NAEYC CHILDREN’S CHAMPIONS UPDATE
July 20, 2012
ALERT: U.S. HOUSE AND SENATE VOTES AS EARLY AS NEXT WEEK WILL DETERMINE THE FATE OF DEFICIT-CREATING TAX CUTS
A short call is all you need to do —
But you won’t be “heard” if you do not make the call. Find out how below.
- The U.S. Senate is likely to vote on extending the deficit-creating tax cuts of the last decade for everyone — except the richest 2% — as early as Monday, July 23rd.
- The U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote on extending these cuts for everyone — including the richest 2% — the last week in July.
ACTION NEEDED NOW:
Call your two U.S. Senators and your Representative. It will take only a few minutes. When you call, the receptionist will ask for your position, your name and your city/town to verify that you are calling as a constituent.
MESSAGE TO LEAVE WITH SENATE/HOUSE OFFICES:
The receptionist will answer your call and take your message. Tell her/him that the Senator/Representative must VOTE to end the tax cuts for the richest 2% (those making more than $250,000 a year) and to oppose an extension of tax cuts for the richest 2% — even a temporary one. If Congress just ended the tax cut for millionaires, we could send an additional 18 eligible children to Head Start or provide child care for an additional 24 children for each millionaire who paid his or her fair share of taxes.
HOW TO FIND PHONE NUMBERS FOR YOUR SENATORS AND REPRESENTATIVE:
Each state has two Senators. Please call both. Using your home zip code, you can find your Senators and your Representative as well as their phone numbers at: http://www.naeyc.org/policy/action.
Background:
Tax cuts made in 2001 and 2003 have created significant revenue losses and growth in the deficit. Those who need the tax breaks the least should share in helping the national recovery. If we continue these unaffordable tax breaks for those who don’t need them, we won’t be able to address critical national priorities demanding attention, including high-quality early childhood programs (such as Head State and child care) as well as other programs that help the millions of families struggling to get by. We’ll have to borrow even more money to finance these tax cuts, adding to deficits, increasing the interest we must pay on our debt, and making it harder to effectively address our significant long-term fiscal challenges.
Simply put, we cannot afford to continue to give large tax cuts to those who need them the least. Indeed, it has been estimated that the tax cuts of the last decade amount to a $143,147 tax break, on average, to someone who makes more than $1 million a year. If Congress just ended the tax cut for millionaires, we could send an additional 18 eligible children to Head Start or provide child care for an additional 24 children for each millionaire who paid his or her fair share of taxes.
The debate over spending and taxes has dominated Congressional attention in recent years, with most of the focus on cutting spending for domestic programs. The votes in the next two weeks in the Senate and House will be an opportunity to address the other side of the equation: raising adequate revenue to fund programs we all care about, including child care (assistance for families, money for child care program improvements); Head Start and Early Head Start; K-12 and higher education, and Food Stamps (now called SNAP). Now is not the time to spend more through these tax breaks as more families struggle to afford the basics of child care, Head Start and food.
So long as Congress fails to insist that we raise enough revenue and stop unwarranted spending through tax breaks, credits and deductions, we will struggle to ensure that funding is available to support investments in the early childhood programs that are so critical to the future success of America’s children.
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