June 15, 2005
CALL TODAY!
Urge your Representatives to Robustly Fund International Assistance for FY 2006
WHY THIS ISSUE IS IMPORTANT: Every year, Congress must decide how much funding critical international assistance programs will receive. These programs help fight devastating diseases such as HIV/AIDS and promote education, health, peacekeeping, and sustainable agriculture. Many of Catholic Relief Services’ worldwide projects that greatly improve the lives of people living in some of the poorest areas of our world depend on U.S. government assistance. The House Appropriations Foreign Operations Subcommittee is scheduled to begin this process for the FY 2006 appropriations bill on Thursday, June 16. Please help us to reach out to members of the Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee (listed below) to encourage them to robustly fund international assistance programs in FY 2006.
BACKGROUND: In support of our mission to follow the Gospel’s call to alleviate human suffering and promote justice throughout the world, CRS joins the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and urges Congress to support the following important funding priorities that will benefit millions of people whose lives and dignity are threatened daily by poverty, disease, natural disasters, conflict and persecution:
- Development Assistance: a $1 billion increase above current spending levels for core development and humanitarian accounts, and $3 billion for the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) with particular attention to the urgent needs in Africa and Latin America.
- Global Health: $3.7 billion for morally appropriate, comprehensive programs to combat global HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases, including $800 million for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.
- Reconstruction and Peace-building: full funding of the President’s requests for the Transition Initiatives account, the Economic Support Fund, International Disaster and Famine Assistance, and Contributions to International Peacekeeping Activities to assist countries devastated by natural disasters and human conflict, especially Sudan, Haiti, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Colombia, Iraq and Afghanistan. This includes $150 million to help the Palestinians build capacity for the peace process and statehood.
- Migration and Refugee Assistance: $982 million for Migration and Refugee Assistance (MRA) and $50 million for Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance (ERMA) to meet the needs of the ever-increasing global refugee population.
- International Development Association: $950 million for the International Development Association (IDA) to enable it to increase critical assistance to the poorest countries.
- Debt Relief: $100 million for debt relief under the ongoing Heavily-Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative and $300 million to support new multilateral debt cancellation.
- Mexico City Policy: Retention of the “Mexico City policy,” which prevents our foreign aid program from being misused to subsidize organizations that perform or promote abortions in developing nations, and the Kemp-Kasten amendment that helps prevent U.S. support of coercive population programs.
TAKE ACTION NOW! Call your Representatives TODAY and urge them to ensure that these lifesaving programs receive the funding they need. Attached is the contact information you will need.
OTHER WAYS YOU CAN HELP: Get involved in the Catholic Campaign Against Global Poverty www.usccb.org/globalpoverty, a joint effort by USCCB and CRS, which encourages Catholics in the United States to learn about the issues of aid, trade and debt, how they affect our brothers and sisters worldwide, and what you can do to advocate for U.S. policies that promote economic and social development for people living in poverty.
