Son muchas las familias trabajadoras de California las que tienen a su disposición casi 5 mil dólares por recuperación de impuestos, bajo el programa "Earned Income Tax Credit" (Crédito al Impuesto por Ingresos Ganados); y un reporte del Children's Defense Fund (Fondo para la Defensa de los Niños) emitido hoy lunes muestra que las familias elegibles para este crédito están en la mira de las compañías que ofrecen anticipos sobre este reembolso: los préstamos, cheques y servicios que ofrecen ya le dieron una mordida de más de 24 millones de dólares a los reembolsos de las familias californianas, según las últimas cifras.
Este dinero llegaría más que oportuno a las familias trabajadoras de California, durante esta recesión. Eso es precisamente lo que persigue el Crédito al Impuesto EITC: llevar con este dinero un alivio a las familias de trabajadores con ingresos de bajos a moderados. Pero en el camino este dinero se ve disminuido por los prestamistas que también ofrecen servicios de llenado de formas, según nos explica Ed Shelleby, del Children's Defense Fund. Dice que las familias de California pierden, en manos de estos prestadores de servicios, una buena parte de su recuperación por el Crédito al Impuesto EITC.
"Lo que comúnmente se esconde es que hay muchos cargos agregados, y puedes perder una porción significativa de lo que es tu reembolso neto."
Esas compañías y personas que prestan dinero y servicios para llenar formas del EITC dicen que su función es muy valiosa para las familias que necesitan tener ese dinero pronto, y también para quienes se sienten abrumados con el papeleo. Al respecto, el Children's Defense Fund, también hace un llamado para que las leyes federales protejan a las familias de estos depredadores, y haya una expansión de los servicios gratuitos para preparar la declaración de impuestos.
Shelleby dice que venderle servicios a las familias del EITC es un negocio redituable – pero uno, agrega, que roba el dinero a las familias que necesitan hasta el último dólar, especialmente este año.
"Aún antes de esta recesión, estos centros de preparación de impuestos se quedaban con más de tres billones de dólares de las familias de bajos ingresos… dinero que necesita estar en los bolsillos de esas familias."
Shelleby destaca, por último, que hay un servicio gratuito para llenar esas formas, además del depósito directo de los reembolsos, a través del Programa de Asistencia Voluntaria del EITC, dentro del IRS, y que cuentan con oficinas en todo el estado. Las ubicaciones pueden ser consultadas al teléfono 1-800-829-1040.
El reporte completo "Avoiding the Pitfalls of Refund Anticipation Loans", (Evitando los peligros de los préstamos anticipados contra el reembolso) está en las páginas de internet del Children's Defense Fund:
www.childrensdefense.org.
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Advocates for foster families are pressing lawmakers to save the Family Urgent Response System from the budget ax.
California faces a $37.9 billion deficit and Gov. Gavin Newsom's initial proposal zeros out the program's $30 million budget.
Susanna Kniffen, senior director of child welfare policy for the nonprofit Children Now, said the program provides a 24-hour helpline for foster kids and their caregivers and funds a mobile emergency response unit in all 58 counties.
"We haven't seen a cut like that to foster care in a very long time. Decades," Kniffen pointed out. "Even when there are tough budget decisions to be made, generally you protect your children and you definitely protect your most vulnerable children, which are foster youth."
The state created the program in 2019. Then the pandemic hit, so counties got the mobile response teams up and running starting in 2021. California has about 46,000 children in the foster-care system. The helpline averages about 5,000 calls a year. More than a quarter involve requests for a team to come to the home.
Kniffen noted more and more foster youths and their caregivers are starting to rely on the program for support and conflict mediation.
"We finally started to get youth trusting it and using it and, all of a sudden, we're just sort of pulling the rug out," Kniffen argued. "It's going to be very difficult for the adults in the system but it's going to hit the youth the hardest because this is one of the only options that they have to call and get support for themselves."
This issue will be heard in legislative committees in the State Assembly on April 3, and in the state Senate on April 25. Lawmakers have until June 15 to pass a balanced budget.
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The new National Parent & Youth Helpline has already taken 6,700 calls, texts and live chats since its inception in January, and now the U.S. House of Representatives is considering a bill called House Resolution 7812 to fund it permanently.
Rep. Norma Torres, D-Calif., introduced the bill last Friday.
Lisa Pion-Berlin, president and CEO of Parents Anonymous, which runs the helpline, noted how the service has been helping.
"We have calls about gun violence. We have calls about suicide. We have calls about stress," Pion-Berlin outlined. "We have calls about kids' learning challenges. We have kids who feel lonely and depressed. We know youth suicide is up 20%."
The nation's more than 174 million parents and youths up to age 25 can call or text the helpline at 855-427-2736 to reach a trained counselor for help with emotional issues. People can also join the live chat on the website 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Pion-Berlin emphasized the goal is to offer online, weekly, evidence-based emotional support groups to those in need around the country.
"They build what we call protective factors," Pion-Berlin explained. "That's resilience, social support, that's helping people deal with their underlying emotional issues, addresses substance abuse, domestic violence, and helps children flourish."
The bill would allocate $20 million a year to the program. So far it has attracted endorsements from the nonprofits Parents Anonymous, Zero to Three, and the Child Welfare League of America.
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Parents wanting to ensure their children have nutritious meals can serve as their best example, according to new data.
Research from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign involved looking at study participants' amount and availability of unhealthy beverages and food in their households. A Home Food Inventory -- a checklist of 190 items in 13 food categories used to monitor the food environment -- found processed foods, candy and microwaveable items were more attainable.
Jenny Barton, assistant research professor for the Center for Childhood Obesity Research at Pennsylvania State University, said the study focused on the physical development of toddlers.
"The two-year-olds in this study are gaining mobility -- they're gaining autonomy -- to be able to walk around the house," Barton pointed out. "And then I think by age four, they are starting to be able to reach for things in the home, in the kitchen."
The home food inventory further examined how the location of fruits and vegetables in the refrigerator, freezer and inside cabinets can hinder a toddler's access to them, how often foods in the household are consumed, and how parents' interaction with their children during a meal affects a child's food habits.
Children often imitate their parents when it comes to food choices. A U.S. Department of Health report said it can take up to 10 attempts before children accept a new food. Barton noted her work followed the consumption of whole grains and refined grains. She concluded refined grains are eaten more often by children because parents tend to buy it more often.
"They're just not purchasing them, to the degree that we would like to see people purchasing whole grains," Barton emphasized. "That's probably helping explain some of that phenomenon in terms of children having similar diets as their parents."
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2020-2025 report showed unhealthy dietary patterns starting at age 2-18 may lead to obesity and a higher risk of Type 2 diabetes and heart disease in later life. The publication also advised parents to reduce or eliminate cereals with added sugar, switch from fried to roasted vegetables and substitute high-sodium meats with ground lean meats.
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