Lower income households and Black and Latino communities will be hit hard when a confluence of U.S. economic events kick off next week, including a sharp drop in childcare funding, economists, analysts and government officials said.

About 12.4%, some 41 million, of the U.S.'s 333 million people live at or below the poverty line, the Census Bureau calculates, which is set at about $29,678 for a household of two adults and two chidren.

That rate fell to a record low in 2021 thanks to COVID-19 federal support, but has jumped as these programs expired.

Hardline Republicans in the House have rejected a deal the Republican-led House negotiated with U.S. President Joe Biden in May for $1.59 trillion in discretionary spending in fiscal 2024, paving the way for wide swaths of the government to shut down for the fourth time in a decade.

    • BraveSirZaphod
      10•9 months ago

      This is constitutionally required as per the 27th Amendment.

      The optics are gross, admittedly, but it would literally violate the Constitution to suspend their pay. It also does neuter a potential strategy of a coalition of wealthy Congress critters simply doing nothing as an intentional effort to cut off their opponents’ income and pressure their direct personal finances.

      This probably wasn’t a consideration during the drafting of the amendment, but it’s not as if we’re going to be touching the Constitution any time soon, so here we are.