WASHINGTON— Expressing concern over proposed federal budget cuts in the
Fiscal Year 2011 Continuing Appropriations Resolution, the heads of two
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) committees and the president of
Catholic Relief Services (CRS) sent letters to Congress on February 14,
reminding elected officials that “decisions on how to allocate
opportunities and burdens in setting budget priorities are more than
economic policies — they are significant moral choices.”
On the international side, Bishop Howard J. Hubbard of Albany, chairman of
the USCCB Committee on International Justice and Peace, and Ken Hackett,
president Catholic Relief Services, said in a joint letter that
“[e]specially in a time of austerity and fiscal restraints, the poor have a
special moral claim on limited financial resources.” According to an
analysis by USCCB and CRS, the proposed Continuing Resolution makes over
26% in cuts for poverty-focused international assistance, but only 2.6% in
cuts overall.
“Shared sacrifice is one thing; it is another to make disproportionate cuts
in programs that serve the most vulnerable,” said Bishop Hubbard and
Hackett in the letter. “It is morally unacceptable for our nation to
balance its budget on the backs of the poor at home and abroad.”
The Church leaders said international assistance is an essential tool to
promote human life and dignity, advance solidarity with poorer nations, and
enhance security throughout the world. The letter warned that many of the
proposed funding reductions will disrupt existing programs mid-stream,
undermining their impact, the capacity of local partners, and ultimately
the moral credibility of United States. The letter also welcomed the
restoration of the Mexico City Policy that prohibits funding groups that
perform or promote abortion and the denial of funding to the U.N.
Population Fund which supports a program of coerced abortion and
involuntary sterilization in China, but noted that the Continuing
Resolution also makes dramatic cuts that are life-threatening.
In a separate letter, Bishop Stephen E. Blaire of Stockton, California,
chairman of the USCCB Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development,
called on Congress to place the needs of the poor, the unemployed, the
hungry, and other vulnerable people first, in setting priorities in the
Fiscal Year 2011 Continuing Appropriations Resolution, saying “[a] moral
measure of the budget is how it treats “the least of these” at all stages
of life from conception until natural death.”
Citing the call for major reductions in non-security related programs that
serve the poor and vulnerable, Bishop Blaire said, “In a time of economic
crisis, the poor and vulnerable are in greater need of assistance, not
less. Preserving the national security of the country is without doubt
imperative, but we cannot secure the nation while at the same time
furthering the insecurity of the poor and vulnerable in our midst.”
Bishop Blaire called for “reasonable solutions and strategies to address
the federal deficit that will ensure stability and security for future
generations” while advocating for “a balanced approach that is just and
works to preserve the well-being of poor and vulnerable people.” He also
said, “decisions should be made that not only reflect a commitment to
national and long term fiscal security but demonstrate justice, compassion
and fairness. Our plea, then, is simple: Put the poor and vulnerable first
as you consider how to spend limited federal resources.”
Among the main concerns highlighted by Bishop Blaire in his letter are the
proposed cuts to funding for Community Health Centers,affordable housing
programs, job training programs, and critical refugee funding. The letter
also welcomed the bill’s retention of all appropriations riders against
abortion funding, and its restoration of a consistent ban on such funding
in the District of Columbia.
More than 300 Catholic leaders, in Washington for the 2011 Catholic Social
Ministry Gathering (February 13-16), will take the bishops’ message to
Capitol Hill on February 15 in a day of visits to their U.S.
representatives and senators lifting up the needs of the poor and
vulnerable.
Full text of both letters follows.
February 14, 2011
House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Representative:
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and Catholic
Relief Services (CRS), the relief and development agency of the Catholic
Church in the United States, urge you to preserve poverty-focused
development and humanitarian assistance. Especially in a time of austerity
and fiscal restraints, the poor have a special moral claim on limited
financial resources.
The proposed Continuing Resolution makes over 26% in cuts for
poverty-focused international assistance, but only 2.6% in cuts overall.
Shared sacrifice is one thing; it is another to make disproportionate cuts
in programs that serve the most vulnerable. It is morally unacceptable for
our nation to balance its budget on the backs of the poor at home and
abroad.
