WV Groups call on Senator Manchin to Build Back Better

 For the last year, all eyes have been fixed on West Virginia, a state long economically exploited and stereotyped in the national media. In a narrowly divided Senate, our own Senator Joe Manchin would cast a deciding vote on groundbreaking policies that will affect millions of Americans for years to come.

With so much hanging in the balance, ordinary West Virginians mobilized as never before in support of a Build Back Better agenda that could revitalize our economic and community life. Many issues are riding on the outcome: Poverty, care for children and the elderly, health coverage, access to education, jobs, infrastructure, climate and more. While different groups and people  on the ground here had many priorities, we made a conscious effort not to be divided. 

We recognize the same people who gain from child and earned income tax credits need child care to work and help when sickness or disaster strikes. And that a changing climate makes us all look at the sky with a new fear.

When the outlines of the plan announced by President Biden were revealed, we celebrated. The Child Tax Credit alone has the potential to reduce child poverty by nearly half, doing for our children what Social Security has done for elderly Americans

Working parents constantly struggle to meet child care costs, which can exceed college tuition. Capping these expenses for families earning up to 250 percent of median family income would ensure quality care for around 20 million children while parents work or attend school. Improvements to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act will expand home care for seniors and people with disabilities, extend coverage to millions of uninsured Americans and hold down premiums for many more.

We would get funding for Pell grants and job training programs. We could expand child nutrition programs. Additional investments in affordable housing will help stabilize and improve the quality of life for many families. The framework also represents the largest effort to confront the many threats of climate change in American history while rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure and helping the Appalachian region transition to a more prosperous and sustainable economy.

We recognize that no deal will be possible without the vote of Senator Manchin and it’s time for him to make a commitment to support Build Back Better. We call on Senator Manchin, his colleagues in Congress, and the Senate to move to pass this transformative legislation.

This wouldn’t be the first time our senator has influenced national policy in the interests of ordinary Americans. In 2017, he helped preserve the Affordable Care Act when it was in danger of repeal, while opposing irresponsible tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy. He played a critical role in the passage of the American Rescue Plan earlier this year. We urge him to step up again for West Virginia and the nation. 

We regard the Build Back Better agenda as a major down payment for America’s future, one which we hope will eventually ensure a healthy and inclusive society in which all people can live a life with dignity and thrive. An ancient Chinese proverb says that “a journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step.” This is a good first step, with many more to come.

(Note: this statement was signed by a number of West Virginia organizations, including Young West Virginia, West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, West Virginia Citizen Action Group, Rattle the Windows, American Friends Service Committee West Virginia, Community Change, TEAM for West Virginia Children, National Association of Social Workers West Virginia Chapter, Race Matters West Virginia.)