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Poverty and Hunger Alleviation

The plight of the poor is far and away the leading priority for Center members. We believe that our compassionate response as faithful citizens is the measure of our moral character but unfortunately, too often the voices of those on the margins are left out of the debate. In 2012 we will press the legislature and Governor to protect the most vulnerable among us from financial predators, and prioritize the needs of working families through a thoughtful, moral budget, and invest in microenterprise and job creation initiatives.

Consumer Finance Reform
The Center has been a steadfast leader on payday and car title industry reform for many years. We have consistently supported a 36% cap on annual percentage rates for both payday and car title loans. A number of bills were sponsored in 2011 to cap interest and fees and put greater restrictions on predatory lending, but industry lobbying led to a defeat of all of them. Worse yet, the General Assembly voted to allow car title lenders to provide loans against vehicles registered out of state. Nearly all of Virginia’s neighboring states have banned car title lending, with this expansion Virginia is posed to claim the dubious distinction of car title lending capital of the mid-Atlantic. The Center will continue our campaign to rein in predatory car title lenders and build on the progress that has been made in regulating the industry in recent years.

Additionally, we will continue to work in coalition with other organizations to protect Virginians from mortgage scams and unfair practices and to ensure that Virginia’s foreclosure process does not put the profits of big lenders ahead of what’s best for Virginia’s families.

Asset Building
As part of our efforts to provide employment opportunities for all Virginians, we will encourage state investment in “microenterprise” and job creation initiatives, particularly in the southwestern corner of the state which has rampant unemployment.   

This legislative priority is consistent with the programmatic work of the Center through our social enterprise venture, Enterprise Virginia. Working with partners, we apply market-based strategies to achieve a social purpose – the reduction of poverty in Virginia. As a statewide public-private partnership for asset building and microenterprise development, Enterprise Virginia’s mission is to grow access to fair lending, financial education, individual savings, use of banking services and microenterprise through community-driven microlending, mentorship and networking.

Moral Budgeting
Central to our belief in a compassionate Commonwealth is the concept that, as the way in which our society collectively allocates its limited resources, budgets have moral implications. For members of the advocacy community called to care for “the least of these,” the budgeting process is an opportunity to prioritize the needs of Virginia’s most vulnerable individuals and families.

In recent years Virginia’s policy makers have made sweeping reductions to the budget without increasing revenue in any significant way. The result of this lopsided approach has been to compromise transportation, infrastructure, education and human services with drastic cuts. The Center is working with the Better Choices Coalition towards a balanced approach, something that the vast majority of Virginians support. This approach includes both increased revenues and targeted cuts, and is the only way to ensure Virginia’s full economic recovery and vibrancy for years to come.

Looking ahead to the budget process during 2012 it will be of the greatest importance to protect working families and the public programs that empower people with the opportunity to build a better life for themselves. These include the FAMIS program (Family Access to Medical Insurance Security), which provides health care coverage to children in low income families and TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families), which provides job trainings opportunities and assistance to families with low incomes.

FAMIS
In recent years, we have advocated for expanding health care coverage for children in low-income families through the FAMIS program. Virginia ranks very low when it comes to support for basic health care for low-income children, capping eligibility at 200% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL), or about $44,700 per year for a family of four. Forty-two states have higher income eligibility limits than Virginia, providing greater help to their low-income residents. Last year efforts were made to expand FAMIS eligibility to additional children made it through the Senate but failed in the House. As the General Assembly appropriates funds during its budgeting process in 2012, the Center will continue to encourage the protection of vulnerable children through their eligibility for FAMIS health care coverage.

TANF Reimbursement
The Center also has a history of protecting vulnerable Virginians by advocating for TANF benefits which are designed to assist families’ transition to independence from government assistance through employment. Program benefits include reimbursements to families using childcare services, and last year there were legislative efforts to direct the Department of Social Services (DSS) to identify strategies to increase reimbursement rates for childcare services for enrolled families. Though the bill was defeated in the House Health, Welfare, and Institutions Subcommittee the chairman of the committee agreed to send a letter to DSS requesting them to identify the strategies that would increase reimbursement rates.

In the upcoming session the Center will prioritize the needs of working and vulnerable families in Virginia by advocating for budget appropriations that reflect the moral priorities of the faith community throughout the state.

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