Fiscal
Policy Project
The Fiscal Policy Project provides timely, credible
analysis of tax and related policy issues, and their impact on New Mexico's families
and on the state budget. Initiated in 2004, the Fiscal Policy Project is part
of a national initiative called the State
Fiscal Analysis Initiative. In 2005-2006 the Fiscal Policy Project will continue
research, education and advocacy efforts to achieve progressive reform of New
Mexico's tax policies. For more information, contact Gerry
Bradley.
4 Youth - Reaching Native American
Youth Through School-Based Health Care
More than one-third
of Native American children live in poverty; 40% have no health insurance. The
Indian Health Service is woefully underfunded: only $800 per year is spent, per
person, for healthcare for Navajos, compared with $5,775 spent for Americans overall.
Many Native American children live in rural areas, far from health care facilities.
The school-based health care model is designed to enable Native American children
and youth to access health care through their schools. 4 Youth, launched in 2004,
is designed to improve access to, and quality of, health care for Native American
communities in New Mexico through school-based health care. Funded by the W. K.
Kellogg Foundation, this is a collaborative initiative with the New Mexico Assembly
for School-Based Health Care and school-based health centers in Shiprock, Laguna,
and To'Hajiilee. For more information, contact Aaron
Carr.
The Bare Bones Budget
This
collaborative research project was completed in 2003 and provides a current, accurate
measure of poverty for 52 communities across New Mexico, replacing the woefully
out-dated federal poverty threshold as a guideline for what level of income families
really need to survive at a "bare bones" level across the state. A full
report(pdf) and a summary(pdf) of
this research is available. The Bare Bones Budget research was inspired by the
work of Wider Opportunities for Women at the national level to establish self-sufficiency
standards in numerous states. The Bare Bones Budget has been used by organizations
across the state, and by policymakers.
Working
Poor Families Project
Poverty is a multi-faceted
issue; there is neither a single cause nor a single solution. That's why special
initiatives like the Working Poor Families Project (WPFP) tackle the issue from
a variety of angles. One way to address poverty among working Americans is with
so-called 'work supports,' which help stabilize low-wage workers while assisting
their climb up the job ladder. Work supports include the federal earned income
tax credit (EITC), which returns money to our lowest-paid workers, childcare assistance,
health care coverage, funding for adult basic education and community college
attendance, and increased unemployment insurance (UI) benefits. These and other
work supports are outlined in our 2005 WPFP report "The
Path to a High Road Economy: Investing in People, Creating Opportunity."
Many of these issues were effectively addressed in
the 2007 state legislative session. Among the wins for New Mexico families were
the establishment of a state-level EITC, called the Working Families Tax Credit,
increased UI benefits, even while employer's UI taxes were decreased, and a new
investment of nearly $50 million in the College Affordability Fund.
In
the coming years, we'll continue to work on improving New Mexico's UI utilization
rates, increasing the quality of jobs and wages for those leaving the Temporary
Aid for Needy Families program (what used to be called 'welfare'), increasing
basic literacy skills among adults, and increasing the number of low-income adults
entering and completing community college. For more information, contact Gerry
Bradley, Research Director.
