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Home > Press Room Archives > 2005 > Press Release
Press Release
Budget Reconciliation Legislation Raids Vital Programs that
Affect the Economic Security of Low-Income Families
LULAC opposes
budget cuts as it will dramatically impact Latino families
November 8, 2005
Contact: Brenda Alvarez,
(202) 833-6130
Washington, DC – The House
Budget Committee is considering budget
reconciliation legislation that would cut vital
programs, including Medicaid, student loans,
child support and food stamps. As the oldest
and largest Hispanic civil rights organization
in the country, the League of United Latin
American Citizens (LULAC) strongly opposes this
measure as it will affect the economic security
of low-income families, including Latinos.
In total, the bill cuts net
mandatory spending by $53.9 billion over five
years simply to help pay for the $70 billion new
tax cuts for the wealthy. Furthermore, these
spending cuts do nothing to resolve the deficit.
Instead, the Republican budget resolution
increases the deficit by more than $100 billion
over five years.
In addition, LULAC has learned
that the budget reconciliation will offset tax
cuts, not hurricane costs or deficit reduction;
and the Republicans are not helping those they
claim to help, including Katrina survivors,
students, seniors and rural Americans.
“Hispanics represent a
sizeable portion of the U.S. workforce and often
come from low-income households. These budget
cuts would dramatically affect their pocket
books and propel them into a vicious cycle of
debt,” said Dr. Gabriela Lemus, director of
policy and legislation for LULAC. “Cutting
funding that is a safety net for hundreds of
thousands of families give people less of an
opportunity to rise out of poverty.”
Hispanics living below their
means are often marginalized to the outskirts of
society and rely on federal assistance to help
make ends meet. These proposals seek savings by
cutting vital federal programs that help
Americans move up the economic ladder.
The League of United Latin
American Citizens (www.lulac.org)
advances the economic condition, educational
attainment, political influence, health, and
civil rights of Hispanic Americans through
community-based programs operating at more than
700 LULAC councils nationwide.
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