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Joint Economic Committee Democrats Chairman - Senator Martin Heinrich (D-NM)

Republicans Are Undermining SNAP, Which Lifted Over 3 Million Out of Poverty in 2016

April 23, 2018

Weekly Economic Snapshot 4/23 - 4/27

Economic Facts for This Week

  • Millennials are less likely to earn more than their parents than any other generation in American history.
  • International investors and other foreign nationals are big winners from the Republican tax cuts. A substantial portion of the benefits of the new tax law will flow to foreign individuals and firms, peaking at 80 percent of the benefits in 2028.
  • The 2017 National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) scores for 4th and 8th grade math and reading tests are in. Average reading scores for 8th graders are up, but reading scores for 4th graders and math scores for both remain flat.
  • April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. Child abuse has long-lasting and devastating impacts on its victims, leading to health, social, and economic difficulties. The lifetime costs of one year’s worth of child maltreatment cases is estimated to be $124 billion.
  • First and second generation immigrants account for more than 30 percent of all new firm creation in the United States.

Chart of the Week             

Last Wednesday, House Republicans passed a bill out of committee that would negatively affect millions of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance (SNAP) recipients. SNAP provides low-income families with vital financial assistance to fend off food insecurity and hardship, and in 2016 lifted roughly 3.6 million Americans out of poverty, including 1.5 million children. The Republican bill would cut more than $15 billion in benefits and impose harsh work requirements, despite the fact that nearly three quarters of beneficiaries already work within a year of receiving assistance. Cuts would be especially damaging in rural communities, where 16 percent of households depend on SNAP.

ICYMI

  • A new episode of the JEC podcast, The Opportunity Agenda, features Tax Policy Center Co-Director Mark Mazur offering his thoughts on the new Republican tax law.
  • Rather than pass tax cuts for the wealthy, Republicans could have boosted pay and benefits for the nation’s teachers, helping recruit a new generation of talented educators.
  • The NY Fed released an analysis of President Trump’s steel tariffs, showing that they are poorly targeted and will likely lead to job loss.

Coming This Week

 

Permalink: https://www.jec.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/democrats/2018/4/weekly-economic-snapshot-1-1-1-5

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