasing.
- Clean energy tax and other incentives passed by Congress that would be repealed, only to plunge the nation into a deeper environmental crisis whose harms are already disproportionately borne by black and brown communities.
