2020 legislative and budgetary priorities

Inspired by our values to teach and to work for justice, we are focused on the following priorities:

Revisions to Temporary Cash Assistance

Tracking discussions around, and weighing in on proposed changes to, publicly funded programs such as and Temporary Cash Assistance is vital to Catholic Charities’ clients and communities.  Under current state Temporary Cash Assistance program practices, failure to comply with a work requirement for any reason can lead whole families—not just adults—to lose benefits for up to 30 days. Catholic Charities is working for a change that would split the worker’s portion of the benefit from the family’s. While the cut will still affect household income, the change would help ensure children have some financial support at home.

Catholic Charities is also advocating, as it has for a decade, to increase the percentage of the state’s minimum living level on which TCA is based. That percentage has stood at 61 percent since 1996. In a bill before legislators this session, the percentage would increase to 71 percent, incrementally, over the next five years.

Revision to Child Support Guidelines

It may seem counterintuitive to set new child-support orders at a lower amount for low income noncustodial parents. But national and state data show that higher orders are more likely to result in complete default. State and national data demonstrate that higher orders are more likely to result in default. If orders are lower, noncustodial parents are more likely to pay, and the child is more likely to receive benefits.

Paid Family Leave

It can be hard on anyone to care for vulnerable family members or tend to serious health conditions – whether that involves nurturing a newborn or recovering from knee surgery. With a coalition of advocates, Catholic Charities is supporting a new way for Maryland workers to afford those challenges. The “Time to Care” proposal would create a state social-insurance program to provide up to 12 weeks of paid leave to eligible employees for military deployment, after the birth or adoption of a child, or to tend to their own or a family members’ significant health challenges. The program would cover up to 90 percent of income for the lowest wage earners, and up to 50 percent for those at higher income brackets.

The budget

This year, the organization is paying particular attention to proposed changes to the Medicaid provider rates. In January, Gov. Larry Hogan proposed a budget that would cut in half a planned increase in that rates – from 4 percent to 2 percent. The change would amount to about $1 million less in provisions for a wide spectrum of Catholic Charities programs, including those related to behavioral health, supports for those with disabilities, and seniors.

Past legislative and budgetary priorities

2019 legislative and budgetary priorities

Catholic Charities is back in Annapolis for the 2019 Maryland General Assembly legislative session.

Inspired by our values to teach and to work for justice, we are focused on the following priorities:

Time to care

It can be hard to take time off, even though people are healthier when workers take time to care for themselves or a loved one. We are advocating for legislation that establishes a Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program. This program would make paid leave available to Maryland workers for up to 12 weeks following the birth or adoption of a child and when needed to provide care for a family member or oneself. The leave would be funded through an insurance pool, into which workers and their employers contribute. The fact that it would be paid leave, and its funding structure, are what make it different from the existing FMLA program.

Child support changes

With a specific focus on low-income families, Catholic Charities advocates for tweaks to the program that will take into account both the custodial and noncustodial parents’ circumstances. This is so that what a judge orders as payment can be realistic enough that payment will be made. Right now, sometimes ordered payments are so much higher than a payer can afford that he or she simply doesn’t pay at all. A more realistic order may result in more frequent payments, rather than few or none. Legislation will be introduced this session to implement those recommendations.

The budget

The budget is the moral document of the state. It outlines the priorities of our society. When Gov. Larry Hogan’s appropriation is released on Friday, Jan. 18, our team will be ready to evaluate how it will affect the funding Catholic Charities receives from the state and the benefits our clients receive. Specifically, we’re watching Medicaid provider rates, funding of the Temporary Disability Assistance Program, and funding for the Homeless Youth Grant program.

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