Low-Income Working Families Get More Help in FY 2011 Budget

WASHINGTON, Feb. 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Bread for the World's analysis of the proposed FY 2011 U.S. budget indicates that the budget will ease some of the insecurity felt by low-income working families currently squeezed by stagnant wages, double-digit unemployment, and increasing expenses for food and other basic goods and services.

"We applaud the president's commitment to programs that help low-income working families gain access to vital resources to help make ends meet, such as the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC)," said Rev. David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World. "Tax credits for low-income working families are the focus of our 2010 Offering of Letters campaign."

The White House's proposed budget makes permanent key expansions to the EITC and CTC, reduces the marriage penalty, increases the EITC benefit size for families with three or more children, and lowers the income threshold to $3,000 in the CTC. "This is a strong indication of the president's priorities as Congress begins consideration of the budget resolution," Rev. Beckmann said. "At a time when so many families are suffering from the economic recession, and are facing unemployment or reduced work hours, these tax credits are more important than ever."

Last year, the combined EITC and CTC programs lifted almost one in 10 Americans above the poverty line. This includes 5 million children. "The EITC and CTC put critical dollars in the hands of low-income working families and into local communities," Rev. Beckmann said.

The president also included $1 billion per year for a strong Child Nutrition Reauthorization that targets investments aimed at ending childhood hunger, reducing obesity, and improving children's diets. "We urge the administration to maximize the impact of this investment on child hunger by prioritizing provisions that improve program access and participation for low-income children," said Rev. Beckmann. "This is especially critical when we have nearly one in four U.S. children now living in a household that struggles to put food on the table."

Bread for the World (www.bread.org) is a collective Christian voice urging our nation's decision makers to end hunger at home and abroad.

SOURCE Bread for the World

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