The Coalition on Human Needs just released the latest edition of the Human Needs Report, a regular newsletter on national policy issues affecting low-income and vulnerable populations. Read on for articles on the House ACA repeal vote, the FY17 spending bill that avoided a shutdown, FY18 budgets, President Trump’s tax cut agenda and more.

Click here for the full PDF of the Human Needs Report.

Advocates Denounce House Passage of ACA Repeal Bill
Advocates were quick to denounce the May 4 move by the House of Representatives to pass (217-213) the American Health Care Act, which repeals the Affordable Care Act enacted under President Obama. CHN’s Deborah Weinstein called it, “a day of shame for the United States House of Representatives.” Bread for the World’s Rev. David Beckmann predicted that, “The American Health Care Act will push millions of people into hunger and poverty.” READ MORE »

FY17 Appropriations Bill Avoids a Shutdown
Congress avoided a government shutdown and finalized FY17 appropriations last week by passing one large spending bill, known as an omnibus, that combined the remaining 11 spending bills. The omnibus provides spending guidance to federal agencies through Sept. 30, the end of the fiscal year. While many human needs programs received flat funding from FY16, there were things to celebrate in the bill. READ MORE »

Looking Ahead to FY18 Budgets
With FY17 appropriations wrapped up, advocates and Congress are looking ahead to Fiscal Year 2018, which begins October 1. Advocates are concerned that the House GOP budget will contain massive cuts that would be devastating to human needs programs. Any additional cuts would be on top of sequestration-level funding, which is scheduled to go back into effect for FY18 unless a bipartisan budget deal is reached to lift the spending caps. READ MORE »

Trump Administration Releases Tax Cut Outline
On April 26, the Trump Administration released an outline of a tax agenda that would slash taxes on corporations and wealthy individuals. The plan would cut the corporate tax rate by nearly 60 percent – down from 35 percent to 15 percent – for corporations, and other businesses that pay tax through the individual income tax would do even better. The plan also includes slashing taxes on wealthy individuals by eliminating the alternative minimum tax, the estate tax, and a tax on wealthy investors that helps pay for lower-income families’ health care under the Affordable Care Act. READ MORE »

Labor Secretary Confirmed
Alexander Acosta was confirmed (60-38) as the new Labor Secretary on April 27. The National Employment Law Project, Jobs With Justice, the National Domestic Workers Alliance, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, and other groups in the human needs community opposed his nomination. READ MORE »

President Repeals Rule Affecting Workers’ Retirement Security
On April 13, President Trump signed legislation repealing a rule issued under the Obama Administration that would allow cities to create retirement savings accounts for private sector and low-income workers whose employers do not offer retirement plans on their own. Congress has also voted to repeal a similar rule covering state-sponsored plans. Today, 55 million working Americans lack access to workplace retirement savings plans. READ MORE »

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