Our Continued Campaign on the House Budget

To our great disappointment, the House budget was approved today in a 228-191 vote. The budget, originally proposed by Budget committee Chairman Paul Ryan, fails to form a circle of protection around programs for hungry and poor people, and actually dismantles protections previously in place. We are however extremely thankful for Bread members who made phone calls to House members, spread our action alert through their churches, friends and used social media to get the word out that Christians care about the hungry and poor both here and abroad.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office reported that the cuts in the House budget are so severe that most of the government – aside from health care, Social Security, and defense – would cease to exist by 2050. Such harsh spending cuts to reduce our deficit are unacceptable. The House budget enacts trillions in additional tax cuts and fails to take a balanced approach to deficit reduction.

Most disturbing, these cuts would have a devastating impact on programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps), the Special Supplemental Assistance Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), the Child Tax Credit (CTC), poverty-focused foreign assistance, and international food aid. In fact, 62 percent of the cuts in this budget are to low-income programs.

But take heart: We will continue to raise awareness on the importance of programs that help poor and hungry people. Stay tuned to the Bread blog for continued updates on these campaigns. Email, call, or visit your members of Congress and ask them to stand up for hungry and poor people in the United States by protecting funding for domestic nutrition programs that alleviate hunger and help lift Americans out of poverty.

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