General
Safety Net and Income Support
Foundational Documents
- Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship
- Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
- A Catholic Framework for Economic Life
For Further Investigation...
"How can it be that even today there are still people dying of hunger? Condemned to illiteracy? Lacking the most basic medical care? Without a roof over their heads? . . . Christians must learn to make their act of faith in Christ by discerning His voice in the cry for help that rises from this world of poverty."
--Pope John Paul II, Novo MIllennio Ineunte, 2001
WHAT'S NEW?
Backgrounder: The Importance of the Social Safety Net
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Current Advocacy Position
The USCCB supports policies that protect human life and dignity, strengthen families, encourage and reward work, preserve a safety net for the vulnerable, and build public/private partnerships to overcome poverty. Federal policies should form a "Circle of Protection" around programs that serve poor and vulnerable people in our communities and avoid placing additional burdens on people and families struggling to live in dignity.
Legislative Documents, Letters, and Statements
Letter to Senate on Tax Credits for Low-Income Working Families
Bishop Stephen E. Blaire, July 25, 2012
Letter to Congress on Budget Reconciliation Cuts to Poverty Programs
Bishop Stephen E. Blaire, May 8, 2012
Letter to Ways & Means Committee on Tax Credits for Children of Immigrants
Bishop Stephen E. Blaire
April 17, 2012
Letter to Finance Committee and Ways & Means Committee
on Unemployment Insurance and Child Tax Credit
Bishop Stephen E. Blaire
February 9, 2012
Year-End Letter to Congress on Earned Income and Child Tax Credits
Bishop Stephen E. Blaire
December 6, 2010
Letter to House and Senate on Earned Income and Child Tax Credits
Bishop William Murphy
September 20, 2010
For information prior to 2010, see the safety net archives.
Primers, Backgrounders, and Educational Materials
Backgrounder: The Importance of the Social Safety Net
Primer on Poverty, an Option for the Poor, and the Common Good
November 2011
Background: Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF)
February 2011