Sep 12, 2013 - NHLA Briefs Congress on Sequestration's Impact on Latinos

PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE DISTRIBUTION
September 11, 2013

Latino organizations call for pro-growth federal budget policies

Congressional Briefing on the Sequester's Impact on Latinos at the U.S. Capitol, Capitol Visitors Center, in Washington, D.C. | September 11, 2013

Washington, D.C. -- The National Hispanic Leadership Agenda (NHLA), a coalition of 36 of the nation’s preeminent Latino organizations, held a congressional briefing yesterday as part of its Latinos United for a Fair Economy campaign to raise awareness about, and advocate for, the Latino community’s federal budget priorities to grow our economy. The campaign is led by NHLA’s Economic Empowerment Committee, which is co-chaired by Javier Palomarez, President and CEO of the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and Eric Rodriguez, Vice President of Research, Advocacy, and Legislation at the National Council of La Raza (NCLR).

Representatives from the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda (NHLA), the Latin American Youth Center, and the Greater Washington Hispanic Chamber of Commerce spoke on the panel about the current underinvestment in the Latino community and the need to reprioritize federal budget priorities so that sufficient investments in education and job-training can be made to lift low-income Latinos out of poverty and put them on the path to success.

“At a time when income inequality continues to grow in America, we cannot afford to cut programs that support the Latino community, especially in the aftermath of the great recession and previous rounds of budget cuts.” said Brent Wilkes, Vice Chair of NHLA and National Executive Director of the League of United Latin American Citizens.

“As the nation continues to endure the harmfuleffects of the sequester, the numbers presented at yesterday’s briefing illustrate the unforgiving and disproportionate impact that these across-the-board cuts continue to have on the Latino community," said United States Senator Robert Menendez (NJ). "As Chair of the Senate Democratic Hispanic Task Force, I look forward to working with my colleagues to further elevate the importance of this issue. While I did not support the sequestration deal to begin with, I remain committed to finding a solution that minimizes the effects of these drastic cuts on Latino families.”

“When it comes to the federal budget, Congress must recognize that the well-being and continued success of this nation is undeniably tied to the ability of Latino children to realize their full potential,” said Eric Rodriguez, Vice President of the Office of Research, Advocacy, and Legislation at NCLR. “Latino children now make up almost one in four students enrolled in public schools. By 2050, one in three American workers and taxpayers will be Latino. To ensure our future prosperity we must invest in programs like Head Start and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which keep our children healthy, active and educated.”

The Latinos United for a Fair Economy campaign includes a web platform at www.LatinosUnited.org/faireconomy with information resources and tools for people across the country to contact their Members of Congress.

Established in 1991, the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda (NHLA) brings together Hispanic leaders to establish policy priorities that address, and raise public awareness of, the major issues affecting the Latino community and the nation as a whole. For more information, please visit www.nationalhispanicleadership.org and LatinosUnited.org/faireconomy and follow @NHLAgenda.

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Following are some of the materials distributed at the congressional briefing:

Fact Sheet ~ Latinos and the Federal Budget
Fact Sheet ~ Sequestration Budget Cuts Versus Closing Tax Loopholes
Fact Sheet ~ Invest in the Future: Support Latino Youth
Fact Sheet ~ Latino Voters Want Jobs Not Cuts
Graph ~ Non-Defense Discretionary Outlays as Share of GDP, 1962-2023