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Eliminating critical services would slow the economy and jeopardize progress made by Latino families

WASHINGTON, DC – Today the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda (NHLA), a coalition of the 30 leading Hispanic organizations in the United States, sent letters to all House members warning that proposed budget cuts would have damaging effects on the Latino community and would stunt our nation’s economic recovery. The letter also provided a number of recommendations

“The budget cuts the House will vote on today would be devastating to the Hispanic community and all Americans,” said Lillian Rodriguez-López, chair of the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda. “As our nation continues on a path to economic recovery, Latinos who have suffered the greatest job losses and the highest unemployment are just now seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Our community cannot afford irresponsible cuts to early education, health care services, and investments that help small businesses innovate and grow."

Among other items, the letter to members of Congress highlighted:

• Cuts to Medicaid and related health care programs will lead to worse health outcomes for Latinos, including lower life expectancy, lower quality of life, and lost productivity.
• Cutting Pell Grants will impact Latinos’ access to higher education
• Converting the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) into a block grant, as the House Republican budget proposes, would cap funding for the program and make it less capable of responding to the economic needs of families during tough times.
• An estimated $400 billion in reductions for discretionary programs will impact education, job training, housing, nutrition, and other programs that serve low-income individuals and families

Drastic budget cuts designed to score political points would also have a deep impact on all hard working Americans struggling to recover. The proposed cuts to health centers, education and job training, and other services would result in the loss of hundreds of thousands American jobs at a time we need to be creating jobs. The cuts would slow our economic recovery in the short term and threaten the future of our communities and nation.

"Slash and burn cuts to domestic spending combined with additional tax reductions for the wealthy is not the way to balance the federal budget while maintaining important social programs that invest in our nation's global competitiveness," stated Brent Wilkes, vice-chair of NHLA and Executive Director of LULAC. "Early education programs, community health care services and programs promoting innovation must be maintained if we are to strengthen and secure our future."

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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