We need to give particular priority to programs that protect the poor, who
are the least able to cope with budget cuts. Priority poverty-focused
development and humanitarian assistance accounts in the FY 2011 President’s
request total $20.25 billion, only 0.6% of the federal budget and only
one-third of all U.S. international assistance to the developing world.
(See chart for detailed list of poverty-focused accounts supported by USCCB
and CRS.)
The Church views international assistance as an essential tool to promote
human life and dignity, advance solidarity with poorer nations, and enhance
security throughout the world. Foreign assistance is not simply an
optional commitment; it is a moral responsibility to assist “the least of
these.” For over 50 years, Catholic Relief Services has partnered with the
United States Government to implement some of these priority programs. CRS
knows from experience how effectively they can save lives and help the poor
achieve their human potential.
These priority programs support a wide range of life-saving and
dignity-preserving activities, including: agricultural assistance to poor
farmers; drugs for people living with HIV and tuberculosis; cost-effective
vaccines for preventable diseases; assistance to orphans and vulnerable
children; mosquito nets to prevent malaria; food aid for famines,
emergencies, and development; emergency health care, shelter, and
reconstruction in disaster-devastated places like Haiti; peacekeepers to
protect innocent civilians such as in Sudan and the Congo; assistance to
migrants and refugees fleeing conflict or persecution; and debt relief for
poor nations.
Cuts at the level being considered will result in the loss of innocent
lives: persons with HIV no longer able to access life-saving
anti-retroviral medications; refugees and victims of natural disaster
succumbing to starvation and hunger-related illnesses; and poor families
unable to grow what they need to survive. These funding reductions will
also disrupt existing programs mid-stream, which undermines the impact of
the program, the capacity of local partners, and ultimately the moral
credibility of United States.
Instead of these proposed cuts, we urge Congress to find resources
elsewhere, in programs that do not serve the poorest persons and
communities. Even within accounts not on the attached list, however, great
care to protect the poor must be taken. For example, in the Economic
Support Fund, assistance for Sudan and Haiti and other poverty-focused
programs must be retained. In addition, the civilian capacity at the U.S.
Agency for International Development requires the full support necessary to
effectively carry out these programs.
We do strongly approve of this bill’s restoration of the Mexico City Policy
against funding groups that perform or promote abortion, and its denial of
funding to the U.N. Population Fund which supports a program of coerced
abortion and involuntary sterilization in China. Unfortunately, the
Continuing Resolution also makes dramatic cuts that are life-threatening.
In times of fiscal restraint, shared sacrifice demands that the entire
budget be examined, including defense. As the bishops of the United States
said in 2011, “Maintaining a strong military is only one component of our
national security. A much broader, long-term understanding of security is
needed. In a world where one-fifth of the population survives on less than
$1 per day, where some twenty countries are involved in major armed
conflict, and where poverty, corruption, and repressive regimes bring
untold suffering to millions of people, we simply cannot remain
indifferent. … Our nation must join with others in addressing policies and
problems that provide fertile ground in which terrorism can thrive.”
At a minimum, we urge you to restore funding to the poverty-focused
development and humanitarian assistance accounts on the attached list back
to the FY 2011 request level. USCCB and CRS are committed to working with
the Congress to meet the U.S. imperative to preserve poverty-focused
international assistance to improve the lives of those in greatest need.
Our commitment to human life and dignity demands no less.
Sincerely yours,
Most Reverend Howard J. Hubbard Ken Hackett
Bishop of Albany
President
Chairman,
Catholic Relief Services
Committee on International Justice and Peace
---
February 14, 2011
United States House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Representative:
On behalf of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), we
call on Congress to place the needs of the poor, the unemployed, the
hungry, and other vulnerable people first, in setting priorities in the
Fiscal Year 2011 Continuing Appropriations Resolution. Decisions on how to
allocate opportunities and burdens in setting budget priorities are more
than economic policies -- they are significant moral choices. Meeting
essential human needs is a compelling ethical and fiscal priority. The
health, stability and well being of our nation depend on these decisions. A
moral measure of the budget is how it treats “the least of these” at all
stages of life from conception until natural death.
