HARRISBURG, Pa. – Poverty in Pennsylvania is almost back to pre-recession levels, but the programs that made that possible are under threat from Washington, according to a new report from the Coalition on Human Needs (CHN) and the Community Action Association of Pennsylvania (CAAP).

Census Bureau statistics show poverty rates in the Keystone State reached 12.9 in 2016. That's a big improvement from a high of almost 16 percent in 2012.

But according to Susan Moore, CEO of CAAP, those gains are in jeopardy.

"The very programs that have helped to put poverty on a downward turn are on the chopping block from Congress and the Trump administration," she points out.

The administration says tax cuts will grow the economy, creating more jobs.

But analysts say cuts to social programs would keep hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians in poverty.

Deborah Weinstein, executive director of CHN, says that's because trillions of dollars would be cut from all of the programs that help lift people out of poverty.

"Including Medicaid and Medicare, low-income tax credits, housing assistance,” she points out. “They would also cut things that give people the tools to be able to compete in the economy like education."

Over 10 years, the 2018 budget that passed the House would cut almost $3 trillion from programs serving low- and moderate-income people.

Moore points out that, at the same time, corporate profits are up and the stock market is at an all-time high.

"We're at a place in time where this country is extremely prosperous,” she notes. “We need to be a country where everybody shares in that, not just a very small few. So, we need to not cut programs. We don't need to cut programs."

Moore adds that cuts to social programs will disproportionately affect populations that have consistently higher levels of poverty, including communities of color, children and the elderly.






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NEW HAVEN, Conn. - Connecticut's economy has shrunk since the 2008 Great Recession, and combined with highly inequitable wage distribution, that has led to a decrease in quality of life for some families in the state.

That's according to an annual report from Connecticut Voices for Children that looked at how workers and the state's economy are faring overall.

For this year's report, they analyzed data comparing job and economic growth in the state from 2007 to 2019, and then again during the pandemic-induced recession from February to April 2020.

Lead report author and Connecticut Voices for Children Research and Policy Fellow Patrick O'Brien said it shows that the 2020 recession did make the state of the economy worse, but that many of these problems weren't new.

"We never really fully recovered from the Great Recession," said O'Brien. "And so when you look at all these different time frames, we can see that Connecticut's economy has really been struggling for more than a decade and the coronavirus recession basically exacerbated this."

Job growth was an issue in Connecticut prior to the pandemic as well. According to the report, the state saw only a 2.7% increase in jobs between 1990 and 2020, compared with the U.S. seeing a 39.4% increase overall.

Another concern reflected in the report includes wage inequality - including a racial wealth gap - with Connecticut's greater than the U.S. as a whole. According to the report, a typical Black worker in 2019 made about $15 dollars an hour, nearly $6 dollars less than the typical worker in the state.

Some policy solutions O'Brien suggested include progressive budget changes, such as tax reforms that shift the disproportionate burden away from the lower and middle class and on to wealthier residents.

"So you could boost the economy essentially by giving a more fair share to working and middle-class families," said O'Brien. "And so we talk about how you can use the budget to make sure that working and middle-class families are better off, then they're going to spend that money directly into the economy here and that'll help pump up economic growth."

The report in the long-term also suggests Connecticut increase its spending on universal early child care and education to spur economic growth.

RICHMOND, Va. - As U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., takes heat this week for attending a posh fundraiser in a dress that said "Tax the Rich," dozens of wealthy taxpayers have requested just that, in a letter sent to Congress.

More than 200 millionaires and business leaders, including two prominent Virginians, say they feel raising their taxes is essential to cover critical social investments in President Joe Biden's Build Back Better plan.

Sandra Fluke, president of Voices for Progress, the group that organized the letter campaign, said a recent report confirms many billionaires and corporations pay no taxes. She said she thinks it's more fair for those who have the most to pay more in taxes, since they benefit more.

"We have situations where we are taxing the pay that someone receives, their salary from working a job, more than we are taxing the profits that are made on investments," she said, "and that's just wrong."

A recent survey found that 68% of Virginia voters support Biden's $3.5 trillion plan, and more than two-thirds said it should be funded by taxing those making more than $400,000 a year. Joan Huffer, a well-known tax policy expert and philanthropist from Northern Virginia, also signed the letter.

This week, a group of House Democrats released a draft plan to raise the corporate tax rate from 21% to 26.5% percent for large, profitable businesses to help pay for Biden's plan. Fluke said that would go a long way to help fund new spending in areas including health care and clean energy.

"Child-care affordability, and home- and community-based care, and paid leave, fighting climate change and protecting all of us from natural disasters are good investments," she said, "investments that will help to rebuild our economy and strengthen our democracy."

The letter mentioned that the wealth of 700 billionaires rose by 60% during the pandemic, while many working families suffered. The signers said it's up to those who became richer in the health crisis, and whose lifestyles would be only marginally affected, to fix the imbalance.

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - The pandemic is shining a new light on the burdens felt by family caregivers, and a bill in Congress would remove some of the financial pressure for people providing unpaid care to family members. South Dakota advocates are joining the push for approval.

The Credit for Caring Act proposes a federal tax credit of up to $5,000 for eligible family caregivers.

Erik Nelson, associate state director for advocacy at AARP South Dakota, said families are the backbone of the long-term care system - and given the added challenges they've faced during the pandemic, it's time for lawmakers to step up and help them.

"In addition to the direct out-of-pocket spending, caregivers are also experiencing indirect financial setbacks," he said, "and so, it's important to not have them have to dip into personal spending or personal savings to support their family members."

AARP estimates the average family caregiver spends about $7,000 a year on out-of-pocket expenses. The bill has bipartisan support, but Nelson said its biggest obstacle is the other pressing needs facing federal lawmakers right now. An estimated 90,000 South Dakotans are family caregivers.

Nelson said the help these caregivers provide often can go unnoticed. He added that many of them still hold down a regular job, and don't see their caregiving as "extra work."

"Even if it means coming over and cleaning the house or making sure bills are paid, to much more intensive acts that caregivers do," he said, "it's important for them to be recognized."

Nelson said the bill will see some major focus next week, as AARP makes a targeted push in support of the tax credit. The proposal has support from other organizations as well, including the Alzheimer's Association and the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging.