New poverty data reveals that anti-poverty programs are working, but also offers a troubling glimpse of what’s ahead.
The 2024 U.S. Census Supplemental Poverty Measure shows that the Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit kept 6.8 million people out of poverty, while SNAP prevented 3.6 million from falling into poverty. So why did Congress cut these programs in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act? The act strips the Child Tax Credit from an estimated 2 million children and cuts SNAP for millions more. Additionally, the census report highlights that medical expenses pushed over 7 million people into poverty last year. With deep Medicaid cuts in the BBB, that number is set to soar.
Poverty is a policy choice: When Congress invests in people, they thrive. When Congress cuts support, they fail. It’s not too late to change course. Join me in urging Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, our representatives in the House (mine is Emily Randall) to put people first by repealing the harmful cuts and preventing an explosion of poverty in the coming years.
Alan Newberg
Bremerton
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