Child poverty costs the U.S. between $800 billion and $1.1
trillion annually,
based on the estimated value of:-
-
reduced adult
productivity,
-
increased costs of
crime,
and
-
health
expenditures associated with children growing up in poor families.
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When poor children grow up, they:
-
have lower income,
-
are more dependent on public assistance,
-
have more health problems, and
-
are more likely to commit crimes.
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More than
9.6 million children
lived in a family with annual
income below the poverty line
in 2015. The 2015
poverty line for a two-parent, two-child family
was
$26,000
(for renters AND homeowners with a mortgage).
Roughly
2.1 million children lived in “deep poverty,” defined as having family resources
below half of the poverty line.
To reduce child poverty in the United States by half within 10 years ( by
2029):-
- More Earned Income Tax
Credit EITC and
- More Child Dependent Care
Tax Credit (CDCTC)
- More Food Stamps the
Supplemental
Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP)
and
-
More Housing Vouchers.
Cost $90.7 billion per year
.
Adds about
400,000 workers and generate $2.2 billion in
annual earnings.
-
A child allowance,
-
a new Child Support Assurance Program,
-
an increase in the Minimum Wage, and
- Elimination of the immigrant
eligibility restrictions imposed by the 1996 welfare reform.
Cost $108.8 billion per year
Increases
employment by more than 600,000 jobs and
earnings by $13.4 billion.
So for a cost of $199.5 billion we can save up to $550
billion -- it's a NO BRAINER !
Source: National Acadamies of Science, Engineering & Medicine
DETAILS:
-
Minimum Wage
$7.25 per hour federal minimum wage to $10.25 and index it to inflation
-
All male heads of families with children and income below 200 percent of the
poverty line would be eligible for WorkAdvance Programming. Training slots
would be created for 30 percent of eligible men.
-
child allowance $2,700 -- $225/month for all children under
17
- Convert
the Child
Dependent Care Tax Credit (CDCTC) to an unconditional Credit.
- EITC 40% increase
- Increase Food Stamps 35%
-
Increase Housing Vouchers to families with children (70% of those new families
would use them)
-
Child Support $100 per month
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