Family Values @ Work Calls on Congress to Reject Further Threats to Families

With a potential government shutdown looming, Family Values @ Work remains firm in our call for Congress to return to doing their work to pass a bipartisan funding bill that helps working families instead of harming them. Every US household deserves to see a package that makes food, housing, child care and other basics affordable; funds public schools, protects women’s health, and that slows the growing health crisis by restoring funding for Medicaid and Affordable Care Act tax credits.

Congress must also protect previously approved funds from being frozen or rescinded by the Administration. Congress can do this by including enforceable instructions on how Congressionally approved funding must be spent, and extending expiring funding to stop efforts to “run out the clock.”

Through our movement networks of national, state, and local colleagues, we are hearing from people in communities across the country who have been harmed by threats to food assistance, housing programs, early childhood services, mental health services, education, and more.  A shutdown will only further hurt women, children, and families because of delays or lapses in federal benefits and services. The current Republican trifecta government must work in partnership with Congressional Democrats to deliver a funded government that ensures clarity and continuity for vital programs.

Every family deserves the opportunity to thrive, which is only possible when our government is investing in affordable, safe, and healthy communities. Cuts made at the federal level put unnecessary burdens on state and local governments, harming every community across the country. We expect Congress to work in service of families, and return to the work of investing in solutions for families instead of threatening deeper cuts.