We Keep Us Safe by Zach Norris

Author:Zach Norris
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Beacon Press
Published: 2020-02-25T16:00:00+00:00

Government systems intended to serve youth should be designed not to supplant parents but to supplement and support them. Making such support universal, guaranteed, and unconditional (rather than based on elaborate applications or assessments) would help to eliminate the perception that families whose kids are struggling are less capable and less deserving. The US differs from most developed countries in failing to offer universal child benefits, also known as “child allowances,” which are paid to every family with children whether the parents work or not, and can be used for whatever the family deems necessary: food, rent, childcare, lessons, etc. The evidence says that not only are parents less stressed and more able to engage in parenting as a result of government allowances, but over a lifetime, a child whose parents received supports got higher test scores and higher earnings, and was healthier. A 2018 report in the Cornell Policy Review concluded:

The United States already recognizes the value of assisting its citizens with childcare via the child tax exemption and Child Tax Credit. . . . The United States currently uses a patchwork system of subsidies to help cover the costs of childcare that is administered through the federal tax system. The Child Tax Credit offers a refund of $1,000 per child per year, and the Child Tax Exemption offers $4,000 per child per year. . . . While these programs have been helpful to middle-income families, they have systematically omitted low-income families, and their once-yearly payment schedule is not designed to address the growing epidemic of family income instability throughout the year. By replacing these two tax-based programs with a universal child allowance, the United States would provide an income floor for all families with children and formally recognize the notion that the well-being of future generations is worth a significant social investment.19

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.