Feature: Letters to Congress

National Group Sign-On Letter Urges Congress to Quickly Enact No Less Than American Rescue Plan
February 5, 2021

On February 4th, over 100 national organizations including the Coalition on Human Needs called on the United States Congress to enact swiftly no less than what is called for in President Biden’s American Rescue Plan. Without speedy and comprehensive action, "...families that could have managed will be pushed into poverty and deaths that could have been avoided due to the pandemic will occur."

CHN letter to all U.S. Senators demands COVID-19 relief
September 25, 2020

CHN on Friday, Sept. 25 sent a letter to all 100 U.S. Senators demanding COVID-19 relief. It reads in part, "The pandemic has imperiled your constituents’ economic well-being and their health. COVID-19 cases are again rising, and as we enter the colder months, the threat will increase. The moratorium on evictions expires at the end of the year. If you leave now without acting, millions of people, unable to come up with one or more months of unpaid rent, will face eviction."

CHN’s letter to all members of the U.S. Senate urging Senators to extend U.S. Census reporting deadlines
August 10, 2020

CHN's letter to all members of the U.S. Senate urging Senators to extend statutory reporting deadlines for apportionment and redistricting data for the 2020 Census to April 30, 2021, extend the deadline to transmit state population totals to that date, prohibit the Bureau and the President from sending the relevant data to the Congress in advance of those deadlines, and to allocate $400 million to address Census Bureau operational challenges.

MOST RECENT PUBLICATIONS

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine: A Roadmap to Reducing Child Poverty
March 8, 2019

Could the U.S. cut child poverty in half over the next ten years? Yes – and on Thursday, Feb. 28, a panel of experts explained how. The experts, convened by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine at the request of Congress, spent two years studying child poverty in the U.S. and identifying evidence-based programs and policies to reduce the number of children in poverty. On Thursday, the panel released a comprehensive report, A Roadmap to Reducing Child Poverty. The report identifies two packages of policies and programs, either of which could reduce child poverty by half within 10 years.

CHN: Human Needs Programs Appropriations Table
March 1, 2019

Progress for many Human Needs programs in FY 2018 - but more than two-thirds are still below FY 2010 levels. Here is a table of federal appropriations selected Human Needs programs in FY 2017, 2018 compared to FY 2010.

NWLC: Helping Family, Friend, and Neighbor Care Providers Meet New Requirements Under the Child Care and Development Block Grant Reauthorization Law
February 25, 2019

Across the country, parents of every gender, race, and socio-economic status rely on their family members, friends, and neighbors for child care. Given the important role of family, friend, and neighbor (FFN) providers, it is essential that they remain an option for those low-income families receiving child care assistance through the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), the major federal child care program. Maintaining FFN providers’ continued participation in the CCDBG program will require states—which set policies for CCDBG within federal parameters—to address the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities posed by the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 2014. The Act reauthorized (renewed and updated) the program and established new requirements for all providers, including FFN providers. FFN providers can encounter a number of barriers in complying with these new requirements. Yet, by providing support, employing innovative strategies, and taking advantage of the recent increase in CCDBG funding, states can help FFN providers not only meet the minimum requirements but also improve the quality of care they offer, access resources for themselves and the families they serve, and develop new connections with their communities.