NWLC: Proposed FY'09 budget shortchanges women and children
An analysis by the National Women's Law Center of spending cuts
included in the Bush administration's proposed FY'09 budget finds that "The
President’s budget seeks to cut health care, nutrition and energy assistance
for low-income families, violence against women programs, and social services
for vulnerable families:"
It under funds child care, Head Start, and children’s health insurance. At the same time, the budget proposes to expand and make permanent tax cuts for the very wealthy, at a cost the Administration puts at $2.1 trillion over ten years (but the Congressional Budget Office estimates at $4.3 trillion). The Administration’s focus on cutting programs and expanding tax cuts comes even though the worsening economy has exposed the precarious position of millions of Americans.
Although not mentioned in the NWLC press release, the President's budget
also allocates a $28.1 million increase for abstinence education spending, while
cutting $80.65 million in funding to USAID Child Survival and Maternal Health Programs which have aided "significant reductions" in maternal and infant
mortality in developing countries.
