Reordering Budget Priorities
Economic Stimulus
Livable wages come from a living economy. Economists agree that an effective stimulus for the economy puts money into the hands of people who will spend it. Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke has said that, “there is good evidence that cash that goes to low and moderate income people is more likely to be spent in the near term.” NETWORK believes that programs that assist those at the economic margins comply with Catholic Social Teaching’s “preferential option for those who are poor” and serve as an effective stimulus to the economy.
Federal Budget
“They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks…” (Isaiah 2:4, NAB). Our nation’s resources are being drained by war. A just budget would cut unnecessary military spending to ensure that every person in our nation is free from hunger; has access to health care; can live in a safe, affordable home and community; and receives the education needed for work that pays a livable wage.
Fair and just taxation
Two principles of Catholic Social Teaching underlie our concept of just taxation: 1) people who have more pay more (progessivity); and 2) tax income should be spent on the people who really need it (distributive justice). Consequently, a just tax system: raises adequate revenues to address human needs, is progressive, offers incentives for behavior that clearly benefits the common good (like tax credits for education of low-income youth), and is efficient and simple to administer.
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