Current proposals call for drastic reductions in non-security related
programs that serve the poor and vulnerable. In a time of economic crisis,
the poor and vulnerable are in greater need of assistance, not less.
Preserving the national security of the country is without doubt
imperative, but we cannot secure the nation while at the same time
furthering the insecurity of the poor and vulnerable in our midst.
We support reasonable solutions and strategies to address the federal
deficit that will ensure stability and security for future generations.
However, we advocate for a balanced approach that is just and works to
preserve the well-being of poor and vulnerable people. Congress should
adopt a spending plan for the remainder of FY 2011 that ensures adequate
funding for programs that offer opportunity and help to the poor, children,
seniors, and people with disabilities and other vulnerable persons.
Congress should help to alleviate the burden of the vulnerable, not make it
worse.
The need to protect life is clear in decisions on whether to use public
funds to attack innocent human life- and in this regard we welcome the
bill’s retention of all appropriations riders against abortion funding, and
its restoration of a consistent ban on such funding in the District of
Columbia.
The Catholic Bishops’ Conference offers examples of possible considerations
that reflect some of our concerns with the proposed plan:
The USCCB calls on Congress to work to ensure adequate health care
coverage to those in need. The proposed $1 billion cut to Community
Health Centers will deny health care to nearly ten million poor and
vulnerable people including mothers and children at risk. These
centers are often the only access to health care for tens of millions
of people in our country.
The bishops affirm their long-standing position that safe, affordable
and decent housing is a human right. At a time of record
foreclosures, increasing homelessness and rising housing costs, the
proposed cut of $2.3 billion to affordable housing programs is not
justifiable in light of the housing crisis for low and moderate
income families.
Reducing job training programs by a proposed $1.75 billion does not
make sense at a time of high unemployment and low job creation.
Further, this will prolong the economic pain of the very people
seeking adequate training to re-enter the job market. Many of those
most affected by job loss are less-skilled workers who need
additional training and skill development to re-enter the workforce.
Congress must ensure funding for and support efforts to strengthen
and improve these quality training programs with successful outcomes.
We are deeply concerned by cuts in FY 2011 refugee funding that the
bill would make. More specifically, the bill would cut available
funding in FY 2011 for domestic refugee resettlement programs
operated by the Department of Health and Human Services Office of
Refugee Resettlement (ORR) by $77 million, or 10.5 percent relative
to FY 2010 appropriations. And it would cut funding for refugee
admissions and overseas refugee assistance programs in the Migration
and Refugee Assistance (MRA) account that is operated by the
Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration
(PRM) by $827 million, or 44.8 percent, relative to FY 2010
appropriations. USCCB believes that cuts to these accounts, which
have been historically under-funded, would have a devastating effect
on refugees, Afghan and Iraqi Special Immigrant Visa recipients,
victims of torture and trafficking, unaccompanied alien children, and
other vulnerable populations served by PRM, ORR, and the communities
across the country that welcome these populations.
As you consider the FY 2011 Continuing Appropriations Bill, we urge
you, at a minimum, to maintain the funding for the MRA and ORR
accounts at the FY 2010 total enacted level. To do otherwise would
have a devastating impact on those displaced persons around the world
who are almost entirely dependent on the international system for
life-saving assistance, as well as to those who we have offered the
life-saving assistance of admission to the United States.
The spending choices of Congress have clear moral and human dimensions;
they reflect our values as a people. We are not policy makers, but pastors
and teachers. But, we remind Congress that the poor and vulnerable have a
priority claim on our limited, although still substantive, financial
resources. In efforts to pass a responsible spending resolution for the
remainder of FY 2011, decisions should be made that not only reflect a
commitment to national and long term fiscal security but demonstrate
justice, compassion and fairness. Our plea, then, is simple: Put the poor
and vulnerable first as you consider how to spend limited federal
resources.
Sincerely,
Bishop Stephen E. Blaire
Diocese of Stockton
Chairman, Committee on Domestic Justice
and Human Development
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