For more information, contact:
Tina Rodousakis, Legislative Network Specialist, 1-800-235-2772 x 7462, Trodousa@catholicrelief.org
Fr. Andrew Small, Policy Advisor, International Economic Development, USCCB, (202) 541-3153; asmall@usccb.org
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES LEADERSHIP
Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert (IL-14) Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (CA-08)
Ask to speak with Anthony Reed Ask to speak with Mike Sheehy
Phone: 202-225-2976 Phone: (202) 225-4965
LEADERSHIP – HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE
Rep. Jerry Lewis, Chairman (CA-41) Rep. David Obey (WI-7), Ranking Member
Ask to speak with Carl Kime Ask to speak with Christina Hamilton
Phone: (202) 225-5861 Phone: (202) 225-3365
MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE FOREIGN OPERATIONS APPROPRIATIONS SUBCOMMITEE
Rep. John Carter (TX-31) Rep. Chaka Fattah (PA-02)
Ask to speak with Greg Johnston Ask to speak with Michelle Anderson Lee
Phone: (202) 225-3864 Phone: (2022) 225-4001
Rep. Ander Crenshaw (FL-04) Rep. Jesse Jackson (IL-02)
Ask to speak with John Ariale Ask to speak with Charles Dujon
Phone: (202) 225-2501 Phone: (202) 225-0773
Rep. Mark Kirk (IL-10) Rep. Carolyn Kilpatrick (MI-13)
Ask to speak with Jeannette Windon Ask to speak with Gene Fisher
Phone: (202) 225-4835 Phone: (202) 225-2261
Rep. Joseph Knollenberg (MI-09) Rep. Nita Lowey (NY-18), Ranking Member
Ask to speak with Craig Albright Ask to speak with Chris Bigelow
Phone: (202) 225-5802 Phone: (202) 225-6506
Rep. Jim Kolbe (AZ-08), Chairman Rep. Steven Rothman (NJ-09)
Ask to speak with Kevin Messner Ask to speak with Shelly Stoneman
Phone: (202) 225-2542 Phone: (202) 225-5061
Rep. Dennis Rehberg (MT-AL)
Ask to speak with Erik Iverson
Phone: (202) 225-3211
Rep. Don Sherwood (PA-10)
Ask to speak with John Ormasa
Phone: (202) 225-3731
Rep. John Sweeney (NY-20)
Ask to speak with Jennifer Taylor
Phone: (202) 225-5614
Please remember to let us know about your advocacy efforts! Contact Tina Rodousakis at CRS, 1-800-235-2772 ext. 7462 or email trodousa@crs.org to let her know how your member responded to your request on this critical issue.
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Update:
G7 Agrees on Major New Debt Relief for Poor Countries
June 15, 2005
Congratulations! Due in no small part to the efforts and advocacy of the Catholic Community over the last ten years, and particularly our National Call-In Day of June 2, 2005, we are pleased to share some good news on a new deal for debt cancellation for the some of the world’s poorest people.
Last weekend, the Finance Ministers of the major industrialized countries (the G-7) committed to canceling at least $40 billion of debt owed by poor countries, freeing up substantial new resources for investments in health, education and poverty reduction. This represents a significant victory in the fight against poverty, and your phone calls to U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow helped achieve it.
This new commitment, which is expected to be formally adopted in the next few months, would immediately benefit 18 Heavily-Indebted Poor Countries (HIPCs) and eventually as many as 20 additional HIPCs. The agreement provides each country with full cancellation of debts owed to the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the African Development Bank. Together with earlier agreements to cancel bilateral debts, including 100% of debts owed to the United States, the new agreement will provide the “fresh start” for many poor countries, which the Catholic Church has advocated strongly and consistently over the past ten years.
The world’s richest countries , including the US, will help finance the debt cancellation by providing additional resources to the World Bank and the African Development Bank. The IMF will finance debt relief with its own resources.
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and Catholic Relief Services applaud this new agreement. At the same time, we believe that more can be done. The new resources provided to the international institutions must not come at the expense of existing US development and humanitarian programs. Also, we must ensure fairness to all of the poorest countries by including, as soon as feasible, non-HIPC poor countries struggling with heavy debt burdens.
We will be in touch with you shortly regarding further advocacy on behalf of the world’s poor, particularly in Africa, in connection with the G-8 Summit in Gleneagles, Scotland July 6 - 8. Meanwhile, please join USCCB and CRS in our Catholic Campaign Against Global Poverty. The Campaign provides opportunities for Catholics in the United States to learn about the issues of aid, trade and debt, how they affect our brothers and sisters worldwide, and what you can do to advocate for U.S. policies that promote economic and social development for people living in poverty. Visit www.usccb.org/globalpoverty today for more information.
Stay tuned!
For more information contact: Tina Rodousakis, Legislative Network Specialist, CRS, 1-800-235-2772 x 7462, trodousa@crs.org; Gerry Flood, USCCB, 202 541 3167, gflood@usccb.org; Fr. Andrew Small, OMI, USCCB, 202-541-3153,asmall@usccb.org; Kathy Selvaggio, CRS, 1-800-235-2772 x 7449, kselvaggio@crs.org.
