Action Alert: Help Preserve the Safety Net, Call the Mayor

This week, D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty will be finalizing plans to address the District’s new $340 million revenue shortfall. We need to send him a message right now that he should protect key services — especially the safety net — as he works to balance the budget.

All DC residents have a stake in the city budget: if city leaders make wise choices with our shared resources, our communities will be more healthy and prosperous, and better able to weather the economic downturn.

Please call or e-mail the Mayor today to tell him that his budget-balancing plan should maintain a strong safety net. Feel free to use the talking points below, or write your own message. Call the
Citywide Call Center at 202-727-1000 and ask to speak to someone in the Mayor's Office, or e-mail mayor@dc.gov.

• The safety net provides stability. DC families and individuals are already struggling with stagnant, low wages, layoffs and rising food, energy, medical and housing costs during this economic downturn. Cutbacks in safety net programs can increase hardship, reducing
  residents' buying power, and creating the need for more costly emergency services.
• A strong safety net is good for the economy. Public investments stimulate economic recovery because the money is spent quickly and locally. Support for human capital development, the environment, and infrastructure will help DC build living-wage jobs, healthy communities, and a thriving business climate.
• Maintaining healthy communities requires raising revenue. The use of responsible revenue enhancements and DC's rainy day fund should be part of the city's approach. It will be difficult or impossible to keep safety net programs from being cut unless new revenues are
  identified. The economic downturn offers an opportunity to review DC's revenue system and to identify changes that would both raise revenue and improve our tax structure, creating a higher quality of life for all.

Please share this Action Alert with other DC residents in your networks. If you have not done so already, consider signing on to a letter to the Mayor.

Congress Passes the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act

Following prompt Senate action last week, the House passed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, with the Baucus-Grassley Nonprofit Capacity Building Amendment incorporated into the bill, on March 31. Thank you to everyone who picked up the phone in support of these measures!

Click here to learn more about the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act and the Nonprofit Capacity Building Amendment.

Click here to find out more on earlier action.

Senate Passes the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act with Nonprofit Capacity Building Amendment

Congratulations – You did it! You helped make history by placing the phone calls to your Senators. Late Thursday, the Senate – on a vote of 79-19 – passed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, including the Baucus-Grassley amendment to establish a Nonprofit Capacity Building Program.

Our work is not quite done, however. We need you to take two final actions.

First, the House of Representatives will be voting on this Monday, so please call your member of Congress to let them know you are a constituent who wants them to VOTE YES on HR 1388, the Serve America Act. Click here for quick access to the phone number of your U.S. Representative.

Second, please contact your Senators to thank them for their vote in support of this bill. (Click here for a listing of the 79 who voted yes, the third grouping on this link provides a complete listing by state). Let them know you are proud of their actions, which led to a triumph for our democracy because the Senate demonstrated a true spirit of bipartisanship. Tell them you appreciated seeing America’s elected officials working together on a bipartisan basis to actually solve problems.

Again, congratulations on a job well done, and thank you for your role in making American history.

Click here to learn more about the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act and the Nonprofit Capacity Building Amendment.

Click here to find out more on earlier action.