November 5, 2021

Inside this issue

• CCUSA Presents the Washington Weekly
• Faith and the Common Good
• Trivia
• Connections

  CCUSA Presents the Washington Weekly  
 
Overview: Following key national and state level elections this week, Congress continues to consider when to vote on both the infrastructure and reconciliation bills.  At the time of writing this report, Speaker Pelosi is planning a vote on both bills today. If the House passes the budget reconciliation bill, it will head to the Senate, where it faces an uncertain path. Once the infrastructure bill passes the House, it will go to the president to be signed into law.

Budget reconciliation and infrastructure: Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is currently moving forward on scheduling votes for the Senate-passed, bipartisan infrastructure bill and the latest House version of the budget reconciliation bill as soon as today. This morning,  President Biden called for an immediate vote on both bills. The House recently modified the budget reconciliation bill, which contains roughly $1.75 trillion in spending on climate and the social safety net. It includes lower prescription drug prices for seniors and families, four weeks of paid family leave, and new protections and work permits for millions of immigrants (though no path to citizenship). If the House passes the budget reconciliation bill, it will head to the Senate, where it faces an uncertain path. Once the infrastructure bill passes the House, it will go to President Biden for his signature and become law.

Funding the government and debt ceiling: Funding for the government and debt ceiling will expire December 3. At that point, Congress must pass either its full slate of appropriations bills for FY23 or another "continuing resolution" to fund the government at existing levels until the permanent appropriations bills can be passed. 

Jobs: "In the week ending October 30, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial [unemployment insurance] claims was 269,000, a decrease of 14,000 from the previous week's revised level. This is the lowest level for initial claims since March 14, 2020, when it was 256,000." (Source)

Affordable housing: House Democrats added an additional $850 million for housing programs to an updated text of the budget reconciliation bill, which means total housing spending is almost $154 billion. The additions include $100 million to fund mortgages of no more than $100,000 insured by HUD and a $500 million boost to fund affordable housing construction through the Treasury Department's Community Development Financial Institution. (CQ News)

Child Tax Credit: The administration's framework includes an extension of the child tax credit through 2022. It provides $300 per month per child under 6 and $250 per month per child ages 6 to 17 (See section 137102, "Extension and Modification of Child Tax Credit," in the text of the reconciliation bill). There is still time to sign up for current child tax credit payments before the Nov. 17 deadline. Click here to access the tool.

Help with mortgage and rent payments: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau provides help for homeowners, renters and landlords affected by the coronavirus pandemic. The following tools are available: 

Help for renters - Renters who were impacted financially by the pandemic may be behind on rent, or even facing eviction. Federal, state, and local governments are offering help with housing expenses and avoiding eviction.
Help for homeowners - Homeowners who have had trouble making mortgage payments because of a COVID-19 related hardship may need information about entering, extending, or exiting forbearance, options for making up their missed payments, and avoiding foreclosure. 
Help for landlords - Landlords are an important part of the rental economy. There are options for landlords to keep in control of their property and financial situation.

More information is available at consumerfinance.gov/housing. (Source)

COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing: The Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued an interim final rule on COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS). The ETS establishes vaccination requirements, vaccination verification, face covering and testing requirements in all workplaces under OSHA's authority with 100 or more employees. However, employees that do not report to the workplace, work from home, or outside are not subject to the requirements.  The rule is expected to go into effect on November 5 and would preempt State and local laws. While this proposed rule is limited to employers with more than 100 employees, OSHA is also assessing the capacity of smaller employers and seeking information to help the agency with making the determination. For more information, click here. 
 
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  Faith and the Common Good  
 
Next Tuesday the Church celebrates the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome. One might ask: Why the fuss over a building? The answer is that we celebrate more than a building. As children of God, we take the gifts God gives us - including parts of creation like wood and glass and stone - and we honor God through our use of them. 

A church building represents a lot about who uses it and how it's used. St. John Lateran was built around the year 200 on land originally owned by the Lateran family. It is the cathedral church of the Archdiocese of Rome. Four ecumenical councils were held there; 28 popes were buried there; for 1,000 years it was the seat of Church government until the pope moved to the Vatican in the 13th century. It has withstood attacks and invasions; it's been built up, vandalized, and rebuilt. It is 16 centuries old. We begin to see that St. John Lateran is not just the mother church; it is a symbol of the universal Catholic Church that through the grace of God perdures through good times and bad.
 
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  Trivia  
 
Q. What happened on Nov. 5, 1872, that led to a U.S. citizen being convicted in a trial which the same citizen called "the greatest outrage history ever witnessed"?

Please send your answers to [email protected]. 

Last week's question and answer:

Q. What event took place in the U.S. on Oct. 29, 1929, that had global repercussions?

A. Anne Dryden, retired archivist for CCUSA, was first to answer: "the stock market 'crash' and the beginning of the Great Depression." "Black Tuesday hits Wall Street as investors trade 16,410,030 shares on the New York Stock Exchange in a single day. Billions of dollars were lost, wiping out thousands of investors, and stock tickers ran hours behind because the machinery could not handle the tremendous volume of trading. In the aftermath of Black Tuesday, America and the rest of the industrialized world spiraled downward into the Great Depression." (Source)

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  Connections  
 
Please share the weekly with your friends, family and networks so that we can build a movement of solidarity for those most in need!

You can also access advocacy opportunities through our advocacy and policy page.

Stay connected with our work to end poverty, follow us on Twitter at @CCharitiesUSA.

If you would like to help further Catholic Charities' commitment to alleviating, reducing, and preventing poverty you can contribute here.
 
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